Question for the towing with a gen4 crowd

I accept I'm probably the only one of us but have any of you found that the suspension is so soft in roll that it is causing you a speed wobble? So specifically, 24 plate lcv, feels like it's going to fall off the road going round corners at speeds my admittedly modified gen3 doesn't even register.  Put a 9x5 twin axle on the back and unless it is loaded very nose heavy it's not going over 40mph without a speed wobble, unloaded it will run at 50 quite happily on a smooth surface but any uneven ones and it's back at it. The trailer is well maintained with probably less than a hundred hours on this set of suspension units and the coupling is probably not more than 250 hours certainly not worn or loose. Coupling heights are within less than 5mm of perfect for a 30kg imposed load. When it does it empty it feels like it's the car that is starting the wobble by rolling which the trailer then amplifies. It's also there but to a lesser extent with a 6x4 single axle, that's really touchy about loading though it absolutely has to be loaded front first but again when it does do it more often than not it feels like it's coming from the car and the trailer is making it worse. 

Just to complicate things for the most part the soft suspension is a good idea for ride quality in fields and tracks so I'm reluctant to throw a set of gucci dampers under it and remove the compliance though obviously if mine is unique in its behaviour and needs rectification that's different. 

I have gen4 springs and shocks on my gen3. The springs are slightly softer, which is fine, but the standard shocks are terrible! If my Jimny wasn't one MOT away from the graveyard I'd be fitting a set of Bilsteins.

Whilst I can't comment on the towing/wobble side of things I will say that since I got my Gen 3 it's become noticable that my Gen 4s don't handle as well as its predecessor. They have more body roll and just feel a bit looser on the road whereas my Gen 3 feels more planted and takes the bumps better. Not sure why that is as they are basically the same underneath but there we go. This isn't me knocking the Gen 4 and if I didn't have other cars to compare to then I probably wouldn't know but there is a difference between them. 

Lambert wrote:

I accept I'm probably the only one of us but have any of you found that the suspension is so soft in roll that it is causing you a speed wobble? So specifically, 24 plate lcv, feels like it's going to fall off the road going round corners at speeds my admittedly modified gen3 doesn't even register.  Put a 9x5 twin axle on the back and unless it is loaded very nose heavy it's not going over 40mph without a speed wobble, unloaded it will run at 50 quite happily on a smooth surface but any uneven ones and it's back at it. The trailer is well maintained with probably less than a hundred hours on this set of suspension units and the coupling is probably not more than 250 hours certainly not worn or loose. Coupling heights are within less than 5mm of perfect for a 30kg imposed load. When it does it empty it feels like it's the car that is starting the wobble by rolling which the trailer then amplifies. It's also there but to a lesser extent with a 6x4 single axle, that's really touchy about loading though it absolutely has to be loaded front first but again when it does do it more often than not it feels like it's coming from the car and the trailer is making it worse. 

Just to complicate things for the most part the soft suspension is a good idea for ride quality in fields and tracks so I'm reluctant to throw a set of gucci dampers under it and remove the compliance though obviously if mine is unique in its behaviour and needs rectification that's different. 

I've mentioned it a number of times over the past few years. I think the stock shocks wear too quickly. When new my Gen 4 handled quite ok, but got progressively worse and more and more butt clenchy feeling quite wobbly and unstable when cornering.

A suspension swap (Jimny Bit Black Raptor Premium 2") totally transform it, allowing you to throw it about like an MX-5 and corner at 80mph.

However, before the stock suspension went wobbly I did tow my 1200kg caravan with the Jimny from Bedfordshire to mid Wales and back. It lacked a little grunt on the steeper hills, but felt rock solid cruising at 60mph on the dual carriage-ways.

 


CONCLUSION: I think your stock suspension is knackered (shocks mostly), despite it being quite new and low miles!



Not an overly twisty road, but this was when it was brand new. This was flat to floor, it really wouldn't have gone any quicker, as you can probably tell by the induction noise.


 

That's how I felt when I fitted the gen 4 suspension to mine. It felt reasonable initially but after a couple of years and not many miles it has gotten very loose. Disappointing considering the shocks are made by KYB.