Hey yall, im about to move from California to Minnesota.. I have all my.stuff packed in the bed and a rack I built...
It is a total weight of around 1500lbs..
My suspension is sagging quite badly with all the weight.. I know my leafs and shocks have seen lots of miles and are probably in need of replacement.
When I started down the road the truck will.start to sway side.to side because of the weight being taken off the front wheels.. if I slow down a little bit it will stop and go away..

So my question is about how best to spend my money to make it to Minnesota..
I have explored these options.. but I just do not know what would be the best way to solve the issue..




1) replace leaf springs 200$ ea
2) keep leaf springs and add a heavy duty shock like the monroe load leveling shock..100$ ea or the Max_air adjustable shocks 70$ each
3 ) keep exsisting leafs and shocks and add a timbren helper system. 200$
4) get the weight outta the bed and rent a trailer.. 350$
Or say EFF it and dump all my stuff in the landfill but socks, boxers, my dog and .45...

Any advice.. I need to make a decision quickly so I can order parts.. im on a limited budget..
My rig is an 89 sr5 4x4 with a body lift and 33s

 

What hurts you is the body lift and how high your home made rack sits completely changing your center of gravity.

Your fuel mileage with being that high would really drop as well.

My vote would be to go with the trailer it might be more expensive but most likely the best choice while keeping a few hundred pounds in the truck.

If in fact you do have a receiver hitch.

My second choice would be a yard sale!!

Not really knowing just what your moving to only you know what you really need to keep .

Having moved a time or two I find so much stuff never gets unpacked .

Good luck.

 

I do have a receiver on the truck.. thanks for the advice

 

1. Nice looking ride, bro.

2. Well done on the cargo cage/rack construction.

3. I concur with Wyoming9 (and not just because I was born in the great Cowboy state) that the lift is what is screwing you...literally the second I read "...with a body lift and 33s" the words that came to mind were "well there's your problem right there!"

4. Even sans lift and 33s, that's still a lot of weight to be placing in the back of your rig, especially that high up.

Since I live both here in CA and in CO, I drive back and forth frequently (often moving an entire trucks worth of stuff back and forth - work gear and such, which probably equates to about 1,000ish lbs). That said, I don't drive my 'runner...I rent a truck from Enterprise and load THEIR truck to the brim.

I'm no suspension expert, but I do know a thing or two about the aftermath of poorly loaded vehicles and highway speeds. The accidents they cause can be gnarly. Even if you're going 55 (big rig speed), the minute the weight shifts beyond the point of no return, there's nothing within your power to stop where that weight (your belongings, your truck, you AND your dog) wants to go. If you're taking I-70 through Utah and Colorado to get to Minnesota, you do NOT want this event to occur on any of the hundreds of sharp winding turns that you are going to encounter, often with 100+' drops over the edge of the road. Hell, depending on the areodynamics of your setup when it's fully loaded, even if you're doing everything right, a strong enough gust of wind could take you right over the edge (seen that happen right in front of my eyes and have run calls on the like as well).

I'll reserve any advice pertaining to the potential of a suspension repair/upgrade actually helping you, in hopes that someone with more experience and training chimes in. If I were you though (I know how expensive trailer rentals can get and I know what it's like to be on a limited budget), I'd seriously consider the trailer option. How much money you have left in your wallet and bank account won't matter if you're dead.

Depending on your timeline, have a yard sale and/or sell some stuff on Craigslist/eBay and/or donate to your preferred charity what you can afford to do without (you can always purchase the same in the future if you have the need in MN). Any money you raise could help offset the cost of the trailer rental. I'd also check Craigslist for trailers for sale. It may be rare, but I have seen some fairly large (low boy) trailers hit CL for a couple hundred bucks...if you can spot such a deal, buy it, use it to get to MN and then sell it when you get to your new home. *Just a thought.

If any other ideas or options come to mind, I'll chime back in. In the meantime, if you're local to the Orange County area and there's anything I can do to help, feel free to PM me.

Be safe, brother!

 

X2 on the trailer. I would recommend renting a uhaul. probably gonna be a little better maintained than a craigslist special that hasn't had the bearings packed since the trailer was built.

you just fubarred your aerodynamics..now they are like an outhouse. though you did a nice job on the rack.

33's--did you at least re-gear?

 

For the price of a U-Haul trailer its a no-brainer. To make your current situation work, I'd put a sway bar on the back (if not equiped), really good shocks, those load leveling add-a-leafs. Its just not worth it for the $$$.

I think its the stuff on the rack that is really killing you (on top of the 3" body lift). Put that stuff in one of the teeny tiny U-Haul trailers and be done with it. Try not to fill the bed too much past the bed rails. You could get away with a 4x8 enclosed cargo trailer most likely.

EDIT. Don't take the rack off though. Bring it with you to where you are going. It would make a good hunting/camping platform someday. Or at least make it easy to carry some 2x10x16's home from the lumber yard.

 

Look around for a used trailer in good shape, use it and when you get where youre going, sell it if you've no more need for it. It will probably bring what you gave for it when youre done with it.

 

doesn't seem to be sagging that much? I see way worse on a daily basis.

I wouldn't do anything drastic, this is a one time trip. These trucks are light duty and any little change affects performance. Renting a trailer is an idea, but then you have the weight of the trailer PLUS the stuff in it. That will negatively affect braking and acceleration.

I'd just budget a few more hours and drive slower.

 

ZUK MOD! not permanent but ewasy and cheap to do

 

x3 on a trailer. rent a U-Haul and return it once you get into Minnesota. I wouldn't stack any weight over your cab. if your rack was lower, you'd be alright.

 

How much stuff do you think you could get off the top shelf there if you changed the design of the rack a bit so that it removed most of the need for the stuff up top, then extended the rack over your tailgate with the tailgate down. Basically make the gate a bed extension while using the rack as the sides and new gate.. hopefully that made sense. Then trying to stack the heaviest stuff forward and lighter in the back? No idea what kind of time you have to do this but just a thought.

 

Extending the weight further back would only further decrease the weight on the front of the truck, thus increasing the instability. It would make the control problems worse.

Although towing a trailer would slow acceleration and increase braking distance, a properly balanced weight load between the bed of the truck and the trailer (assuming breaks are solid and the engine and transmission are both mechanically sound) would be manageable.

The weight of the trailer would still technically weigh down the rear of the truck and impact the rear suspension, but it would eliminate the weight from being so high, which would hopefully allow the rear suspension to compensate for the weight better.

IMHO, of course...

 

When you rent a trailer yes it is expensive but then so is having the piece of mind if something happens they come rescue you.

Different story if you can buy a used one reasonable go over it real good get the lights fixed wheel bearings and tires in order.

Just remember to have a long enough drop so any trailer rides level.

If you have not been over the mountains I don`t wish that on anyone that has not done it just be careful and please take your time.

 

I vote for the trailer options too. Just to add to what IronsmanMedic said, while you do have some tongue load from the trailer, it is only a fraction of the total weight. If you aren't careful, you can actually load a trailer to give you negative load on the tongue, which can really fubar your handling, if too high. It all depends upon how much weight you put behind the trailer axle.

I moved my wife from Denver to Orange County in her little Matrix. We had that car loaded to the gills and were probably 30-40% over the weight limit in our little UHaul trailer, and still had no problems at all. A trailer greatly enhances the amount of load you can carry, with the only real downside being maneuverability.

 

Doesnt look like its sagging that bad. I had 2100lb of concrete never had the swaying before. As for trailer i would recomand it. I just pulled a 2900lb trailer the other day moving all my stuff And it did good. that or the monroe Air max shocks work really good or the zuk mod does great aswell.

 

a lot of the sway is probably in your tires.

if you can't get a trailer, air up your tires and put heavy stuff low and lighter stuff up above.

i had some BFG baja ta's and the sidewalls were so stiff the shop that mounted them said i could run them flat and not really notice.

either way be careful and hope you have a safe trip...