Which suspension for 02 GU 4.2td Patrol

I have found that an 80mm heavy duty lift (TJM XGS) is perfect...
It isnt high enough to warrant caster correction bushes or to worry about brake lines etc etc...
So long as you keep your sway bars connected you will get the lift and still have good articulation without the hassles of popping springs out and stretching brake lines..

Cobes, Not sure what you want the lift for which will determine how high you should go but anything beyond 2" costs will escalate because you will need camber correction and extended breather and brake lines. There are potential legal/insurance issues beyond this as welll I think. You should get a quality 2" kit fitted for around $1500. Do a forum search on springs and shocks you will see opinions vary. You can pay as little as $80 for a shock as much as $280 and everything in between. Popular brands for the Patrol lifts are Old Man Emu (ARB) springs and shocks, Kings and Dobinson Springs, Koni, Bilstein, Tough Dog shocks.

Chris,

I have had for 200000km a set of dobinson coils backed up by OME shocks + poly airs and this setup lifted the vehicle 50mm and it is still at that height today after lots of weight and long trips.
Thats what has worked for me but others will suggest different. One thing I would suggest if you plan to have a bit of weight in it from time to time is to go with a set of airbags as well (cheap for longevity of combination).

Cheesrs Trevor.

Managed to come by some 50mm longer load carrying springs which would be great for when I to the camper,
will I need longer shocks or would originals suffice?
are the cab-chassis springs the same as those used in wagons?
Thanks in advance,
NickR

I have a GQ with TJM XGS and very pleased with it. We have given it a thrashing and still going very well (www.gossadventures.com)
One of the latest 4x4 mags just did a test on suspension so worth a look at the newsagent.

G'day Cobes,

You will find different vehicles of the same brand and model respond differently to suspension changes, especially so with the GU.
I lifted mine 4inches with dobinsons and koni's, the koni's BTW make it ride smoother than factory, after installing winch, bar, dual batts, 55ltr wtr tank in rear and storage system it settled down to a comfortable 3 inches.
I drove it without caster correction bushes, was bloody terrible and responded well to having them installed, unlike Roachies, where they made no difference, same model and eng, go figure?
I also drove it without stabalisers and I could live with it until I loaded it up for a trip, akin to the Queen Mary in high sea's, 1/2 hour and they were back in again.
So you can see what works for one doesn't always work for the other, different likes and dislikes, different uses, and importantly, different driving styles.
For 3 inches I didn't need to extend either brake or diff breather hoses.
Make sure to keep in mind the legal aspect, I think 2" is highest legal, and also that when you purchase a commercial "2 inch lift kit" comprising of springs and shocks it will most likely only lift your truck 1 1/2 inches.
And remember, choosing a suspension package is like choosing what brand your next set of tyres is going to be, you will be completely and thoroughly confused by the end of it all. lol
If you go to the top of the forum home page and highlight "both" then type in 'suspension' or 'springs and shocks' or similar, tick "body" then hit "go" you'll be reading for days.

Good luck
Avagoodn
Pezza

I fitted OME in my GU wagon. It does all its life loaded and on crap roads so i have the 24mm highlift coils out of a GU ute in the rear of mine and the heaviest highlift coils available in the front. Last trip it weighed 3980kg when it went over the weighbridge. Never had offset nolathene bushes, i use all genuine rubber bushes as those nolathene ones transmit too many vibrations and road shock through the vehicle. The vehicle rides really well and handles great both on and offroad. I think it cost $400 odd dollars for the springs at the time and $115 a shocky. Had the rear shockies replaced under warranty after 10000 km's of them being on there and then i fitted those 24mm ute springs in the rear and haven't had another drama for 150000 km.

What state do you lift in? 50mm is limit in Qld and WA is becoming hard. Vic is nearly impossible to get engineers at the moment on lift kits..

Insurance jumps in $ and becomes very hard to find with over 75mm lift with lots of insurance companies. some even have a limit of 50mm and a few wont allow any lift at all.

You need an engineers certification to go 4inch or more which is becoming hard.
So start there.

What is the optimum lift? You can gauge that answer from these few questions. There is NO optimum lift answer really, there are too many variables.

Why do you need a lift? You need it or you want it?
What is your budget?
What sort of wheeling do you do?
Where do you wheel most? Outback? Mountains? Mud? Rocks?
How heavy is your truck fully loaded?
Do you tow regularly? What do you tow? How heavy is what you tow?
How many people usually travel in car?
What is the car mainly used for? Weekdays, occasional weekender? Weekend warrior only?
What accessories do you have fitted? Heavy front end, heavy rear with LRT, wheel carriers etc
What accessories do plan to have fitted in future?
What size tires do you run?
What size tires do you plan to run?

There is no hard and fast answer to the "optimum" lift size, there are numerous variables but you can get a start from these questions...

IMHO, with a GU, considering you can fit 36's with a 3inch lift, you dont really need more than that unless your truck weight 4.5ton like Roachies and tows the QE2.

What is good what is bad in Shocks and Springs??
You will get - and + stories on every single brand of shock and spring out there.

Shocks:
IMHO, you cant go wrong with OME Nitrochargers for the price, backup, warranty, and service.
If your after the better quality, go with LTR's, they are great. I run them with a 4nich lift and love them.

If you want the best in shocks, go Koni but you will pay for it. I have run them with a 2inch lift in the past, and would run them again tomorrow.

TJM XGS is very good also for the price. Again, I have run these when I had only the 2inch lift.

I had ranchos with a 6+inch lift, and they died 4 times, and others in our club have suffered same fate on GQ/GUs

Springs:
Dobinson or Kings are the best, tell them the answers to all the questions above and they can match a set of springs and shocks together, which is the most important part - MATCHED SHOCKS AND SPRINGS!

Good luck.

Check your local state laws.

If your not worried...4 inch dobinson kit, you will need panhard rods, drop down plates/ and or bushes. Depends who you know for price. Shop around. Used dobinson on 4 trucks now without a hitch, work well both on or off.

Cheers

Chris.