2008 Race Truck Testing

We pulled an entire weekend in Barstow testing the #807 Race Truck. Saturday started out with a couple of issues with a Kong reservoir, so Sage and I headed back to the shop for the spares when we got cut off by the fires, which resulted in Saturday's productivity being scrubbed for testing. The prep went fine and we rebuilt three and a half King Kongs and had to wait until Sunday to get back out to the desert and drop on the new reservoir and roll the truck.

Once the truck hit the first whoop, we were amazed at the difference from the last setup and the testing turned into mild bypass tweaks. The truck's composure started to collect, the drivers found their rhythm in the bumps and we ended the afternoon running the middle of Barstow Main at 63 mph on the GPS.

Installation Instructions

We're putting together an instructional library for all Carli Suspension, Inc Dodge Ram Suspension Systems and Components. Complete with illustrations, where necessary, tools you'll need for the job and step-by-step narrative accompanied by photos. These will be fully updated and available for download in our Dodge Ram Suspension Instruction Library.

We'll be completing this over the next few days and will notify our distributors so they can update their documentation as well. Note: Each Carli Suspension, Inc delivery comes with printed and laminated instructions, however how many of us dive into a project and half way through (or more) decide to look at the instructions - don't worry, if you're one of those (like I am), you can download a new copy from the library.

2008 Baja 1000 Preparation

Looks like things are shaping up pretty well for the Big Dog and Carli Suspension team! This is going to be an interesting adventure with the first part of the course being a hazard for miles on end. Last night I came out of Baja via Tecate and spoke with team 299 who was pre running the course on motos and they reported a 3 hour traffic jam from a buggy that broke an axle on the course... and the section being so steep and narrow, there was just no going around. Somebody had to produce a welder and repair the axle on course in order to free up movement. This is surely to be a careful execution for the larger vehicles.

So far this year, the Carli crew has been on all of the sections of the course, minus the La Rumorosa section. We have a day planned to pre run that the week of the race from our camp in La Bufadora. This weekend the Canadian team will come down and we're set to do some Kong tuning in Barstow before we depart for Mexico. Everything is staged to be down in Baja early next week.

King 3.0 Shock Dyno Testing

Tuning Dodge Ram Suspension is a constant process... and today we just added another tool to our box. A shock dyno. Shown here is Sage working with a tech with one of the first 3.0 King Shocks for a Carli Suspension System. We are able to tear down a shock, tune it with whatever valves we like, then reassemble and install on the dyno. From here we can make several passes with the shock connected to a Nitrogen tank so we can adjust the gas charge and run the same valve profile and compare data.

Today was our first day playing with our standard valve profile and one of our latest experiments. So far, we've learned a lot and the theory is starting to take shape. Understanding how to interpret data is important and being able to connect a curve on a graph to "seat of the pants" feel is bringing new light into the world of tuning these race shocks for our Dodge Ram's.

So now we're able to see the transition of force that the shock absorbs, how fast it absorbs it and what happens next. We are able to visualize what we feel after tuning the shocks, which before was impossible. After the first few passes and adjustments, Sage was pointing at a computer screen and able to pick out where the big bumps are absorbed and where those little expansion joints are felt.

After the run of the standard Dominator 3.0 shock tune, which impressed everyone who saw the graph, we valved another 3.0 with my Megacab tune. An experiment that was tried several months ago... and Sage even said "I'm almost scared what this is going to show..." jokingly, of course... and what happen next made us all bug out. First of all, the valve stack and method was something completely different, hence the experiment... and what we found was that the second shock produced over 50% more compression that transitioned in a smooth arc on the graph and had balanced rebound. After someone else asked what was going on and they got the full technical scoop, I heard someone say "Yeah, I remember that Walker Evans used to do that on one of his buggies".

Here's a quick look at the very first test results. What you're looking at is the dyno graph of the shock stroke. Now to make things simple, what you're looking for are smooth transitions and no spikes - this is where ride quality can be visualized. Shown here is the standard Dominator 3.0 shock valve profile. Each test was run with a different gas charge and what we found is that the pressure that is recommended for our valving, produced the best data signature when tested.


The next graph is experimental 3.0 valving for "special case" off-road driving that we tagged with a nickname at the shop, but that's aside the point. What we did was start out with a very low pressure charge and work our way up. You can immediately see a major difference. The size of the visual, when overlaid with the first test, is much bigger, almost 40% more - which turns out to be the amount of energy this valve profile absorbs in the same time and distance. Big bump compression, with the exact same smooth transition. The next thing you notice is the anomaly at the end of the compression stroke, represented with the teal colored line. This was done with the lowest reservoir charge and shows that the shock cavitated. Once we got into actual operating pressures and not testing pressures, that anomaly was reduced and finally with the actual pressure we run with this stack, turned out as smooth, if not smoother than the valve stack with 40% less compression. Smooth transition of energy absorbing and recovery is the key to ride quality, on or off-road.


This kind of research and development is only possible through a tight working relationship with King Off Road. Access to their equipment, personnel and knowledge is a contributing factor in the speed at which our R&D progresses.

We're headed back in a couple days with an arsenal of shocks, various tunes and ideas. This is sure to speed things up with the R&D and help confirm or deny some of the ideas that pop up around the shop. This advancement is only going to lead to more shock tuning experience and knowledge, which means we'll have more fun in our trucks off road and they'll ride nicer on the highway.

SCORE International Baja 1000

It's that time of year again and the Carli Suspension Team is making the logistical plan to greet Mexico's toughest terrain in a Dodge Ram 2500 HD. Teamed up with Big Dog Performance out of Alberta Canada and racing in Class 8. This year there's some new terrain for the team to tackle as well as something new for everyone. The buzz is some really technical and brutal sections and some relief that San Felipe's biggest whoops have been tamed by recent rains. It's going to be another adventure and test of commitment for all of us. As the dates grow closer the excitement will ramp up, more so for the driver's... supporting this year's race will be much easier than a point-to-point course.

Big Dog Performance will be down shortly to perform the final prep and tune in the King Kong's before heading south. There will be much to do in the coming weeks and as most of America will be visiting family and carving the turkey, some of us will be having a sleepless night in Ensenada just before we launch on a 40 hour adventure that we'll never forget! 

We'll get some updates going weekly as we progress and some pictures of the race truck.