another coil spring question

[jamespwsullivan]

I have a Currie Dana 44 front axle and am using stock XJ springs with ~1.75" pucks to get me good clearance for my tires.  Everything is working fine but the front end is STIFF...  I would like to substitute springs that would give me a softer ride and hopefully be long enough so that I could dump the pucks.  I'm running a 4.0 and seldom go off road.  It is a fine work truck with a ladder rack and bedside box.  Looking for ideas and guidance.  Is there a stock spring that might fit the bill?    I'm guessing that I could go custom but I bet that's expensive.

 

Thanks in advance

 

[dasbulliwagen]

Shocks are a big contributor to ride feel as well. What shocks are you currently running?

[jamespwsullivan]

Procomp ES9000

[ghetdjc320]

Shocks are your likely issue unless you are bottoming out your springs against the bump stops. 

[Limeyjeeper]

Go with OME shocks. They make a world of difference.

[75sv1]

Old Man Emmu (OME) does make a 1.75 spring. I'd try a KYB shock from a TJ first. I used a 2" spring from Iron Rock Offroad. I am not sure where they source their front springs. The rears are Rough Countries. Except the 3.5".

[jamespwsullivan]

Thanks for the ideas.  I don't think that I am hitting the bump stops but i do get a "bang" occasionally that seems to happen before any bump stop interaction..  It could be that the isolation shims (rubber OEM?) for the long bed are either missing or worn out but that's a different symptom.

 

Shocks certainly play a part and I understand that different (better) shocks could be the answer.  The reason I started out looking at the springs is that if the springs are "softer" then won't they compress more easily?  It seems like they are barely compressing.  I think I understand that the compression on the shocks (dampening) should control the speed at which the springs compress, but what if the springs are so stiff that, under a quick and hard compression (hitting a wheel-swallowing chuckhole at 30 mph), the shock dampening doesn't even come into the equation?  If I'm missing something and the dampening effect of the shocks is what is really controlling the ride, then so be it.

 

Willing to be educated...

[ghetdjc320]

On vehicles such as ours, the coil spring sets ride height and supports the load but has very minimal effect on ride quality with our suspension design. That is 90% the shock’s job. If your shocks are too long for the application they may also be bottoming out. 

[75sv1]

I also run an adjustable shock on the rear. A bit firmer shock on the front. KYB Max(??). I run Rancho 9000s on the rear. This is on an XJ with 2" lift. My rear shocks are on the middle adjustment. Really, balanced out the vehicle. I was running some white box shocks. Probably a Rancho 200. The rear sort of floated. I could see that with varying loads, an adjustable shock would be good for your vehicle. 

[89eliminator]

if you are using stock XJ springs, then there is zero chance they are too stiff.  As others have stated, look into better shocks.  ES9000 are just your prototypical white body twin tube design shock.  Look into monotube shocks (Bilstein is my vote) and I bet you notice a positive change. 

[dasbulliwagen]

I too was thinking that if you have stock springs, there's no way they're too stiff. I'm not sure you'll ever be in a place to make this happen, but try taking all of your shocks off of the truck, then go for a short drive in a parking lot. It's really scary! The continual bouncing, and huge amounts of sway make it downright dangerous to drive like that. It just highlights the amount of work shock absorbers actually do and the effect they can have on how your ride feels. I set mine up with Bilstein 5100's, which some people say run a little firm. But I like it like that. Before the Bilsteins and the 6 inches of  lift I installed, I ran slightly modified black JK Wrangler takeoffs. They rode great without feeling too firm. They are about an inch longer than stock MJ shocks so worked  good with a slight lift. 

[Tex06]

On 8/15/2025 at 8:21 PM, dasbulliwagen said:

I too was thinking that if you have stock springs, there's no way they're too stiff. I'm not sure you'll ever be in a place to make this happen, but try taking all of your shocks off of the truck, then go for a short drive in a parking lot. It's really scary! The continual bouncing, and huge amounts of sway make it downright dangerous to drive like that. It just highlights the amount of work shock absorbers actually do and the effect they can have on how your ride feels. I set mine up with Bilstein 5100's, which some people say run a little firm. But I like it like that. Before the Bilsteins and the 6 inches of  lift I installed, I ran slightly modified black JK Wrangler takeoffs. They rode great without feeling too firm. They are about an inch longer than stock MJ shocks so worked  good with a slight lift. 

This was going to be my recommendation too. In old trucks like ours, there's no telling what the previous owner(s) have done. It is possible you have springs from a ½ ton or heavier truck up front....unlikely but I've seen some wild junkyard builds before, especially since you have a modified front axle.