My Opinion On The Ready Lift 1.5" And 2.25" Leveling Kits

[OL_FAITHFUL]

The reason behind buying a leveling kit in the first place was when I got new tires I went up to 275/60 R20s, 1" larger diameter than the stock 275/55s. They rubbed just a little when turning the wheel and backing up. So, off to find a leveling kit I go. I chose the Ready Lift 2.25" kit as it is the 1.5" kit plus another 3/4" that slides under the strut, and they're all nice aluminum pieces. Originally I put in all 2.25" and though the truck looked level sometimes, often it looked as if the front was sitting higher than the rear, a look I despise (Please note I also have LineX in my bed, along the rails, and in the rear wheel wells, so I'm sure that adds some weight in the rear which probably causes it to sag a little). The other negatives of the 2.25" lift are the amount of preload it adds to the strut assembly, no longer is the front suspension of the truck easy on the hemorrhoids, it's not awful driving down the road, but is noticeable going over speed bumps in a parking lot. Lastly, something that sounds very much like the ball joints "pop". I'm assuming this is the upper balljoints, but I gay-ron-tee the boot of the ball joint was not damaged during installation, but when turning the wheels to lock (right or left) they now "pop" once.

 

So, I choose the Ready Lift 1.5" leveling kit mainly because of two things. The front of the truck does not sit higher than the rear, and the front suspension actually feels good again. Hope this was of some assistance.

[NickS]

Never heard of that problem. That sucks. I've had a ccm 2.5" for 30,000 miles or so with no issues. Lots of people have had 2.5 leveling kits and I've never heard of a problem with them. Hopefully it was just something with the 2 piece installation. Ccm's are just a top spacer, so maybe it had to do with the top and bottom pieces being seperate.

 

Did you actually measure when you had the 2.25 in? 2.5 should level them perfectly without the front riding higher.

[Matt_]

my truck has exactly 2" of rake.. so anything over 2" would make it look like my rear was sagging.

 

on a similar note.... has anyone watched a truck drive away? my wife uses my truck, and i notced that when she's driving it down the street it looks level. so it only looks raked in pictures... this has me wondering if trucks that look level in pictures actually "look" cali when their being driven...

 

and btw im not talkinf about the rear squating when you hit the gas... just normal driving down a neighborhood street..

[OL_FAITHFUL]

Never heard of that problem. That sucks. I've had a ccm 2.5" for 30,000 miles or so with no issues. Lots of people have had 2.5 leveling kits and I've never heard of a problem with them. Hopefully it was just something with the 2 piece installation. Ccm's are just a top spacer, so maybe it had to do with the top and bottom pieces being seperate.

 

Did you actually measure when you had the 2.25 in? 2.5 should level them perfectly without the front riding higher.

 

There was no problem, per se. Most of what I wrote was opinion. I hate the California Cruiser look, and I could tell the front struts were stiffer b/c they're under more preload. They're under more preload with your 2.5" spacer on top as well. The ball joint thing (or whatever's popping, I'm assuming ball joints), I'm not too worried about it. Besides the full lock pop, the truck drives the way it did when it left the lot.

[Matt_]

Never heard of that problem. That sucks. I've had a ccm 2.5" for 30,000 miles or so with no issues. Lots of people have had 2.5 leveling kits and I've never heard of a problem with them. Hopefully it was just something with the 2 piece installation. Ccm's are just a top spacer, so maybe it had to do with the top and bottom pieces being seperate.

 

Did you actually measure when you had the 2.25 in? 2.5 should level them perfectly without the front riding higher.

 

There was no problem, per se. Most of what I wrote was opinion. I hate the California Cruiser look, and I could tell the front struts were stiffer b/c they're under more preload. They're under more preload with your 2.5" spacer on top as well. The ball joint thing (or whatever's popping, I'm assuming ball joints), I'm not too worried about it. Besides the full lock pop, the truck drives the way it did when it left the lot.

 

 

Just a quick correction to your terminology... the stiff ride isnt because the struts are under more pre-load with these spacer kits.

 

the only kits that achieve lift by preloading the struts is the bilstein 5100s and spacers that are installed inside the coil body assembly...not on the top or bottom.

 

the "stiffer" ride is due to two main reasons.. firts, down travel. when you limit the amount of down travel the suspension has, the suspension cant compensate for bumps/divets as well and the entire truck dives in response. second, the angles of the control arms increase the loads tranferred into the frame, which is felt directly in the cab. short & simple...the steeper the angles, the more load gets tranferred into the frame as opposed to dissipated in the suspension.

[NickS]

Oh, I thought that you said the popping was when you had the 2.25 in and it went away when you took it out and just went with the 1.5.

[OL_FAITHFUL]

the "stiffer" ride is due to two main reasons.. firts, down travel. when you limit the amount of down travel the suspension has, the suspension cant compensate for bumps/divets as well and the entire truck dives in response. second, the angles of the control arms increase the loads tranferred into the frame, which is felt directly in the cab. short & simple...the steeper the angles, the more load gets tranferred into the frame as opposed to dissipated in the suspension.

 

Thanks for the info, new wrinkle in mah brain.

[Mckenzie]

i just got 285/75/16's on my truck and it has no leveling kit and a heavy winch and grill guard on the front and they don't rub one bit