SJ GVM upgrade

BoulderFoz

BoulderFoz

Forum Member
Joined
Feb 20, 2021
Messages
20
Location
Western Australia
Car Year
2018
Car Model
Forester 2.5iL
Transmission
CVT
I'm looking to stay out on my camping trips longer, by adding a fridge and battery set up, and adding some roof racks as well.

Only issue is, with these added items, I'm going to exceed my GVM when fully laden with all my gear.

From what I've found online, the SJ unladen weight is 1477kg and the gross vehicle weight is 1800kg. Leaving only 323kg for people and gear.

I want to upgrade my GVM and have been considering a suspension upgrade (thinking Primitive Racing - 1'' lift).

Does anyone have any experience with the Primitive Lift or preferably any Australian based suspension upgrade options.

My vehicle is a 2018, 2.5il Forester SJ.

Cheers
 
@BoulderFoz I'm sure @NachaLuva (SubieLiftOz) can help with his knowledge and products. Also Kings springs are very popular and Aussie made as well. ;)
 
+1 for SubieLiftOz kit. Quality gear, but won't affect your carrying capacity.
 
BoulderFoz said:
Thanks fellas. @NachaLuva do you have any suggestions re a GVM upgrade for the SJ?
Click to expand...
From what I understand, only a certified engineer can upgrade the GVM. However, you can upgrade the suspension to allow the vehicle to handle more weight easily enough. The best way IMO is firmer rear springs and leave the front stock. This keeps the nice ride comfort while increasing the load carrying capacity (most added weight is near, over or behind the rear axle)

SUSPENSION:
I don’t recommend raised springs, they give a harsh ride (speed humps are a pita!) & increase wear on other components esp the struts. There aren’t any longer stroke struts for Subarus so they “top out” with a big clunk on bumps

Plus they reduce suspension droop, so less articulation offroad, less grip & more wheel spin. You’ll hate speed humps & rough roads with raised springs!

They also don’t have camber or caster correction to compensate for the change in suspension geometry when lifting, so the steering isn’t as good

I recommend Rallitek or Kings standard height springs & KYB Excel-G struts or Bilstein B6 struts. Or Pedders standard height springs & struts are good too. They have a nice ride & articulation, and are good for offroad. Perfect combination with a 1.5"-2" lift kit with camber & caster offsets! Don’t get raised springs!

Rallitek is popular & has a slightly softer ride than King springs, which can be a little firm. Make sure you get standard height springs not raised (some are called 0.25”, these are ok)

Get your lift from a lift kit with camber & caster correction, not from the springs. This is how you keep the good handling & maintain a nice ride without being harsh
 
Thanks for the info and advice, I think your option for stiffer springs at normal height sounds pretty good.

I've done some extra googling for GVM upgrade on Subaru's and haven't found any providers that do that service. Which I suppose I'm not surprised about.

Might just be time to bite the bullet and buy a 4x4 wagon or Ute to setup...:unsure:
 
BoulderFoz said:
GVM upgrade on Subaru's and haven't found any providers
Click to expand...
Do you mean GVM engineering approval? If you upgrade your springs you are increasing load carrying ability which is an increase in GVM.
 
Engineering approval, i guess so...

I suppose what im after is something official that says with new springs i can carry "x" amount extra load, so i dont get stung by insurance in the event of a crash for being overweight etc
 
BoulderFoz said:
Might just be time to bite the bullet and buy a 4x4 wagon or Ute to setup...:unsure:
Click to expand...

No need to sacrifice handling, safety and comfort just for a fridge & battery. Subarus are one of the safest cars on the road, world leaders along with Mercedes, etc. 4WDs esp 4WD utes are one of the least safe with a high fatality rate in rollovers, which they do a lot. Subarus almost never roll over
Literally 1000s of people run a fridge & dual batteries in their Subaru with no issues at all. Just put in some stiffer rear springs - simple!
Just don't overload it like I did here haha
 

Attachments

  • 7-07 20160707_083929-2.jpg
    7-07 20160707_083929-2.jpg
    95.6 KB · Views: 12
NachaLuva said:
No need to sacrifice handling, safety and comfort just for a fridge & battery.
Click to expand...
Yeh fair call, I do cram a lot in there sometimes and gets pretty similar. Lately I've been trying to organise things a bit better, but as I get further down the rabbit hole of camping and off road, I keep collecting stuff!

You make a good point about the Subaru's safety and reliability.
 
Kevin said:
@BoulderFoz isn't the Tare and GVM specs on the vehicle compliance plate;
Click to expand...
I'll have to check my compliance plate, I flicked through my owners manual and couldn't find the info, which is why I went online. Strange I found different stats.

However, if the stats you found are correct, this is great news, I will have 200kg still to spare!
 
^ I checked them out years ago and thought fairly expensive.
 
If you are in the habit of carrying heavy loads under off road conditions, ie Simpson crossings, keep an eye on the undersides of the rear wheel arches. I believe that the two inner halves are only spot welded and may crack apart in time. I suspect that excess loads will cause the rear floor centre to sink and cause the strut towers tops to try and move towards each other.
The first symptom is, sometimes heavy, dust entry into the luggage area of the car. Investigation reveals a crack appearing in the welded seam region.
This area can be strengthened using thin, 1 or 2 mm thick, steel bracket sections as can be purchased at Bunnings, or having the whole arch area seam welded.
Strut tower braces for the rear also give good support and bracing although this does affect the way you can pack the rear. .
My thoughts anyway.
 
Yes, my LHS arch exhibited a small crack before any dust ingress. I bolted a few small bracket strips to pull the arch halves together under slight tension, coated with fish oil and a tacky mastic compound AND added a rear strut cross brace as well. I regularly check the RHS side but it is still, at 367000kms and 2 Simpson trips and much heavy loading, ok.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top