A system and methods are provided for a suspension system of an off-road vehicle that allows the springs to be mounted remotely, in any location on the vehicle, enabling the use of spring sizes, spring rates, motion ratios, and damping profiles that would be impractical with traditional suspension designs. The suspension system includes a hydraulic cylinder coupled between a suspension component and a chassis, in lieu of a conventional spring. The hydraulic cylinder is in fluid communication with another, second hydraulic cylinder, by way of a hydraulic hose. The second hydraulic cylinder presses against a suspension spring that is in contact with a fixed spring stop, thereby transferring spring forces to the wheel. Alternatively, the spring stop may comprise a control actuator that moves, enabling active control over spring load.

A suspension system for a vehicle includes a spring pad coupled to a spring and configured to support the spring connecting a suspension arm and a vehicle body member of the vehicle, where the spring pad includes: a seat part coupled to an end of the spring; a guide part configured to guide upward and downward movements of the seat part; and an elastic part configured to connect the seat part and the guide part and having a length that varies when the seat part moves. In particular, the spring is consistently supported by being coupled to the seat part of the spring pad even in a situation in which an additional rebound further occurs in a full-rebound situation and the spring deviates from a range in which the spring can be extended, thus preventing withdrawal of the spring connecting the suspension arm and the vehicle body member.

A suspension system for a vehicle includes a spring pad coupled to a spring and configured to support the spring connecting a suspension arm and a vehicle body member of the vehicle, where the spring pad includes: a seat part coupled to an end of the spring; a guide part configured to guide upward and downward movements of the seat part; and an elastic part configured to connect the seat part and the guide part and having a length that varies when the seat part moves. In particular, the spring is consistently supported by being coupled to the seat part of the spring pad even in a situation in which an additional rebound further occurs in a full-rebound situation and the spring deviates from a range in which the spring can be extended, thus preventing withdrawal of the spring connecting the suspension arm and the vehicle body member.

A vehicle wheel suspension includes a suspension spring and an additional spring element. The additional spring element is disposed in a working chamber of a hydraulic cylinder. The working chamber, in hydraulic terms, is configured to be completely shut off by a check valve and the volume thereof with an opened check valve while activating a vehicle drive apparatus with braked vehicle wheels being variable by the anti-dive angle and/or the anti-squat angle. For such a volumetric variation of the working chamber, a hydraulic medium is flowable through the opened check valve.

A bearing bush for supporting a motor vehicle part includes an inner tube made of a metal, a sliding sleeve made of a first plastic material and mounted rotatably on the inner tube, and an elastomer bearing which surrounds the sliding sleeve and has at least a first elastomer body and an outer sleeve. A sliding layer made of a second plastic material is applied to an outer circumferential surface of the inner tube, the first plastic material and the second plastic material forming a tribological pairing either of two different polymers from the groups of polyamides, polyoxymethylenes, polyketones, fluoropolymers, polyethylene terephthalates or polybutylene terephthalates, or the tribological pairing being formed from polyketone against polyketone, wherein the polymers of the tribological pairings each are present in a continuous thermoplastic polymer phase.

A method of manufacturing a hollow coil spring which is made of a hollow wire in which a terminal sealed portion is formed on an end portion of the wire. The terminal sealed portion has a rotationally symmetric shape in which an axis passing through the center of the wire is the symmetric axis. The hollow coil spring includes an end wall portion, and an end face arc-shaped curved surface. The end wall portion includes an end face perpendicular to the axis. A distal-end-center closure portion is formed on the axis at the center of the end wall portion. A spring seat includes a base member and a sheet member. An end turn portion of the hollow coil spring is in contact with the sheet member. The end face of the end turn portion is opposed to a stopper wall of the spring seat.

A method of manufacturing a hollow coil spring which is made of a hollow wire in which a terminal sealed portion is formed on an end portion of the wire. The terminal sealed portion has a rotationally symmetric shape in which an axis passing through the center of the wire is the symmetric axis. The hollow coil spring includes an end wall portion, and an end face arc-shaped curved surface. The end wall portion includes an end face perpendicular to the axis. A distal-end-center closure portion is formed on the axis at the center of the end wall portion. A spring seat includes a base member and a sheet member. An end turn portion of the hollow coil spring is in contact with the sheet member. The end face of the end turn portion is opposed to a stopper wall of the spring seat.

A suspension for a vehicle is configured such that, even in a situation of departing from a range in which a spring may be tensioned as a rebound state is added in a full rebound state, a lower end of the spring is continuously supported by a spring seat support arm, so as to prevent separation of the spring connecting a suspension arm to a body member.

The damper and spring unit comprises a damper, a spring member extending coaxially to the damper, a bottom spring plate and a vehicle height adjustment device for adjusting the height of the vehicle from the ground. A first damper element is connected to a wheel carrier of the suspension and a second damper element is slidable relative to the first damper element along the longitudinal axis (z). The adjustment device is interposed between the first damper element and the spring member to change the linear position of the bottom spring plate, and a bottom end of the spring member, relative to the first damper element. A hydraulic linear actuator comprising a cylinder is secured to the first damper element and a piston drivingly connected for translation with the bottom spring plate along the longitudinal axis (z) of the damper between a bottom end-of-travel position and a top end-of-travel position.

The damper and spring unit comprises a damper, a spring member extending coaxially to the damper, a bottom spring plate and a vehicle height adjustment device for adjusting the height of the vehicle from the ground. A first damper element is connected to a wheel carrier of the suspension and a second damper element is slidable relative to the first damper element along the longitudinal axis (z). The adjustment device is interposed between the first damper element and the spring member to change the linear position of the bottom spring plate, and a bottom end of the spring member, relative to the first damper element. A hydraulic linear actuator comprising a cylinder is secured to the first damper element and a piston drivingly connected for translation with the bottom spring plate along the longitudinal axis (z) of the damper between a bottom end-of-travel position and a top end-of-travel position.