For some strange reason this forum recognizes my user name but not my email address which I normally use on forums and I can't recover my password. Unless I signed up using my work address years ago. I just hadn't logged on in a couple of months.

A few years ago I had 100 lbs of chicken feed in the bed of my Baja and my steep driveway was a bit slushy from where it had rained on top of snow and it seemed as if the car had more traction. I know you can weigh down the trunk/bed of a RWD car/truck but I guess this works on AWD vehicles as well.

I was planning on filling some 5 gallon metal cans with used motor oil and using that as ballast. I estimated at 8 lbs per gallon, I could fill 6 which would equal around 240 lbs.

I'm confused about the payload capacity. The door jam sticker says the maximum payload capacity is 800 lbs. So does that mean if I weigh 150 lbs, I can put 650 lbs in the bed? But according to the sticker below it shows 4 people and 3 packages and 210 in the front and 230 lbs in the rear.

Suggestions?

 

 

 

Edited November 14, 20187 yr by turbofiat124

250 pounds is nothing, just put it in there and carry on.  250 pounds is so small, it's like adding up how much dirt is in the bed, how much a TN license plate weighs, how much water is in the exhaust at start up, weighing brake pads, and adding in your empty coke cans in the bed....what exactly are you concerned about?

position may be as/more important than amount - getting the weight centered over the rear axles rather than closer to the front. 

if you ever do a strut swap the baja turbo springs are a bit higher spring rates, we use them in 00-04 Outbacks for a 1/2" lift and keeping the vehicle level with frequent loads/towing/etc. 

the "people and packages" are referring to tire pressure guidelines and i get that they're related but i don't think you need to try and extrapolate anything about your current question from them. 

on inclines, some vehicles can reverse up better than going forwards. You might experiment with that.

 

plus, using 1st gear may force the 4EAT into more power distributed to the rear. (anyone confirm?)

man, i would not haul around motor oil for weight. a sand tube or two. no mess if the leak, and sand for traction if needed. 

yeah, I completely agree with whynot on this one.. used motor oil is not the greatest option here.

sand tubes, or bags of kitty litter would be far more useful (throw a couple hand fulls out on ice if you need to), and easier to clean up if spilled.

Be careful with the kitty litter.  The modern clumping litter is made out of grains of bentonite clay.  It turns into a soft, greasy mess when it gets wet. 

yes, also gets slick when using at as a oil absorber on the shop floor. had to change that...

On 11/16/2018 at 5:39 PM, robm2 said:

Be careful with the kitty litter.  The modern clumping litter is made out of grains of bentonite clay.  It turns into a soft, greasy mess when it gets wet. 

 

On 11/17/2018 at 8:49 AM, whynot said:

yes, also gets slick when using at as a oil absorber on the shop floor. had to change that...

yeah - should have mentioned that.. get the cheapest NON-clumping stuff.. LOL

Sorry for the late reply. I wanted to attach some photos but it took me awhile to find them. A couple of years ago I went to Wal-Mart and bought some mulch. The bags did not indicate the weight but square footage they covered. That would have been a big help to know that before hand. 

I told the cashier, give me X number bags.  Estimating how many I could fit in the bed. While  the guy in the parking lot was helping me load the bed, I noticed the rear end starting to sag and bit. I said, "WOW that stuff weighs more than I thought". I was going to go back in and tell the cashier I think I purchased too many bags and to get a refund and come back to get the rest but figured since I only had 3 miles to go home, I would take it easy. The back end was a bit unstable but nothing seemed to rub otherwise.

Out of curiosity I did get my bathroom scale and stand on it while holding a bag. I wish I could remember how much each bad weighed. That might give me an idea how much weight I could put in the back.

From the photo, it looks like I bought at least 12 or 14 bags. I'm wanting to say they weigh 40 lbs a piece so that would be at least 480 lbs to 640 lbs.

I've got tons of those metal 5 gallon cans. I considering just filling them with water instead of oil. Only thing is water expands when it freezes. I guess I could subtract 9% which is the expansion rate of water. Or just fill it up and leave the lids off.

Edited November 20, 20187 yr by turbofiat124

On 11/14/2018 at 10:21 AM, idosubaru said:

 

if you ever do a strut swap the baja turbo springs are a bit higher spring rates, we use them in 00-04 Outbacks for a 1/2" lift and keeping the vehicle level with frequent loads/towing/etc. 

the "people and packages" are referring to tire pressure guidelines and i get that they're related but i don't think you need to try and extrapolate anything about your current question from them. 

I'm starting to break out onto another subject but since you mentioned it.

Actually I've been wanting to install some springs from a Legacy GT sport wagon to drop the ride height a couple of inches instead of jacking it up.

https://dxsdcl7y7vn9x.cloudfront.net/3/547638/10368305/886319025.jpg

They only thing is, nobody seems to know if just swapping the springs is going to drop the ride height or I need to swap out the entire strut assemblies. I'd be POed if I spent my time swapping the springs only to find out the didn't give me the drop I was wanting.

All I wanted to know what was a safe load limit for the bed to gain some traction in the snow.

The car does fine in the snow but there are some really steep hills around here and usually when I get going up a hill I don't stop. Not even for people with 2WD pickups spinning their wheels going nowhere. I usually just pass them . That is if there is nobody in the opposite lane.

 

Edited November 20, 20187 yr by turbofiat124

fill those cans with sand. Liquid sloshes around and can be dangerous.  Tube sand is 60 lbs and 5 bucks or so. so less than 30 bucks you can do  sand, have a traction material, and if not needed, throw it in the side yard or spread it on the grass when you are done with the winter. Sometimes we try and reinvent something that already works pretty well. 

Payload capacity, or performance, could be a fraction of what new factory springs and struts are, does anyone know if that photo a normal amount of sagging?