Another Subaru Build Thread

[Terry Pickens]

That's good to hear! I've heard of people having issues on other All-Terrain tires not necessarily the KO2s but I figured they should hold up with rain and snow with a Subaru. It's probably a combination of the tires and larger truck that causes issues in snow for others.

I had them on a 2wheel drive Dodge Dakota and the only problem on hard packed snow was the lack of weight on the rear tires. Add some snow or gear in the back and no problems. On my Bronco II I had no problems what so ever and that was the vehicle we used for ski trips for years.

 

[Connor_Dobbins]

I had them on a 2wheel drive Dodge Dakota and the only problem on hard packed snow was the lack of weight on the rear tires. Add some snow or gear in the back and no problems. On my Bronco II I had no problems what so ever and that was the vehicle we used for ski trips for years.

Yeah that makes sense! Time to go spend at least $700 on tires! Jokes aside, I will probably be getting new tires before winter hits or just after. My current ones are still in good shape so I can't justify new ones just yet.

 

[ca_rage]

Question for you Terry (and the rest of the Outback owners out there):
I have a 2018 3.6R with a 2' AFD lift, RalliTek springs, Motegi wheels and KO2 tires. I am not at all happy with the way it handles bumps at speed. The car is wallowy and seems to react to rough roads with huge overcompensation. Not sure what to try next to solve the issue. Change out the struts? Swap the springs to stiffer King springs?
My GF doesn't like to drive the car now witch is very disappointing after the money I've already dropped into it.
Any suggestions?

 

[Terry Pickens]

Question for you Terry (and the rest of the Outback owners out there):
I have a 2018 3.6R with a 2' AFD lift, RalliTek springs, Motegi wheels and KO2 tires. I am not at all happy with the way it handles bumps at speed. The car is wallowy and seems to react to rough roads with huge overcompensation. Not sure what to try next to solve the issue. Change out the struts? Swap the springs to stiffer King springs?
My GF doesn't like to drive the car now witch is very disappointing after the money I've already dropped into it.
Any suggestions? View attachment 118826

This overcompression, do you have a load in the car or is it empty? Even the ralli trek springs are sprung heavier than stock. That might lead to the harsh (hard) compression. Add some weight and see. Heavier duty struts might help to smooth it out. Mine is very stiff when unloaded but with the RTT and camping gear makes it ride great.

 

[JCWages]

Question for you Terry (and the rest of the Outback owners out there):
I have a 2018 3.6R with a 2' AFD lift, RalliTek springs, Motegi wheels and KO2 tires. I am not at all happy with the way it handles bumps at speed. The car is wallowy and seems to react to rough roads with huge overcompensation. Not sure what to try next to solve the issue. Change out the struts? Swap the springs to stiffer King springs?
My GF doesn't like to drive the car now witch is very disappointing after the money I've already dropped into it.
Any suggestions? View attachment 118826

Sounds like your shocks can't handle the load and/or are worn out. Generally speaking you want the softest spring possible to achieve the lift you want then have the shock/strut tuned to control movement. So going to a heavier spring may not be the best solution.

 

[WhatTheZo]

This overcompression, do you have a load in the car or is it empty? Even the ralli trek springs are sprung heavier than stock. That might lead to the harsh (hard) compression. Add some weight and see. Heavier duty struts might help to smooth it out. Mine is very stiff when unloaded but with the RTT and camping gear makes it ride great.

Second this. I've had both setups. Unloaded it drives like a truck. Loaded up it feels like a caddy.

 

[Wawa Skittletits]

This overcompression, do you have a load in the car or is it empty? Even the ralli trek springs are sprung heavier than stock. That might lead to the harsh (hard) compression. Add some weight and see. Heavier duty struts might help to smooth it out. Mine is very stiff when unloaded but with the RTT and camping gear makes it ride great.

This is what I would have said @ca_rage. Stock struts are fine and higher spring rate Kings are definitely not the answer since you're not carrying enough weight to work the springs now.

Another contributing factor is how old are the springs? The unsettled feeling is undoubtedly from the rear since the weight of the engine up front is sufficient to maintain a near stock ride with Rallitek springs. The rear is a different story so unless you've loaded the car up and really worked them they're most likely not even settled in yet. Remove the rear sway bar, load it up heavy, and take it off road.

 

[ca_rage]

Thanks for all the feedback everyone.
The car has less than 10k miles on it and the springs even less.
Maybe I just need a break in period.
I'll throw a couple hundred pounds in the back and see what that does.

 

[The other Sean]

Thanks for all the feedback everyone.
The car has less than 10k miles on it and the springs even less.
Maybe I just need a break in period.
I'll throw a couple hundred pounds in the back and see what that does.

What PSI are you running your tires at? Have you done the chalk test to figure out what pressure you actually need? More then one handling / ride issue has been as simple as too much tire pressure.

 

[ca_rage]

Thanks Sean.
Found a good write up of that here - What Psi should I run - Do a "Chalk Test" to determine
I'll check it.

 

[Wawa Skittletits]

Thanks for all the feedback everyone.
The car has less than 10k miles on it and the springs even less.
Maybe I just need a break in period.
I'll throw a couple hundred pounds in the back and see what that does.

I’ll tell you what it’s going to do... its going to ride like a dream haha. The whole point of springs is to carry the weight of the vehicle. The higher spring rate of your RalliTEK springs is intended to support additional weight every single day. They will absolutely ’soften’ a little as they settle in but you will still want to carry additional weight daily to retain a stockish ride. This is all part of the reason why I try to dissuade people from installing springs until they know they need them.

If you want to help them settle in and soften the ride at the same time take the 10 minutes to remove the rear sway bar. The increased spring rate should make it basically impossible to tell it’s gone in the corners. Not to mention the front sway bar is doing the great majority of the work on this understeering long roof anyway.

 

[WhatTheZo]

Thanks for all the feedback everyone.
The car has less than 10k miles on it and the springs even less.
Maybe I just need a break in period.
I'll throw a couple hundred pounds in the back and see what that does.

I also anecdotally confirm what @Wawa Skittletits said about running swaybar-less in the rear. The spring rate is plenty stiff enough for it to not be noticable. You can test it out by just unbolting the endlinks and temporarily zip tie the sway bar in place.

Also, the king springs were noticably stiffer than the rallitek, so your ride won't really improve.

 

[ca_rage]

I think I need to get a motorcycle hitch carrier and load up my Huskey 701 for a while :)

 

[JCWages]

Ok I'm confused. He said his car is wallowing and feels like it's overcompensating. That implies the suspension is very soft and bouncing in an uncontrolled manner when he hits bumps. Overly stiff springs with not enough load on them don't do that, they just make the ride harsh.

 

[Wawa Skittletits]

Ok I'm confused. He said his car is wallowing and feels like it's overcompensating. That implies the suspension is very soft and bouncing in an uncontrolled manner when he hits bumps. Overly stiff springs with not enough load on them don't do that, they just make the ride harsh.

Verbiage aside, this is a common issue on Subaru’s with aftermarket springs installed. Without enough weight the rear isn’t compressing so it essentially hops around over bumps.

 

[JCWages]

Verbiage aside, this is a common issue on Subaru’s with aftermarket springs installed. Without enough weight the rear isn’t compressing so it essentially hops around over bumps.

Makes sense. Our trucks do the same thing without a load in the bed. 50lb Sand bags really help. :)

 

[Specter]

Awesome build.

 

[CurrentlyRockhoundin]

I just read you whole build thread here I learned a few things for sure.

I think ill plan on welding up some sliders after seeing how yours are attached.

 

[Terry Pickens]

I just read you whole build thread here I learned a few things for sure.

I think ill plan on welding up some sliders after seeing how yours are attached.

Would enjoy seeing how they turn out.

 

[Terry Pickens]

Well after a 3 week trip up the Dempster to the Arctic Ocean last August I must say this Outback is great.