How to Deal With Your Wallowing Ute When Carrying Heavy Loads
If you're used to using your four-wheel-drive ute to carry around a lot of weight, you may not be too happy with the way that the vehicle handles in these situations. You may feel as if it is floating over the road to a certain extent, or that the rear tends to be sagging as opposed to the front. Conventional wisdom may tell you that you need to have inflatable airbags inserted, to level out the suspension under all circumstances. However, there may be a simpler solution.
Specialist Springs
Those inflatable airbags can be somewhat difficult to deal with and need a certain amount of maintenance as time goes by. If you're not careful, the bags can rupture and are certainly a hassle to pump up when things start to get out of hand again. It's possible to fit specialised springs into the chassis, to provide a much better result and with far less hassle.
These springs can come in two different models, one of which is designed for more rugged environments, with the other suitable for the transportation of heavy loads on a regular basis. These solutions are available in either one or two-piece versions.
How to Fit
If you're looking to reduce body roll on your ute or eliminate that rear end sag, these solutions can be fitted in a relatively short amount of time.
You first need to jack up the vehicle and let it sit on axle stands. Make sure that the rear axle is at full suspension travel, so that you can access the installation point. Locate the bump stops on the chassis just about the axle and remove them. Put one part of the two-piece specialist spring into the chassis in place of the bump stop, being careful to replace any spacers if you have them fitted.
The other half of the spring fits into the lower bracket, also with any spacers if you should have any. The bracket then attaches to the rear axle above the leaf springs. You need to be careful to tighten these correctly and apply some locking fluid if needed for full security.
Finishing Off
Finally, just make sure that everything is in alignment when you have done both sides and do a visual check to see that both parts of the spring system are compressing smoothly and effectively.
Ideal for You
You should be able to go about your daily routines without any wallowing, sagging or general mishandling. Have a word with your suspension supplier to see if this type of system could fit onto your particular ute.