Better Trail Suspension / Setup

[JoeyD]

I don't rock crawl, mostly just a little fun on the trails or heading to a camping spot. My Xterra was great on trails (IFS for you I guess), but in this if you hit the slightest bump or rut even at low speed it's jarring and passengers are thrown around.

I have a sport S but switched to rubicon suspension which helped a little.

My friend has a new Tacoma and I can't even keep up with him just cruising down trails sometimes.

I'm sure some of this is sway bar, but I'm curious if there are lower cost recommendations?

Not looking to spend a lot, but will also go up to 35"s soon so i might consider a small lift. ~1-2.5 (really I'd probably want to stick with stock height but unlikely with wanting to change things up)

TIA.

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[jeepstertim]

I really didn't like my JTR Fox shocks and found them far too soft. Looking for a cost effective improvement, I ended up with the Ironman Foam Cell Pro (try Ironman 4x4 America | Off-Road Parts & Accessories ). This combined with a 1.5 level in the front and a .75 in the rear has got me a Jeep that rides well and is perfect for my use.

Ironman are an Australian company and highly regarded in the off road Landcruiser, Lexus, Nissan world.

Not convinced the sway bar has that much to do with it as I can detect no discernable improvement in ride when mine is disconnected. If it's a route you want to go down, I had after market quick disconnects on my JK.

You don't say if you drop tyre pressures but it's the 1st thing I do, transforms the comfort.

A friend runs a Xterra in the dunes here, really quite capable.

 

[Jtschnel]

I personally have found disconnecting the sway bar of our 2020 Gladiator Rubicon provides for a better ride on most trails, not smooth but better. We also have 37's and a 3 1/2" MetalCloak GameChanger lift which also helps

As previously mentioned, tire pressure makes a big difference, not only in ride but also crawling capabilities. We lower ours from 37 psi to 15 for trails. For more aggressive obstacles we'll go down to 12. A little worried going below that as we don't have bead lock rims.

 

[bleda2002]

Bigger tires, lower pressure, lift to avoid the bump stops and disconnect the sway bar to improve ride. Tires at 15 or less psi will really soften up the ride more than anything else and let you carry way more speed over the same rough sections.

 

[Pescatoral Pursuit]

You may need more up travel in your suspension.

I have 4" of up travel along with adjustable digressive shocks which are still a little harsh on washboard roads but really shine on light whoops and turns.

 

[ChrisNLA]

Do you have sway bar disconnects?

There is a very big difference it the roughness of a trail ride with disconnect vs. connected.

I disconnect mine even if I'm on a forest service fire road (Apex Lynx, just turn the knob) and I can motivate down a trail pretty quick. Stock Sport Max Tow suspension with a spacer in the front.

 

[Huhnowwhat]

Honestly, I've found it to be a combination of up travel and shocks. The more up travel, the more time shocks have to dissipate the energy, and high quality tunable shocks make a huge difference.

 

[Gvsukids]

Honestly, I've found it to be a combination of up travel and shocks. The more up travel, the more time shocks have to dissipate the energy, and high quality tunable shocks make a huge difference.

What is needed for more up travel? I have 1.5" springs and shocks. But I have a winch that lowers the front bumper.

 

[Wheelin98TJ]

What is needed for more up travel? I have 1.5" springs and shocks. But I have a winch that lowers the front bumper.

Bumpstops are what normally stop the uptravel.

For more uptravel, you need more lift or less bumpstop.

If the tires or shocks are the limiting factor in uptravel, then you need cut fenders or relocated shock mounts for more uptravel.

Do you still have stock bumpstops, or did you extend them with the lift springs?

Have you tested your travel? If so, are you able to stuff the axle up to the bumpstops?

 

[Gvsukids]

Do you still have stock bumpstops, or did you extend them with the lift springs?

Have you tested your travel? If so, are you able to stuff the axle up to the bumpstops?

I have the metalcloak bump stops without any extensions. I can stuff the tires. As I can hit the stops, I'm looking to swap the Rancho adjustable shocks with Bilstein 5100.

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