Ride quality of coilovers vs regular coil springs

WJCO

Meme King
For those of you that run coilovers and still use your Jeeps a decent amount of time on the pavement, is the ride quality still decent? I'll admit I don't know much at all about coilovers but if I decide to build up the JT, I'm going to go big and do it once. With that being said, this truck is still used for long road trips and my family nor I would appreciate the extra cost spending if the ride isn't nice.

Once I do this, I'll be going 40s so I'm probably going to be running 5-6 inches of lift. I don't want to regret getting coil springs and wish I'd gone coilovers. And I don't want to get coilovers and then wish I had just gone with regular springs.

I understand the benefits off-road and understand the extra maintenance with coilovers. My main question is ride quality on longer trips on the highway.

I will likely do bolt ons and I will definitely do long arms.
 

CalSgt

Hooked
Has anyone ran/noticed a big difference in standard adjustable arms vs long arms with the evo bolt on coil overs,In regards to ride quality? Or have done bolt ons without doing all 8 control arms? I know wheel travel is a pretty big difference with the long arms.

Sent from my HD1905 using WAYALIFE mobile app

I went straight to CO and LA at the same time so no experience with the CO and standard length arms but, I can say my factory CA mounts on the frame and axle were damaged pretty good and looked like they would start to crack/break soon so it was worth while to replace/repair everything while I was in there.
 
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benatc1

Hooked
I'm pretty sure I've seen a couple people post that they noticed a difference after installing the long arms but I can't find the posts. In the meantime, here is some feedback from people that have done it:


https://wayalife.com/showthread.php...ig-this-week?p=1256816&viewfull=1#post1256816





https://wayalife.com/showthread.php...mp-Coilovers?p=1154062&viewfull=1#post1154062





https://wayalife.com/showthread.php...mp-Coilovers?p=1154578&viewfull=1#post1154578
I appreciate you pulling all that together
I went straight to CO and LA at the same time so no experience with the CO and standard length arms but, I can say my factory CA mounts on the frame and axle were damaged pretty good and looked like they would start to crack/break soon so it was worth while to replace/repair everything while I was in there.
That's a good point, my mounts are kinda beat up too. Would love to be able to jump right to it all now, but the cost is the thing. But at the same time I could do an enforcer, be happy, and the. Probably eventually want the CO/LA and now I've spent even more lol

Sent from my HD1905 using WAYALIFE mobile app
 
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CalSgt

Hooked
I appreciate you pulling all that togetherThat's a good point, my mounts are kinda beat up too. Would love to be able to jump right to it all now, but the cost is the thing. But at the same time I could do an enforcer, be happy, and the. Probably eventually want the CO/LA and now I've spent even more lol

Sent from my HD1905 using WAYALIFE mobile app

I did the enforcer stage? (the one with lower front CA's and adjustable trackbars only) for a while and it is good stuff, my only complaint falls in the buy once cry once category. The $1500 bucks I spent on the low level enforcer kit was 19% of the total cost of what I really wanted which was the CO's & LA's. I was able to sell the enforcer kit for $700 which helped offset the cost a bit...
 
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WJCO

Meme King
my only complaint falls in the buy once cry once category. The $1500 bucks I spent on the low level enforcer kit was 19% of the total cost of what I really wanted which was the CO's & LA's. .

This is where I don't want to be. Fucking Jeeps....
 
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benatc1

Hooked
I did the enforcer stage? (the one with lower front CA's and adjustable trackbars only) for a while and it is good stuff, my only complaint falls in the buy once cry once category. The $1500 bucks I spent on the low level enforcer kit was 19% of the total cost of what I really wanted which was the CO's & LA's. I was able to sell the enforcer kit for $700 which helped offset the cost a bit...
This is where I don't want to be. Fucking Jeeps....
Yea I hear you both, done that before and looking back it's pricy. I have the rancho 2" now so it's fine for a bit longer. I'll likely keep plugging ahead and do it right. Wife just can't handle spending that much at once, so maybe I'll just slowly buy pieces of the the c/o kit haha.

Sent from my HD1905 using WAYALIFE mobile app
 
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CalSgt

Hooked
Yea I hear you both, done that before and looking back it's pricy. I have the rancho 2" now so it's fine for a bit longer. I'll likely keep plugging ahead and do it right. Wife just can't handle spending that much at once, so maybe I'll just slowly buy pieces of the the c/o kit haha.

Sent from my HD1905 using WAYALIFE mobile app

I bought mine on a 0% interest credit line so I had 6 months to get it paid for...
 
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jesse3638

Hooked
I appreciate you pulling all that togetherThat's a good point, my mounts are kinda beat up too. Would love to be able to jump right to it all now, but the cost is the thing. But at the same time I could do an enforcer, be happy, and the. Probably eventually want the CO/LA and now I've spent even more lol

Sent from my HD1905 using WAYALIFE mobile app
Yeah as mentioned buy once cry once. I knew I'd want to go long arms so that's what I did in the beginning.
Yea I hear you both, done that before and looking back it's pricy. I have the rancho 2" now so it's fine for a bit longer. I'll likely keep plugging ahead and do it right. Wife just can't handle spending that much at once, so maybe I'll just slowly buy pieces of the the c/o kit haha.

Sent from my HD1905 using WAYALIFE mobile app
Easy fix for that. Take her offroading and drive like a dip shit and hit every hole and bump. Make the trip as uncomfortable as possible. Tell her long arms and C/O's will make if far more comfortable....haha.

After the whiskey wanderlust when my 5100's faded out in about 10 mins my wife was on board with suspension upgrades.

Sent from my SM-G991U using WAYALIFE mobile app
 
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benatc1

Hooked
I bought mine on a 0% interest credit line so I had 6 months to get it paid for...

That's not a bad way to go about it, gotta be 0%

Yeah as mentioned buy once cry once. I knew I'd want to go long arms so that's what I did in the beginning.Easy fix for that. Take her offroading and drive like a dip shit and hit every hole and bump. Make the trip as uncomfortable as possible. Tell her long arms and C/O's will make if far more comfortable....haha.

After the whiskey wanderlust when my 5100's faded out in about 10 mins my wife was on board with suspension upgrades.

Sent from my SM-G991U using WAYALIFE mobile app

I feel like I've had these same conversations so, I think the best tact will be a smoother ride for the baby haha

Sent from my HD1905 using WAYALIFE mobile app
 
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JAGS

Hooked
I appreciate you pulling all that togetherThat's a good point, my mounts are kinda beat up too. Would love to be able to jump right to it all now, but the cost is the thing. But at the same time I could do an enforcer, be happy, and the. Probably eventually want the CO/LA and now I've spent even more lol

Sent from my HD1905 using WAYALIFE mobile app

Hey Ben. This is literally what I overthink. Combined with....I have no time to wheel, but in another year my kids will be off to college, so do I spend now, buy less like the enforcer and 2.5s but be happy, or wait another year to do the whole damn thing and see where life is at. [emoji30]
 
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JAGS

Hooked
I did the enforcer stage? (the one with lower front CA's and adjustable trackbars only) for a while and it is good stuff, my only complaint falls in the buy once cry once category. The $1500 bucks I spent on the low level enforcer kit was 19% of the total cost of what I really wanted which was the CO's & LA's. I was able to sell the enforcer kit for $700 which helped offset the cost a bit...

This is where I don't want to be. Fucking Jeeps....

Yup. This. Though I can also say CO/LA is a lot more than I need.
 
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benatc1

Hooked
Hey Ben. This is literally what I overthink. Combined with....I have no time to wheel, but in another year my kids will be off to college, so do I spend now, buy less like the enforcer and 2.5s but be happy, or wait another year to do the whole damn thing and see where life is at. [emoji30]
Jason, hope you guys are well, crazy off to college next year.. But in hear ya, it's a big cost but even enforcer with kings is going to cost 5k+ so at that point I can't see spending that when it's not ultimately what I want lol. Never ending

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JAGS

Hooked
Jason, hope you guys are well, crazy off to college next year.. But in hear ya, it's a big cost but even enforcer with kings is going to cost 5k+ so at that point I can't see spending that when it's not ultimately what I want lol. Never ending

Sent from my HD1905 using WAYALIFE mobile app

Seniors next school year. So year after that. But a year from now we’ll know where they’re going. [emoji33]

I’m on the same thought process. Cost of components is not that much more, but cost of install on a weld in LA kits adds up to a bit more.
 
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Weebz

Caught the Bug
I meant to address this in my response but forgot - I read a lot of comments about the Kings being noisy which is primarily due to the sliders and/or the springs not indexed. I went with the AGM sliders for my install and I can say that they are completely silent. I know they are stupid expensive for what they are, but simply for my piece of mind the expenditure was worth it. :twocents:
Although I didn’t spend the extra coin on the AGM sliders, my kings are quiet. I have been chasing a noisy squeak but I figured that out and it had nothing to do with CO.
 
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Weebz

Caught the Bug
Has anyone ran/noticed a big difference in standard adjustable arms vs long arms with the evo bolt on coil overs,In regards to ride quality? Or have done bolt ons without doing all 8 control arms? I know wheel travel is a pretty big difference with the long arms.

Sent from my HD1905 using WAYALIFE mobile app
I ran both and honestly my ride quality never really changed except at speed over bumps. General around town I couldn’t tell a difference. There is however a world of difference while wheeling. I would not hesitate to make that move. I spent a lot of change on Core Arms to only turn right around and go long arm.
 
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benatc1

Hooked
Seniors next school year. So year after that. But a year from now we’ll know where they’re going. [emoji33]

I’m on the same thought process. Cost of components is not that much more, but cost of install on a weld in LA kits adds up to a bit more.
That's still crazy though, seems like it's still cheaper in the long run to just go all in, but still a big pop
 
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benatc1

Hooked
I ran both and honestly my ride quality never really changed except at speed over bumps. General around town I couldn’t tell a difference. There is however a world of difference while wheeling. I would not hesitate to make that move. I spent a lot of change on Core Arms to only turn right around and go long arm.
Thanks for the reply, good info. I really don't want to spend half again as much so just be in the same spot that I know I want to be so may just have to go for it
 
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wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
For those of you that run coilovers and still use your Jeeps a decent amount of time on the pavement, is the ride quality still decent? I'll admit I don't know much at all about coilovers but if I decide to build up the JT, I'm going to go big and do it once. With that being said, this truck is still used for long road trips and my family nor I would appreciate the extra cost spending if the ride isn't nice.

Once I do this, I'll be going 40s so I'm probably going to be running 5-6 inches of lift. I don't want to regret getting coil springs and wish I'd gone coilovers. And I don't want to get coilovers and then wish I had just gone with regular springs.

I understand the benefits off-road and understand the extra maintenance with coilovers. My main question is ride quality on longer trips on the highway.

I will likely do bolt ons and I will definitely do long arms.

As I always say, ride quality is 100% subjective and what I think is a nice ride may not being something you think is a nice ride. With that said, it is of my opinion that an old school hydro shock and coil will give you a nicer or should I say, smoother all around daily drive than high end monotube shocks or coilovers. Out on the rocks, they'll perform great too only, without the same amount of travel that you can get from coilovers. Where hydro shocks fall short is in hard and fast driving across the desert. In these conditions, they will fade and fail quickly. I have personally blown a set of hydro shocks in just one wheeling trip. Of course, I have also seen Mel blow a set of fancy monotubes in just one trip too LOL.

With all that said, I personally prefer the feel of coilovers dialed into the way I like and mainly because of how we use our Jeeps. I prefer the firmer sports car like ride on pavement too but understand that it's not for everyone. It is important to note that tires and load range makes a BIG difference in daily driving ride quality. A nice load range C at 35 psi will feel a hell of a lot nicer than a load range E at 28. So, this all needs to be taken into consideration as well.
 
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wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
Has anyone ran/noticed a big difference in standard adjustable arms vs long arms with the evo bolt on coil overs,In regards to ride quality? Or have done bolt ons without doing all 8 control arms? I know wheel travel is a pretty big difference with the long arms.

Sent from my HD1905 using WAYALIFE mobile app
Actually, the amount of travel you get from long arms is a popular misconception. The only thing that determines travel is the length of your shocks. The only reason to install a set of long arms is to correct suspension geometry after installing a taller lift. The longer arms will restore the angle that they sit at ride height and where you feel the most benefit from them is on pavement and driving hard and fast across the desert. This is the same reason why you'd want to install things like a track bar relocation bracket and do a drag link flip as opposed to just installing an adjustable track bar, it helps to correct the geometry of them and this improves roll center and handling.

With that said and depending on how tall you set your ride, you may not feel that much of a difference between factory length arms and long arms. In other words, it may not be worth the extra expense... depending on how tall you set your ride.
 
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benatc1

Hooked
Actually, the amount of travel you get from long arms is a popular misconception. The only thing that determines travel is the length of your shocks. The only reason to install a set of long arms is to correct suspension geometry after installing a taller lift. The longer arms will restore the angle that they sit at ride height and where you feel the most benefit from them is on pavement and driving hard and fast across the desert. This is the same reason why you'd want to install things like a track bar relocation bracket and do a drag link flip as opposed to just installing an adjustable track bar, it helps to correct the geometry of them and this improves roll center and handling.

With that said and depending on how tall you set your ride, you may not feel that much of a difference between factory length arms and long arms. In other words, it may not be worth the extra expense... depending on how tall you set your ride.
I gotcha, so the shock length is what allows the wheel travel, but with all that bring true- the EVO bolt ons say you need the long arms to get to that maximum wheel travel, right? Its Because the coilover is long enough to allow for it? So, You won't get that type of travel with a standard shock, hence needing the limit straps because the length of extended shock.. Realizing the arms aren't what allows the wheel travel, If you were to run evo bolt ons with standard arms you can you achieve the max wheel travel stated or is there a geometry issue? I'm assuming driveline is a issue as well with that droop. I feel like I'm talking in a vortex haha
 
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