What Should You Spend on Off-Road Suspension?
Upgrading your suspension is a good idea for any serious off-roader. But with such a wide array of prices, how much is enough?
Written by Andrew Koole
Reviewed by Kathleen Flear
Most drivers avoid bumpy rides. But if you’re an
off-road
enthusiast, you can’t wait to get your wheels on them. Still, it’s nice to have some extra cushion to keep your tires off your wheel wells and your truck’s underbelly off the rocks.Some automakers will provide all the suspension you need to get up a mountain right out of the factory, but for many models, any savvy off-roader will want to swap in
aftermarket parts
to keep their rig sturdy and balanced on their adventures together.Prices for aftermarket off-road suspension vary a lot. Depending on the vehicle you plan to install your stems on, a kit can cost anywhere between $200 and $5,000. So how much should you spend? An episode of
Donut Media
’s YouTube series HiLow might help you decide.What’s the difference between cheap and pricey off-road suspension kits?
Upgrading your suspension is a must for any serious
off-roader
. They can improve ground clearance, articulation, and ride quality—that is, if you buy the right kit. To help you figure out what type of kit you should get, HiLow hosts James Pumphrey and Nolan Sykes installed two options in their nearly identical
Toyota Tacomas
. Pumphrey’s Hi-truck got a $3,200 ICON Stage 4 upgrade while Sykes’ Low-truck got a Bilstein Lift Kit that only cost $700.The two teams took their trucks, plus a factory-built Tacoma, through a number of clearance and articulation tests. While the more expensive setup performed slightly better in some situations, both Pumphrey and Sykes agreed that it wasn’t worth four times as much as the Bilstein kit.
What off-road add-ons should I spend my money on?
Everyone’s interests differ slightly, but if you want to equip your vehicle for the roughest roads, there are a few items you won’t want to cheap out on.
On hairy trails, traction is always a priority. That means you want a good set of off-road tires to keep your truck moving forward. Even though they weren’t focused on tires in the HiLow episode described above, the video clearly shows how important a good set of tires are.
No matter the suspension kit each truck had, they all got stuck on the same part of the test course. Clearance and articulation didn’t end up mattering as much as tire tread. “Gnarlier, bigger rubber” would’ve done more to keep them on the road, as they put it.
Should I let my insurance provider know about a suspension upgrade?
You should always let your
car insurance
company know about any modifications you make to your vehicle, especially if they significantly change the value of your vehicle. Even a $700 suspension kit makes enough of a difference to affect your coverage.If you want to save money on car insurance, the
Jerry
app is a good place to start. A licensed broker, Jerry does all the hard work of finding the cheapest quotes from the top name-brand insurance companies and buying new car insurance. Jerry will even help you cancel your old policy. And to ensure you always have the lowest rate, Jerry will send you new quotes every time your policy comes up for renewal, so you’re always getting the coverage you want at the best price. This level of service is why Jerry earned a 4.6/5 rating on the App Store and made it the top insurance app in the country.
4.7
