96 rough ride

Hi -new guy here. You've probably had this one a lot, but this is my first time. My 96 rides real rough. Heard they all do. Its a stock truck, base model, 2w drive, 4 cyl, short wheel base, man trans, with 140,000 miles. I've tried different shocks to no avail and nothing else. Anything I can do?
Thanks

 

Indeed. Welcome to TW! I'm still relatively new myself, but can already say I haven't found a better online community than this one. Top notch.

Most of the time folks around here re-do their suspension with lift in mind. Don't imagine you're going there on a 2wd truck, but you can still improve your situation. Main thing being, shocks control the rebound of your suspension (leaf springs or coil), replacing them will not affect ride height, or do much at all for quality unless paired with a better set of springs.

Get new leaf packs for the rear. Little pricey, but it's the only option if you want better ride. For the front, you will probably want to get a new set of coils (called a coilover when paired with shock). Make sure you have them professionally assembled, if that applies, not sure what your front setup is. But my guess is you'll want to replace all components, front and rear, with aftermarket parts to really improve the ride quality.

That said, I'm only familiar with 4WD-specific parts, however the principle will be the same: Do not skimp, spend the money, do it right the first time or you just plain will not be satisfied.

Futz around with the search function. You will find in almost all cases that whatever question you may have has already been asked by at least one other person, probably by many.

 

what kind of shocks have you used?

Describe what kind of "rough" ride you are having. Is it the rear or the front? More one than the other?