Heavier Duty Coils on 2wd. Any issues?

[79dentside]

Hey guys,

I bought a set of Moog 6454 coils that I plan to install. From what I’ve read, seem to be a good option for a little bit of height over stock for a 1/2 ton.

My question is, when does a person run into ball joint and steering issues? I was looking for a little lift and would like to know if it would be wise to do anything with the ballpoints? I’ve seen talk about ball joint spacers and what not for various lifts, but I am just trying to make the front end a little more proud. 1” or 2” max (may consider coil spacers??). Would like to run a 32” tire if possible. Tires look a little small on it currently.

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Let me know if you guys have run into any issues doing something similar. Thanks!

 

[bucket]

They are stock replacement springs and will work fine. You will just need an alignment afterwards.

 

[F-64]

I'd replace the balljoints while you are in there. You may not know the last time they were changed out. I've had them break on the freeway in traffic....not fun
Once, you get everything back together, as Bucket said, you'll need to do an alignment. If you wait to do the balljoints later, you'll have to do an alignment again. You may even replace the upper rubber bumpstops since they are cheap and easier to access when the spring is out.
A note, your shocks will not work as well as they did with the lighter spring. They'll have to work harder to dampen the motion of the stiffer spring. You might not notice it, but something to consider.
Also, with the bigger tire your unsprung weight will go up. Your tire will have a harder time following the road surface. Keep your unsprung weight low for better handling.
With the stiffer front spring natural frequency will go up in front... changing ride quality. It may be better or worse. Hard to know with older suspensions and worn parts.

Funny enough, your front springs may be old and sagging. The lighter stock spring may bring your ride height up.

 

[78C10BigTen]

Im also looking for advice as i just want to add new coils to my front just to get the nose back to factory height if not a hair higher. Plus i want to clear 265/75/16s

 

[legopnuematic]

Those are stock 454 springs/big ten springs. Its what I got for my 79.
This is how it sits now with no motor/trans in it.

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[shiftpro]

I have also successfully ran HD big block truck springs. It's awesome, you will wonder why they didn't offer this from factory. The truck rides better, steers better and looks better.

Invest in good shocks. You get what you pay for.
Here's a suggestion...

http://www.shocksandsuspension.com/showitems.asp?dc=1

 

[Kim Burke]

Your ride(spring rate) will be stiffer so hold onto your coffee cup. We replaced hundreds of sets with that number, just made sure we managed the customer’s expectations.

 

[79dentside]

Good stuff, thank you all. I am not the least bit worried about ride quality, I could care less to be honest haha. How much height do these tend to add since some of you have run these?

thank you.

 

[Kim Burke]

2ish” over stock, maybe more if variables like SBC or BBC, or aluminum heads & intake comes into play. Legopnuematic’s roller hotrod pic is the absolute max.

 

[Kim Burke]

If you truly don’t care about ride, Moog #6560 coils are MAX made for GM truck independent front suspensions. I can’t say we ever installed them in anything but P30 motorhome chassis’.

 

[MikeB]

I guess it depends on which springs your truck has now. If it has the basic C10 suspension, Moog #6452 would be the OE replacements, but they have a little higher spring rate (843 lbs/in) than OE.

Moog's spring chart shows the #6454 spring rate is 1060 lbs/in (25% stiffer than #6452), which would probably make the truck sit at least 2" higher than old OE base springs. I say that because even new #6452 springs made my truck sit at least 1" higher than the old OE springs.

https://www.moog-suspension-parts.com/universal_coil_springs.asp

Also, what size are your tires?

 

[78C10BigTen]

I guess it depends on which springs your truck has now. If it has the basic C10 suspension, Moog #6452 would be the OE replacements, but they have a little higher spring rate (843 lbs/in) than OE.

Moog's spring chart shows the #6454 spring rate is 1060 lbs/in (25% stiffer than #6452), which would probably make the truck sit at least 2" higher than old OE base springs. I say that because even new #6452 springs made my truck sit at least 1" higher than the old OE springs.

https://www.moog-suspension-parts.com/universal_coil_springs.asp

Also, what size are your tires?

I was just playin on that website, some cool stuff there!

 

[79dentside]

I guess it depends on which springs your truck has now. If it has the basic C10 suspension, Moog #6452 would be the OE replacements, but they have a little higher spring rate (843 lbs/in) than OE.

Moog's spring chart shows the #6454 spring rate is 1060 lbs/in (25% stiffer than #6452), which would probably make the truck sit at least 2" higher than old OE base springs. I say that because even new #6452 springs made my truck sit at least 1" higher than the old OE springs.

https://www.moog-suspension-parts.com/universal_coil_springs.asp

Also, what size are your tires?

They are 235/75/15’s, but the fronts are worn pretty good.

Thanks for the info, I’ll look into that a little more. That’s awesome.

 

[Craig 85]

I had 2 3/4 tons that I did this to, I ran Air Lift 1000 air bags in my front coils. It gave about 2" of lift and let me run 33x12.50's on my truck with minor trimming. I already had HD front springs due to the 454 and A/C. I ran a 2" block in back to keep the factory rake. Here's the part number for your truck. Nice part is the ride/lift is adjustable. Once I determined the lift amount, I had the truck re-aligned.

https://www.airliftcompany.com/shop/81560/

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[79dentside]

I had 2 3/4 tons that I did this to, I ran Air Lift 1000 air bags in my front coils. It gave about 2" of lift and let me run 33x12.50's on my truck with minor trimming. I already had HD front springs due to the 454 and A/C. I ran a 2" block in back to keep the factory rake. Here's the part number for your truck. Nice part is the ride/lift is adjustable. Once I determined the lift amount, I had the truck re-aligned.

https://www.airliftcompany.com/shop/81560/

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that right there, I like. I was going to do rear lift blocks too with a slight rake.

I have run Airlift 1000’s on 2 of my cars and have a 3rd set unopened... I wonder if it will work. It was for an 84’ el Camino???

I will stick the moog springs in, then see if I want more height. Good thing is that the airlift is super easy. I have only used the sets that you manually air up yourself.