back in the game: need a little suspension help
 

hey guys, i'm a mini-trucker again...i pulled the trigger & bought this pretty nice 1993 ext. cab to be my daily driver...that means i can now send the old VW Cabriolet on it's way...but as for the truck, i was told it has 2" spindles/springs up front...all i know is that it's pretty dang low, so i'm looking for opinions from you guys...either the frame or crossmember scrapes when i cross the speed bumps coming into my apartment complex...does it look like a 4" drop to you? it's also running a 225/50/16 tire, so i know that factors in as well...i was contemplating raising it up an inch...but is there any way to know for sure if i have 2" springs?

second, let's look at the rear...it doesn't sit quite as low...i had thought about maybe a taller tire in back, but that won't allow for rotating...so, maybe i'll just look into dropping it a little more to minimize the gap...i was told the rear is dropped with leafs & blocks...do the leafs look like 3" drop leafs? and what size blocks do these look like (2"?)?

i'm just wanting to make sure i have my stance right before driving everyday...it was a little rough up front driving home, but i realized they never trimmed or replaced the front bump stops...so the frame is literally riding on them...i'll have to fix that too...anyway, any help is greatly appreciated! and i'm glad to be back in the game for a little while

other detailed pics here:
http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v6...0%20ext%20cab/



http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v6...100_2563-1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v6...b/100_2561.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v6...b/100_2570.jpg

Re: back in the game: need a little suspension help
 

Looks to me like 3" drop in back , and 4 in the front. I'll tell you what I did to mine. When I bought my 91 standard cab, originally the PO had cut the stock springs to get a 3" drop up front. Rode like a brick. So I bought some 2" spindles then I got 4 cylinder stock springs since mine is a v6, it gave my truck a 1" extra drop. rides alot better. As for telling what drop they are. only way to tell is pull them out and see if they are cut, or do a side by side comparision.(sp?)If there aftermarket, they may be stamped or have label on them somewhere.
BTW nice looking dime.

Re: back in the game: need a little suspension help
 

Nice truck!

Re: back in the game: need a little suspension help
 

i looked some stuff up. you gotta measure from the hub to the fender. stock should be between 17 and 18 inches

Re: back in the game: need a little suspension help
 

i was told stock front measures about 30" and rear is 31-32" when measuring from ground to center of the fender lip...upon measuring mine, i got a hair under 25" up front and 27.5" on the rear...so, i'm rolling approximately a 5/4 drop

and after talking with some folks from the S10forum & another forum i frequent, i've come to the conclusion of a 5" rear drop with 3" leafs & 2" blocks...the front i believe is indeed 2" spindles & 2" springs...what i'm not sure of is whether the springs are the correct V6 springs...if they're the 4cyl. springs, that could be why i'm sitting lower than 4" up front...or maybe these are correct & just settled that low...the tire size also factors in

i got the bump stops cut, & it rides a little better...however, that didn't change the fact that it's still very low up front...i bottom out on the crossmember when going over speed bumps, & i also bottomed on a raised area in the pavement...so, i plan to raise the front up 1", and i may change shocks...i think i'm gonna leave the rear as-is for now, but i'd like to lower it another inch in the future

Re: back in the game: need a little suspension help
 

problem with takin a measurement from the ground to the fender is that includes tire size. hub to the fender takes that out of the equation

Re: back in the game: need a little suspension help
 

Heres some info on front end springs for the F-G bodies that will fit S10's as well.
You need to measure your to see where you are at.

http://www.maliburacing.com/coilspring.htm

Re: back in the game: need a little suspension help
 

my plan is to get the Belltech 1" spring spacer to raise it up a little...i also plan to get different shocks, but i have to come to a conclusion on which ones are the best option...any opinions on shocks?

and if i can get rid of the ones i have, i plan to switch to a different tire size

Re: back in the game: need a little suspension help
 

i spent alot of money on the edelbrock shocks. but my truck rides really good. very tight.

Re: back in the game: need a little suspension help
 

got the truck back from the shop, & the front rides much better...along with the 1" coil spring spacer, they practically did a complete front suspension/steering rebuild with Moog & had to replace the front brakes which were shot...new Belltech Street Performance shocks all around as well...truck now sits more level up front, & no more bottoming....still have to figure out the driveline vibration during acceleration, which i think can be cured with the trans & carrier bearing spacer from JTR....also bought a set of stock steelies & tires for cheap on Craigslist & gonna run them for a while....didn't wanna spend a crap load on the tires for the billets after having the suspension work done...then I picked up a set of Mooneyes wheel discs from my cousin in Memphis....my wife said it looks better with the wheel covers (thinks it's more of my style, haha)....now i just need to paint over Michael Myers & get some old school pinstriping....here's a couple quick pics i snapped:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v6...b/100_2672.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v6...b/100_2673.jpg

Re: back in the game: need a little suspension help
 

just updating a little...took a new pic today, but i'll get some better ones once i get the tailgate repainted and pinstriping done...hopefully i can get that done within a couple more weeks....looks like the old pics got screwed up when i reorganized my Photobucket, but they're not important anymore anyway:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v6...s/100_3063.jpg

Re: back in the game: need a little suspension help
 

nice truck!!!!

Re: back in the game: need a little suspension help
 

thanks man

Updated pics
 

New front end pics:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v6...s/100_3173.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v6...s/100_3168.jpg

Also added my Mooneyes decals

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v6...s/100_3171.jpg

And got the gate repainted...goodbye Michael Myers mural, lol....still gotta get it buffed out

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v6...0Rides/jpg.jpg