downgrading 97 Suburban suspension?
 

Is it possible to fit the suspension from a lighter duty truck on a 97 Suburban C2500 Diesel? Maybe just the springs? I'd rather not swap knuckles, control arms and that monster diff.

New Bilsteins and swapping the A/T tires for highway tires made a big difference but it's still a stiff ride. It's a people hauler that isn't used for towing. 20mpg in mixed driving make it a keeper!

The quick answer might be a C1500d but I haven't seen any for sale.

Thanks,
Sixto
87 300D

i put progressive springs on front of mt 3/4 ton sub with good results.

tom w

How much tire pressure are you running? The vehicle manufacturer's reccommendations are for a vehicle running at the rated gross vehicle weight (ie full load). Weigh your truck with what you actually carry in it, and look up the load/inflation tables for your size (either in the Tire and Rim Association Yearbook or online where they can be found with some searching) and air down accordingly.

That will reduce mpg's though....

Not if he's overloaded his tires.

Slightly OT, I see this in your future Sixto:

http://www.midwestautomotivedesigns....m-sprinter.jpg

That only gets 22mpg.

Whoa, now that is a sweet looking sprinter!! WOW! I'd love to drive that!

This is a tough one, as you need a relatively strong spring to hold up that diesel. If this was a 4wd, I would have recommended that you peruse the build sheet and see if the vehicle was equipped with a snow plow package that would have spec'd a stiffer set of front springs.

22mpg is better than the 600 LWB in the other thread.

Sixto
87 300D

If C1500 Diesel springs are softer, that would be a start. Despite the popularity of these trucks, I can't find any specs or info on-line.

Sixto
87 300D

A Sprinter is very inviting but it's too tall to park at the mall. Even low Sprinters are over 7 feet tall.

Very few carwashes will take something that size.

Sixto
87 300D

about the only difference between the c1500 and c2500 is the rear axle.the 1500 will have the standard diff with internal c- locks on the axles,whereas the 2500 will have the full floating diff with the 8 bolt hub holding the axle in.otherwise i think the springs on the rear are only like 200 lbs heavier on the 2500 then the 1500.

My indie got the progressive springs for me. They were not too expensive and made the front quite soft but with compression the progressive springs firmed up. it worked really well.

Tom W