While Troy was busy at the...
While Troy was busy at the press, Luis removed the rear bumpstops to shave a little off the top to give the rear suspension some travel.
Once Troy was finished with...
Once Troy was finished with the leaf springs, he handed them off to Luis, who then bolted them back into place as well as the shock and the shortened bumpstop.
After the suspension was taken...
After the suspension was taken care of, it was time to finally bolt the big wheel and tire combo - 22x9-inch Giovanna DBL-G 505 matte black wheels wrapped in Nitto NT420S 265/35R22 rubber. A set of KoKo Kuture wheel bezels were painted and added to the wheels for a sporty, finishing touch.
To check out how great the...
To check out how great the Equator looks, check back next issue when we show the custom paint process.
From The Driver Seat
There is always a feeling of discontent when straying from the first plan of action, but in this case, de-arching our Suzuki Equator's leaf springs worked out fine. We gained a more aggressive stance without having to do any major reconstructive surgery or waste time ordering new parts. Well, actually we couldn't just pick up the phone and order new parts because the aftermarket's selection is dismal at best for this model, which is basically a Nissan Frontier with different sheetmetal and badges. As we often try to do, we make the mistakes so you don't have to.
Luckily, Custom Truck Shop, which lived up to its name during this install, is equipped to handle any curveballs that are chucked in their direction. De-arching the leaf springs didn't turn out to be a daylong fiasco due to the machine press they have on site. A little measuring and setting up of the press and we were in business. Once the suspension components were bolted together, it was great seeing the Giovanna DBL-G 505 wheels, where were equipped with KoKo Kuture wheel bezels and Nitto tires tucked underneath the shorter suspension!
Once we actually got behind the wheel of the Equator and cruised the streets, we realized that either trimming the rear bumpstop even more, or ideally relocating it would result in better ride quality. The ride was rather stiff and uncomfortable, but that was to be expected. Hopefully we'll get a second attempt to upgrade the rear suspension in the very near future.