Eco diesel Suspension bottoming out on normal roads

[PackMule]

Casey250 on youtube has a bunch of videos of the JLRD he wheels. In one of the first videos with the new JL, he put a lift on it and noticed the bumpstop was different on the diesel. He suspected something hangs lower in the engine compartment, so Jeep modified the bumpstops for less up-travel to keep the axle from hitting. I'm not sure if he did further research, but it's worth checking out. It also seems like the stock Fox shocks are way too soft in both compression and rebound, at least my stock setup was.

Looks like Casey250 has a lot of videos out there. Do you know which one he referenced it in? Rough date he posted it, or # on the video would be good to research it down.

So, here's info we have on this thread:
- Gruffid has 2-5/8 uptravel on diesel rubicon.
- I have 2-15/16 on diesel rubicon.
- ScottLars has just under 3" on Sport-S diesel
- Renegade estimates he had about 3" on gas rubicon

So, seems as though FCA engineers targeted 3" as the uptravel on all JTs.

I've seen other posts on other threads indicating displeasure the gas rubi springs/shocks were too soft. Rubi's are heavier than other builds. Diesels are heavier still.

My suspicion is even though the static clearance of all builds are at ~3" uptravel, and heavier builds have stiffer springs, that doesn't translate to the same road experience with heavier builds... so the spring rates and or shock tunes on the heavier builds do not absorb the same terrain as the rates and tunes on the lighter builds. The heavier weight seems to compress that residual 3" on more minor bumps than on lighter builds, even with the stiffer springs.

So, us rubi-diesel owners are going to have to look for stiffer aftermarket solutions. Even more so if we are adding either static weight (armor, winches, canopies) or dynamic weight (overlanding, trailering, or payload) to our use of the JT.

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[JeepCares]

maybe this works...

@JeepCares

I’ve seen others do this, so I guess we’ll see if they have anything to comment on.

Thank you for tagging us to bring our attention to this thread. @Gruffid, if you have concerns with your Jeep Gladiator, we recommend visiting your local Jeep dealer to have them take a look. In the event that you make an appointment, please connect with our team via private message for additional support.

Darlene
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[Gulf_coasterHTX]

About 3 1/8” on my diesel sport s with a terraflex 1.5” leveling kit from new terraflex rubber spacer to the metal cup

Also I have never experienced any bottoming out in normal driving

 

[Renegade]

About 3 1/8” on my diesel sport s with a terraflex 1.5” leveling kit from new terraflex rubber spacer to the metal cup

Also I have never experienced any bottoming out in normal driving

How thick is the bump stop spacer?

 

[ScottLars]

How thick is the bump stop spacer?

Is that spacer specific to the diesel? I've been waiting to see if they come out with one for the diesel.

 

[Renegade]

Is that spacer specific to the diesel? I've been waiting to see if they come out with one for the diesel.

The Teraflex 1.5” leveling kit he installed comes with a bump stop spacer. I’m not sure how thick the spacer is. We need to know that to get an accurate measurement of the Sport S stock travel.
Edit: Fount it- it’s 1”. That would mean his would have had 2-5/8” of up-travel before the leveling kit was installed.

 

[Gulf_coasterHTX]

The Teraflex 1.5” leveling kit he installed comes with a bump stop spacer. I’m not sure how thick the spacer is. We need to know that to get an accurate measurement of the Sport S stock travel.
Edit: Fount it- it’s 1”. That would mean his would have had 2-5/8” of up-travel before the leveling kit was installed.

Sorry y’all I didn’t measure that I one terraflex website says it’s an inch

As far as I know the TF kits are for any and all JTs, not specific to trim or options, so I don’t think they will come out with a diesel version. The level kit is just spacers, no springs or shocks so weight shouldn’t matter I guess

https://teraflex.com/shop_items/jt-1-5-performance-spacer-leveling-kit-no-shock-absorbers?vehicle=JT

 

[Gruffid]

So far, it seems like the TL;DR: is that Jeep boned this up regarding putting an effective complete suspension on Diesel Gladiators, owners need to compensate by either getting a Diesel spec lift, or at minimum the TF leveling spacer.
Does that sound about right?

 

[Renegade]

So far, it seems like the TL;DR: is that Jeep boned this up regarding putting an effective complete suspension on Diesel Gladiators, owners need to compensate by either getting a Diesel spec lift, or at minimum the TF leveling spacer.
Does that sound about right?

Or maybe their agenda also included other parameters, like fuel economy, rollover mitigation, etc, and they found what they thought would be a balance. Just maybe...
I guess if I bought a diesel JT and was "bottoming out" regularly I would be unhappy too. This should be an easy enough problem to solve though, and the solution helps with the appearance at the same time. Good luck to all of you.

 

[Gulf_coasterHTX]

So far, it seems like the TL;DR: is that Jeep boned this up regarding putting an effective complete suspension on Diesel Gladiators, owners need to compensate by either getting a Diesel spec lift, or at minimum the TF leveling spacer.
Does that sound about right?

note that if you use the terraflex kit but only install the 1” spacer and not the full 1.5” (kit comes with 1” and 0.5” pucks) your gap will be the same as stock

 

[Renegade]

note that if you use the terraflex kit but only install the 1” spacer and not the full 1.5” (kit comes with 1” and 0.5” pucks) your gap will be the same as stock

You can also buy just the 1” or 1/2” spacers directly from Teraflex if you don’t want/need the full kit. I think I paid $30 shipped for my 1” spacers.

 

[CerOf]

A spacer won’t change anything.
The spring still maintains the same compressed and free length.
You need a spring with a longer (taller) free length.

 

[Renegade]

A spacer won’t change anything.
The spring still maintains the same compressed and free length.
You need a spring with a longer (taller) free length.

The spacer effectively adds preload, and changes the ride height, allowing for more up travel. As long as the coil doesn’t go into bind after adding the spacer (which it shouldn’t with just 1”), you should gain a better ride. It’s basically the same as dialing up another inch of preload on a coilover.

 

[CerOf]

The spacer doesn’t compress the spring at all; thus, it can’t create pre-load.

 

[Renegade]

The spacer doesn’t compress the spring at all; thus, it can’t create pre-load.

That’s not correct. There is some preload on the spring already from the shock limiting the free length. Otherwise, the spring would rattle around when the shock is completely extended. A spacer increases preload and ride height. Spring RATE does not change with a spacer.

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