Suspension rejuvination questions???

Okay, the vehicle:
92 larado, 4WD, Auto, 4.0, app. 157,000 (just fixed the speedo, so who knows!) Stock, except I run 225/70R15 tires.

The problem is the suspension is dead........sitting still it holds okay, but the slightest bump and it bottoms out. Upon jacking under an axle, the springs just collapse.....or so it seems. Sooooooo, what I want to do is replace the springs........front and rear....and keep it close (okay maybe a tad higher) to stock. What are your suggestions and guesses at the cost? I have access to a junkyard, that is friendly (mostly free) that I can pull stuff if that helps.

A little history, this is a junkyard rejuvination I am working on......I have replaced the brakes, master cylinder, front shocks, control arm bushings (lower), sway bar bushings (front), interior, windshield, speed sensor, and everything is working well!!!

Thanks in advance for your time and ideas!!

Might think about doing the budget lift route... im going rocklizard... there are a number of threads about this. One of the most recent is here:

http://www.naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=43632

That might be the way to go............carquest coil springs and basically make a spring pack for the rear. The reason I say this, is that I don't think shackles or coil spacers will help as the springs are just so weak. I will have to make a list and get to scavenging!!

For the front, a good set of undamaged junkyard springs should do it. For the rear, you might try adding a leaf, especially if you have access to another stock spring pack. It's an easy way to regain height and firm up a bit without changing the ride much. Try a search here and you should find several threads with advice and experiences on that.

After reading a lot of previous posts, I measured from the center of the axle to the bottom edge of the fenderwell. The front measured 16 1/2 inches while the back came up 16 inches. This of course confirmed that they both have sagged!!! And reinforces my idea that they are weak as noodles as well.......of course my bottom end told me that when the vehicle bottomed out on the slightest bump


M. Currie, I have my feelers out now for the junkyard springs and hopefully it will show some progress by the end of the week. Hopefully I can find some used zj coils from a v-8 and I am sure I can find a compatible spring pack to rebuild the rear leaf packs. I am also going to check with a spring rebuild shop to see what they charge to "rejuvinate" my springs.....don't hold your breath on that one, though!!

Sig220 said:

After reading a lot of previous posts, I measured from the center of the axle to the bottom edge of the fenderwell. The front measured 16 1/2 inches while the back came up 16 inches. This of course confirmed that they both have sagged!!! And reinforces my idea that they are weak as noodles as well.......of course my bottom end told me that when the vehicle bottomed out on the slightest bump


M. Currie, I have my feelers out now for the junkyard springs and hopefully it will show some progress by the end of the week. Hopefully I can find some used zj coils from a v-8 and I am sure I can find a compatible spring pack to rebuild the rear leaf packs. I am also going to check with a spring rebuild shop to see what they charge to "rejuvinate" my springs.....don't hold your breath on that one, though!!

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My guess is that it wouldn't be a good idea to rejuvenate or rearch the old springs, because they're just not beefy enough, and will just sag again. You'll get a lot of effect from an extra leaf or two, and the advantage there if your Jeep is old and rusty is that you need not remove the top leaf from the vehicle to do it.