Rear Spring Isolators - What do you think?

[SOcalTRAIL]

So when I got all experimental last weekend and was playing around with the Firestone Airbags, I cut up my rear coil spring isolators / overload bump doo hickeys (this is the long cone looking rubber guy that lives inside the rear coil). I removed the airbags and now I have my new OME springs I want to install but I'm not sure if I should order new isolators or just run the shortened ones. I talked to a guy at the Toyota parts department and unfortunately, they are not as cheap as I was hoping…. $74 each!!! If I would have known that I definitely would not have cut them up, that is $58 more that the damn airbags cost!!!! He also mentioned that those things primary job was if you were loaded way down or towing a heavy trailer they make contact once the spring compresses a specific amount and help firm up the rear and reduce and further sag. I am going with OME coils ( OME 896 ) that are #318 lb/in rated which is a big up from the stock coils that I believe are rated at #180 so I don't think spring sag will be an issue any more, especially since I don't tow.

So… run the shorty's, or wait on the new spring install and order the new ones and whine over spending $150 on a couple of stupid pieces of rubber???

 

[eddiebx]

Let's look at it this way, what are the chances you'd actually load up the rear enough to make it sag to the point that the cone bump stops (before being man handled by you) would actually make contact to the axle? At that stiffness and ride height I would imagine that would be highly unlikely. Which brings me to my final point, if they are never going to touch, who cares if it's there or not

I don't see removing those being that big of a deal since we already have those bump stops (by the inner fender well) that prevent the rear axles from flexing upwards too much and bottoming out the shocks. Maybe if that cone thing was the only bump stop in the entire rear suspension, then i'd be apprehensive about running without them.

Since you already have the rear springs ready to go in why not just put it all together as is and do the flex text with the fork lift to see if you can even compress the rear enough to make the cones touch. At least that's what I would do if I was in your shoes; I'm a cheapass when it comes these little things.

 

[Jeremy556]

Run the shortened ones.

You will be using a spring with a much higher rating, and presumably a shock with a lot more hi and low speed damping than stock, and you still have the bump stops on the axle.

 

[SOcalTRAIL]

Thanks guys. Pretty much what I was thinking too.
So that means new rear spring install after work tomorrow. :clap2: