Left rear lower than right
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Senior Member
Joined: Jun 2000
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From: Missouri
Left rear lower than right
The left rear of my truck is an inch lower than the right rear; measured from the ground at the center of the wheel. It has always been a little lower but I just had the torsion bars adjusted to raise/level the front and now the rear end difference is really noticeable. Should I put in a 1 inch block in just the left? Does the spring need replaced? Is there any kind of a load-assist spring that I could install on just the left side that would help level things out? Any & all suggestions appreciated.
Member
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 28
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From: Goldsboro, NC
I assume you got the truck without a warranty...
It may be that one or both of the leaf springs are sagging. If the previous owner loaded it up too much and too often (towing with too much tongue weight) it could easily have softened the springs. Helper springs would allow you to load more weight, but it won't raise the spring pack.
I think putting a block in would only help things temporarily.
Add-a-leafs can be a way to go since they're fairly inexpensive, but somewhat cumbersome to install without the right equipment.
I had an 89 S-10 Blazer that had sagging leaf springs: I took the vehicle to a shop that specialized in every spring application you can imagine. A few hours later, they had "resprung" and powder-coated the old leafs, had installed an add-a-leaf, and tied them together at the ends with a heavy duty rubberized band. Cost: $112 + tax. Did I get a good deal? Amazing deal yes...
It did raise the back end by about 1.5", which was ok by me because it was a cheap lift....I just had the front end torsion bars cranked to level it. Unfortunately, the ride suffered from cranking the torsion bars...as well as the stiffer springs in back.
If you're concerned about the ride, you'll need to make sure whoever works on them keeps the same spring rate.
There's an old (97) but decent article about the basics of leaf springs at:
http://www.findarticles.com/cf_offrd.../article.jhtml
Good luck
It may be that one or both of the leaf springs are sagging. If the previous owner loaded it up too much and too often (towing with too much tongue weight) it could easily have softened the springs. Helper springs would allow you to load more weight, but it won't raise the spring pack.
I think putting a block in would only help things temporarily.
Add-a-leafs can be a way to go since they're fairly inexpensive, but somewhat cumbersome to install without the right equipment.
I had an 89 S-10 Blazer that had sagging leaf springs: I took the vehicle to a shop that specialized in every spring application you can imagine. A few hours later, they had "resprung" and powder-coated the old leafs, had installed an add-a-leaf, and tied them together at the ends with a heavy duty rubberized band. Cost: $112 + tax. Did I get a good deal? Amazing deal yes...
It did raise the back end by about 1.5", which was ok by me because it was a cheap lift....I just had the front end torsion bars cranked to level it. Unfortunately, the ride suffered from cranking the torsion bars...as well as the stiffer springs in back.
If you're concerned about the ride, you'll need to make sure whoever works on them keeps the same spring rate.
There's an old (97) but decent article about the basics of leaf springs at:
http://www.findarticles.com/cf_offrd.../article.jhtml
Good luck