Full rear leaf springs?

[WinRice]

Does anyone have any experience with the full rear leaf springs offered by KORE, Carli or Lorenz? How is the ride compared to stock?



Compared to a Ford or Chevy, I've always felt the Dodge Springs were a little on the firm side, and my better half has been on my back about getting a smoother ride over highway expansion joints. The real problem is the worst expansion joints are the ones leaving our town in either direction.



I currently have the original T-Rex (now KORE) full 2. 5" Fox suspension with the rear leaf packs. The front seems fine, but there seems to be much more 'bounce' from the rear. The only time the rear is smooth is when I have at least 400 lbs over the axle.

 

[Regcabguy]

Replacement rear leafs.

There is Bob4x4 with the carli pack who may comment on his. Also there are members with the Lorenz dual purpose springs. Kore formally would not sell individual suspension springs. That may have changed. Desert Proven or Jason Hughes @ HRC will know. All of the replacement packs are an improvement over the mini-paks from what I've read. You might just need to have your rear shocks revalved softer. That might do it. Much cheaper.

 

[Megadesertdiesel]

when going from stock to full leaf replacement you will get rid of the kick and the ride is very soft and smooth. its kinda like going from a lawn tractor suspension to your granpas caddy.



i have the DP full leaves from Lorenz and they make a huge difference. very soft ride even with 20" wheels. i pulled my 7k lb toyhauler last weekend and it drove great even with the rubber bumps installed between the leaves. when you take the bumps out of the springs you really notice the smooth ride.

 

[Bob4x4]

The Trex had less travel than we have now. Carli will build springs to fit your needs also not just 1 size fits all. I am running a 2 stage spring since I also tow and not just play in the truck. The standard full leaf pack will Give you a great ride when the shocks are set-up correctly.



Bob

 

[CJ8Rockcrawler]

I have the Lorenz Dual Purpose Leafs on my truck and love them. They have really improved the ride. It is awesome offroad and a huge improvement over speed humps. The expansion joints are still felt, but not nearly as much. I think this is a factor of the shock valving as much or more than the springs.

 

[Desert Proven]

The mini pack was designed to be an improvement over stock ride, but a way to still offer the towing and hauling capabilities of a stock vehicle. As such, there's going to be a compromise with it. The full leaf setup will give you a much better ride, especially in hard off road use, but it will be a little softer with a heavier load.



I'd look at it this way, if you primarily use your truck for towing and hauling, I'd stick with the mini pack. If you want to increase you off road performance, or on road quality, then I'd upgrade to the full leaf set up. You can always add airbags to that as well.



I'm pretty sure that all of the above mentioned companies sell the full leaf replacements as an add-on, or as an upgrade for the systems that do not already include them.

 

[kparker]

KORE has always sold Race full leaf pack as an option or upgrade. Performance is vastly improved on and offroad. As Marek from Desert Proven said, if towing or heavy hauling is your main goal, then sticking with the mini-packs makes sense.



WinRice,

Your Fox shocks that came with your Trex system will work perfectly with the full leaf packs. They are the correct length, and the valving will be fine. You will experience a much quieter drive(the better half) as well, with the softer springs.



KP

 

[WinRice]

Thanks for all the responses!



I experimented with different shocks awhile back, using everything from the stock shocks, half worn out stock shocks and Rancho 9000's (My neighbor has a 2003 RAM 2500, so I borrowed his). Regardless of the shock, the ride was very harsh in the rear. I feel the Fox shock valving is fine for now.



On the other hand, I did the totally un-scientific 'bounce' test (jumping on the back bumper) on several 3/4 ton Chevy's, Ford's and a new Dodge Power Wagon. A test ride in a couple of these trucks confirmed my results, they were much smoother on the same roads. It seems like all those trucks have a more progressive spring, at least in the first 1" of travel, which is much softer than the stock Dodge spring.



I do spend more time in the mountains of Colorado on rough trails, washboard roads or rocky areas, and don't really haul any large loads yet. Maybe a 5th wheel in a couple of years. I would like more travel.