rear lift?

[frumaker]

2009 H3 with Adventure package, 17x9 steelies with 33x12.50 mickey's

I have the torsion lift in the front and the rear is stock. I have added a bit of weight between the roof rack, steel wheelsand bigger spare tire. so now the back end is a bit lower. also, i hit some heavy trails and my tires tucked so far in the rear fender, the fender partially popped off. i am looking for ideas to get the back end a little higher. i am not opposed to a stiffer ride. i'm more concerned about the back at least being level with the front, even higher in the rear is fine, and i also want to make sure the tires don't pop the fenders again.

i have looked into the rear shackles, rear add aleaf, and SOA conversion. I have not been able to find constant feedback. some say the shackles can flatten the leafs and cause problems and others say it's great. i have heard some say the add a leaf actually doesn't lift the rear. as for the SOA, well...i don't know if that will put the rear too high and how hard it is for a home garage project.

also, what are the thoughts on the extended front bump stops in the front since i did the torsion lift.

any help is greatly appreciated.

 

[cgalpha08]

If i were to do this, i would go with the add a leaf. Speedy did the add a leaf with a full size main leaf and it worked apparently so that's what i would go with

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Tapatalk 2

 

[jakesz28]

A full length second leaf spring looks like the way to go when adding weight. Bebe talks about this in the spring over thread. A overload won't do any thing. These are pretty soft for a good ride. If money isn't a problem find a good spring company that can do the military wrapped second leaf. If budget is a issue follow babe's soa leaf spring mod without the soa conversion.

 

[4speedfunk]

With a heavy spare, steel bumper, and tools...you'll need more spring. I too think Speedy's full-length #2 spring is the way to go. However, by the time I saw his thread, I had already ordered some cheapo add-a-leafs...and they seem to be working pretty good so far. I bought some "long" ones for Colorado/Canyon applications off Fleabay. The only issue is that they came with the hole right in the middle of them...instead of offset like the factory springs. So, I drilled new holes about 1-1/2" away, and they snuggle up nicely just below the #3 spring. They added about 2" of lift, and were only $88 shipped. The ride is firmer than stock but, not harsh like other add-a-leafs I've used on past vehicles. I'm also running a SOA...but my guess is that either of these AAL's would give you the stance you're after, while keeping the stock SUA mounting. Best of all...it only takes an hour to install them. I plan to do Speedy's spring in the future, as these Fleabay versions do nothing for the "reverse bending" that occurs at the far ends of the main springs.

BTW...The SOA by itself adds a whopping 6" of lift to the rear. So plan on doing some extensive front lifting or additional rear spring work (to lower it). Most SOA rigs I've seen are either Rancho equipped on the front, or have major front axle work done to them. I have only seen one SOA H3 running a stock IFS, and it sat quite high in the rear and looked very goofy.

 

[Bigunit]

I think I'm due for a butt lift! ...and I'm not talking for the T!

 

[Xlr8n]

Another vote for the SpeedyBebe mod. It seems to be the only true 'fix' for the sagging stock pack.

 

[SC_Hummer_Guy]

If an SOA was done, would the new packs from Rancho be okay? Or would a different pack be required?

With a 4" rancho up front of course!

Sorry to jack the thread.

 

[kflips]

Can someone provide the link to speedy's #2 spring fix? Missed that one

 

[08SolarFlareH3]

Can someone provide the link to speedy's #2 spring fix? Missed that one

http://www.hummer4x4offroad.com/for...-Boy-Howdy-Story&p=53652&viewfull=1#post53652

 

[H3nightrod]

Why not air bags to help with extra weight?

 

[backcountryislife]

Why not air bags to help with extra weight?

Because airbags are only good for on road use. They're not made to stretch the amount that flex requires. Even if they did, and you could just run them open/ no inflation when off road... you want the proper spring preload for the weight you've got.

Airbags are very ideal for a lighter vehicle, that you'll throw a bunch of weight on from time to time, so you can maintain proper spring rate for unloaded, but add PSI when loaded.

For something like this, when we need to get up a more rugged road, we run the two lines as one, so it can flex some...
(we run both lines off a single input to a T, then for highway we have a valve on one side of the T, but when offroad, we open that valve which allows air to transfer from one side to the other.)

It's ok for this purpose, but FAR from ideal for a true offroad truck.

 

[alrock]

I'll be doing the full length spring mod soon.

 

[4speedfunk]

If an SOA was done, would the new packs from Rancho be okay? Or would a different pack be required? With a 4" rancho up front of course!

I think you would want to use the stock spring pack with the SOA...and even that might be too high. Check out Bebe's original SOA where she used some Tahoe springs to combat this problem. The Rancho springs give 4" of lift which, coupled with 6" for the SO mod would equal a total of 10"...way too much. I would start by using a 4" Rancho in the front, then do the SOA with stock springs, then see where you're at. You might have to chop the front hangers off and weld-on some smaller ones to get the rear low enough to match the front. GM's "Moab" truck used an arrangement something similar to this.