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very bumpy ride

Old May 7, 2008 | 07:10 PM
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Default very bumpy ride

I have an 02 Ram 1500 4x4 that when driving down the hiway, the ride is so bumpy that you can hardly hold a conversation inside the truck. It's like riding in a chinook. It has new shocks and I've tried to adjust tire pressure to different levels but nothing has helped. It does help when I have my 4 wheeler in the back but I can't carry 600 lbs around in the back all the time. Does anyone else have this problem or have any suggestions that may help? A certain type of shocks or something?

Thanks
 
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Old May 7, 2008 | 07:31 PM
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Default RE: very bumpy ride

Or maybe just a replacement....How many miles are on the current set...some have had luck until 100k, but they really show signs of wear around 50k...

I just put some bilsteins on the truck, and it feels ALOT better!
 
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Old May 7, 2008 | 07:56 PM
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Default RE: very bumpy ride

have you checked your t-bars, they might be cranked right up causing it to ride really rough.
 
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Old May 7, 2008 | 09:11 PM
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Default RE: very bumpy ride

There's only about 10K on the shocks if that.
I'm not sure what the "T-bars" are. Can you give me more info on this?
It feels like it just bounces down the road, at times hard enough to jar your teeth depending on the road. Also, this only happens on concrete, with joints, not on asphalt.
 
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Old May 7, 2008 | 09:19 PM
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Default RE: very bumpy ride

Okay, I figured out what the t bars were and actually planned on adjusting them to raise the front end a bit. Just didn't know the correct term for them. I will be raising teh fron twith them in the future. My rough ride trouble seems to be in the rear as when I add weight it gets better. But, like I said, I can't carry 600lbs in the back al the time. I appreciate any suggestions you guys might have as it gets very frustrating driving down certain roads.
 
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Old May 7, 2008 | 10:24 PM
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Default RE: very bumpy ride

mine shakes like a mother, but i know absolutley why. my tires belts are seperated causing lumps. thats first off. i also have a bad ball joint but thats getting replaced, and have a leveling kit with stock shocks that are getting replaced with longer ranchos.

now for you..you may want to check the roundness of your tire. check to see if a wheel maybe kicked some weights....i suppose you could check your ball joints too. and go ahead and see if your driveshaft is balanced
 
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Old May 7, 2008 | 11:03 PM
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Default RE: very bumpy ride

You said its rough on concrete and not asphalt...maybe its actually the road thats messed up and not your truck. Rolling around the country this spring ive noticed ALOT of roads i run regularly have got REAL bad with this spring thaw. They sort of look ok but running over em they shifted ALOT and i feel it big time in my semi.
 
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Old May 7, 2008 | 11:24 PM
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Default RE: very bumpy ride

ya that is a good point, but id still check your truck out.
 
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Old May 7, 2008 | 11:37 PM
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Default RE: very bumpy ride

tires out of balance, and alligned correctly?
 
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Old May 8, 2008 | 07:46 AM
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Default RE: very bumpy ride

I know that it's related to the road and yes the road suck hereare. Tires are newly balanced, and this is second set of tires. Rode the same with the old tires. My thoughts lead me in this direction: maybe longer or stronger rear shocks to keep it from bouncing - but maybe that will make it worse? It doesn't bounce like shocks that need to be replaced where it rocks like a boat. Short, choppy, hard bumps. I just wish I knew how to make it ride a little better.
 
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