Your trucks’s suspension system plays a vital role in delivering a smooth and controlled driving experience. Understanding truck suspension and its key components helps you appreciate how they contribute to ride comfort and overall vehicle handling. Whether you're modifying your truck suspension parts for off-roading or upgrading to a truck lift kit, it's crucial to understand these parts and their functions.
Coil Spring
The coil spring is the backbone of the suspension system, responsible for bearing the vehicle's weight and absorbing the kinetic energy being generated from bumps and road imperfections. Springs provide the vertical motion needed to keep your truck stable as it moves over uneven surfaces. Without properly functioning springs, your vehicle would bounce uncontrollably, making for a very uncomfortable and unusable ride.
There are different types of springs used in vehicle suspension systems, such as coil springs, leaf springs, and torsion bars. Truck suspension parts often include heavy-duty springs specifically designed for rough terrain and heavy loads. Coil and torsion bar springs are the most common in the front of the truck, while leaf springs are frequently found in rear of the truck or in larger trucks. Ram and Ford trucks all feature coil springs in the front, where as Gm/ Chevy trucks usually feature torsion bar style front suspension. All 3 brands of trucks use leaf springs in the rear, except for 2014-current Ram 2500 trucks, which come with 4 link and coil springs on the rear, boosting a much smoother ride than leaf spring trucks.
Shock Absorber
Shock absorbers are essential for controlling the movement of your vehicle’s springs. When you drive over a bump, the springs compress and store energy. The shock absorbers dampen this energy, preventing your vehicle from bouncing excessively. Shock absorbers play a significant and crucial role in maintaining stability and comfort, especially during high-speed driving or rough terrain.
High-performance truck shocks are vital for vehicles that need to handle off-road conditions or tow heavy loads. These shocks are designed to endure the intense stress that comes with rough surfaces, ensuring that your vehicle remains stable even when driving over uneven terrain.
Shock absorbers come in different forms, including gas-charged, hydraulic, and adjustable varieties. For those installing a long arm kit or truck lift kit, upgrading to high-quality truck shocks is a must. The enhanced suspension articulation from lift kits or other suspension upgrade parts can place extra demands on your shocks, making it critical to have components that can handle the additional suspension travel while maintaining the vehicle's stability and comfort.
Stabilizer Sway Bar
Also known as an anti-roll bar or sway bar, the stabilizer bar is designed to reduce body roll during cornering. It connects the suspension on both sides of the vehicle, transferring force to the opposite side when one side encounters uneven terrain. This keeps the vehicle more level, improving handling and reducing the risk of tipping over during sharp turns.
For trucks and SUVs, especially those equipped with a truck lift kit, a high-quality truck sway bar is essential. Lifting a vehicle raises its center of gravity, which increases the likelyhood of body roll during cornering. By upgrading to a stronger sway bar, you can enhance your vehicle’s stability, especially when navigating off-road trails or making sharp turns.
Additionally, stabilizer bars come in different diameters and materials, which can affect their performance. Trucks designed for towing or hauling often benefit from thicker stabilizer bars, as they provide better stability under heavy loads. When installing a truck sway bar, it's crucial to choose one that matches the specific demands of your vehicle, ensuring optimal performance on and off the road. Another critical part is the proper sway bar end links, older Ram trucks are notorious for worn out and broken sway bar link ends as the factory links have no pivot point to them, upgrading to a heavy duty Adjustable Sway Bar link kit is a must on the 1994-2013 Ram trucks.
Lateral Control Bar (Trac Bar)
The lateral control rod, commonly referred to as a panhard bar or trac bar, is suspension component that is responsible for keeping the axle centered under the vehicle, without it the body and frame would simply “fall over” as there would be nothing holding it in the proper position.
In vehicles modified with a leveling kit or lift kit or a air suspension kit, the trac bar becomes even more important to have the right trac bar on your truck. Upgrading to a adjustable trac bar is a huge MUST! Suspension modifications such as lifts allow for greater suspension articulation, which can lead to excessive lateral movement if not properly managed. By installing a heavy duty trac bar you can prevent the axle from shifting, which helps maintain proper body to axle alignment, proper wheel alignment, and stability during off-road driving or heavy towing and also to prevent the infamous “Death Wobble”.
Upgrading to a high-quality Trac Bar ensures that your vehicle can handle increased suspension travel without compromising safety or performance. Whether you’re daily driving on the road or tackling offroad terrain, a properly functioning trac bar is key to maintaining control over your vehicle.
Ball Joint
Ball joints act as the pivot point between the axle knuckles and the axle and suspension. They allow the suspension to move up and down while the wheels can turn left and right. These critical components of any suspension are essential for steering and maintaining proper alignment, making them crucial for vehicle handling and safety.
Ball joints come in different types, such as upper or lower balljoints. Both balljoints are a extremely critical part in the suspension, if a balljoint fails there is nothing connecting the wheel bearing and knuckle to the axle. Making sure your balljoints are tight is very important, having your truck checked by a professional shop is highly recommended. Also trucks with larger tires or those with lift kit place additional strain on the ball joints, making it essential to upgrade to heavy-duty versions.
Worn-out ball joints can lead to poor handling, misalignment, and uneven tire wear. Regular maintenance and inspection of your ball joints are essential, especially if your vehicle frequently navigates off-road terrain or carries heavy loads. Upgrading to high-quality ball joints ensures that your truck can handle the demands placed on it, keeping you in control whether you're driving on or off the road.
Truck Steering
The steering system in a truck or any vehicle is one of the most critical parts of the suspension system. The main steering linkage in a Dodge or Ford truck is mainly two pieces, the drag link and the tierod. The drag link is a bar that comes down from the steering box (connects at the pitman arm) and goes down to the axle and connects to the passenger side axle knuckle.
The other part of the steering linkage is the Tierod bar. The tierod is a horizontal bar that connects each axle steering knuckle to each other, so that both tires turn together evenly at the same time.
When the steering wheel is turned in the cab, the steering box turns the Pitman arm left or right, which in turn moves the drag link that is connected to the axle knuckle, which in turn moves both knuckles left or right thus steering the truck.
Properly aligned steering is extremely critical, with the tierod not being aligned properly the tires would not be parallel and cause the truck to pull all over the road and wear tires out super fast. The drag link not being adjusted correctly makes the steering wheel be off center in the cab. Taking your truck to a professional alignment shop is highly recommended to achieve proper alignment.
Upper and Lower Control Arms
The upper and lower control arms, are responsible for connecting the front axle to the vehicle's frame. They allow the axle to move up and down while keeping the body aligned with the axles. Control arms play a critical role in steering and maintaining proper alignment, making them extremely essential for proper vehicle handling.
Control arms are found factory on 1994-2002 RAM 1500/2500/3500 4wd trucks, and on 2003-2013 Ram 2500/3500 4wd trucks
Trucks fitted with a leveling kit or a lift kit require upgraded longer control arms or the better option of adjustable longarm kits to maintain the proper suspension geometry and the increased suspension travel. Adding any level kits or lift kits places additional stress on the control arms, making it essential to have right control arms or longarms that can handle the extra strain and maintain proper suspension geometry and handling. Upgrading to heavy-duty control arms ensures that your suspension system remains stable and safe even under extreme conditions and heavy use.
On 2014 -current Ram 2500 4wd trucks and 2005- current Ford F250/350 4wd trucks, they feature a radius arm vs control arms. This system is very similar to the control arms and essentially does the same thing but it pivots differently. The radius arm is a single big link between the axle and the frame, and connects in two points on the axle and one pivot point at the frame, with one link per axle side. It is very critical to add the proper Raduis Arm drop bracket on 3’’ or bigger leveling kits or lift kits. Another much better option compared to the radius arms are adjustable longarms. Longarms allow for much better and smoother suspension travel and also help maintain the proper axle geometry and help improve ride quality, especially on lifted trucks. We have a large selection of longarm kits on the products page.
In addition to improving stability, high-quality longarms drastically enhance ride comfort. By allowing the suspension to move more freely, they reduce the impact of bumps and potholes, making for a smoother and more enjoyable driving experience.
Steering Box
The steering box is a extremely critical part of the steering system of almost any vehicle, especially found on heavy duty trucks. The steering box is mounted on the frame of the truck and is connected via a rod to the steering wheel in the cab. When the steering wheel is turned, the steering box turns and multiples torque via power steering assist and sends movement to the steering linkage via the Pitman Arm. The pitman arm comes off the bottom of the steering box and connects to the drag link which then goes to the passenger knuckle at the axle and thus steers the tires. Loose steering feel is usually a sign of a worn steering box. Always check the steering linkage first as it is always more likely to be worn out before the steering box. If the steering box is worn out, we highly recommend replacing it with a high quality box such as Redhead. Whatever you do, do not waste your money on a cheap chinese amazon steering box as they are extremely weak and we have seen them fail many times, breaking the pitman arm shaft off and causing complete loss of steering which can be deadly.
Knuckle Arm
The knuckle arm, also known as the steering knuckle, connects the wheel bearing and wheel to the axle via upper and lower balljoints. It allows the wheel to rotate left and right, while keeping the tires in the correct place. Knuckles are essential for steering, as they control the direction of the wheels and help maintain alignment. The wheel bearings bolt into the knuckle as well as the brakes and rotors are all mounted on the knuckle. Most factory truck axles feature a plenty strong knuckle, even for big lifts. The most important part is having tight and well maintained balljoints and wheel bearing. Also very critical is having properly torqued steering linkage to the knuckles to prevent any wear or possible failures to the knuckles.
Conclusion
A vehicle’s suspension system is more than just a collection of parts; it’s a finely tuned network that plays a vital role in delivering both safety and performance. Each component of a trucks suspension system, from springs to stabilizer bars, contributes to a smooth, controlled ride. Understanding the functions of these parts helps you appreciate how they work together to keep your vehicle stable, comfortable, and responsive under various driving conditions.
Whether you're maintaining your vehicle’s current system or considering upgrades like a leveling kit, truck lift kit or air suspension kit, having the right components in place is essential. Upgrading parts such as steering kits, adjustable trac bars, or long arm kits will greatly improve handling and off-road capability, ensuring that your vehicle can meet your specific needs.
Ultimately, regular maintenance and thoughtful enhancements to your suspension system can extend your vehicle's lifespan, prevent costly repairs, and enhance both comfort and safety on the road. Whether you’re tackling rough terrain or driving through the city, investing in high-quality suspension parts ensures you’re prepared for whatever the road throws your way.