Gen 4 Suspension - Help with Wind and Body side to side

Hi All,

I am looking to see what could help with the huge amount of body toss left and right. I have noticed that the during high winds or bends, the body tends to lean one way or the other.

I have done some research and I have some mixed answers.

Would a 40mm , 50mm or even 60mm lift kit help with the suspension feel and comfort?
Wider tyres? Wheel spacers?

I do drive mainly on bad roads, very little city driving but I do a lot of highway driving.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

You are not going to like this but unless you are actually using that roof rack because of a genuine lack of space in the car removing it is going to be the cheapest way to improve the car's stability. If you are using it a lot especially with heavier or bulky items up top then slowing down and driving to the comfort zone of the car is again going to be the cheapest option. My gen3 is running heavy duty dampers and has one of the lowest side profiles in the community this side of a bikini soft top and even it is horrible in side winds not so much for lurching around on the suspension but just being pushed off course.

Lambert is correct about the roof rack but the FrontRunner racks are nice. They will still cause problems, even if lightly loaded. I know from experience. As far as strong winds causing a problem, I would suggest that it is just (unfortunately) the nature of the beast. Also as Lambert says, the only real solution is to adjust your driving.

From what I've read (Still waiting for mine), the consensus from the Aussies that have fitted suspension lifts and slightly wider tyres is... a great improvement in on road handling.
Whether from, bilstein, OME, Tough Dog etc all say that unsettled feeling is vastly reduced.
If there were uprated shocks / springs in std length, I think quite a few people would go that way who don't do more technical off road. Quite a few people have gone with 40mm lifts just to gain advantage of the improved spring / shock combination.
The slightly wider rubber on the road and relatively shorter sidewalls also help.
Something to consider.

crash486

Maybe for you the answer could be to Lower the suspension?

Soeley wrote: Maybe for you the answer could be to Lower the suspension?

Mostly out of curiosity but for all they say they do lowered springs none of the country specific sites list any kinds of Jimny?

I didn't go in depth on the website, I'd remembered H&R bringing them out not long after Gen4 release.

I do use my roof rack a lot so that is not an option to remove it.

I have read that lift could help with stability.

I will be putting some KO2's on so maybe the wider tyres will help.

The main reason why a lift is likely to improve stability is because it is going to use either stiffer springs and or dampers with higher compression and rebound or put another way less compliant suspension which is a band aid for road stability but actively bad for cross country travel. The reason the standard suspension moves about so much is that it is a compromise between road and cross country with a definite bias towards cross country. Fitting a lift is only really necessary to make room for bigger tyres which are the only way to gain more clearance under the axles. A proper lift kit should really have longer springs instead of just stiffer ones that way it maintains articulation and still gives the clearance for the wheels but it won't help with road stability. I think I'm starting to ramble a bit but here is my last point. A Jimny is a narrow vehicle, fitting and using a roof rack raises the centre of gravity on an already high centre of gravity vehicle, setting too and increasing the centre of gravity even more with a lift kit, even a stiff one, is optimism incarnate. What you are really trying to do is improve the roll centre of the car and the only way to do that is to increase the distance between the spring seats on the axles and chassis and the centre line of the car. Everything else is just masking the symptoms.

Steve.

Any lift is not going to help with stability, the net result is to higher the centre of gravity which will make the vehicle more susceptible to body roll and do nothing to improve side wind influence.
As Lambert has indicated most reports of improvement in the way the vehicle feels is purely as a result of a change of springs and damping, nothing to do with the increased height. So if you have no need for extra ground clearance I would look at replacement standard size springs and dampers only, keep the lower stance and it should be even better than the reports associated with lifted vehicles. Better quality dampers will help (read expensive), adjustable Avo, bilstein or Koni would be on my shopping list as they make Jimny specific models. Stiffer springs could also help, but get the dampers first and see how it goes.

After all has been said the Jimny is still a 4x4 and handles just like one, it will never be as stable as a "normal road vehicle", so if you can accept this "feel" it will save you a fortune in modifications.
Have fun
Mike

PS love the look of the roof rack and rear ladder.

I'm always wary of people who make ambitious claims about things they have invested their money in. Cars are lowered to reduce body roll. The same people that claim they have less body roll with lifted suspension will also claim they have better articulation, and you can't have both.
I've also heard people claim that fitting wheel spacers reduced body roll and increased stability. The Jimny has solid axles which remain parallel to the road surface, and the body is suspended from these. The width of the axles has no affect on the movement of the suspension, so these claims are inaccurate.
The Jimny is a relatively tall vehicle on soft suspension. It will roll in corners. It will be affected by side winds. Go with it, don't fight it! You will get used to it. Keeping a relaxed, loose grip on the steering wheel helps as the car is sensitive to sudden steering inputs.