OME Shock Absorbers | OME Leaf Springs | Overall Ride and Performance

Ride Quality

The combination of Old Man Emu springs and shocks have vastly improved the ride of the WomBAT both on and off-road.

I was pleased to find that the stiffness that the springs initially demonstrated, mellowed as the setup got broken in. Washboards and ruts that had initially rattled things around began to have less effect. This was not to say that you didn't know you'd hit something rough. The noise was still there (mostly from lose items inside and on the Wilderness Systems roof rack), but there was a peculiar lack of jarring given the sound.

With time, I came to flinch less as I approached ruts and holes at speed. I was especially impressed when I took the truck over a lowland area that had previously been a gooey mess. Now frozen hard, the endless criss-crossing of tire ruts were deep and without pattern. And HARD! The last time I'd traversed the area had been with add-a-leafs and without the Old Man Emu shocks. It had been a wholly unpleasant experience. The Trooper had felt like it was being batted around, and I got pretty shook up. Both hands had to be kept tightly on the wheel, and I had been knocked around as the tires bashed over frozen ruts.

The springs provide plenty of flex for a Trooper.

However, with the OME suspension I was pleased to find that the noise of things creaking and rattling was now about the only annoyance of crossing the area. The same frozen ground now yielded a relatively smooth ride. This was pretty impressive given the ground's makeup of 4 to 12" deep ruts and pressure in the 32" Bridgestone Dueler M/Ts at 35 psi.

I have also been impressed with the ability of the OME suspension to soak up collisions with big individual holes hit at speed. Holes that in the past have had me shedding speed through quick braking can be taken with aplomb now. The truck tends to bang and dive far less and the rear-end now fails to come out of line from the drop-off's and launches out.

There is noticeably less bottoming out from those sudden changes in elevation, as well. While a lot of that can be attributed to the Nitrochargers, the difference that has been most significant has been when the truck is heavily laden. Bottoming out, even with several hundred pounds added to the already heavier than stock setup, has no longer been an issue. Moreover, although it was rare with the previous twin add-a-leaves, bumps and the like are met with firm resistance instead of "boinging".

The very overweight WomBAT at full compression.

On the road, the OME suspension is again a pleasure to drive. Cornering is smooth and predictable, railroad tracks are smoothed out, and lane changes lack drama. A colleague, a fellow Trooper owner has found even greater improvements in his truck's handling. This is likely because it is not encumbered by the elevated mass of our Isuzu's roof rack (e.g., Pull Pal, 60" Hi Lift, full-size spare). Otherwise, he has made very similar modifications to his suspension.

Conclusion
If your truck has lost the ride quality that it once had, or if you are looking to ramp up the truck's ability to handle what your worst trail nightmares dish out, Old Man Emu has a suspension upgrade to leave you smiling. Built with first-rate materials and featuring a design meant to carry rigs across the Outback, OME products live up to their reputation and then some. Are they the cheapest products out there? Not by a long shot. But they are among the very best. Size them up for rig, but remember, when OME says a suspension component "fits" your application, they're talking about a whole lot more than just shock travel. So be ready to get down to business, and then get ready for some sweet handling.