superhighsierra

This is the correct answer. Ceramic coating is all about the prep. You areputting an extra layer of semi-permanent protection over the clear coat, which is already there to protect the paint. So getting the paint as perfect as possible, is extremely important, as once you lock in whatever is underneath that layer of ceramic coat. It's going to be there until you take the ceramic off the vehicle. That said, you are a fool if you pay someone a thousand dollars (going rate) to ceramic coat a GM Truck. Go buy an orbital buffer and compound/polish the vehicle (depending on condition), wipe it down with some diluted rubbing alcohol and put some $75 Quartz on there and call it good. You can pinstripe a professionally ceramic coated vehicle, just as easily as you can a DIY coated vehicle. It's just a thin layer of protection, that keeps your vehicle looking "wet" for the life of the coating (2-3 years).

For the sake of conversation, what would be the performance objectives of a 3.0L Duramax? Genuinely curious as all i can see is: -More expensive fuel that negate any offset in MPG -More expensive price tag -~80 less HP -Slower 0-60 -Less towing capacity than a 5.8 by over 2,000lbs -More expensive routine maintainence -More expensive long term maintenance -Harder to work on -Riddled with problems, newer engine +80lbs more of torque that means what if it has a a lower towing capacity lol climbs a hill a ball hair faster? Objectively the 3.0L is a "V6 Diesel." Zero performance Huge fan of Diesel in 3/4 and 1 ton trucks. IMHO, never understood the appeal, whatsoever of the baby duramax.

275/65/r20 34.1inch tire. Still might rub a ball hair at full lock.

Same shell for both trucks.

Keep in mind nearly all of these people in this thread have 3.0 diesel. With a 5.3 and stock tires you can get 22-23 if you absolutely baby it, but then you are stuck with a stock truck. I have a 5.3 with 34.1 inch Duratracs on stock 20's, removed the lower front valence, have a leveling kit and get ~20-21 if i really baby it around town. About the same on the highway. Unless you want to go 55-60 on the highway in cruise, you aren't getting over ~21 on flat ground with bigger tires. Everything is a give and take. Don't want a 3.0L Diesel as that engine makes zero sense, and don't want a stock truck. If you own a half ton pickup truck and are overly worried about the gas mileage, not sure what to tell you.

The simple answer is don’t do it. Tried to warn everyone in the other Bilstein threads of the same thing. Bunch of people who didn’t know what they are doing, justifying money they spent to make their vehicle ride worse. If you off-road regularly, their are infinite other better options out there as well. 5100’s aren’t necessarily bad shocks, actually solid for the money, but they will ride like crap set up a couple rings on these trucks with stock coils.

That’s all for you to decide. 3” spacer needs UCA’s. 2” spacer doesn’t. I run a 2” spacer in the front and a 1.5 in the rear with the stock Ranchos. Bilstein makes decent shocks for the money. But I wouldn’t put 5100’s on one of these trucks unless you off-road it all the time. And in that application, there are much better alternatives to 5100’s and new coils. You are essentially taking coils and struts that were made especially for this vehicle and jerry rigging something together that were made for counterintuitive purposes to one another. Not to mention with a 3” spacer it is next to impossible to even get the spacer and strut assembly back in there after you bolt the spacer on top. It’s hard enough with a 2 inch spacer. So who knows what kind of angles the rest of your suspension are at, regardless if you only got a true 2” of lift. How do those CV axles look? Do you Enjoy changing ball joints and replacing them with aftermarket crap? Nobody will notice that inch of difference but you. I got a full 2” with my Motofab $50 spacers. If it were me I’d be ordering a set of 2” spacers, putting the Ranchos back on, selling everything you bought and chalking it up to a learning experience. But I’ve given similar advice on here plenty of times before, and it’s not always well received. If you are hellbent on getting that extra inch or two I’d run something like this: Proper - 4” Lift And even 5k later (not including labor), you better enjoy getting taking the tires off and getting underneath that vehicle and Turing a wrench or she’ll be squeaking in 2 years. Bolting a bunch of aftermarket crap onto one of these things and changing angles is for the birds. At least do it right if you’re gonna do it. There is a reason nobody runs 3” spacers and damn sure nobody runs 3” spacers with the 5100s up a rung. All my opinion.

How much time ya got? Lol If I was you, I’d put the rancho’s back on, put a 2.5” spacer in the front and a 1.5” spacer in the back. 5100’s are off-road shocks/struts. Do you off-road all the time? When they put those at .75, 1.5, or 2.5 it compresses your spring even more. Making it even stiffer than now. SEnd back your POS jerry rigged lift. Either use spacers and keep the rest stock or drop 10k on a 7” McGaughys/valved IKON/etc long travel if you off-road all the time. Not trying to write a manifesto here but for an extra inch or two you are really degrading the ride quality and of lesser concern imo, putting a lot of undue pressure on other OEM components. Good luck. Lotta people with crappy lifts on this forum IWBH.

Super easy to vinyl wrap them for a fraction of the cost. Same thing with door handles and emblems. Looks OEM with the right color wrap. Can’t tell a difference.

That oughta work. I’ve got 275/65/r20 which are a 34.1 inch tire, 11” wide on stock 20’s and they barely rubbed at full lock. Needed to zip tie the liners and now they don’t. 295/55r22 are a 34.8” tire and 11.8” wide. You do the math. They are going to rub. But you should be able to get away with moving/heating the wheel well liners and not have to cut or do a body mount chop. I’ve seen plenty of people running 35’s on a stock suspension who claim they did nothing and they fit. You should be fine but might have to break out the heat gun, modify the liners and/or mudflaps if you don’t want any rubbing. So worth it though as ~35” tires and a small lift on these trucks is the best thing you can aesthetically do to them. Too much lift = too much wheel well unless you put on 37’s which presents a whole host of other things you need to do to properly run them.

Just a 2” in the front is going to make it nose high. Did mine like that, didn’t look right, and wound up putting 1.5” blocks in the rear. Looks great but does have a little rake. If you want it to “look” completely level, I’d try to find 3/4” or 1” blocks for the back to go with the 2” donut in the front. You want the front 1-1.5” higher than the back. My 2 cents.

Duratracs are not loud. Duratracs look better than any other non M/T tire. You do the math.

Anybody successfully removed Onstar without ruining their built in NAV? TIA

275/60/R20’s here. 2” lift front 1.5” blocks in rear. Don’t rub, aren’t loud and look like a million bucks. Don’t listen to the hall monitor pencil pushers about the noise. Negligible at best over stock and look 100x more aggressive. Now gas mileage on the other hand took a ~2mpg nosedive. But that’s to be expected with any 2-3” lift and bigger tires. If you haven’t already, do it. Best looking non MT tire on the market by a wide margin. Open country’s and KO2 are nice, but there is a pretty big difference in how aggressive the treads are on the Duratracs and a negligible difference in noise & mpg between the two. Enjoy

Probably 275/65/r20 but don’t quote me on it. Worst case scenario is you have to do the NorCal Mod.

Nm

5100's are the best struts for the money. But not sure most who want a level want a "Bilstein 5100 ride." They are off-road oriented shocks. Compared to the Ranchos they will give you an much "stiffer" & "planted" ride. If you are looking for a "better ride." You should define what "better" looks like for your vehiicle. The stock Ranchos are absolute garbage but are on the "extremely soft" side of struts. Another EXTREMELY IMPORTANT factor of the equation is what springs are you running. The stock springs are EXTREMELY soft. Aftermarket springs are going to give you that firm, planted feel, with less travel off-road. It all depends on what you are going to do/want. For all intents and purposes the "soft" suspension is what 80% of people want and are ultimately disappointed when they install an "off-road suspension." FWIW if you want to actually upgrade your suspension you should replace: Front Struts Springs Extended End Links Rear Shocks Upper Control Arms

Gonna be somewhere in between. Spring rate is more important than the strut in relation to softness. If you do any serious off-roading that obviously would not be a great setup, but if it's 98% on pavement, and you are just looking for a couple extra inches, you are probably going to be satisfied. But like anything it's a give and take. You are also going to change the geometry of your CV axles, ball joints, tie rods, etc. If you are going to stick them at 2.5 I'd also recommend that you run aftermarket UCA's and extended end links to keep it tight. If it were me, I'd go for something like this: https://www.alligatorperformance.com/cognito-210-p0874-3-inch-performance-ball-joint-leveling-kit-with-fox-ps-coilover-2-0-ifp-for-19-20-silverado-sierra-1500/?gclid=CjwKCAiAm-2BBhANEiwAe7eyFPjcTn21I1lrM3lRhd151ogEz_hdf3AzTEnz3F3mnPEEg90pNfvDnBoC8ygQAvD_BwE 5100's are the best budget set of struts & shocks IMO. However, if you are going to spend $500 on shocks and another $300 on labor, you might as well do it right and replace the coils and add UCA's hence why I'd go for something like the Fox lift I posted above. But your line of thinking is correct and you are actually improving your vehicle unlike 99% of the morons on here installing Rough Country components and bolting on straight garbage to get a couple extra inches on their 60k vehicles. 2.5 - 3" is the sweet spot for sure. Whatever you do make sure you get it aligned after you do it. Again to spell it out for future reference: Front Struts Coil Springs UCA's Extended End Links Rear Shocks Optional: +1 leaf spring in the rear if you want to keep the rake Will give you a proper 2.5-3in lift in the front and a proper 1-2in lift in the rear. But like I said whatever you do, get ready to change some CV Axles, Ball Joints, etc.

Depends on what coils you run with them just as much as the struts themselves.

Yeah, I have zero clue why Chevy has gone in the direction they have. They think it looks futuristic or something but the front ends on most of the new Silverado's & Tahoe's are laughably soft and awkward looking. It's like they are trying to pander to the pocket protector wearing grandpa demographic. GMC $hits all over Chevy in regards to the Yukon & Denali half tons this generation. Part of the problem is that they made the half tons a lot larger and roomier and with the short box like everyone on here has, the proportions are so off. Look frickin terrible. Chevy has the most loyal customer base in the history of mankind. People would still buy them irrespective of how they look based on that badge on the front. It is what it is. GMC's are the best looking of all the trucks this go around and it ain't really close. I'd buy a Ford before I bought a Chevy though this gen (actually I would just buy an older vehicle or an SUV) and the RAM's look the worst of that group but sell the best. Again, what people base their decision off of going to be different for everyone. Yukons look fire this go round FWIW... Isn't this a GM truck forum, to talk about GM trucks? Just because somebody interrupted youlls circle jerk doesn't mean he's wrong. I tried telling people a while back how soft and goofy the CCSB looks and got hit with similar reception. What's funny to me is that if you just spent 50K on something, wouldn't you be pretty assured with what you bought before you bought it? Seems like a lot of folks on here had no clue with what they were buying and get uber insecure when anyone has a differing opinion. In life there are plenty of people who are jealous of what others have and are just low life haters. In life there are also plenty of sheep who have never had a thought of their own and just want the flavor of the month. They seem to be tissue paper soft when that flavor is questioned...

Congrats on being the one guy who actually uses his CCSB as a truck on here.

Had a car seat in mine plenty of times. Seems pretty easy to buy a different type of seat. And the difference between a standard/regular box and a short box is the difference in fitting surfboards, fishing poles, dirt bikes, motorcycles, and most importantly yourself, in the back of your truck. Now if you simply use your truck as a mall crawler and grocery getter no doubt, the extra space in the cab is going to be more beneficial, but for everyone else, that 16" of space is the difference between having too short a bed and something that is basically a custom fit. And that is not even touching on the proportions of the truck and how a short box looks goofy AF and how a standard/regular box was the reason that trucks became so popular in the first place. But ill leave that one alone as the natives on here get a little butthurt when you go down that road. The simple truth is, if you are driving a CCSB you would be infinitely better off with a full size SUV and you are a poser only driving a truck for the "status." But again, I digress.

`19 DC SLT here, you're preaching to the choir brother. Been trying to educate the masses around here for a while now but the sad truth is, most people are uninformed. Plenty of people who never give it a second thought, don't really even know they have the option. Seems like GM is ready to totally do away with DC's entirely for this very reason. The simple truth is trucks are far too fashionably popular nowadays and the average consumer isn't worried about a foot and a half here or a foot and a half there, they simply want the status symbol. Nothing more utilitarian being built these days vehicle wise than a 4wd half ton DC with a removable camper shell. Literally the best of all worlds. If you don't have 4 grown adults in your vehicle a majority of the time, there is zero rationale for not owning a double cab.

What looks better? Or what is going to hold up better? Vinyl wrap is going to look OEM if done right. But it won't hold up forever. Rock chips, scratches etc. I don't know where you drive your vehicle and the grille is a lot less prone to rock chips than say a bumper, but it's super annoying when you get a rock chip or two in whatever you are wrapping as they only get worse until you wrap them again... That grill cover is definitely going to hold up better but it also is not going to look factory. From a distance I'm sure it looks fine but if someone gets up close to it, it's going to look like you put a cover on your grill. I'm not trying to deter you from doing either, and if it were me I'd by the wrap for pennies on the dollar and learn to do it myself (you can give it a go for $30 or less if you wanted to. All it is is wrap, a squeegee and a heat gun/hair dryer. Watch a couple YouTube videos, something like a grille is really easy...

Duratracs are arguably the GOAT All-Terrain tire. I think most people: 1) Can't afford another set of duratracs 2) Want a bigger tire than what come on a TB 3) Put aftermarket rims on that don't have the same radius as their Duratracs But no mistake, Duratracs are a really nice tire. The only other tire I would consider running is a Nitto Ridge Grappler as they are much lighter and just as quality and aggressive looking.