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I had Rough Country 3" lift coils on the front of my rig.
As their name implies, "rough," I'll say they live up to their name.
I installed a Carli track bar to correct the front axle alignment and eliminate the mushy stock unit.
I stuck with the stock control arms since my truck only had about 60K miles on it then.
I am 100K miles later and have noticed a couple of issues.
With a 3" lift in the front, the stock control arms aren't long enough to establish correct caster angles, and I knew that, but I lived with it.
The side effect of near zero or negative caster is steering that tends to wander.
The other issue was the rough handling of rust belt roads.
The catalyst for this endeavor was getting new tires and trying to get an alignment.
The alignment shop stated the caster couldn't be adjusted, which I knew I had a tiny bit available.
I figured now was the time to get my controls swapped out for some good ones.
I researched and settled on the Thuren 3" soft ride springs and control arms.
The control arms are about a 1/2" longer than stock units and don't use rubber bushings.
I ordered my Thuren parts from DDP and got excellent service from them.
I discovered why the alignment shop stated the caster couldn't be adjusted.
The caster bolts were seized in the control arms, so technically, they could not be adjusted.
It would have been nice if the alignment shop took 10 minutes to troubleshoot that.
I cut the bolts to get the control arms off the axle.
Luckily the local parts store had new ones that were an upgrade to stock.
Everything I assemble on the suspension gets a healthy dose of anti-seize.
Future alignments should no longer be an issue.
The Thuren springs and control arms might not be entirely to Cadillac level, but it is darn close.
I cannot believe the difference between handling and riding.
I am kicking myself for not investing in this years ago instead of going cheap with the "extra" Rough Country.
Below are some pics of the finished setup.
My lessons learned: buy once, cry once.
If you can afford it, get the best option available, or pay again later.
Positive caster is important to drivability.
Always consult your CFO before spending $1400 on suspension upgrades (happy wife, happy life).
-Muzzy
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