sierra suspension plans

[tjm_tj]

well i just got a sierra yesterday as a runabout to play in whislt the heep is off the road
i went offroad as soon a i got it,
lets just say it's a bit below the required standard in the suspension area.
so i'm thinking front lux springs in the back with a semi oliptic setup(and a talk bar),
as for the front i was thinking of the original rears up front minus a leaf with a shackle reversal.
i'm not inerested in a spring over setup or extra hight as i plan on running a 90% droop setup
i just want flex and i'll cut the body to fit the tyres
what are your thoughts on this setup?

thanks

[germo]

sounds good.
even better to hear someone say they are not afraid to cut guards!!
droop setup should work well for rock crawling and general duties.
keeping it low means it attracts less attention onroad too, as its your run around.
or are these mods after your other thing is on the road!

enjoy ashley

[alien]

go RUF and hilux fronts in rear - however you're going to have issues with shockies....

[bazooked]

go RUF and hilux fronts in rear - however you're going to have issues with shockies....

why?

[alien]

well if its got very little compression and tons of droop its going to be hard to utilise the standard shock mounts, let alone find a suitable shock for the job (one thats valved right)

if im wrong, tell me more cos im here to learn =)

[lay80n]

well if its got very little compression and tons of droop its going to be hard to utilise the standard shock mounts, let alone find a suitable shock for the job (one thats valved right)

if im wrong, tell me more cos im here to learn =)

Well then, guess he will have to make some custom mounts then As for finding a suitable valving, why will that be hard?

Layto....

[Gwagensteve]

OME N76 shocks will love that setup. Yes, mounts will be fabricated.



Why the shackle reverse?? It will make firewall clearance a hassle and has no off road benefit I am aware of. Also SR makes the car's initial compression softer which will create more bottoming out with a low/bumpstopped car.

Otherwise, sounds like a good setup.

Steve.

[tjm_tj]

thanks for the replys lads,
all info is good as i'm new to these leafy things

shock mounts wont be a problem to fab up
i have some 14" bilstiens laying around that i could use for it, unsure if the valving will suit though.

as for the front shackle reversal i was thinking that it would make the front end a bit better for pushing over rocks(i.e. less to get busted and hung up on) , but if it isn't going to perform well then i wouldn't bother with it

i plan on doing these mods asap as i'm over the stock setup....

cutting panels isn't a problem, i find great pleasure in hacking up cars

[Gwagensteve]

SR makes the car try to drive over the top of the axle. It also tends to result in "fangs" hanging down that catch just as badly as the shackles did. If the front mount is pulled up too high towards the chassis, caster becomes unacceptable.

I built a SR car nearly 10 years go and it was good at speed - tracked well, but otherwise there's little advantage.

Steve.

[tjm_tj]

thanks for the info steve

SR canned....

[built4thrashing]

go the RUF. i did and it was so much better to drive and wheel. inboard tyhe rear shocks and lift the front mounts and with lockers and some decent gearing you'll be rather happy

[MUD-PIGSIERRA]

Im running a semi oliptic setup in the rear with RS5117's at the moment but I have purchased some Adjustable RSx9119s to get a better ride hopefully on the road. I have inverted the rear and run higher shock mount towers on the front with all shock mounts now to the diffs instead of the spring plates. My springs almost sit inverted if they were any flatter I have fair amount of up travel but alot of down travel it works well, Im in the process of building a new Anti-wrap bar on the rear I will post pics when I am done. Im running of the idea of the pic posted and keeping with the angle of the drive shaft...

[tjm_tj]

i plan on making a similar setup to prevent axle wrap,
i will be starting the cage and front bar tomorrow. once all the suspension parts have been sourced i will start fabing up all the mounts and anti wrap bar

will post pic's if you guys are interested

[MUD-PIGSIERRA]

Yer I am, always good to see a build up. I have gone the cheapest way possible butchering a Patrol and cruiser panhard bars and running a rose joint for flex to the shackle....

[Rogue Patrol]

Won't the pivot point need to be inline with th front spring mounts?

[lay80n]

Make the bar as long as possible, short bars indece large anti squat. You can remove the hopping caused by wrap, and then get axle hop caused be large anti squat. You do not need to have the bar inline with the spring eyes really, as the shackle, or the slip in the a slip and twist bar will allow for length change. Have you looked at wire style wrap control devices. There was a few guys that built them on pirate, wires running from spring mounts to spring plate mounts. I think that Steve and Greg looking into a wire style wrap control device. There are also single link trac bars, but these rely on the front half of the srping to trianglulate the bar.

Layto....

[alien]

any pics of the wire setups? sounds like an awesome bit of simple engineering... i understand how it works, just want to see it =)

[11_evl]

any pics of the wire setups? sounds like an awesome bit of simple engineering... i understand how it works, just want to see it =)

x2 very interested

i just made up a qik fix to get me back out and about and it was a pita to sort out and strenghten. now when i accelerate it lifts the body about 3 inches on the side the bar is on

[11_evl]

any updates??

[tjm_tj]

been away on holidays, so not much to report. the new rear hangers are welded on and i hope to get the lux springs in today(if a get out to the shed)

[redzook]

if i was ever to have a leaf spring car again the front would be in a shackle reverse configuration

better ride
better handling
less chance of bending springs
better approach and can build it to slide up stuff alot easier then shackles


firewall clearance if your serious about building a decent zuk is not an issue you would be pushing the front diff forward 5+ inches forward anyways so that negates your firewall clearance


caster comon how hard is it to put a couple of perches on a set of diffs
to get the pinion back to the stock angle and the caster back

as for the hilux front springs on the rear of a zuk
wouldnt be my first choice lots of smaller cars with alot thinner flexier leafs out there

[tjm_tj]

yeah, i'm well aware that there are 100 better ways to build a zook but when you have the bits at your desposal and you don't want to spend much coin... this is how it go's. if you have stuff that is better suited for the job your more than welcome to donate it to project syhitzook

[alien]

the hilux fronts in the rear of mine flex incredibly well... 760mm from ground to bottom of tyre with the other 3 wheels on the ground if i remember correctly..

[mick85]

does anyone have a pic of the shackle angle after fitting the hilux fronts in the rear? did you remove the overload leaf when fitting the hilux fronts in the rear and did you remove the overload for the rear zook springs when doing ruf? or are u running 3 leafs in the front and 4 in the rear? lots of questions!!!! whos got pics as well of any mounts done and im sick of my 2 inch lifted springs doing squat.

[built4thrashing]

what is the length of a hilux front? what model are they from?

im keen on this too. but aren't the hilux leaves wider than suzuki?

[nicbeer]

what is the length of a hilux front? what model are they from?

im keen on this too. but aren't the hilux leaves wider than suzuki?

lux are 60mm from memory. not a bolt in to the zook...

[mick85]

so what else has 2 inch lifted springs that will fit the suzuki ubolts and plates?

[VR Rodeo]

so what else has 2 inch lifted springs that will fit the suzuki ubolts and plates?

Go custom length mains, bit more expensive than 2nd hand lux leaves but good flex and easier to fit..

[mick85]

i have so many ideas in my head its not funny for my zook but the extended shackles are starting to annoy me slightly as its not flexing very well at all ... little or no down travel its too stiff.. im going to shortly look at making some major changes.

[tjm_tj]

with the hilux fronts in the rear i had to widen the front spring perch and relocate the rear hanger. then i made 170mm shackles to get a good shackle angle and ride height( stock height). i have just finished putting the rears up front and now i just need to sort out the shackle lenght to match. pic's to come later