GMC "Leaf Springs" Why ?

[barraza]

There was no love lost between Chevy and GMC at the time. They considered them selves in competition just as much as with Ford or Chrysler. It was a different philosophy. Coils do definitely ride better, due to less friction in the system. A coil also locates the axle better than leafs. BUT , leafs are much easier to engineer a variable load rate spring. A leaf can theoretically have a softer spring rate at light loads and a much heavier rate at heavy loads, that is why most leaf systems have many leaves. Most trucks still use leaves for this exact reason.

Leaves also have a natural anti sway effect due to the twist the spring must have as the truck leans. With a coil, a sway bar must be used to have the same effect.

And the above answer about wood beds is correct. A long time ago, small farmers typically hauled livestock to market in the bed of their truck. Much better footing on wood.

[68gmsee]

Originally Posted by barraza

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And the above answer about wood beds is correct. A long time ago, small farmers typically hauled livestock to market in the bed of their truck. Much better footing on wood.

Very true. Also we tend to forget that the trucks were mostly for work not for cruising like a lot of them are today. My dads metal bed truck had tons of dents from hauling wood and bricks, etc. and a neighbor with a wooden bed truck that also did similar hauling the wood was relatively unaffected.