20+ YRS EXPERIENCE IN THE 4WD INDUSTRY 
OVER 11,000 4WD PRODUCTS ONLINE 
20+ STOCKISTS AUSTRALIA WIDE 
SHIPPING AUSTRALIA WIDE & INTERNATIONALLY 
The Right Height Suspension
NOT SURE WHAT SPRINGS AND SHOCKS TO GO FOR? MICHAEL HAYES GIVES YOU THE LOW DOWN ON CHOOSING THE CORRECT HEIGHT SUSPENSION FOR YOUR 4X4!
When deciding on the lift to run on your 4WD, it largely comes down to personal choice, but there are several things to think about before jumping in and spending your hard-earned cash.
Raising your suspension is done for three main purposes
- It enables the fitment of larger tyres
- It gains off-road clearance and
- It allows for increased suspension travel
Back in the late '90s and early '00s
the popular option was to go for big lifts with 6-8 inch plus (+) springs and appropriately longer shocks. While this did allow fitment of bigger tyres, increased flex and clearance, the handling suffered and the higher centre of gravity caused dramas on off-camber sections of track. While big lifts have their place, these days you're much better off deciding what tyres you want to run first and then going with as small amount of lift as you can get away with to fit them up.
Most big wagons like coil sprung Toyota Landcruisers and Nissan Patrols only really need around a 3 inch lift to fit 35 inch rubber, and can comfortably fit 33s on 2 inch springs, and keeping your vehicle low has a heap more benefits too.
First off your handling remains largely unchanged
and suspension geometry and castor are much more easily managed with smaller lifts. Then there's the fact that your centre of gravity remains nice and low so off-camber sections can be tackled with a lot more confidence.
Off-road clearance is only really negatively affected by a small lift at your sills, which is easily overcome with a set of quality rock-sliders, which are well worth the investment on any rig. And as for flex, that's much better achieved through more controlled means than tall springs anyway. By fitting softer bushes in your suspension arms or replacing them altogether with Superflex arms, you'll gain heaps more controlled suspension movement than springs alone would allow without sacrificing high speed handling.
The days of 4WDs
with an acre of clearance between the top of the wheel arch and the tyre are over; lower rigs with quality suspension gear fitted will out-drive unnecessarily tall and ungainly ones every day of the week.
You only have to look at competition vehicle trends over the past decade; they're getting lower and wider with the focus being on all aspects of off-road handling rather than just ride height. Talk to your suspension retailer about the tyres you want to run and how you can fit them without compromising your capability - it'll be worth it.
