Front coilover pics

[Vozar]

Alrighty, if your running them show me some pics I have several ideas on how to set them up, but i want to see everone elses setups too. Suggestions and thoughts and comments welcome! Thanks

Matt :smoke:

 

[jasonb]

check out Jefe's setup. It's pretty nice. He has a writeup on it on the forum somewhere... I'm sure he'll chime in here too.

 

[nissanboy]

Get a life matt crawl out from under your truck and wheel it occasionally.

 

[james t]

I thought i had some closeup pics, but i guess not. Ill post anyway to kill bandwidth.

 

[NOTAJP]

Rick has a very unconventional design. The ideal coil-over setup is straight up and down right over the axle or slightly tilted inwards. Building a coil-over suspension is no novice task. The easiest way to set up a coil-over front suspension is build the 4-link and then cycle the suspension to determind min and max length. The spring rates are carefully calculated, often worked out by trial and error. I think sway-a-way has the calculator on their website.

Jefe has a very nice setup. That would deff be the way to build one.

Do a search for Hammer. He's having a shop build a coil-over setup with a Dana 60. There's a lot of pics on his thread as well.

 

[Vozar]

Get a life matt crawl out from under your truck and wheel it occasionally.

Blibbidy Blah Blah Blah, I didnt see u at the tellico run And u better be at the windrock run!!!




I believe i have all the suspension stuff down, im just trying to find a good place to actually mount the coilover. Jefe's get great flex but it too far up into the engine bay for me. I like how the coilover is set up on ricks. Does he just have a hoop coming off the frame that the top of the coilover mounts too? Got any more close up pics?

 

[Jefe]

Here's Ricks:
http://www.explorer4x4.com/tech_transform.html
He's just replaced the shock with a coilover and beefed up the arms. There are many things you have to think about if you mount the coil-over to a control arm though.

EDIT: ON second look, they redid the shock hoop also. . hold on

EDIT2:
Try this:
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=47224

Rick has a very unconventional design.

Unconventional for a front end, maybe. But the baja rigs have been doing their rear 4 links like that for years.

Too far into the engine bay. . bah. . They should be sticking through the hood.

Seriously though. Unless you're going to sacrifice possible flex, the coilover either has to go quite a ways into the engine bay, or be mounted on a control arm for mechanical advantage. (Well, or the third option is massive lift )

 

[Vozar]

Thats the way!! I like it set up like that.

 

[410Fortune]

These guys know about setting up coilovers for articulation, you might find some useful threads over there:
dezertrangers.com

I agree with Jefe, to do it right the coilover hoops should have a brace runnig between them, this x brace has to stradle the engine, so your hoops mine as well go up to the hood level at least, allowing you to put the C/O over the axle and mounted to the beam and or radius arm/ link....

One of the reasons I have seen for mounting them similar to where Rick has his is because you get more travel from a shorter body coilover.....

 

[james t]

One of the reasons I have seen for mounting them similar to where Rick has his is because you get more travel from a shorter body coilover.....

Yup, just also remember that you will need to run a heavier rate coil(s) depending on how far off center of the axle line the coilover is mounted.

 

[FROADER]

I know it's not on a straight axle set up but the here is Paul Bredehoft's upper mounts. About as high as you can go without going through the hood. Actually had to cut a little of the hood away, (it's a fiberglass hood).

 

[410Fortune]

I hope he has solid motor mounts with the clearance between the x member and upper intake plenum! hahaha Pauls Explorer rocks, Winter builds some crazy Shi*

 

[Jefe]

Yup, just also remember that you will need to run a heavier rate coil(s) depending on how far off center of the axle line the coilover is mounted.

As well as stiffer valving.
I've got a 14" travel shock and my spring rates are 300 & 250 lbs-in
Ricks is an 11" travel and his primary is something like 650 with a very soft, shorter secondary

Rick does have more articulation due to the mechanical advantage of placing the shock on the arm. How much of it is usable / needed is up for debate.

 

[Jefe]

I agree with Jefe, to do it right the coilover hoops should have a brace runnig between them, this x brace has to stradle the engine, so your hoops mine as well go up to the hood level at least, allowing you to put the C/O over the axle and mounted to the beam and or radius arm/ link....

I disagree. With how far mine stick up, yes, you need a brace. With Ricks they are fine without a cross brace, as they don't stick much higher than the frame. (well, and they are very beefy)

 

[410Fortune]

Right Jefe, but Rick does not have his centered over the axle, which is fine I guess, but I wonder if he would do it over that waya again?
I see alot of rear end 4 links set up with the coiolvers mounted on the lower link, tons of travel with only a 14-16" coilover, but on the front isnt it better to ahve the C/O mounted close to or on the axle/beam? Just curious, is there a difference?

 

[nissanboy]

why woudl the fron be any different from teh rear in terms of articulation desired. Same purpose for building and that is to flex. So why would it matter where you want the coilover mounted from font to rear? True there is a bit mroe weight up front but tha tweight is easily compensated for by heaveir spring rates.

 

[410Fortune]

Well the rear axle is being dragged (links in front of it) and the front axle has all the links behind it, so maybe something to do with impacting bumps? I dont know thats why I am asking the experts

I plan to run some coilovers up front on my beams, then keep leafs int he back with some resevoir shocks up through the floor, if I get a wild hair I may presue a 4 link rear with C/O's, but from what I have seen and for what I use my truck for leafs should suffice....

 

[nissanboy]

link placement in front of or behind the axle shouldnt matter.

You can run the front axle links forward but it isnt smart cause you have to have really short links and you gotta worry about them smacking rocks. So i cant see that being a reason for not having the coilover on teh link.