Suspension problem?
This is about my minivan conversion.
When driving, the van feels like it is extremely topheavy and overloaded, but it is not. My gear weighs about the same as the seats I took out, and the heavy stuff is on the floor. Nothing is in the top half of the van except a couple of pillows and hanging clothes. And my head, when driving. The topheavy feeling prevents me from driving at freeway speed.
When parked, windstorms rock the van and I find it necessary to put it up on jackstands. This is inconvenient, as it is supposed to be my daily driver! I asked in another thread about installing jacks, and that is how I came to realise the wind problem may be related to the driving problem.
I have new shocks and tires (LT BFG AT/TA, stiffish shocks, 1000 miles on each). The van is AWD. In general it is in good shape and is not a clunker.
My suspension is of the first type listed on this page:
http://www.carbibles.com/suspension_bible_pg2.html
I see that they say this type does not normally have a lot of lateral stability. Do I need a sway bar? Or is something broken that can be fixed?
Note: I try to avoid posting the make and model of this van, because I have an online stalker who has proven dangerous IRL. For those who know or can guess, please resist the temptation to post the info here. If you really need to know, you can, of course, pm me.
When driving, the van feels like it is extremely topheavy and overloaded, but it is not. My gear weighs about the same as the seats I took out, and the heavy stuff is on the floor. Nothing is in the top half of the van except a couple of pillows and hanging clothes. And my head, when driving. The topheavy feeling prevents me from driving at freeway speed.
When parked, windstorms rock the van and I find it necessary to put it up on jackstands. This is inconvenient, as it is supposed to be my daily driver! I asked in another thread about installing jacks, and that is how I came to realise the wind problem may be related to the driving problem.
I have new shocks and tires (LT BFG AT/TA, stiffish shocks, 1000 miles on each). The van is AWD. In general it is in good shape and is not a clunker.
My suspension is of the first type listed on this page:
http://www.carbibles.com/suspension_bible_pg2.html
I see that they say this type does not normally have a lot of lateral stability. Do I need a sway bar? Or is something broken that can be fixed?
Note: I try to avoid posting the make and model of this van, because I have an online stalker who has proven dangerous IRL. For those who know or can guess, please resist the temptation to post the info here. If you really need to know, you can, of course, pm me.
This is a sample pic of a rear anti-sway bar from Hellwig, which is an excellent provider. The bulge in the center of the bar in the photo is to clear the differential. The two portions outboard of that bulge, parallel to the top edge of the photo, clamp to the Axle using the hardware in the center of the photo. The remaining four pieces link to the chassis. The idea is that for the vehicle to sway or rock, the Sway Bar must be twisted, in addition to flexing the springs. On RV's, notably Class C's, Front and Rear Sway Bars are very successful in improving both road manners AND stability when stopped, parked, camping.
