Is there a cure for the bounciness of the FG?

[FGeddaboutit]

First day with my 2009 FG140 today. Nice quiet truck with a little more oomph and refinement compared with my 99 NPR.

It has a 14ft wood floor, fixed flatbed on it with a lift gate on the end which might be contributing to the bounciness? In any case I've read here that others have similar experiences but haven't come across any cures. Are there any?

I intend to put a truck camper on it which might smooth it out, eventually, but it's almost undoable as is for now. At least on bumpy New England roads.

 

[SkiFreak]

These trucks are pretty rubbish in the ride department in their default state, as the springs are pretty stiff.
If you can chuck some weight over the rear axles you will get a much better ride.
Putting in some progressive bump stops is a good idea too, as it's pretty jarring if you go into a pothole and bottom out.

I should add... don't do anything major with your suspension until you are at your finished weight with the camper, otherwise you may have to pay twice for the same work.

 

[Czechsix]

Yep, SkiFreak sums it up. Basically these trucks are designed to have their suspension working best when the truck is fully loaded. Note also that they're a medium duty commercial truck designed for city streets, driver comfort is secondary to efficiency and load capacity/size.

If you're catching air over the bumps...slow down. The only FWC that I've seen that remotely rode worth a damn was a completely custom rig with a full race suspension. Even with that it didn't ride as well as a conventional mid-cab design.

 

[FGeddaboutit]

Appreciate the input. I was surprised because my 99 NPR is actually pretty comfy. That said, it has a dump body that probably weighs a lot more than the flatbed on the FG.

Do the progressive springs make a noticeable difference On the FG?

 

[SkiFreak]

A notable difference between the Isuzu and the Fuso is the length of the front springs. The shorter springs on the Fuso definitely contribute to a rougher ride.

 

[SkiFreak]

Do the progressive springs make a noticeable difference On the FG?

Are you asking about parabolic leaf springs?

 

[gator70]

Does adding King shocks help?

 

[Czechsix]

Does adding King shocks help?

Not necessarily. Shocks/springs/stops/geometry all needs to be tied together. Modifying only a single part at a time will have you chasing your tail and is a money pit.

I had parabolics on mine, Radflo shocks, Timbren stops - and it still rode hard. Before I sold it, I was considering dumping the parabolics, resetting the leaf attachment points for longer springs, and having custom multi-leaf springs made. Dialing those in (I was going to go with a flexy spring system, similar to the Suburban I had done - 16 leaves on the front, with three military wraps) with a good shock system and pneumatic bump stops probably would have helped quite a bit. Other than that I was also thinking about doing coils, which would also give you a decent upgrade, but with quite a bit more work.