Storm Chasing Vehicle Project and Suggestions!

[Travis Cruz]

You all had me questioning myself but this past trip re-solidified my decision. Having the ability to pull completely off the road quickly and safely without worrying about messing something up in the undercarriage is huge for me. Being able to make U-turns on dirt roads and not having to make multiple point turns was also a great advantage. There were a couple times that we drove quickly through some mud holes that ended abruptly with a sharp rise in dry dirt, many of which would have damaged the suspension or under-body if I didn't have the lift. Maybe I am being stubborn, but I see it as just a part of the package, and to me the advantages still very much outweigh the drawbacks. I've driven bigger vehicles all my life so I'm used to being pushed around by the wind by now. "A day may come when the power of the wind overcomes, and I find out that I've made a grave mistake, but it is not this day." - Aragorn. True story

 

[Kevin Rimcoski]

I can do that with my stock height wrx

Good that you went out of your way to help, but does sound like you're also going out of your way to brag about it...especially by explaining what you did and trying to say you're not gloating....sounds a lot like that though

 

[joel ewing]

You all had me questioning myself but this past trip re-solidified my decision. Having the ability to pull completely off the road quickly and safely without worrying about messing something up in the undercarriage is huge for me. Being able to make U-turns on dirt roads and not having to make multiple point turns was also a great advantage. There were a couple times that we drove quickly through some mud holes that ended abruptly with a sharp rise in dry dirt, many of which would have damaged the suspension or under-body if I didn't have the lift. Maybe I am being stubborn, but I see it as just a part of the package, and to me the advantages still very much outweigh the drawbacks. I've driven bigger vehicles all my life so I'm used to being pushed around by the wind by now. "A day may come when the power of the wind overcomes, and I find out that I've made a grave mistake, but it is not this day." - Aragorn. True story[/QUOTE

Plus...you want to be seen in that tall truck. That's in the mix too.

 

[Drew Terril]

I don't have to do a terrible a lot of fighting the wind in my Titan to be honest. Certainly no more than the 2,000 lb lighter Camaro. Stock height though. The Suburban I used to have was like having a big sail on it though. I believe it was also a few hundred pounds lighter as well as vastly underpowered.

I'm sure I could chase in a smaller vehicle without any trouble, but even a mid sized truck isn't going to do what I need done on the family farm. It's not going to pull a flatbed with 8 round bales of hay on it. You'll never see a lift kit on one of my trucks though. I'm not going to risk drivetrain damage when trying to pull with a lifted truck, and if a truck can't pull, it's useless to me. It does very well chasing, but it definitely wasn't the reason I bought it. Most chasers don't need a farm truck like I do though, and I'm guessing based off the thread that the OP doesn't either. Just thought I'd throw that out there based on my experience fighting the Oklahoma wind year round.

 

[Travis Cruz]

I think the big point that you all are missing is that yes, although the center of gravity does increase slightly, the surface area for the wind to push on doesn't get larger with a lift.. Not to mention that all those storm chasing tour vans have a whole lot more surface area and higher center of gravity than The StormCruzzer does..

 

[Kevin Rimcoski]

I think you're forgetting the handling aspect of lifting a vehicle does.

 

[Todd Lemery]

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, because I often am, but it's my understanding the winds increase from from the ground going up to a certain point. If so, is that because of things like bushes breaking the wind? I'm sure somebody out there has an informed answer to that. If so, a lower vehicle wouldn't be subject to as strong of winds.

 

[Travis Cruz]

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, because I often am, but it's my understanding the winds increase from from the ground going up to a certain point. If so, is that because of things like bushes breaking the wind? I'm sure somebody out there has an informed answer to that. If so, a lower vehicle wouldn't be subject to as strong of winds.

Yeah you're right, but I'm still scratching my head on where everyone is getting that 4 inches in height makes or breaks the vehicle

Edit: Although the biggest factor in wind speed is the friction from the ground

 

[Drew Terril]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think people are trying to figure out why that lift is necessary. And, to be honest, I have to agree. I've had trucks well off even the dirt roads over the years. A muddy pasture is much worse to get in and out of than any water logged dirt road ever dreamed of being. But you don't see farmers putting lift kits on their trucks. It doesn't ultimately change ground clearance because the axles are still the same height above the ground. It's your truck, do whatever you like, but I think that is what people are getting at with their comments. Quite frankly, as someone who goes well past the dirt roads, I tend to give some credence to the points they're making.

 

[Travis Cruz]

Yes I understand. Of course the lift isn't necessary, but its a helpful addition to the package. Lift vs no lift hardly makes a difference in the mud IF you have the same size and make for tires. And yes, your axles are still roughly the same height (Although I get an extra two inches or so from the larger diameter tires). But when it comes to a gully or ditch, extra clearance helps. It also makes the difference in being able to make a U-turn on most dirt roads vs having to make a multiple point turn. I've also gone over a numerous amount of ruts and humps that would have potentially broken my suspension if I hadn't upgraded it. I understand that you have a lot of experience driving your truck on dirt roads, but In just 3 weeks of chasing I've made numerous maneuvers that I wouldn't have been able to make without the lift. It's not necessary, but it's an advantage.

I also want to make it clear that I'm not just brushing everyone's opinions off and not taking them into consideration. But when someone on here comes up and says "My wrx could do that" when it obviously can't, it gets me a bit fired up.

 

[Todd Lemery]

I was going to suggest winches, but now I see you have that covered

 

[Drew Terril]

One thing you do need to be VERY careful with if you keep the lift is the fact that it changes your driveline angle. You're not going to be able to pull as big of a trailer because of that. Too much stress after changing that angle (without compensating for it) and you'll tear up either your transmission, rear end, or shatter your driveshaft. Some of those maneuvers you're referring to could be putting stress on your drivetrain that you're not aware of because of those angles. Same goes with pulling guys out of the mud.

I hope you at least had your PCM recalibrated to factor in the bigger tires as well. If not, that's another way to tear up your tranny (and possibly your motor depending on if your PCM factors the VSS in for fuel trims).

That's my big thing with it. It's not as simple as throwing a lift kit on. There are several other things that must be taken to account, and you will sacrifice certain capabilities in the process. I've seen way too many people tear up their trucks and don't want that to happen to you.


And to be fair, you'd be surprised at what those rally type cars can do in the hands of someone who knows how to use their strengths.

 

[Travis Cruz]

One thing you do need to be VERY careful with if you keep the lift is the fact that it changes your driveline angle. You're not going to be able to pull as big of a trailer because of that. Too much stress after changing that angle (without compensating for it) and you'll tear up either your transmission, rear end, or shatter your driveshaft. Some of those maneuvers you're referring to could be putting stress on your drivetrain that you're not aware of because of those angles. Same goes with pulling guys out of the mud.

I hope you at least had your PCM recalibrated to factor in the bigger tires as well. If not, that's another way to tear up your tranny (and possibly your motor depending on if your PCM factors the VSS in for fuel trims).

That's my big thing with it. It's not as simple as throwing a lift kit on. There are several other things that must be taken to account, and you will sacrifice certain capabilities in the process. I've seen way too many people tear up their trucks and don't want that to happen to you.


And to be fair, you'd be surprised at what those rally type cars can do in the hands of someone who knows how to use their strengths.

Thank you for your concern. I'm not at all however new to the truck world. The truck is tuned for the extra 2500lbs of weight and larger tires, and I've regearedwith 4.56s. The lift kit I got isn't just a basic lift. A good amount of stock parts were replaced to correct cv angles and restore ride as close to factory as possible. I've put 100s and 100s of hours of hours of research into everything I've done and a lot of money and man hours so ive been extremely tedious about it as well. And just to cover my ass just in case, before I made any mods to the truck I made posts on 4 separate truck forums similar to this one to make sure I didn't miss anything important.



Side note: David Drummond is lifting his jeep. So I expect all of you to be downtalking him and telling him gow useless of an idea it is

 

[Kevin Rimcoski]

My wrx actually can do that. Minus the pulling, I'd rather keep my drivetrain intact

My car is built and daily driven and still reliable like it was new. I know a thing or two about proper modding

Just becaise you're not new to tje truck world doesn't mean you know what you're doing. I've seen it many many times where someone jumps on the forum saying they're not new to the tuning world and the first thong they do are am abumdance of engine mods without proper tuning and then complain about their cars running like crap and saying they're garbage

A lift helps but is not needed. A good set of tires are key. Although lifting does make room for bogger better wheel and tire combos

The difference between the vans you say are higher than your truck and how they're fine in the wind or whatever was said doesn't mean too much. What's the ground clearance? The last thing you want are winds getting under the vehicle...raising ground clearance increases the amount of wond getting underneath.
The other thing is those cars suspension are designed for that car specifically. If you raise your truck (not into truck modding myself) but you change the entire way the car handles which is more important with winds at whatever speeds

Honestly the only useful thing I see in a lift is protecting your engine from hydrolocking if you still have a cold air intake installed.

I do have to ask what purpose a CAI and exhaust is doing?
Sorry if it sounds like I'm attacking you, that's not what I'm trying to make it sound like. Just trying to wrap my head around the purpose of it. You don't need the extra HP and torque. You have displacement for that, nor are huge numbers relavant for chasing. So the only thing I can thing of is for attention?

Also post more pics of truck please


Oh also, was the truck dyno tuned for weight? This is the first I'm hearong of engine management for different weight
If you're looking for power gains, adding weight to your vehicle is counterproductive. The more weight, the less power is reaching the ground. The important part is power to weight ratio

 

[Drew Terril]

I'm not trying to bash, just trying to get to the underlying line of reasoning. Granted, from what I've read from the rest of your thread, my chase style and yours is vastly different, but performance on a dirt/mud road is something that comes into play regardless of chase style.

If money were no object, I'd relegate the truck to tow/farm duty and buy a Subi as a DD/chase vehicle. But it is a factor so that's not an option, at least in the near term. It's smaller, more maneuverable, and probably runs circles around my truck in the mud.

I do have my bias, I will fully admit that. I don't have a job that pays me the kind of money to throw at things and I tend to have a much more stringent standard on expense vs end result. If I can make it work on what I have (which I've been doing for 10 years now), it's hard to justify spending the extra money. That doesn't appear to be a factor in your case, I just fail to see how your truck is going to make a U-turn that mine cannot unless there's rock crawling involved (at which point I'm dead in the water).

That's all my comments have been meant for. Nothing malicious, no bashing, just an old farm boy trying to see things from your perspective and understand your thinking.