Yesterday, the Parts Racer developed a mild vibration in the steering between 73-74 mph. Until that occurrence, the truck has been a dream to drive.
We started out the trip with a five inch drop up front and a six inch drop out back using Belltech suspension components. Two inch drop springs and three inch spindles lowered the front suspension. An axle flip kit dropped the rear suspension. Combined with Belltech shocks and front and rear sway bars, and 275/50R17 Nitto NT450 rubber on 17x9 Vintage Wheelworks V48 wheels, the truck is a friggin' slot car in the turns, with a tight, performance-oriented ride quality. Without a load in the bed, the back end is still pliable, even over rough road.
We filled the bed with tools, camera equipment, spare parts, and gear for this road trip. The rear suspension is hammered now, tucking about 1.5-inches of tire, with the rear axle sitting on the bumpstops. Thankfully, the rear bumpstops are the oem-type soft foam rubber ones and so the ride has only been rough over the occasional railroad crossing or expansion bridge transition.
When we reached Phoenix, Arizona, we added Baer brakes, which required switching from Belltech's three-inch spindles to CPP's two-inch spindles, raising the front of the truck up one inch. The ride quality was retained but the truck stops a whole lot better now.
As for the vibration, well, I'll crawl under the truck before I head home and see if anything has come loose.