Bumpy ride after Thuren upgrades

[Dinky]

Bounces, so rapid that it almost feels like a vibration. It's not constant, but its frequent at certain speeds, so I'm trying a tire balance just to rule that out.

Sounds like tires. I have a 3500 and did thuren rear leaf springs. It took about 1500miles for then to break in, coils are a bit different but still need time to settle in.

 

[22hemi13]

Bounces, so rapid that it almost feels like a vibration. It's not constant, but its frequent at certain speeds, so I'm trying a tire balance just to rule that out.

That sound like tires. Road force balance. But some tires just suck and have vibes.

 

[62Blazer]

I understand all the comments about tires.......but if they are the exact same tires at the exact same air pressure as before, why would they suddenly change or start having vibrations after installing the suspension?
This is one of those things that is really hard to diagnose over the internet. Biggest issue is it's really hard to describe what is going on, and regardless of what terms or description is provided everybody has a different perspective of what that means.

 

[Dave Haddon]

Just reading Mike J post. He has a great comfy ride but look at the gear he put in to get that..$$$$$$ some cannot afford all that change...waiting for those lottery winnings...LOL

 

[Dinky]

I understand all the comments about tires.......but if they are the exact same tires at the exact same air pressure as before, why would they suddenly change or start having vibrations after installing the suspension?
This is one of those things that is really hard to diagnose over the internet. Biggest issue is it's really hard to describe what is going on, and regardless of what terms or description is provided everybody has a different perspective of what that means.

Tire weights come off time to time. Since tires were removed could of happened. Tires could wear different depending on location and if rotated could cause a vibration at a different location. Lots of reasons to get a vibration jitters seems to be tires not suspension.

 

[22hemi13]

I understand all the comments about tires.......but if they are the exact same tires at the exact same air pressure as before, why would they suddenly change or start having vibrations after installing the suspension?
This is one of those things that is really hard to diagnose over the internet. Biggest issue is it's really hard to describe what is going on, and regardless of what terms or description is provided everybody has a different perspective of what that means.

One could have separated. It happens a lot.

 

[62Blazer]

Tire weights come off time to time. Since tires were removed could of happened. Tires could wear different depending on location and if rotated could cause a vibration at a different location. Lots of reasons to get a vibration jitters seems to be tires not suspension.

One could have separated. It happens a lot.

Sure, and meteor could fall on you while working on the truck also. But seriously, there is a chance either of those happened. But if the truck runs fine when you pull it into the garage and then as soon as you pull it out of the garage the issue occurs, it would be a pretty big coincidence. Sure, it's not that uncommon for a tire to separate but it also doesn't happen with a high frequency nowadays....and the simple act of removing a tire in the garage and putting it back on shouldn't cause it to separate. In regards to tire weights, again there is a chance a tire weight got knocked off during the work but it just doesn't happen that often. I've had the tires on and off of multiple vehicles hundreds of times over the years and have never knocked a weight off....again, yes it can happen but it's not like a regular occurrence everytime you pull the tires. Also, just one wheel weight being knocked off doesn't necessarily cause a noticable vibration. Just about any tire and wheel assembly will "change" balance as it wears...that is why people will often rebalance the same tires and wheels periodically. I've rebalanced several sets of tires over the years and found them to be way off from the original balance, and I was doing this just for maintenance reasons and not because there was excessive vibration.

So yes, either of those tire related items could possibly be an issue. But my main point is those issues are not super common, there is no reason that a tire would separate by unbolting it from the truck and bolting it back on, and even chucking a wheel weight does not necessarily cause that big of an issue.

Of course in the end, and as I mentioned before, it's really hard to diagnose the issue over the internet. A tire related issue like separating belts provides some very specific vibrations and noises, and you simply don't know enough details over the internet to diagnose if it's the right issue or not. I just went back and re-read the OP and based on that description tires are one of the last things I would look at. They mention worse ride characteristics and that it is okay on a perfectly smooth road. Well, a bad tire would likely be more noticeable the smoother the road is, and that is because it's not being masked by bumps in the road. In general there is a big difference between overall ride quality and a constant "thump, thump, thump" and shaking of a bad tire that also would increase with vehicle speed.

 

[22hemi13]

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[UTAHPWRWGN]

Find your exact tire size and use your current axle weights (front / rear) to determine correct tire pressures.

Toyo Open Country A/T II Tire Pressure Chart - TirePressure.com

Maximum tire pressure and load capacity settings for Toyo Open Country A/T II tires to maintain proper tire inflation for a safe drive.

tirepressure.com

 

[Dinky]

Sure, and meteor could fall on you while working on the truck also. But seriously, there is a chance either of those happened. But if the truck runs fine when you pull it into the garage and then as soon as you pull it out of the garage the issue occurs, it would be a pretty big coincidence. Sure, it's not that uncommon for a tire to separate but it also doesn't happen with a high frequency nowadays....and the simple act of removing a tire in the garage and putting it back on shouldn't cause it to separate. In regards to tire weights, again there is a chance a tire weight got knocked off during the work but it just doesn't happen that often. I've had the tires on and off of multiple vehicles hundreds of times over the years and have never knocked a weight off...

Ive knocked plenty of wheel weights off when off roading, lots of guys use beads or other internal methods for balancing for that reason. The spring rate on the thruen springs are a lot softer and will move a lot more freely. the tires could of had a issue from the start and the new springs and shocks now highlight them more. the bigger the tire the more issue that can happen, a lot of spinning mass and its spinning about 800RPM at 60mph. off road style tires are notorious for becoming out of balance due to the aggressive patterns and wear patterns. I suggested getting the tires looked at as it is the cheapest less headache issue to take on. i also suggest in a pervious post to give it time and let the springs settle in and check the shocks out as i had 2 fox 2.0 blow out within in 500miles.

 

[Kr0ss]

Thanks for the feedback, guys.

I had the wheels road-force balanced yesterday. The tech said they only needed minor corrections. They're near perfect balance now, and the vibration remains. It's only noticeable in the 50-65mph range but it's bad enough that it visibly shakes the passenger seat side to side.

Since this started when the rear shocks/springs went on, removing them is my next troubleshooting step. I'll keep you posted.

 

[Dinky]

Thanks for the feedback, guys.

I had the wheels road-force balanced yesterday. The tech said they only needed minor corrections. They're near perfect balance now, and the vibration remains. It's only noticeable in the 50-65mph range but it's bad enough that it visibly shakes the passenger seat side to side.

Since this started when the rear shocks/springs went on, removing them is my next troubleshooting step. I'll keep you posted.

Did you install a different track bar? have you had the alignment done since you leveled and moved the suspension around?

 

[Kr0ss]

Did you install a different track bar? have you had the alignment done since you leveled and moved the suspension around?

I did install a new front track bar. I haven't gotten an alignment yet; it's scheduled for next week - the soonest they could get me in.

Have you seen alignment issues cause vibrations? The steering wheel is straight and it tracks straight on the highway.

 

[Dinky]

I did install a new front track bar. I haven't gotten an alignment yet; it's scheduled for next week - the soonest they could get me in.

Have you seen alignment issues cause vibrations? The steering wheel is straight and it tracks straight on the highway.

I have seen it do weird things. i know Ram has a lot of toe in with OEM alignment and seeing how you only have it at higher speeds. It doesn't make sense for it to be suspension as you would feel it at every speed. I would leave the spring/shocks in place and get it a agliment with thuren specs. Also this give it more time to break the springs in more.

 

[Kr0ss]

Ok, so at this point I've gotten a road-force balance, an alignment, and even tried centramatic wheel balancers. The balance and alignment made no difference at all. The wheel balancers have helped some, but the problem is still very apparent.

I didn't get a spec sheet after having the road force balance done, but I can see that one of the three wheels has way more weight than the other three. I will test to see if that wheel may be out of round, then possibly rotate that to the front to see if the vibration follows.

If the problem remains, I think next thing to investigate would be driveshaft vibration - thoughts?

 

[piratebuilder]

Wanted to bump up this thread and see if there was any update. I have the exact same thing going on with my ram after the thuren soft ride setup the fox shocks and the rear track bar. It's not the tires just a bumpy back end when the road is not dead slick.

 

[soapy]

I just installed Thuren front and rear track bars and Bilstein 5160 shocks all around. I kept the stock springs. I noticed a immediate improvement in overall ride. Now when goin over rail road tracks I do not feel the rear end waggin back and fourth like before. NO bounce out fo the rear as described. I have a 2022 PW.