Weigh down rear with gear/rack or get new leaf pack?

I have CS047 OME leaf pack on my Taco.
SUPER stiff ride until it has 250+ lbs in the rear.

However, I NEVER tow or carry heavy stuff.
BTW I have a Softopper.

Should I

1) Weigh down rear with a roof rack over the softopper? If so what are some cool, heavy gear that work with my Softopper?

2) Sell Softopper and buy hardshell top?

3) Replace Dakar HD leaf pack with Icon RXT Option 1 (light load) leaf pack?

 

I have the opposite problem. When I tow anything, the back sags like crazy with the stock Bilsteins. Pretty darn annoying and I don’t like driving with the front raked up. So your Dakar leaf pack keeps the rear raked with a load, like 750-1000 pounds?

 

Why not take 1 leaf out of the Dakar HD leaf pack? Should help.

The Bilsteins aren't the problem. It's the leaf packs.

 

Remove a leaf.

 

Dakars = less sag? That would be rad if that’s all I need! How is the ride with a consistent 500 pound load in the bed?

 

You probably don’t want to use a Dakar pack unless you carry a load consistently so you do over extend your shocks, right?

 

No. You replace your shocks with the proper length for the lift.

 

The dakar leaf pack already has a lead removed. It also has about 50k miles and it's already almost W shaped.

 

I had the same problem.

HD Dakars with a topper and high clearance rear swingout steel bumper. Dakars had roughly 30k. I had my RTT loaded and an empty bed and my daks were pretty much flat almost negatively arched.

I just replaced them with 1k rated Deaver springs. MUCH better ride quality off the bat.

 

So if I want to get rid of the sag without replacing shocks, do I have any options? Airbags maybe?

 

Sag isn’t caused by shocks anyway. There are several options. Sumo springs are simple. An add-a-leaf(aal) or heavier duty spring pack range from a little lift to helping carry lots of off road gear/armor. Air bags are more complicated since you have to monitor air level but give the most adjustability in ride level and feel no matter what the load. Usually there’s a best choice but it depends on your usage and priorities. Any increase in spring rate will make the ride more harsh when unloaded but if you generally carry loads then that’s not an issue. Bottoming out and riding too stiff should both be avoided since they mean you aren’t using the range of suspension travel available and the axle and bearings are both taking unnecessarily hard hits. I like my air bags and the ability to tune the suspension to the load but others prefer some of the other options. Look into the choices and what each does or doesn’t do.

 

Just get some sandbags. Cheap option

 

the money you are going to spend on extra gas, to haul around the proposed extra weight, would pay for the right leaf pack.

Sounds like the OEM leaf pack with a 1” block spacer might be a better option.

 

I have 240lbs of bags in the back now but not a permanent solution. Because 1) I want my MPG to not suffer and 2) need the bed space just in case

I like the OEM with 1" block idea. However i can't seem to find anyone with stock take out leafs near me. And $450 each, new, is too much. I'll keep waiting to take offs to show up on for sale listing or maybe buy the Skyjacker soft ride or Icon RXT. But for sure I know the problem lies with the leaf pack.

 

I’m a little confused here. You say you’re springs are too stiff but then you say they’re sagging at the same time. Those two things shouldn’t really be able to happen at the same time. Are you sure you don’t have some blown out shocks back there?

 

I’ve installed a rooftop tent and rack (but low profile) and have the bed completely full as well as the floorboards of the truck — i’m confident i’m well over the payload capacity of the truck, and i’ve not noticed much difference in my mpg. I can’t imagine 240lbs would change it at all — and certainly not enough to be cost effective to be buying new suspension bits

 

Thanks for the details! I appreciate it. So they do make some leaf packs that don't lift the truck but are more ridged so the truck won't sag as much under weight? That would be ideal for me. Sumo springs are interesting, though. I've never used them but they look super easy to install which is a huge plus for me.

I don't want to mess with the ride, I love how the truck drives right now with or without a load.

I always have a SnugTop shell on the truck, I'd imagine that's around 250 pounds. I occasionally have a hardshell rooftop tent on the cap and when I have that loaded up, I typically have the bed full of camping gear. It doesn't sag as much then as when I'm using my dirt bike hitch carrier. You can visibly see the front end lifting up when it is loaded. Looks and drives weird but again, my bike only weighs around 250 pounds plus the hitch carrier which is about 50-70 pounds.

With all that said, Sumo is the cheaper and the least invasive way to get rid of the sag it sounds like. I attached a picture but it doesn't do the sag justice. I'll take another picture next time I load up my bike on the hitch carrier versus the trailer.

 

It's the cantilevering of the hitch that makes the relatively light bike tilt the truck. You might like Sumo's, they're certainly simple. Air bags can be filled with minimal air and have no effect at all on ride or filled as needed to level the truck.