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Car Forum / Chevrolet / Chevrolet Trucks / June 2007

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2001 Silverado suspension too soft

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punintended - 27 Jun 2007 08:00 GMT
I was given a 2001 Silverado, and find the suspension too soft and the
steering inaccurate (mostly due to the large dead spot in the
center).  The truck only has 55000 miles on it (roughly) and is stock
- extended cab, towing package.  For improving steering/handling on
other cars, I have used beefed up anti-sway bars - is this an option?
What are the options to improve the ride?
Meat Plow - 27 Jun 2007 13:25 GMT
> I was given a 2001 Silverado, and find the suspension too soft and the
> steering inaccurate (mostly due to the large dead spot in the
> center).  The truck only has 55000 miles on it (roughly) and is stock
> - extended cab, towing package.  For improving steering/handling on
> other cars, I have used beefed up anti-sway bars - is this an option?
> What are the options to improve the ride?

Take it to a chassis place and have them see what can be done for you.
That's what I would do since you have nothing in the truck.
Jonathan - 27 Jun 2007 16:09 GMT
>I was given a 2001 Silverado, and find the suspension too soft and the
> steering inaccurate (mostly due to the large dead spot in the
> center).  The truck only has 55000 miles on it (roughly) and is stock
> - extended cab, towing package.  For improving steering/handling on
> other cars, I have used beefed up anti-sway bars - is this an option?
> What are the options to improve the ride?

Greetings,

1.  Make sure your tires are filled to the proper pressure (easiest and
cheapest)
2.  New shocks (a nice heavy duty gas charged shock like Monroe Gas Magnums)
3.  New tires with a stiffer sidewall (make sure they are LT light truck
tires and not P passenger tires)
4.  Heavier anti-sway bars (try JC Whitney for some examples)
5.  Have your front suspension and steering (tie rod ends, idler arm, etc.)
checked for excessive wear and/or play.

Cheers - Jonathan
JBDragon - 28 Jun 2007 07:26 GMT
Well you do know it's a TRUCK and not a CAR so they don't handle the same.
If the Suspension is to soft, get some stiffer Shocks.  Something like KYB's
The Monotube Design.  You'll be cussing trying to compress them to get them
in, unlike others!!!  For Handling, there's all kinds of things you can do,
but again it's a truck and not a car.  Lowering the whole truck, like a 2/4
Drop will greatly help in handling.  I've done this myself.  A smaller
Sidewall tire also helps, which means Upsizing.  I have 20" wheels on my
truck, a little wider then stock tires but quite a bet less sidewall, but
not done to nothing where it's like a ruberband around the wheel.   Which
would start to happen if you went with a 22" or even larger wheel.   I have
275/45R20 on my truck.  Which in overall Diameter of the stock 16"
wheels/tires it had on it is still virtually the same size in Diameter as
the stock setup.  This adds to even better handling.   I haven't done this
yet to my own truck, but have to others which is Replacing the front sway
bar to a larger one and adding one to the rear, which of course helps
handling even more.

I'd have the Suspension and steering linkage checked out and make sure it's
ok.  A so called Dead Spot?  Well it has a gear box unlike the newer trucks
with Rack & Pinion steering so there's going to be a little slop in the
steering.  A bad Idler Arm is pretty common.  You may just have a bad gear
box also, who knows without seeing it.   I had a bad A/C compressor on my
truck with less then 5,000 on it, under a year old.  Mileage is just a
guideline to go by.

Check the Air in your current tires, maybe boosting the Air pressure will be
good enough for you.  Go up to like 38PSI or so.  Really, it's now much do
you want to spend to get the Results you want.  Again it's a TRUCK!   Like I
said though, some KYB shocks will stiffen up the suspension for you pretty
good and may be all you need and the price isn't to bad.  The Regular
Gas-A-Just Shocks should be good enough for you, though the higher end
Monomax Heavy Duty shocks are nice also.  If you just throw on some Monro's
or something, your not going to really notice much of a Improvement.  It'll
ride about like what the Factory stocks do/did.

http://www.kyb.com/products/

>I was given a 2001 Silverado, and find the suspension too soft and the
> steering inaccurate (mostly due to the large dead spot in the
> center).  The truck only has 55000 miles on it (roughly) and is stock
> - extended cab, towing package.  For improving steering/handling on
> other cars, I have used beefed up anti-sway bars - is this an option?
> What are the options to improve the ride?
 
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