Ok let me start off by saying wow... I never thought I would get my ride quality back being so low, best $700 I've spent so far.

So my truck is lowered 5" up front with 3" belltech drop coils and Mcgaughys spindles... needless to say, the ride quality sucks, bumpy and choppy all over - time for something new.

I came across a couple threads with these installed but not too much info on shock length or spring rates (looks like the t-bar/4wd guys have it figured out now too), so I broke out the measuring tape and found the ride hight for the shocks and took some educated guesses on the spring weight and I wasn't too far off.

I ended up using:
Coilover Shock - 4.1" Stroke - HQ Series: Part: # 24149901 with Stud Mount (Comp. 10.43" - Ext. 14.53") (x2 $550)

Trunnion Mount 2.25-2.875": Part #: 90009990 (x2 $40)

Hyperco 800#/in 2.50 ID 10in length Part #: 1810B0800 (x2 $109.20) <--got them from Shock Shop much cheaper than from RideTech

And some nuts and washers from the hardware store (M8 - 1.25 nuts)

Overall the ride is 100x better than before, no longer crashes over bumps and ruts it just floats over them - went for a quick run through the canyon and couldn't believe how well she handled much more composed and was able to hold more speed through the corners. I recommend this to anyone, well worth the money!

It's completely bolt-in don't need to drill or cut anything!
The only thing I think needs to change is the spring rate, maybe 850 - 900# would be better.

on to the pics:





Stock shock mounting bolts





With added nuts.






And I love were the adjuster is, don't have to crawl under the truck anymore, like with qa1's





At ride hight - still have a lot of room for adjustments, I installed at 0 pre-load and it was very close to the same hight as before, went up 4 turns to keep from rubbing too much - might be able to fit a 12" spring with less # and more pre-load to get lower/still retain or improve ride quality? I'll have to think that over - anyone have any input on this?





the truck





a comparison to the old drop coils - according to my bathroom scale shaved about 20 + lbs off total

 

whats the spring rate? may be interested in trading i run the same shocks, length and rate?

 

Truck looks great. Now ya got me rethinking me suspension...

 

Thanks! I seriously recommend coil-overs well worth the money! makes me realize how bad the rear is haha.


Skeet, they are 10" long and 800#

I was a little conservative when ordering the springs I probably need something around 875 - 900#

 

You 2wd guys have so much room

I went with 1000lb springs.

 

Did you have qa1's before with the drop springs?

 

I've been wanting to do this forever. But I think I've decided to just bag.

What are your plans for the rear?

 

Very nice! Thanks for sharing the parts you used and your review. I have been thinking about doing a spindle with a coilover for a bit of adjustability to remove the Hotchkis drop springs I currently have. I have all the measurements I need, just need to find some corner scales to get an accurate weight distribution to pick the spring rate. With your results from 800# and Atomics 1000# on a 4wd, a 900# should be just about right on mine with the extra weight of the supercharger (~100# extra). However, I am interested in your theory of a longer, lower rate spring as one of the things I am after is a bit more front end lift on launch.

 

Had mine on a corner scale and was around 1450 per front corner and 900 on the rears.

 

Not to steal this thread, but Im pretty much dead set on hotchkis front springs( already have) and qa1 single adjustable shocks( about to order).im only planning on driving on the street but want the best combination of handling and ride quality I can get without spending a small fortune. Do you think these would be worth $400 extra and outperform springs and shocks alone? Thanks!