Who makes a progressive rate, 2" leveling coilspring for a 96 Bro

Hey everyone, I need to replace my balljoints, springs and shocks on my 96 Bronco and i was going with some bigger tires while i'm at it. So i'm looking for anyone that makes a 2" leveling spring with a progressive rate, that will fit my dual shock setup in my Bronco. I have called about every company that makes suspension lifts and it seems no one makes a "progressive" leveling spring.

It seems like everyone makes a static rate leveling spring that would work, but after doing some research i would rather try a progressive spring. Right now i have springs so stiff they just about shake your teeth out. .850 diameter wire springs in a quad shock frontend. 110,000 miles and it's still so stiff you can feel every crack in the road.

There has to be somebody out there that makes them? If not i found a company that would custom build them, but i'm lookin at about $250.

Have you tried rough country?

Hey Super,

You would probably have to get these custom made. I'm with you in wanting a smoother/ softer ride in my Bronc, but the fact is these vehicles were not designed or intended for a soft ride.

If you find the progressive springs or get the custom springs, let me know. I want to lower The Beast and get a little softer ride too.

Good Luck

Yes i did check with Rough Country already. I need to call everyone back again and list all the ones that told me they do not have progressive leveling springs.

Hey Ron, i did contact Coil Spring Specialties out of Kansas and they said they would custom make a set of them for me, but for $250. The have a form to fill out with a bunch of questions.

Excuse my ignorance here but what exactly are "2 inch leveling springs"..?

(does this mean you already have a 2" lift? OR planning on going up 2"?)

(Some unknowns in your post )

And, playing "Devils Advocate", I've never ridden in a early or FS Bronco that rode as you describe.

This would be ******* suspension/steering components. (like ball joints, etc.)

Begs the questions;

Are these current springs some sort of heavy duty aft. market..?

Are you sure the shocks aren't incorrect..? (hard compression/ fast recoil)

"......that will fit my dual shock setup in my Bronco."

Why is this an issue..? Duals are quite common.

You might call Wild Horses 4x4 209 943-0991

The owner there does some suspension/engineering mods & he may be able to direct you to his builder/suppliers. Just a thought >< <'>

you do know that progressive springs are designed for high speed OFF ROAD applications. I would have to side with BB on this one, sounds like if you already have lift coils they are simply too heavy duty for what you want. With the condition of having to replace your ball joints and shocks already that could be amplifying the harshness of the ride.

Bully Bob said:

Excuse my ignorance here but what exactly are "2 inch leveling springs"..?

(does this mean you already have a 2" lift? OR planning on going up 2"?)

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The 2" leveling springs i refer to do raise the front another 2" over stock mainly to offset the weight of extra components up front, or just to add another 2" to get the front level to the rear. Most 4X4 vehicles have a slightly lower front rake from the factory to begin with.
I need to replace the broken springs (top coils) i have along with new ball joints and shocks. I want to get the front back up to a level stance while i'm at it. When i purchased the bronco 10 years ago i got it with 20,000 on the odometer. It has a coil spring wire diameter of .850, compared to most replacement springs that run in the .720 range. It also has airbags which was not a factory option, so the sprngs may also be aftermarket. I'm guessing it was setup for a plow that never was used.

Bully Bob said:

"......that will fit my dual shock setup in my Bronco."Why is this an issue..? Duals are quite common. />/>

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Most of the stock length replacement springs i have found were for single shock setups. Appparently the spring diameter is too large to use with dual shocks and will rub the closer shock.

Bully Bob said:

You might call Wild Horses 4x4 209 943-0991

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Thanks, but i already talked to them last week. They said they had nothing that could help me out. They suggested Jeffs Bronco Graveyard but they don't sell any springs that would work with a dual shock setup. Only single shock setups.

Krafty said:

you do know that progressive springs are designed for high speed OFF ROAD applications.

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I have talked to many Bronco owners that use progressive rate springs and they all love them. Most say the ride is so good that they will never go back to a regular spring again. I stay on the road 99% of the time, so ride comfort is important to me. Unfortunately every person i have talked to about this is using a stock length progressive rate spring. I was hoping to find the same thing, but in a 2" longer spring.

Because the springs have broken and i'm thinking the shocks are worn out too, it has caused my 2 year old Firestone Destination tires to cup really bad. They sound like mud tires now and create a really bad death wobble when slowing hard from highway speeds. So i have decided to replace ball joints, springs, shocks, and shock buckets while i'm at it too. I just figured with having to replace the springs i might as well try to get a smoother ride than i have had for the last 10 years. And with all the research i've done it seems like progressive rate spring could do that for me.

springs are the same for quad shock or not, the shocks are equally spaced on either side of the spring. If you can find a progressive rate spring in stock ride height you could always use a 2" leveling spacer/ block under the coils which would give you the progressive springs with the lift you want.

As for the smoothness of the ride "I just figured with having to replace the springs i might as well try to get a smoother ride than i have had for the last 10 years"

replacing your obviously overly stiff coils with standard lift coils would get you an almost factory feel over the posts you got in there now.

Krafty said:

you could always use a 2" leveling spacer/ block under the coils which would give you the progressive springs with the lift you want.

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I thought about going with a spacer under the spring. They just seemed a little overpriced for what they were. I may have to rethink that now.

If springs are the same for quad shocks or not, than how come 80% of the springs i see online say "not for dual shock suspensions". My guess was that the diameter of the spring was a little larger on those than a dual shock spring. Again, just a guess.

Hmmmm.., I think, as I guessed earlier, all these issues (failures) were caused by runn'n those "stump" springs all these yrs.

2 wheel dr. trucks sit nose down. 4x4's are usually pretty level. Most every stock Bronco I've seen sits pretty level.

If your rear is higher than stock.., maybe PO put beefed up leafs there as well.

You may be well served, as Krafty says, going back to stock (progressive) ..., especially runn'n blacktop. Bigger tires have issues all their own... $-)

Good luck,

B

Hey all,

I'm finding this thread facinating. Much better than the usual questions that have been hashed over a dozen times.

My thought was that Progressive rate springs were wound tighter at the top, (like the old Moog cargo-coils). They allowed a smooth ride on the highway, softening road deflections, while allowing longer spring compression for loads. (still I could be totally wrong with my definition)

Some one on here, in the past commented on finding springs that were "stock" but when installed raised the truck about 2" I think they were from JBGY...but could be wrong.

To address Supers dilema with tires, I have this: All 4x4s need to have the tires rotated 3000 to 5000 miles....fact...no BS. Even if you have all the suspension and steering components in perfect condition, and the alignment in perfect specs. the tires still need to be rotated.

That said, I have found the alignment specs should be altered slightly when larger tires are used. Camber should be as close to 0 as possible, and the toe should be 3/16 to 1/4 in. larger tires want to "spread" more and a little more toe should be added.

The Firestone destination tires themselves could be giving a harsh ride. Super didn't say what type of Destinations he had, but any off road tire will give a harder ride. I myself had to go to a larger rim size to be able to get a good highway tire that was quiet, yet had a 32 or 33" diameter. (285-60-18 Nexen Rodians did the trick, but started to cup at 3000 miles. Rotated to the rear, they smoothed out again in about 500 miles.)

So, Super what type destinations and what size are you running? I'm usually never off road too, and The Beast is actually pretty quiet and smooth. maybe changing the tires and stock springs will get you the ride you want.

Rons beast said:

Some one on here, in the past commented on finding springs that were "stock" but when installed raised the truck about 2" I think they were from JBGY...but could be wrong.

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I talked to JBGY about their regular and 2" lift coil springs. They told me none of their springs they have in stock would work with a dual shock setup. I thought that was strange.

Rons beast said:

So, Super what type destinations and what size are you running?

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I have the Firestone Destination AT's, but in my opinion they don't have a very aggressive tread pattern. 31X10.5/15. But i was thinking of going a little bit bigger this time. 33X12.5/15 General Grabbers. I know thats pushing it, but if have any rubbing, i will do whatever i have to to get it fixed. I never really wanted to lift the bronco when it had low miles, but now that it's got about 115,000, i figure i might as well put some bigger rubber on it for a change. I also put some Ranch shocks on about 5 years ago. I don't even remember the which model, but i did plenty of research at the time and was looking for the softest ride then too. Didn't make a bit of difference either way after i put them on.

This is how it looks now. I'm hoping with new springs, shocks and ball joints, and new tires, it will ride much better. Thanks Ron for that alignment insight. I would like to know exactly how it should be set up with 33's so i can have my tire shop do it right for maximum tire life.

yo supersport36,

http://www.superlift.com/Catalog.asp?P=K379&V=239

1.5" Lift System

Generally, this moderate lift is used to level-up your vehicle, and / or to offset the weight of a winch / bumper or snow plow. Lift is achieved with new progressive rate coil springs that provide the best possible ride quality (Click here for more info on coils). The net lift height you achieve depends on what load-rated springs your vehicle is factory-equipped with and their condition.

Negative camber is corrected by replacing the factory camber bushings, located on top of the upper ball joints. Ford dealers and alignment shops offer replacement camber bushings in set increments of correction up to 2-degrees. Superlift offers adjustable camber bushings with an increased correction range. Generally, this increased range allows the alignment shop to correct camber, and also improve caster angle.

Factory length shock absorbers will bolt-up, but most will top-out prematurely. If rear lift is desired, refer to the Rear Block Kits or Add-A-Leafs sections.

Progressive rate coils - Most coil springs have rates that are constant; if it takes 400 pounds to compress the spring the first one inch, another 400 pounds will compress it the second inch, and so on. With a progressive rate coil, the initial couple of inches of compression requires less rate than the remainder of compression. This improves your "Sunday drive" ride quality, yet rate increase when you're in "Banzi mode". With progressive rate coils the first few coil wraps are more closely spaced than the remaining coils, or the entire spring is slightly conical (cone-like) in shape.

Hey Super,

First you don't need to have a lift to use 33s. There will be just a slight rub on tight turns.

Both the Fireston and General tires have somewhat heavy lugs in the tread, and the rubber compounds are harder to allow the tread to "grab" at dirt and off road conditions. The sidewalls are heaver to support the tread and stabilize the tire when off road. Thus the AT designation. This type of tread will run louder and over time develop cupping on the front tires of 4x4s. That's just the nature of the beast. These tire will simply not give a soft ride. That's why as I stated above I had to get bigger diameter rims to get a tall highway tire that's quiet. I had Falken Zeixs STZs on in a 31/10.50/15 size, but they discontinued the tire. Most all new trucks now have 18 or 19 or even 20 inch rims, so the manufacturers don't bother to make many 15" tires.

As far as the alignment specs: I would ask for 0 camber on both sides and a total toe depends on the width of the tire. The tech should bounce the front a little and physically push the front of the tires out to simulate the road force when driving ahead. Then set the toe. 3/32 to 5/32

I posted pics of The Beast with the 15" Falkens and the new 18" Nexens both with a standard heigth.

Good Luck