Advice Needed - Afraid to Turn / Rollover

[VX KAT]

actually, you would be surprised how 'little' of a bump it takes for a VX to hit the rear bump stops. Maybe sue can help me with a photo, but some VX's sit within a couple inches of their bump stops at a rest..... just worth taking a look

Mine were touching at rest....
That tan color is Arizona dirt sticking to the bottom part of the stop, so it's actually touching the axle.

[pbkid]

Okay, WOW. I just went out there with a flashlight and a tape measure and couldn't believe my eyes. 2.5 inches of clearance beneath the bump stops. 2.5 INCHES??? And that's with the OME 913s installed.

Thanks PB and all the rest for mentioning them like a million times. I honestly figured with the lift, there's no way they could be a factor.
Stay tuned,
-V

no problem. a lot of people are surprised when they actually look at it. I know the ones of my Runner are about 6" from the axle.

With stock springs, I'm at 1/2".

thats gonna make a pretty rough ride.

Mine were touching at rest....
That tan color is Arizona dirt sticking to the bottom part of the stop, so it's actually touching the axle.

I never had to cut mine on my VX, but i would imagine it would have made a lot smoother ride. Mine wasnt too bad, but it definately would do the little 'hop' that you guys are referring to if i was going fast and hit a bump. I just always trusted the factory gas shocks to keep all 4 on the ground.

[SlowPro48]

Vendetta, you're right - trimming bump stops may help alleviate the symptoms but look elsewhere for the root cause. Your VX had the same bump stops when you first acquired it and you say it didn't exibit the problem then - so logic says it's not the bump stops causing it to step out. I've noticed my rear end steps out a lot more when the nitrogen in the shocks gets too low. Hopefully you just need better damping. If you're still running OEM dampers, get them rebuilt or if they're not leaking at least pop the caps and recharge them with a couple hundred psi of N2 so the oil doesn't turn to froth after the first mile. Froth offers almost no resistance. Welcome to BoingBoing City! If you're running aftermarket shocks - from what I've read here, most tend to be under-damped from the start - especially rebound - and it's all downhill from there - shocks don't get better with use! If worn out/wimpy aftermarket shocks are the problem, I don't know what to tell you other than get new shocks and get the stiffest ones you can find! It can't help the handling when your shocks are blowing through the stroke, bottoming out then rebounding too fast. I think they call that pogoing but in the short little VX with the shocks cavitating at both ends it feels more like riding a porpoise so I call it porpoising. I can't stand the harsh ride/slamming that goes along with the porpoising so regardless of the handling, I pump the shocks up at least once a year just for comfort's sake. They're the floating piston type - good for performance since they can be pressurized more than bladder shocks but without a bladder for the nitrogen they don't hold said high pressure very long - especially if corrosion has crept into the reservoir's o-ring/seal area...