Jeep Toad

Yes, you 'd probably get a little lighter in the front but I don't think you'll be doing any wheelies. Most of the weight of Cherokee is in the front anyway since the engine/transmission is in the forward half of the wheelbase. It would still be my choice.

A Wrangler has a shorter wheelbase, and it would be a bear to get the bike up in the back seat area. You might also look into a Comanche pickup (basically a Cherokee with a pickup bed) or a Ford Ranger or something of that ilk, if you don't need the extra passenger room.

Funny I don't recall any Skyjacker stickers on Parnelli Jones' Bronco.

You are just hopelessly grasping at straws LOL All of those manufacturers make LEAF SPRING KITS as well as Coil.

To sugest nearly all competative racers (most of whom custom fab their rigs) use a LESS EFFECTIVE suspension because SOME rigs are sponsered by lift kit manufacturers (no where near all of them) is pure flying-in-the-face-of-common-sense, desperation on your part Bill.

Come on you should know bullshit when you read it, so re-read what you wrote and tell me you really believe that bullshit? You think Big Oly had Coil springs because of a lift kit manufacturer?

I'm NOT trying to get into the middle of something but am curious.

I know just enough to be dangerous about the differences between leaf and coil springs, and my Jeep has coils in front while the Studebaker truck has leafs.

Why would leafs be considered better on a 4wd vehicle? Obviously it can make for a simpler suspension (they don't get much simpler than my truck!), and simple is NOT a bad thing, but they do take more room.

So what are the pros and cons of each?

A question somewhat related to the argument between Bill and Simon, just why DO semi tractors have drum brakes? Seems like disks are cheaper, simpler, easier to maintain and are less likely to fail, but about all I know about those trucks I've learned on the "Trucks" TV show and the fact I don't like to be behind them.

Jeff DeWitt

Sim>

Coils can compress and expand more than leafs, they are only attached to the frame at one point and usually in line with suspension travel meaning they are much less restrictive to movement. They also allow things like four link, four bar and tri axial suspensions which all have their pros and cons but all offer serious advantages in their applications over old fashioned leaf springs.

Leafs are stronger more simple and are great for towing and heavy loads which apparently Bill equates to off roading for some wacky reason.

As for trucks, a lot of things the trucking industry does only for cost reasons. The other major motivator is pure stubborn tradition and resistance to change (remember they didn't want to put Lower bumpers on their trailers because well... because they didn't want to spend money or change, regardless of the fact that they save peoples lives.

The Semi thus is an extremely poor thing to use as an example for ANY technology. Because between the EXTREME specialization (it has to tow

80,000 pounds!) and the trucking industry being EXTREMELY inbred and old fashioned; you are really looking at what equates to a Dynosour some decades before the extinction. That is to say: A big unadaptable slow beast (meaning the industry not the trucks) poorly suited to survival if the worlds changes significantly.

Well..... When the boys lift and lock both the front and rear diffs on a TJ, they can 'almost' keep up to my open diffed CJ7 out at the local sand pits.

Great for photo ops. They laugh, 'once', at my CJ7 with it's tall skinny tires and puny 2.5" lift, then they spend the rest of the day trying and trying to get to where I am taking photos of them trying and trying...

The coil springs can't keep the tires on the ground, so they start to bounce which lets them spin so when they come down they just dig holes rather than continue forward. Same for washboard roads, the coils will let you go faster easier, but you can get into trouble faster too...

When you are crawling up over rocks, the leaf springs raise the rocker panels up very quickly so you don't tag them. Coils just let the axle go up so you have to have rocker panel protection or you beat up your Jeep.

Coils are 'far' more comfortable though.....

Mike

86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail >

Yes shocks can limit total compression and extension... That's great Bill you're starting to learn about suspensions... now keep reading soon you will understand just how out of touch you've been.

BTW you didn't actually think I was going to fall for your attempt to build a strawman with this shock absorber post did you?

For anyone who's following along and has been confused by Bill's non-sequitur, he is "pretending" that I stated something about Coils determining absolute suspension travel... Of course Shocks physically limit travel no matter how much your Coils can droop or compress... same with leaf springs of course.

To suggest otherwise would be pretty retarded... For Bill to pretend I'm saying that is pretty much pure desperation.

Funny you'd think Jones would have insisted on converting Big Oly to leaf springs if they were superior... It wouldn't have been difficult, the entire frame of Big Oly was custom tubing. It would have been.

Perhaps Olympia Beer was working on a Coil spring lift kit and insisted that Jones keep the coils...

I'm no Baja racer or rock crawler, all I know is there are shit loads of coil over four links in the rock crawling world, must be the evil Skyjacker forcing their will upon the drivers right? Funny how none of the new drivers who don't have Lift kit sponsors or other veteran drivers don't convert to Leaf springs and dominate the competition...

And here I was thinking that pro racers and rock crawlers would do ANYTHING to gain a competitive advantage...

One thing you'll learn right quick is that Bill never lets facts or common sense get in the way of his opinions.

I don't have a TJ and if you didn't have the attention span and mental aquitty of a 4 year old you'd remember that.

You might also notice that on occasion, Bill's ability and willingness to even read the information on his links is a tad lacking. Big deal, a monkey and google about as useful.

L.W.(Bill) Hughes III proclaimed: