'86 Pickup IFS Suspension Help
#1
'86 Pickup IFS Suspension Help
Hey all,
I just picked up an '86 Pickup for a great deal. I don't know too much about lifts, but this truck looks like it has a Trail Master 4" drop bracket lift. This is will be my daily driver / mall crawler. I do some light trail driving, no jumping or heavy mudding.
Anyway, it runs great, but the suspension is pretty rough on the road. My first thought was that I just needed some new shocks to soften up the ride? Bilstein 5100s perhaps? Then I took a look, and saw that I only have about an inch of clearance under all 4 front bump stops which can't be good. Pics below.
The rear leafs don't have a ton of arch, but they aren't flat. They are lifted with a 2" block.
What do I need to do to soften the ride and retain the lift?
Front View of Front
http://lh6.ggpht.com/_FXI2hLBhLDo/S7...ont%20View.jpg
Rear View of Front
http://lh4.ggpht.com/_FXI2hLBhLDo/S7...ear%20View.jpg
Rear View of Rear
http://lh6.ggpht.com/_FXI2hLBhLDo/S7...ear%20View.jpg
I can't get these photos to show up for some reason. Only able to link to them. Maybe someone can edit for me...
I just picked up an '86 Pickup for a great deal. I don't know too much about lifts, but this truck looks like it has a Trail Master 4" drop bracket lift. This is will be my daily driver / mall crawler. I do some light trail driving, no jumping or heavy mudding.
Anyway, it runs great, but the suspension is pretty rough on the road. My first thought was that I just needed some new shocks to soften up the ride? Bilstein 5100s perhaps? Then I took a look, and saw that I only have about an inch of clearance under all 4 front bump stops which can't be good. Pics below.
The rear leafs don't have a ton of arch, but they aren't flat. They are lifted with a 2" block.
What do I need to do to soften the ride and retain the lift?
Front View of Front
http://lh6.ggpht.com/_FXI2hLBhLDo/S7...ont%20View.jpg
Rear View of Front
http://lh4.ggpht.com/_FXI2hLBhLDo/S7...ear%20View.jpg
Rear View of Rear
http://lh6.ggpht.com/_FXI2hLBhLDo/S7...ear%20View.jpg
I can't get these photos to show up for some reason. Only able to link to them. Maybe someone can edit for me...
Last edited by MooneyFWD; 04-05-2010 at 05:53 PM.
#3
Contributing Member
honestly, that looks about right for the front; IFS isn't known for it's wheel travel
you could try and loosen the torsion bars up a few turns though; that may soften the ride some, but the front will also lower a little
but, you may also have after market thicker torsion bars installed, and that could be what's causing the harsh ride
Welcome to the forums!
and I can't edit your pictures, but I can post them for you
Front View of Front
Rear View of Front
Rear View of Rear
you could try and loosen the torsion bars up a few turns though; that may soften the ride some, but the front will also lower a little
but, you may also have after market thicker torsion bars installed, and that could be what's causing the harsh ride
Welcome to the forums!
and I can't edit your pictures, but I can post them for you
Front View of Front
Rear View of Front
Rear View of Rear
Last edited by iamsuperbleeder; 04-05-2010 at 06:05 PM.
#4
#5
honestly, that looks about right for the front; IFS isn't known for it's wheel travel
you could try and loosen the torsion bars up a few turns though; that may soften the ride some, but the front will also lower a little
but, you may also have after market thicker torsion bars installed, and that could be what's causing the harsh ride
Welcome to the forums!
you could try and loosen the torsion bars up a few turns though; that may soften the ride some, but the front will also lower a little
but, you may also have after market thicker torsion bars installed, and that could be what's causing the harsh ride
Welcome to the forums!
I'll have to read up on the torsion bars. I'm not too familiar with them. There are some horizontal Trail Master branded shocks (or what look like shocks) across the front of the suspension.
Trending Topics
#8
#9
#10
Contributing Member
#11
So torsion bars are the most likely culprit? No need for new goodies (shocks)? That's good AND bad b/c I like goodies
#13
#14
#15
Contributing Member
ah okay
see that looks about right as far as clearance goes from the control arm to the bump stops, IMO
personally, what I would do, is take a dial caliper and measure the diameter of your torsion bars; there's a good chance the previous owner installed some aftermarket thicker ones than OEM when they installed the lift
I can't recall what OEM size is off the top of my head; 22 or 23mm I think but most of your aftermarket ones are 25-26mm
#16
ah okay
see that looks about right as far as clearance goes from the control arm to the bump stops, IMO
personally, what I would do, is take a dial caliper and measure the diameter of your torsion bars; there's a good chance the previous owner installed some aftermarket thicker ones than OEM when they installed the lift
I can't recall what OEM size is off the top of my head; 22 or 23mm I think but most of your aftermarket ones are 25-26mm
[/quote]
Pretty good off the top of your head. It is 23mm. Just went out and measured.
see that looks about right as far as clearance goes from the control arm to the bump stops, IMO
personally, what I would do, is take a dial caliper and measure the diameter of your torsion bars; there's a good chance the previous owner installed some aftermarket thicker ones than OEM when they installed the lift
I can't recall what OEM size is off the top of my head; 22 or 23mm I think but most of your aftermarket ones are 25-26mm
[/quote]
Pretty good off the top of your head. It is 23mm. Just went out and measured.
Last edited by MooneyFWD; 04-05-2010 at 06:51 PM.
#17
Contributing Member
yeah that sounds right, lol
23mm you say huh? well, I guess you can sure out a thicker torsion bar then that's stock
could be shocks; a lot of lift kits come with "cheap" shocks
but, it could also be because the truck is so light and small, that it's going to ride, well, like a truck what are you comparing this ride as "rough" to?
23mm you say huh? well, I guess you can sure out a thicker torsion bar then that's stock
could be shocks; a lot of lift kits come with "cheap" shocks
but, it could also be because the truck is so light and small, that it's going to ride, well, like a truck what are you comparing this ride as "rough" to?
#18
yeah that sounds right, lol
23mm you say huh? well, I guess you can sure out a thicker torsion bar then that's stock
could be shocks; a lot of lift kits come with "cheap" shocks
but, it could also be because the truck is so light and small, that it's going to ride, well, like a truck what are you comparing this ride as "rough" to?
23mm you say huh? well, I guess you can sure out a thicker torsion bar then that's stock
could be shocks; a lot of lift kits come with "cheap" shocks
but, it could also be because the truck is so light and small, that it's going to ride, well, like a truck what are you comparing this ride as "rough" to?
Thanks so much for the replies. I may try to loosen the torsion bar a bit. If that doesn't help, I'll shop around for some shocks.
Thanks again.
#19
Registered User
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: San Diego
Posts: 47
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Yep, that is a trailmaster kit all right. Same one came with my truck (yours is less thrashed then mine).
New shocks might help, I put Bilstein 5100s on mine. It helped some. Also put a Rancho steering stabilizer on it.
Something I have noticed fiddling with the torsions on mine (factory).
Too cranked = crappy ride and very little suspension droop.
Too relaxed= crappy ride and suspension bottoming out on the compression bump stops.
Couple of good tutorials floating around here on how to adjust them. Whatever you do, don't try to adjust them while the truck is sitting on the ground. All you will do is strip out the adjusting hardware.
New shocks might help, I put Bilstein 5100s on mine. It helped some. Also put a Rancho steering stabilizer on it.
Something I have noticed fiddling with the torsions on mine (factory).
Too cranked = crappy ride and very little suspension droop.
Too relaxed= crappy ride and suspension bottoming out on the compression bump stops.
Couple of good tutorials floating around here on how to adjust them. Whatever you do, don't try to adjust them while the truck is sitting on the ground. All you will do is strip out the adjusting hardware.
#20
Contributing Member
for <$20, you can get a new set of adjuster bolts from the dealership if the ones on the truck now look pretty rusted up
once they rust in, they tend to break when you start to torque on them, even if you take the weight of the truck off them
ask me how I know