What suspension would you recommend?

[Quinny34]

Medium upwards for a diesel... light springs would sag more than a 1975 Miss Gangbang award winners.... well... you get the drift....

Mediums with no winch or very lite winch..

Heavy with winch or dual battery...

Just my opinion....

[Jack S]

wow there is fare bit of difference between the engines weight. guess ill be looking at the medium to heavy duty springs for the front than....

This is what i got quoted today for a full 2" EFS kit consisting of:
- light duty coils (will ned to look at medium duty)
- elite shocks and struts
- leaf springs (weight 250kg to GMV)
- new greasible shackles
- U-bolts
- bushes
- installation
- wheel alignment

Comming to a total of $1900....

Just wondering how this price stands up to what others have been quoted or installed???

[turbodiesel]

Thanks for the info guys, This is something i will look back to for ref hopefully very soon.
But one Q i have, What would it be best to put on the back end of my ute as i have an alloy tray??
Most of the time it is empty for everyday driving, but on a trip it could have anywhere up to 500kg loaded on..

[Jack S]

i havent actually got a suspension lift yet, because still looking into one but ive done a 'F' load of research...

saying that here is my advice: because the majority of the time you got hardly any weight on the back probly light duty springs would do you fine, if you go anything else without weight in tray it will bounce you out of cab! yet you will need to get air bags for when you do have a load on to take this extra weight, just pump up the bags and way you go! you can also have the bags pumped up when you dont have a load if you just bit more height in the back....

sorry if i am totally but i am sure someone will sa if i was or not and give you the correct answer!
Hope that was helpful!

[Quinny34]

Airbags will do as described but will also limit of road travel of the suspension, if you get the rear springs reset from a reputable suspension place, your empty ride will be softer and the factory springs are fine up to and above 500kgs for trips away etc... Thats all I run and I have a steel tray.

I'll be looing t0 add another secondary leaf for 3 reasons...

A tad more hieght, 20 - 30mm...

A tad more travel as above...

A bit more load capacity under heavy loads 500 upwards...

In reality the only time this extra spring will come into play will be under load...

[Jack S]

yes re-setting is another option yet this wont last as long compared to getting now springs. Re-set springs are prone to sagging at a much higher rate. Also bare in-mind that re-setting is dependant on what condition your springs are currently in!

Anyone want to comment on my above post to do with the quoted EFS kit......lol

[Quinny34]

Jack S, Price seems okay... I got the TD's, Dobinsons, shackles and pins, springs reset for $2100 - $2200 ... But diferent brands so I cant really say... Its certainly not extreme...

[Jack S]

yes well the tough dog kit i got quoted, was for installation and everything which came to $1600. Extremely good price ive been told! but still deciding between the EFS and Tough Dog, now been told that blistein shocks are great and just mix and match brands for everything else..

so still undecided on what ill actually do!
At the end i just got to make my mind up i guess...

[Quinny34]

No matter what you get it will work well for you and your requirements... most of the guys who have responded on both threads do a lot more extreme work than you've stated you'll be doing...

TD and Billies I can vouch for personally. EFS I've heard good stories about...

I'd be buying on cost over quality if I was you... If you where giving the ute more abuse I'd be going quality over cost.

[crosssport]

Jack S,
I can't recommend the EFS suspension highly enough, and value for money aswell.
I have arb winch bar and winch, hid driving lights and dual batteries, also in the rear I have 140litre long range tank, outback roller draws and 50 litre fridge.
Here's what I'm running:
Front: EFS coils 18mm part no: TPR-104HDE
Front struts: Ironman adjustable part no: 12710GR
Extra 10mm spacer on front struts part no: HILFR10
Rear Springs: EFS 300kg constant part no: THX-08
Rear shocks: EFS Elite part number: 36-5521S

I'm running 265/75/16 wheels and tyres and it sits great, cv angles fine but I wouldn't try for any higher. Rides and handles great, heaps better than standard. I used the Ironman struts as they are adjustable and I fitted an extra 10mm spacer to them for that little extra lift.
The setup has been on for a couple of months now and has settled and only came down 3-4 mm. The EFS coils are much better than most as they use 18mm wire on the HDE springs, most if not all other brands only use 17mm wire.
The quote you got is pretty good seeing your including greasable shackles.
Kit as above comes to about $1400 then you have fitting and wheel alignment on top of that.

PM me if you would like any more info on this setup.

Shane

[Alby]

No matter what you get it will work well for you and your requirements... most of the guys who have responded on both threads do a lot more extreme work than you've stated you'll be doing...

TD and Billies I can vouch for personally. EFS I've heard good stories about...

I'd be buying on cost over quality if I was you... If you where giving the ute more abuse I'd be going quality over cost.

Quinny has nailed it for you Jack. Listen to what he has said and just do it! because this type of debate will go on indefinately and you will be no better off. It's a bit of a Holden V Ford argument .
Only other recommendation is choose the system that you an get local backup and service at apricepoint you are happy with.

[Jack S]

yes i realise i was never going to get a perfect straight answer because everyone has there own opinion and likes different brands....
saying that i just wanted to know what people use and have had less troubles with.

Well with both tough dog and EFS i can get great service locally (well 40 min away).

So with what Quinny said about cost over quality than tough dog would be the way to go at $1600 over EFS at $1900. Yet i still have a good quality gear in the tough dog brand?

[rodw]

Hmm, I thought TD's were a cut above EFS when I did my research. Go with the cheapest option mate.

[WinM70]

My mate had the full EFS kit installed and seems to be more than happy with it ($1850 fitted i think) but I havent driven the vehicle so cant really comment,
personally I will stay away from the TD struts / shocks as a mate has had nothing but trouble with them and has had hassles with after sales service but this could simply be a one off.
Im thinking of the mix and match option to build my own kit.

[Jack S]

yes well with the researchg and guys ive talked to ive got the impression that tough dog are just above EFS and alot of other brands.. but you heard good and bad stories about every brand and you cant always base your decision on whjat you hear!

Okay so if i wanted to match bilsteins shocks and struts with tough dog, is that the way to go or is there another brand i should match billies with?

Also does anyone have a price on billie shocks and struts?

[Batman]

Jack,

For Bilsteins don't pay more than $560 for the front, $450 for the rear. In my opinion they are the go.

You can use std springs, and machine another groove above the top one for lift.

You can get the rear springs reset.

Buy the cheapest set of springs from a reputable supplier to the spec you want. For example front iron man springs (~$160), ironman rear springs (~$460).

Fit them yourself and get a wheel alignment.

Steve

[WinM70]

Bilsteins here for $485 for the fronts and $395 for the rears including free freight............
http://www.4wddirect.com.au/cgi-bin/sho ... tegory=TH4

Cheers,
Lee.

[Jack S]

THANKS VERY MUCH TO ALL THE GUYS FOR THERE OPINION, HAVE BEEN A GREAT HAND!

so seeing that i want the best ride for on road, would the billies be the best brand for this?
even if the $$$ is a tad extra....

[RokitRyder]

Hey Davo,

Where did you see that special on the EFS kit you mentioned on page one last month? and is it still available? very keen on the EFS gear as i had it on my 40 series and was pretty chuffed with it.\

Thanks mate.

[daveo]

Hey Davo,

Where did you see that special on the EFS kit you mentioned on page one last month? and is it still available? very keen on the EFS gear as i had it on my 40 series and was pretty chuffed with it.\

Thanks mate.

the quote was from Southern Cross 4x4 who are based on the Gold Coast. Think that they had advertised on the Outerlimits forum, was about 6 weeks ago that i got the quote.

Southern Cross 4x4 40mm EFS kit
2x leafs 300kg
2x coils 90-120kg
2x rear shocks
2x struts
U bolt kit
Bush kit
New greasable shackles
$1350 supply only or we can fit the kit for you for $1700

PM me if you want the contact details.