Not long ago, we mentioned the concept of front and back suspension in an article, in the message we found that there are still many readers who do not know much about this concept, and even mistakenly think that this is the meaning of front and back suspension, and there are many such misleading information on the Internet. So today we will explain what is called front suspension, rear suspension, and which parts of the vehicle it will affect.
What is anterior/posterior overhang?
In the case of the pickup truck we are most familiar with, the front suspension of the vehicle is the horizontal distance from the front axle to the front of the vehicle. In this space, front to rear contains the front bumper, mid-grid grille, water tank/radiator, steering mechanism, part of the engine and suspension system of the whole vehicle.
Corresponding to the front suspension, the rear suspension refers to the horizontal distance from the rear axle to the end of the rear. The rear suspension space of the pickup truck contains relatively few things, including some cargo boxes, bottom-mounted spare tires, exhaust tail ends and rear bumpers.
Therefore, the front suspension and rear suspension do not refer to the suspension system of the vehicle, but refer to the horizontal distance from the axle to the front or end of the vehicle!
What is the impact on the whole vehicle?
Now that you understand what the front and rear suspension means, then its impact on the whole vehicle can also be understood by the way. For vehicles, the length of the front and rear suspension mainly affects the passability of the vehicle, the steering flexibility and the layout of the interior structure. First of all, from the perspective of the passability that we are most familiar with, in the case of the same tire size and ground clearance, if the front and rear suspension is relatively short, it can have a larger approach angle and departure angle, and the whole vehicle has better passability, and naturally it can be more handy in the off-road state. Of course, the factors that affect the approach angle and the departure angle are not only the length of the front and rear overhangs, but also the bumper shape.
In addition to affecting the passability of the whole vehicle, the front and rear suspension will also have an impact on the steering flexibility of the whole vehicle. When the vehicle is longer suspended front and rear, the range of the vehicle "sweeping" is larger, requiring more steering space and less flexible. Of course, the impact of steering flexibility is not only the front and rear suspension length of this factor, wheelbase and other aspects will also affect the steering flexibility of the vehicle. Finally, the length of the front and rear overhangs of the vehicle is also affected by the layout of the internal structure of the vehicle, which is a matter in the design process of the whole vehicle, and it is basically finalized after mass production.
For the passability that is crucial for pickups, what else can improve the approach/departure angle besides the front and rear overhangs?
We have learned that the front and rear suspension will have an impact on the passability of the whole vehicle, so how can the pickup truck, which has its own off-road attributes, improve the approach angle and departure angle by improving the front and rear suspension? The easiest way to do this is to replace the "thinner" front and rear bumpers. Because the bumper of the original car is mainly designed for aesthetic considerations, the original bumper of most pickup trucks is relatively "thick", and even the front bar of some pickup trucks is very low from the ground, which directly reduces the approach angle of the whole vehicle. After replacing those off-road customized bumpers, there will generally be a significant improvement in the approach angle and departure angle, and the material will be more robust and reliable. Of course, some car owners who are unwilling to modify the bumper, if you really want to temporarily improve the passability of the vehicle, directly remove the front and rear bars off-road, and then install it after completion, which will also play a certain role in shortening the front and rear suspension effect.
However, shortening the length of the front and rear overhangs by modifying the bumper is only a means of improving passability. In addition to this means, what other ways can quickly improve the passability of the whole vehicle? In the case that the length of the front and rear suspension is difficult to change, then we should start in the ground clearance of the whole vehicle, so as to improve the angle of approaching the angle and leaving the angle. Therefore, the first thing you can try is to replace a larger size tire, the tire diameter is increased, you can directly increase the ground clearance, and the angle of the vehicle is naturally larger.
Of course, in addition to reloading tires, reloading the chassis lift kit is also available. These kits will more or less contain shock absorbers, connecting rods, springs, leaf spring plates, extended lifting lugs, etc., which can not only improve the ground clearance of the whole vehicle, but also improve the shock absorption performance on bad roads.
The more ultimate way is to replace the gantry axle. As we all know, gantry bridges are often used on some heavy trucks with off-road functions, which can directly improve ground clearance. Since the half shaft of the vehicle is located on the upper side of the wheel, the wheels of the whole vehicle are lower and the distance from the ground is higher. However, this kind of gantry axle is generally more expensive, and it is a method that will be used by some players who will improve the off-road performance of the vehicle at any cost.
Summary: For the concept of vehicle front suspension and rear suspension, there are often some confusing answers on the Internet, and everyone must distinguish clearly. Shortening the length of the front and rear suspensions can effectively improve the passability of the whole vehicle, which is a good way for some off-road enthusiasts. If you still have any incomprehension about the concept of the whole vehicle, you can leave us a message, and we will try to help you answer.