2002 Dodge Ram 1500 SLT 2wd 4.7 Quad Cab

At first I thought it was the ball joints but never had the time nor the tools to do it. In June the front tires make lots of squeeze noise when I turn, brake, and turn. Finally took it to the shop to get all ball joints replace. Thinking at the same time my ride be soften up a bit. Yes I know it will not have a cadillac ride but have a good ride. Well all that done and still stiffing and bumping ride like before. Shocks also replace and same thing. There one last thing I think is the problem. My tires are not stock their LT275/65R20 Goodyear Wrangler AT/S. Will that be the reason my ride is bumping? Even a small bump on the road feels rough.

 

What shocks are you running? What ply tire? What air pressure? Replacing ball joints will not help the ride.

 

Too much pressure? Bad shocks? Ball joints won't affect ride.

 

I'm going to echo the "what ply tire" question, first. What kind of shocks did you replace your old ones with, and did you do it at the same time as the ball joints or separately?

 

Pressure, tire type, shock type etc.

How are your control arm bushings? I'm currently replacing both 05's front to rear bushings with all solid poly Energy Suspension ones. Factory bushings are not solid rubber and I can see them rotting out and jarring slightly over bumps, not giving your suspension the chance to articulate and absorb shocks properly.

That being said I have 2500 diesel shocks up front and cranked T bars and 37s on 17s, so 10" of side wall that I keep at less than 50psi. I forgot, my trucks are on the other side of the world currently. I wouldn't say mine is soft but it eats bumps like it should

edit: My dad's 2012 has 50k or more miles and I drove it and we agreed it was to rough. So the only sensible way to fi that was 6" long arm lift with new coils and leafs and 37s. What I mean with that, is look into replacing your worn out parts with new ones. New Torsion Bars are next up on my truck.

 

Their the Gabriel Ultra Shocks from autozone. I replace shocks first and ball joints later. Tire pressure I think is 35 psi. My uncle had a 2004 Dodge Ram just like mines only his tires did came factory 20 wheels tires. It rode smooth and bumps weren't that hard. At first I thought all trucks always have bumping rides feel but after I ride my uncle truck, my friends GMC Serria I realized that my truck have raw bumping road compare to theirs.

 

Did you notice a difference in ride at all after changing the shocks? Stiffer? Smoother? No difference? What is is the load rating on your tire? D? E? Big difference in ride quality if you went to a stiffer sidewall.

 

I'm running 31 in my 20's. Try lowering the pressure.


SJ03