1997 Z71 Ride Quality

[bcrooms]

Maybe I'm just OCD, but I've had everything checked out well regarding wheel and tire balance.  Road force balance, new shocks, new rotors, new drums, new brakes front and back,  new sway links.  

 

But my truck continues to have a poor ride quality.  What I mean by that is it has a constant "bounce" from the front to rear while driving. I expect a rough ride on a poorly managed road, but this issue is present on fresh pavement in my truck.

 

That's the best way I can describe it.  I've tried to video it while driving but the movement is hard to capture via a mobile phone.

 

Any suggestion what anything that should be inspected further?  I did have misfire issues awhile back but that was resolved (i think) with a new EFI kit.

 

Thanks,

Brandon

[Mikebtte]

Is it a stock truck without suspension lift?

Were the shocks used of good quality? Cheap Shocks/ Struts can make a ride worse. A lot of Z71 packages received a premium off road shock.

 

[bcrooms]

2 minutes ago, Mikebtte said:

Is it a stock truck without suspension lift?

Were the shocks used of good quality? Cheap Shocks/ Struts can make a ride worse. A lot of Z71 packages received a premium off road shock.

 

Truck is stock.  The shocks that were installed are not the same as the OEM off road shocks.  I believe they were a Monroe shock.  I don't remember right off.

[m&jtrans]

Truck is stock.  The shocks that were installed are not the same as the OEM off road shocks.  I believe they were a Monroe shock.  I don't remember right off.

Money says that the aftermarket shocks are the problem. They're either too short(topping out) or they're too long (bottoming out)
I would change the shocks out again and get the right length. And in a good brand i.e. bilstein shocks in a 5100 series.

Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

[bcrooms]

4 minutes ago, m&jtrans said:

Money says that the aftermarket shocks are the problem. They're either too short(topping out) or they're too long (bottoming out)
I would change the shocks out again and get the right length. And in a good brand i.e. bilstein shocks in a 5100 series.

Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk
 

The monroe shocks were installed by a mechanic and ordered to the spec of the truck so I'm not 100% sure I need to change the shocks again....it's only been 3-4 months since they were installed.  Issue was there before the replacement and after.

[oldmann]

I bet it has different rear springs.

[bronyaur]

It's the shocks.  I was leaving for a trip and found one of my Rancho shocks was blown (12 years old with a lot of miles).  None of the local parts houses had anything I really wanted so I had to settle for Monroe Gas Magnums.  My truck now does the same bouncing thing you're describing.  I figured I'd get a few years out of them so I can say I didn't waste my money, and then I'll order the Ranchos I had before.  

[bcrooms]

1 minute ago, bronyaur said:

It's the shocks.  I was leaving for a trip and found one of my Rancho shocks was blown (12 years old with a lot of miles).  None of the local parts houses had anything I really wanted so I had to settle for Monroe Gas Magnums.  My truck now does the same bouncing thing you're describing.  I figured I'd get a few years out of them so I can say I didn't waste my money, and then I'll order the Ranchos I had before.  

The shocks are the Monroe OE Spectrum.  I talked with the mechanic that has done all the work to my truck, and he said I did have a tire that had high road force and that was more likely the cause than the set of shocks that he installed. I have 2019 Silverado wheels with new michelins on the truck.  I definitely can't swap out the shocks again just because I "think" that's the problem.  

[MaverickZ71]

There was somebody on here this week that had spent considerable time and $ trying to track down a perceived suspension/wheel/tire vibration issue and it turned out to be bad motor mounts.  

[MaverickZ71]

If it is the shocks, were all 4 shocks replaced with the Monroes at the same time?  Or did you just change the rear shocks?  If the rear shocks are softer than the fronts (off-road shocks in the front only?), it would tend to bounce back to front over road imperfections.  

[Mikebtte]

On 12/19/2019 at 10:05 AM, bcrooms said:

Truck is stock.  The shocks that were installed are not the same as the OEM off road shocks.  I believe they were a Monroe shock.  I don't remember right off.

If I had to buy OEM, I would buy Monroe. That is a good shock. The trucks were notorious for having bad steering boxes, they even had an electronic assure that would cause it to pull one way or another and that was deleted to solve the issue

What are the load range on the tires? Many people run load range E and do not tow. Prior to this they ran a P tire (passenger) and it was smoother as it's a softer tire.