Tippy Blazer

Howdy, nearly tipped my Blazer on its side today and was wondering what I can add to it to make it more stable without lowering it. Thanks.

how did this almost occur?

I was being stupid. I was driving to fast, wasn't paying attention, and nearly hit a deer. When I locked the brakes and swerved, it two wheeled a couple of times while I was trying to get control. I about had to change my shorts. :banghead:

This is the nature of a 4x4 SUV.

There is nothing you can really do to stop situations like this.

Even dropping it will help little.

Thanks anyway. Guess I better pay more attention.

^yep, sorry to tell ya, but if it was an "easy" fix, such as a 2" drop ford, chevy, and dodge would of done it years ago, instead of hundreds of thousends of dollers into a new computer to help detrumen when is to fast and take power away (some honda has it, not sure which ones though) short wheel base+ being high up= high center of gravity, which means that you will tip easyer then a vehical with low center of gravity... what almost happend to you is why so many kids die in blazers and explorers, they think that their vehical can hold the road, when the physics just dont work out in our favor

^yep, sorry to tell ya, but if it was an "easy" fix, such as a 2" drop ford, chevy, and dodge would of done it years ago, instead of hundreds of thousends of dollers into a new computer to help detrumen when is to fast and take power away (some honda has it, not sure which ones though) short wheel base+ being high up= high center of gravity, which means that you will tip easyer then a vehical with low center of gravity... what almost happend to you is why so many kids die in blazers and explorers, they think that their vehical can hold the road, when the physics just dont work out in our favor


That's why GM put the front axle of their trailblazers through the oil pan, right? It lowers the center of gravity of the engine and reduces the risk of rollover?

Howdy, nearly tipped my Blazer on its side today and was wondering what I can add to it to make it more stable without lowering it. Thanks.


Bad news for 2door Blazer owners (me) and their tendancy to tip over.

Check out this link to the Insurance Institute for Highway safety;
2 dr Blazers have the highest death rate per million registered due to roll-overs.

http://www.hwysafety.org/srpdfs/sr4003.pdf It's on page 3, (Adobe Acrobat reader required)

In your case, without lowering it, you might try the out-riggers the institute uses when testing for rollovers. it's an A frame attached to each side of the truck with a wheel/tire at the outer point (Just kidding)

Take your Blazer emblems and attach them to a Yukon (also kidding)

Simple fix....just replace the nut behind the wheel.

no, its not his fault blazze, there is one exit ramp here in town that says 25mph, if your in a blazer and think about doing 27 you are gone, i have SEEN it happen several times, moreso when the ramp first opend over now, 3 years later, but the point is that they will roll easy, i can take the ramp at 40 without a problem in my fullsize or s 10 pu, but my buddie slows right down, because it doesnt take much

The rear track on a Blazer is 2 inches narrower than the front. Properly installed wheel spacers in the back to make it match the front would have to help, even though it may only be a little. Some will say it's not as strong as using no spacers which is probably true but a lot of offroaders use them quite hard without failure. It also makes the truck look better IMO.

I added 2.5" of space (2 1.25" spacer) on the rear and it looked good. It definetely rode more stable and firm. I took them off because my rear would shake a little bit on the highway. I plan on reinstalling them this summer when I can make sure the spacer is perfectly center. If anyone is planning on doing this my first point of advice is to get good lug nuts. The $2.99 autozone ones just wont cut it IMO. Plus you will lose your hubcaps.

If there is any shaking or vibration something is wrong. Figure it out immediately. The better lug nuts have a base that is wider than the hex head giving more holding power. The spacer must be flush to the face of the drum/rotor. Remove the small holding clips on the studs. Also make sure that the wheel is mounting flush on the spacer. 1.25 spacers are recommended to prevent interference with the lug nuts on the spacer and the wheel mounting face but 1 inch will work with the right nuts. Torque down in several steps and in criss cross sequence. If you order your spacers with the same thread studs (12mm 1.5 pitch in our Blazers case) you can use your original lug nuts and plastic caps on the wheel.

Simple fix....just replace the nut behind the wheel.

lol, that was a good one.

Relax guys, he was only kidding around.;)

I'd like to replace the nut but all I got left are screws... :naughty:

I'd like to replace the nut but all I got left are screws... :naughty:

:lol:

Relax guys, he was only kidding around.;)

Yep :lol: :lol2:

Seriously though:
My Blazer is pretty stable, I haven't had any problems with it wanting to tip. It may be because I have the Z71 offroad suspension and Z85 towing increased capacity rear leafs.

Just yesterday I was driving down a 4 lane road. I was driving about 60 in the left lane (I was about to make a left turn). A woman pulled out not even 30ft in front of me. (DAMN YANKEES) I easily avoided her by diving to the right, even while blowing the horn and giving her the finger.

Hello, new member here. I installed Edelbrock Performer IAS shocks in the front and rear of my 98 LT and the truck is rock solid. I drive my truck very hard and have never thought I was going to tip and I have had to avoid a few accidents at highway speeds and the truck is very stable. But, it will cost you, besides the price of $70 a shock your ride quality will suffer. Now I don't regret installing them because the ride never really meant much to me except for the fact I wanted it to respond like a sport car, which it does. Other people get in and think I need my shocks replaced until they notice the truck does not sway on backroads or even on the highway on a windy day. The harder you push these shocks the better they respond over bumps and pot holes at higher speeds, at slower speeds the ride is very stiff and you feel every little pebble in the road. I have had these shocks almost 2 years and have put 40,000 miles on them with no fading in the shocks performance, tires are constantly on the ground and even at higher speeds when hitting a bump that would definitely keep the truck bouncing a few times, it might bounce twice and then is straight and stable. I do notice if I have more people in the truck or I am towing or just carrying some kind of extra load, it will ride better at slower speeds. Anyway, I hope this was useful and I hope I did alright on my first reply to a post. Have fun fellow blazer people!

Jim

Welcome aboard BlazerBoy. Thanks for your info.

Welcome to the forum BlazerBoyLT98 and thanks for the input. I'm going to have to look into those shocks. AlmostStock, were did you get the spacers?

Welcome to the forum BlazerBoyLT98 and thanks for the input. I'm going to have to look into those shocks. AlmostStock, were did you get the spacers?

You won't see any difference in handling really by investing $280 in shocks.

Cheap shocks are hard riding amd rather rigid and the more expensive ones are soft and controlled.

Not being rude or mean in any way, but why would you spend that kind of money on something offered by the buget lower end varieties offered by the major shock manufacturers?

Welcome to the forum BlazerBoyLT98 and thanks for the input. I'm going to have to look into those shocks. AlmostStock, were did you get the spacers?http://www.ezaccessory.com/
The first ones they sent were the wrong bolt pattern (4.5). They also had different thread studs. When I sent them back I asked for 4.75 bolt pattern with 12m 1.5 pitch threads and got the right ones. $75 for the pair. They worked fine, no vibrations. There are plently of other suppliers, do a web search for wheel spacers.

Thanks for the input guys.

Trust me BlazerLT, The shocks I put in changed the way that truck handled in every aspect. A good friend of mine has a 2000LT, nothing different then my 98. Her truck has 35,000 miles on it and from day one it has felt tippy and sways all over the place, granted the ride quality is much better, but it handles nothing like mine. Before I installed the current shocks it handled the same as hers if not worse. So yes, the shocks I put in did change the way the truck handled, dramatically. Worth the $280? Not really, but I got what I paid for.

http://www.ezaccessory.com/
The first ones they sent were the wrong bolt pattern (4.5). They also had different thread studs. When I sent them back I asked for 4.75 bolt pattern with 12m 1.5 pitch threads and got the right ones. $75 for the pair. They worked fine, no vibrations. There are plently of other suppliers, do a web search for wheel spacers.

Are the studs on those spacers aluminum? I would stay away from those. A lot of offroaders on zr2.com are happy with the ebay spacers (just do a search on their site)

I rolled in my 98 Blazer last year and it wasn't pretty (the parts I remember). This time it was caused by a collision, but I read about their tendency to roll. They have a rollover resistance rating of 2 (out of five). I think the 2 wheel drives are worse with a rating of 1! Check my gallery for the pictures...definitely not where you want to be.

Are the studs on those spacers aluminum? I would stay away from those. A lot of offroaders on zr2.com are happy with the ebay spacers (just do a search on their site) Aluminum studs? I never knew there was such a thing. Your right to say stay away from those. I just went to check and mine are steel. I'm also a ZR2.com member and tried the ebay guy everybody likes first but he was out of stock. I also talked to this guy http://www.wheeladapter.com/ who offers quality custom made units that I would have bought if he accepted credit cards.

Trust me BlazerLT, The shocks I put in changed the way that truck handled in every aspect. A good friend of mine has a 2000LT, nothing different then my 98. Her truck has 35,000 miles on it and from day one it has felt tippy and sways all over the place, granted the ride quality is much better, but it handles nothing like mine. Before I installed the current shocks it handled the same as hers if not worse. So yes, the shocks I put in did change the way the truck handled, dramatically. Worth the $280? Not really, but I got what I paid for.

I understand, but you can get stiff shocks a lot cheaper than that.

My new shocks cost me $50 total and they are as hard as rocks.

Cheaper shocks are stiffer so therefore you could get cheap heavy duty shocks and still get the stiffer handling.

Cheaper shocks are stiffer so therefore you could get cheap heavy duty shocks and still get the stiffer handling.
Maybe, but cheap shocks will usually wear out sooner and there goes your handling. With top quality gas charged shocks I've never needed to change them again.

Maybe, but cheap shocks will usually wear out sooner and there goes your handling. With top quality gas charged shocks I've never needed to change them again.

That is an assumption.

More expensive does not equal more life span.

get a ford explorer , they are easier to roll especially with skinny tires. Check the sway bar bushings . and shocks for fluid leaks. maybe space out the wheels to give it a wider stance and add some fender flares to cover them up .

get a ford explorer , they are easier to roll especially with skinny tires. Check the sway bar bushings . and shocks for fluid leaks. maybe space out the wheels to give it a wider stance and add some fender flares to cover them up .

Ha Ha. I traded a Ford Explorer for this truck. Nothing leakes and everything looks perfect underneath. Almoststock talked about spacers so I may try that. Thanks for the input ya'll.

www.esuvee.com