Can-Am X3 Suspension Upgrade: How To Improve Performance
Jul 19th 2021
The Can-Am X3 is a great, versatile vehicle that can be used for a variety of purposes. It's capable of tackling backcountry trails as well as driving in the city.
Sometimes it can be frustrating to drive when you know your vehicle could do better. Upgrading your suspension should be the first thing you upgrade. Ride improvement is your goal when getting the fastest and smoothes car.
That's why we created this guide to help you make the right suspension upgrades for your Can-Am X3. From shock absorbers and springs to lift kits and more, read on to learn about the best suspension upgrades for your Can-Am X3. Let's get into the Parts you should change out first.
What to change out first
For whatever reason, people are always having some issues with the can am x3 suspensions in the rear. Either there is a lot of play in the radius rod plate, or you hit and bend and radius rod its self. So what parts should you change out first?
We use all these parts on our race car, and they help us win races. If you haven't heard of ZRP, you should look us up. So what are the parts that we change out first on our Can-Am Maverick x3? Here is the list
Radius Rods To the High Clearance Radius Rods
Add a trailing arm Brace or replace the trailing arms
Radius Rods to High Clearance Radius Rods
There is a big issue with everyone bending or hitting their radius rods on the trails. Even when you are taking the corner super hard, boom, suddenly, your day is over because you just bent a radius rod.
So what is the Radius Rod?
On the back of the Can-Am, you have 3 rods going to your wheel. This is where the radius rod is located, but what does it do? They are there to control the wheel from unnecessary movements.
So why go to the high clearance radius rods?
High clearance radius rods give you 2 inches of clearance that you wouldn't get, I know 2 inches doesn't sound like a lot, but it is. It can make the difference between you hitting a rock and ruining your day or clearing the rock and taking sharp turns with ease.
We highly recommend getting a high clearance radius rod.
Radius Rod Plate
The Stock Plate on the Can-Am X3 suspension is very flimsy and has a lot of room for play. This is one of the reasons why the radius rods tend to break a lot.
You also can damage a bolt as well. The main reason you want to change this out is that it causes flex in your ride.
Adding a radius rod plate to your x3 can preserve the structural integrity of your rear suspension and reduce tension on the radius rod bolts.
The plates that come from ZRP can add a hitch or dring receiver if you get stuck or a buddy gets stuck.
Dog Bones
To further the tightness of your ride, these three parts all come to play with each other. The dog bones act like misalignment spacers for the can am x3 radius rods. It's important to pair these with the radius rods since that's the primary function of the part. It keeps everything nice and tight, just how we like it.
Trailing arm Brace
Trailing arms are essentially the tall ones that connect your axle to the wheel hubs. They have two cross-members connected.
Sometimes they can be rusty and rusty parts can make them less stiff or even too stiff. You'll want to replace them as soon as possible because they can also contribute to how much you lose control.
If you don't want to replace the trail arms and just want to add a brace, these are the parts. Trailing arm brace for the can am.
If you are okay with changing them out, we recommend this part.
ShockTower Brace
This is a no-brainer. You just need to change the shock tower brace out and add this bad boy. The reason being is it will help protect your shocks from all stress and crazy driving.
Those are the parts that we highly recommend to change out first on your Can-Am Maverick X3. This will get you an overall better suspension and ride.