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The rear sits low, knocks and bottoms out under load

A Montero that squats when it is loaded is usually not broken — it is carrying more than the springs in it were chosen for. The spring supplier for this generation classifies its rear springs by load-carrying capacity as well as by ride height, and warns that even a difference in factory trim changes which spring suits a given truck, which tells you how sensitive the rear end is to what you have added. Every permanent accessory counts: a steel bumper, a winch, skid plates, a second battery, a drawer system, a full water tank. Before you buy springs, check the rubber pads the springs sit on. The same supplier says the lower rear pads take more abuse than any other bushing or pad on the truck, that by this point in a third generation's life the originals are likely worn all the way through, and that the result is the coil sitting directly on the rear control arm — metal on metal, a rougher ride and a lot of noise. A crushed pad makes a healthy spring look tired, and it is the cheapest thing on the list.

Gen 32001–2006Works worseCommunity consensusSafety-critical

Drive gently — repair soonManeje con cuidado — repare pronto

Safety notice — Suspension.

This affects a safety-critical system. Reference material only: for safety-critical work, consult a qualified mechanic.

Esto afecta un sistema crítico para la seguridad. Material de referencia únicamente: en trabajos críticos para la seguridad, consulte a un mecánico calificado.

Community consensus. This entry is not backed by factory documentation — treat its values and steps as a starting point, not as if they came from the factory manual.

Consenso de la comunidad. Esta entrada no se apoya en documentación de fábrica — tome los valores y los pasos como punto de partida, no como si vinieran del manual de fábrica.

Symptoms

  • The rear sits visibly lower than the front once the truck is loaded
  • It bottoms out over bumps with people or gear aboard
  • The back wallows and keeps moving after a bump on a rough road
  • A knock from the back and a harsher ride than the truck used to have

Likely causes

  1. The rear springs are tired and have lost their free height
  2. The springs are rated below what the truck now permanently carries
  3. The rear dampers are worn out and no longer control the spring
  4. The lower rear spring pads are worn through, leaving the coil on bare metal

Diagnostic steps

  1. Measure from the ground to each rear arch, empty, then again loaded as you normally drive itPoints toThe rear springs are tired and have lost their free height · The springs are rated below what the truck now permanently carries
  2. List and add up every permanent accessory the truck now carriesPoints toThe springs are rated below what the truck now permanently carriesRules outThe rear springs are tired and have lost their free height
  3. Bounce each rear corner hard and watch whether it settles in one movementPoints toThe rear dampers are worn out and no longer control the spring
  4. Look at the rubber pads at both ends of each rear spring, and especially at the lower ones, for wear right through to the armPoints toThe lower rear spring pads are worn through, leaving the coil on bare metal

Fix paths

Renew the spring pads

$Difficulty 3/5

The cheapest thing on the list and the only one worth doing on its own before you decide anything else. The supplier will not sell the factory rubber for the lower rear position at all, on the grounds that it wears through long before the rest of the suspension does — the figure is in the citation.

Partsgen3-rear-coil-spring-pad

Fit springs rated for the truck as it is now

$$$Difficulty 4/5

The supplier publishes both a ride-height and a load-carrying classification, so tell them what the truck carries rather than which model it is. A spring chosen for a bare truck will sag again under a loaded one.

Partsgen3-rear-coil-spring

Replace the rear dampers

$$Difficulty 3/5

A wallowing back end can be dampers with perfectly good springs. If you are changing spring rate anyway, choose dampers to match rather than reusing what is there.

Partsgen3-rear-shock-absorber

Sources

  1. Luso Overland — MONTERO Gen3 Lovells Coil Springs: height and load-carrying classifications, the trim-weight caveat, and the pairing recommendation with the listed dampersVendor cataloguearchived copy
  2. Luso Overland — MONTERO Gen3 Rear Coil Spring Pads, Lower: «Out of all of the Montero's independent suspension bushings and pads, the Lower Coil Springs Pads take the most abuse by far… the original ones are likely worn all the way through creating metal to metal contact with the coil springs sitting directly on the rear control arms which makes for a rougher ride and often a lot of noise», and the 5,000-10,000 mile wear-through the supplier reports for the factory rubber padsVendor cataloguearchived copy
  3. Luso Overland — MONTERO Gen3 KONI Heavy Track Shock Absorber, Rear: «a huge upgrade over your original tired shocks», and the pairing with Lovells springsVendor cataloguearchived copy