Very sad today: please share ride quality of various 4x4s

theskyking123 said:
My jeep doesn't seem to have bilstein's on the front, only the rear, but I might need to look again.
and I dont think the small events is what is killing my back, I think it is more of larger rolling obstacles, let's say 8 inch rollers and ditches, feels very bouncy and like a yo-yo, especially the rear end, incidentally the rear end is where the bilesteins are...
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Does the Jeep have shocks on the front?
 
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jjvw said:
25ish on the highway. 8ish off road.
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wow, I didn't know I can go down to 8 off road, does that require a special rim or wheel? Do you need to see my wheels before I try that? A jeeping friend said "don't go below 18" but again, I am a beginner so I don't know any of this stuff.
 
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theskyking123 said:
Long story short, I finally had to accept that my 45 year old back gets too jacked up from off-roading in my beloved TJ. Today was definitely the last day, my fingers and toes are numb from back issues and I can barely walk. What's strange is I get very little back pain or issues doing other stuff in life, so it is definitely offroading.

I already purchased a new drivers seat, that was definitely contributing to issues, but it wasn't enough sadly - even though I love the new seat.

A friend of mine has a 2023 Rubicon and I drove it off-road and the ride quality was MUCH less bumpy, maybe I need to get one of those.

Would love to hear others experiences regarding which off road vehicles are more smooth.
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Not to derail the shock discussion but a couple of things to put into the mix when I see you mentioned the the 2023.
  1. Did it have electronic sway bar disconnects
  2. Was it 4 door- longer wheel base?
Both of those could affect the ride comfort equation.

Just some thoughts.
 
theskyking123 said:
wow, I didn't know I can go down to 8 off road, does that require a special rim or wheel? Do you need to see my wheels before I try that? A jeeping friend said "don't go below 18" but again, I am a beginner so I don't know any of this stuff.
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Ignore your friend. Up until recently, I have been airing down to 8psi for years on standard wheels. The only time I lost a bead was with the front diff locked up and turning on a high traction surface. I had it reset within 10 minutes.

I have beadlocks now, but not because the tires were frequently falling off.
 
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JustDandee said:
Not to derail the shock discussion but a couple of things to put into the mix when I see you mentioned the the 2023.
  1. Did it have electronic sway bar disconnects
  2. Was it 4 door- longer wheel base?
Both of those could affect the ride comfort equation.

Just some thoughts.
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yes its a 4 door and yes it had electronic sway disconnect, why is that relevant? just curious.
 
So if I took my jeep to a shop, and said modify this so that it is as comfortable as possible, could they do anything more than what's already one (i.e. my bilsteins) or is it basically "max comfort" already?
 
theskyking123 said:
yes its a 4 door and yes it had electronic sway disconnect, why is that relevant? just curious.
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A disconnected front sway bar will reduce a lot of the jerky side to side movements. It doesn't matter if the sway bar is disconnected by pushing a dash button or by manually crawling underneath and pulling pins out.

The 4 door JK is a bigger, longer, heavier vehicle than a TJ is, making this largely a useless apples to oranges comparison.
 
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theskyking123 said:
So if I took my jeep to a shop, and said modify this so that it is as comfortable as possible, could they do anything more than what's already one (i.e. my bilsteins) or is it basically "max comfort" already?
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Correct your your pressure both on and off road, and use the Jeep as you had before. Then reassess how it treats you.
 
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jjvw said:
A disconnected front sway bar will reduce a lot of the jerky side to side movements.
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Absolutely
jjvw said:
It doesn't matter if the sway bar is disconnected by pushing a dash button or by manually crawling underneath and pulling pins out.
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unless you have a bad back
jjvw said:
The 4 door JK is a bigger, longer, heavier vehicle than a TJ is, making this largely a useless apples to oranges comparison.
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Not useless. The longer wheelbase of a JLU (4 door 2017 and newer wrangler) trumps almost anything you reasonably do to a TJ with regard to ride quality.

OP: I recommend swapping your rear shocks for a soft (and inexpensive) shock like the skyjacker black max and disconnecting your front sway bar. If that works, an anti rock or swayloc front sway bar might be a good long term solution. If not, maybe you do need a JL.
 
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Woodrow said:
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unless you have a bad back
...
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His bad back does not know or care what the method of disconnecting a sway bar is. Unless it hurts his back to crouch on the ground to pull the pins.

Woodrow said:
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Not useless. The longer wheelbase of a JLU (4 door 2017 and newer wrangler) trumps almost anything you reasonably do to a TJ with regard to ride quality.
...
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If you are going to compare his TJ to a very different vehicle, then any other vehicle is fair game for comparison.
 
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theskyking123 said:
Does anyone think these Bilstein rear shocks are making the ride more stiff? The front end - with sway bar disconnected - definitely feels more supple and loose than the rear end. Maybe I should take the bilstein's off?
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A member here that knows suspension has characterized Bilsteins as being useful for telling whether a quarter was heads or tails by driving over it.

I'll be 41 in 2 weeks, they've been telling me I have degenerative disc disease in my lumbar since I was 21 and cervical since 30 but the only time offroading has ever bothered it was when i hit the trail at highway tire pressure and the sway bar connected. My LJ has a swayloc and I air down to about 10 psi and even with $50 shocks (key being the right $50 shocks) most of my wheeling buddies bitch at me for going too fast.
 
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jjvw said:
His bad back does not know or care what the method of disconnecting a sway bar is. Unless it hurts his back to crouch on the ground to pull the pins.
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That was indeed my point
jjvw said:
If you are going to compare his TJ to a very different vehicle, then any other vehicle is fair game for comparison.
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True but I was staying within the also good offroad category
 
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jjvw said:
A disconnected front sway bar will reduce a lot of the jerky side to side movements. It doesn't matter if the sway bar is disconnected by pushing a dash button or by manually crawling underneath and pulling pins out.

The 4 door JK is a bigger, longer, heavier vehicle than a TJ is, making this largely a useless apples to oranges comparison.
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Wheel base length is longer.
 
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theskyking123 said:
So if I took my jeep to a shop, and said modify this so that it is as comfortable as possible, could they do anything more than what's already one (i.e. my bilsteins) or is it basically "max comfort" already?
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You are in the right place to get your Jeep riding smooth. There are shops that can straighten things out with out having to ship across the country and back.
 
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