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Overlanding, Overweight, Spring Opinions

4K views 25 replies 14 participants last post by  Sicarii 
#1 ·
WF... looking for some opinions.

Ghost is designed as a daily driver that overlands :) We have a 3" lift, 33s, (2013 JKU) etc. We also carry around our Tepui RTT, gear, tire carrier with fuel etc, all over the rear.

I've notice the rear end is sagging (it was not an expensive lift when we bought it) and am wondering what you suggest for spring replacement options - is there a kind that I can't remember the name of for this? (I'm just googling myself in circles)
 
#6 ·
X2 also RK caters to overlanders by using 3.5" triple rates on the back and 2.5" on the fronts. that is what I run and I like the way it handles.
 
#11 ·
OMEs here as well...front 2" and rear 2.25". I had the same problem as you.

Old Man Emu 2.25" Lift Rear Heavy Constant Load (150lbs)/(300lbs) Coil Spring Pair for 07-16 Jeep® Wrangler & Wrangler Unlimited JK

Old Man Emu 2" Lift Front Heavy (90-180lbs)/Light (0-90lbs) Load Coil Spring Pair for 07-15 Jeep® Wrangler & Wrangler Unlimited JK
 
#12 ·
I'll be sure to check the OME ones too.

With the RTT, ORFab carrier (always carrying two 5 gal containers full), plus our gear in footlockers in the cargo, we're certainly overworking the Zone springs.

Not that the 3" Zone lift is bad... just not necessarily rated to the extra weight for Overlanding :)

Thank you for the feedback everyone!
 
#13 ·
I run OME 2618/2619 for a solid 2inch. If you want taller, OME has same coils but longer for the NA market 2618+40mm and 2619+40mm. So, loaded heavily, you would sit at 3+inch.
In terms of how these coils feel to me, I'd say they provide an "elegant" and extremely stable drive compared with the stock JK max tow coils I had before.
 
#15 ·
As a curiosity, how 'soft' do the springs feel?

The zone's are fairly soft, and sleeping in an RTT at high winds can feel like sleeping in a boat. Not completely complaining, just wondering :)
 
#16 ·
I am doing almost the same setup as the OP. We have a tepui tent, and a Gobi rack on our 2-door and the rear is getting pretty squashed. I have a TF leveling kit in there until I can get a better lift.

I was thinking about adding some airbags in the rear in the meantime. The nice thing about this option is that it is adjustable, so you can change it when you have your tent on and gear loaded up, and then bring the pressure back down if you lighten it up for everyday around town stuff. They are really not very expensive (under $100/kit), and the install looks pretty easy although I haven't done it yet.

Just an option to think about. I am going to do a full lift eventually but this might be a good stop-gap.
 
#19 ·
Thank you for your research! The zone springs, if I rock side to side, move a lot. Hence, soft. Also a little unstable feeling around tight corners at higher speeds.


I will also check into airbags. I've usually been a staunch adherer to the theory that stop-gaps are wasted money, but in this case it may be an option.
 
#21 ·
I just put air lift 1000 bags in the back of my stock height 15JKUR. I had added front and reaer bumpers with a tire carrier. The back was about 3/4 lower than the front, pretty much the reverse of factory rake. At 8 PSI I am now 1/2" high again. Rides good. Looking forward to trying it with my overland trailer the end of this month. Didn't want to the drop money on new springs for factory height when I plan on a lift in the spring.
 
#22 ·
I just installed them this weekend in my 2-door Willys. I posted earlier in this thread, but I am running a Gobi Rack and Tepui tent and the stock Willys springs were pretty mushy in the back. I also have a TF leveling kit in there and it created a reverse rake when loaded up. The air springs are relatively easy to put in, I just jacked up the rear at the pumpkin, then put the frame on jack stands and lowered the pumpkin as far as I could and the deflated bags went in pretty easy. The harder part was routing the airlines but that wasn't too bad either. Only strange thing is that on the JK the airbags must be installed upside-down from the instruction manual, nipples up (lol). and it is a little hard to reach the airlines as they come out of the upper spring seats. Also the TF leveling pucks have bumpstop kind of things that have to be cut off and that was a pain with them in place.

Now that it is installed I put about 10psi in them to get a little normal rake back and the handling is MUCH improved. The rear is much more settled over bumps and there is a lot less body lean in corners. It isn't bouncing all around anymore. I was driving the jeep like a sports car up some canyon roads yesterday and it is really nice. I think this was a great solution. I still plan to do stiffer springs when I do a lift but even then I might keep the airbags. Haven't gone offroad yet so I can't comment on that.
 
#23 ·
OME is the only company that offers a variety of spring rates to fine tune your lift to match the weight. Many guys up here that carry RTTs have switched from RK to OME and been very happy about the results.

Mike
 
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