Leaning to the left side (LHD HJ61)

[greghj61]

Hi there,

Very new to the community , I'm Greg from Belgium, proud new owner of a gold HJ61 with the amazing 12HT engine.
I got this beauty 2 months ago only. My first 4x4 after many years with other Japanese classics cars ( Datsun 240z, first gen Crx and first gen Miata)
My suspension setup is from unknown origin, it looks like OME to me ( shocks for sure) but unsure about the leaf springs. (see photos below)

It is an euro LHD vehicule, and it is leaning a lot to the driver side (left) I have 4 cm (1.57 inch) difference at the rear (left side is 4cm than right side) and 2 cm difference at the front.

At my great surprise, the left side front and rear leaf springs have more blades on the left side (I have 9 blades at the rear left, 8 blades rear right, 7 blades front left and 6 front right)
The left side being more stiff with more blades, it should sit higher right?

I have an ARB front bumper, a very heavy James Baroud roof tent (probably as old as the truck)
What would you recommend ?
New leaf springs all around ? Full kit (ileaf springs + shocks ?)
Thanks for your help guys !
Greg

 

[OSS]

Greetings from California-
Maybe the previous owner of your vehicle was a heavy set guy weighing in over 110 kg.
Years of that will definitely sag down the driver’s side. Perhaps that’s why there’s already an extra leaf on the low side.
Those springs were most likely bolstered with an extra leaf after sagging on that side - but that’s only a temporary fix because it’s asking just one leaf in each pack to carry the extra weight.

Bottom line: your springs are tired & worn out. You’ll never be able to match just 2 new packs to your high side ….. so it’s time to replace all 4 springs.
Don’t worry about the shocks. The ones you’ve got are probably fine.

 

[greghj61]

Greetings from California-
Maybe the previous owner of your vehicle was a heavy set guy weighing in over 110 kg.
Years of that will definitely sag down the driver’s side. Perhaps that’s why there’s already an extra leaf on the low side.
Those springs were most likely bolstered with an extra leaf after sagging on that side - but that’s only a temporary fix because it’s asking just one leaf in each pack to carry the extra weight.

Bottom line: your springs are tired & worn out. You’ll never be able to match just 2 new packs to your high side ….. so it’s time to replace all 4 springs.
Don’t worry about the shocks. The ones you’ve got are probably fine.

thanks ! the pevious owner was indeed in that weight range (or more) I'll go with a new set of 4 springs. OME or the parabolic ones from Terrain Tamer if not too expensive and available here.​

 

[greghj61]

Looking at the different OME springs options, I'm a bit lost....
I have an ARB bumper at the front and a very heavy (80 kgs ) tent on the roof. My camping gear at the back (50kgs) my dog (30kgs), the truck is alos equipped with a trailer hitch. ( I sometimes need to tow, but not often )
What would you recommend ? CS005F at the front and CS004RA and CS004RB at the back ?
Other question....my dealer says RA for the left side (DS) , RB for the right side? (PS) I have read the opposite here, but maybe US and Euro models are different...?? )
thanks for your help guys