2014+ Suspension Lifts

cubangt · March 6, 2018

14 hours ago, jimmyboy8301 said:

Lol, I’d cancel them for (2) 1.5”

2017 Chevy Silverado LTZ Z71 6.2L
4.5" Zone
22x10 American Force Grips
33x12.5 Nitto Ridge Grapplers
Instagram @wildchevys

Ill just have to return them, they had already shipped within a short amount of time of placing the order, its all good.. i cant do the install for at least 2 weeks because of spring break plans.. so gives me time to order and have everything ready

cubangt · March 6, 2018

13 hours ago, FlipZ71 said:

Zone 4.5

Add a leaf

Bilsteins 4 corners..

One Big Grin ?

Looks great..

cubangt · March 6, 2018

So was looking over the directions of the install and had to ask.. Does anyone have a list of tools required(mostly just sizes) i see that there is cutting and welding required.. i have that stuff.. but i was looking for sizes of sockets and wrenches to make sure i have everything set aside.. looking to do the install over 2 days.. start friday after work and finish saturday morning

just dont want to get half way thru and realize i dont have something.

DannyGM · March 9, 2018

I was talking to a shop about installing a lift and they recommended tracking bars as well. They're kind of pricey, is that something I'm going to need? I haven't really seen anyone on here mention having those installed with their lift kits. Thanks!

cubangt · March 9, 2018

Dumb question, but asking anyway..

Weather permitting(not sure how the chance of rain is going to play out.. but)

Starting the install of the Zone 6.5 lift tonight..

Starting as recommended with the rear first since i dont have a lift to do this, ill be using floor jacks and jack stands to do this..

Once i have the back end completed, is it ok to drive the truck to reposition it closer to the garage in case it rains.. im asking because my driveway is not the best to work on and for the back im doing the add a leaf and of course the blocks for the lift.. i just need to know if i finish and secure / torque everything down if its ok to drive so i can move it around and get it into a better spot for the front install..

Mostly because of the chance of rain, i can get it close to the garage and setup my tent to help block the rain

Ron505 · March 9, 2018

On 11/24/2017 at 1:45 PM, z0_rick said:

Motofab 3" front and 2" rear on 255 17s

Do your control arms bottom out? Rough ride with a lot of stress on the ball joints is what I've read about 3" spacers in the front.

Any helpful input would be greatly appreciated.

2014sierra-rich · March 10, 2018

Dumb question, but asking anyway..
Weather permitting(not sure how the chance of rain is going to play out.. but)
Starting the install of the Zone 6.5 lift tonight..
Starting as recommended with the rear first since i dont have a lift to do this, ill be using floor jacks and jack stands to do this..
Once i have the back end completed, is it ok to drive the truck to reposition it closer to the garage in case it rains.. im asking because my driveway is not the best to work on and for the back im doing the add a leaf and of course the blocks for the lift.. i just need to know if i finish and secure / torque everything down if its ok to drive so i can move it around and get it into a better spot for the front install..
Mostly because of the chance of rain, i can get it close to the garage and setup my tent to help block the rain

When I installed mine I drove it to reposition it. You shouldn’t have a problem

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

cubangt · March 12, 2018

So started the install friday after work, was able to get the rear lift installed by friday night and buttoning up early saturday morning after validating everything was installed and correctly done. Turned truck around and pulled up to begin the front.. talk about a pain, by late saturday night(having to stop because of the time and noise i was making) need to keep my neighbors happy, i was still taking about the front end.. the knuckles were the area that were taking the longest. Mind you at this point the only help i had was the wife helping with the floor jack as needed to lift and drop so i could take apart. Sunday morning started around 8:30 or 9 with the passenger side, little easier and quicker than the drivers side.. now being that i couldnt make a lot of noise the night before i did jump ahead and begin assembling the front spacers and moving the hubs over to the new knuckles so i could have them ready to go when i got to that part.. By sunday mid day i finally had help from a neighbor and things started to move alot faster.. at this point i was more focused on getting as much done than trying to document the sizes and such that were used and needed for removing and reinstalling as the instructions only tell you the sizes of the new hardware.

Things that set me back in my install were removing the old knuckles and welding in the plate, this was a set back because i couldnt get enough room to tig weld it in with my welder, and couldnt find my mig gun to use, so had to borrow my neighbors welder and then that was giving use problems.. but i got decent welds as instructed in the steps and video.

I am 1 strut/6" spacer, 2 CV joint spacers, cv joints and new knuckles and sway bar away from finishing.

Watching the video by RealTruck def helped out alot

And something i found out, im hoping i dont need anything anytime soon, but while at the auto parts store renting more tools that i didnt know i needed, they dont carry parts yet for the 17 silverado. Since it would be considered warranty they dont have anything

Rear bump stops were a pain as well until i found a post / video that shows what size is needed.(10MM)

Edited March 12, 2018 by cubangt

cubangt · March 12, 2018

Also had a question about the rear shocks.. The ranchero ones i removed had the red boot at the top with the white portion on the bottom, and since the new Fox 2.0 didnt come with boots, i reinstalled the new ones in the same direction(imagining the new ones had the boots)

Is that the correct direction to install? Truck wont be ready to drive until later tonight or tomorrow sometime, so want to make sure before i drive it so i can turn them around if needed.

jimmyboy8301 · March 12, 2018

Also had a question about the rear shocks.. The ranchero ones i removed had the red boot at the top with the white portion on the bottom, and since the new Fox 2.0 didnt come with boots, i reinstalled the new ones in the same direction(imagining the new ones had the boots)

Is that the correct direction to install? Truck wont be ready to drive until later tonight or tomorrow sometime, so want to make sure before i drive it so i can turn them around if needed.

Boots go up

2017 Chevy Silverado LTZ Z71 6.2L
4.5" Zone
22x10 American Force Grips
33x12.5 Nitto Ridge Grapplers
Instagram @wildchevys

cubangt · March 13, 2018

I could never find a list of tools required to do the lift, so as soon as i get done with mine, ill be posting back all the tools i didnt have and didnt know i needed(mostly sockets and wrench sizes)

And also little things i learned long the way..

I started Friday after work and here it is Tuesday and still not complete ( only because yesterday and today i have to wait til after work to do anything)

Biggest time was spent on the knuckle removals, first side took longer than the other since i did it different based on the mistakes i did on the first side..

Another big thing that will help speed things along is having the correct tools already, i had to make trips to the store to get different types of the same sizes..

So if you have a 18mm socket, make sure you also have a 18mm deep and 18mm wrench. Things like that killed my time line because i had to stop to go to the store to get it and then come back to find out i need the other as well.. so for each size you know you need, make sure to have multiple options of the same size..

Another example is the hub nut socket, on my 17 LT it takes a 36mm, so i got one that i could find at the hardware store.. (shallow), worked great to remove the nut, but now to retighten and torque i need a 36mm deep, which if i would have know i would have bought that first..

I dont have any pics of the process, because i was in a hurry to make sure i completed by sunday and that went out the door when i couldnt get the driverside knuckle off to continue.

thats just a few things i wanted to call out and explain for anyone looking to do it yourself in your driveway/garage without a lift.

And a set of tall jack stands, specially once you get the back done, with the spacer and add a leaf if you chose to. I have both regular height and high height stands and lucky i did because that would have been another expense, you can rig something under regular ones, but not as safe..

CO-Stark · March 14, 2018

Hi guys,

Fairly new to Chevy although I've always been a fan and had a few GM company trucks over the years. I read 30 or so pages of this thread trying to decide what lift to go with as I've never lifted a truck before. Based on all the info here I was pretty set on zone as a nice combo of the quality (ish) of BDS but closer to the price of a rough country type. Someone said the price difference between BDS and Zone is just for the warranty. If I'm seeing things right, though, the BDS kit gets you struts to lift the front while Zone is a spacer. That right? To me that makes the price difference seem more worth it.

Also I might be weird, but I'm heavily considering the $400 or so for a rear leaf pack instead of the rear blocks. That isn't even an option on the zone kit, or rough country, that I could find.

Input?

Aboogie808 · March 14, 2018

Hi guys,
Fairly new to Chevy although I've always been a fan and had a few GM company trucks over the years. I read 30 or so pages of this thread trying to decide what lift to go with as I've never lifted a truck before. Based on all the info here I was pretty set on zone as a nice combo of the quality (ish) of BDS but closer to the price of a rough country type. Someone said the price difference between BDS and Zone is just for the warranty. If I'm seeing things right, though, the BDS kit gets you struts to lift the front while Zone is a spacer. That right? To me that makes the price difference seem more worth it.

Also I might be weird, but I'm heavily considering the $400 or so for a rear leaf pack instead of the rear blocks. That isn't even an option on the zone kit, or rough country, that I could find.

Input?

I was in the same boat as you, but went with zone 6.5 with a add leaf kit. I also upgraded my UCA with Cognito. Bds offers the rear leaf complete kit, but after research, it would have been a pain to put on. As for the strut vs spacer, that is correct. Yes, Bds offers warranty, but it was not a deal breaker for me. I never put a lift kit on myself, but very mechanical inclined. Looked at YouTube on how to put the kit on and took my time. It helps having help on certain section and having the right tools. Here are some photos before and after. It took me two days to put on, due to work. At the end, I don’t have any complaints and would put another zone kit on. I didn’t go with the fully strut, due to not going 4wheeling often.

CO-Stark · March 14, 2018

3 minutes ago, Aboogie808 said:

I was in the same boat as you, but went with zone 6.5 with a add leaf kit. I also upgraded my UCA with Cognito. Bds offers the rear leaf complete kit, but after research, it would have been a pain to put on. As for the strut vs spacer, that is correct. Yes, Bds offers warranty, but it was not a deal breaker for me. I never put a lift kit on myself, but very mechanical inclined. Looked at YouTube on how to put the kit on and took my time. It helps having help on certain section and having the right tools. Here are some photos before and after. It took me two days to put on, due to work. At the end, I don’t have any complaints and would put another zone kit on. I didn’t go with the fully strut, due to not going 4wheeling often.

Good info thank you. I'm planning to have a shop install for me. Time, cutting/welding tools, and I think I might freak the eff out cutting into this truck myself (previous nicest truck I had was a '06 Titan that I bought in 2014 with around 100k already on it...)

I remember others mentioning Cognito UCA, what's the benefit of that?

Side question, looks like you were running the same wheel/tire setup before and after? What size is that? This is one I KNOW I'm weird on but I don't really want to step up tire size much, but don't want to look like I'm riding on bike tires.

Aboogie808 · March 14, 2018

Good info thank you. I'm planning to have a shop install for me. Time, cutting/welding tools, and I think I might freak the eff out cutting into this truck myself (previous nicest truck I had was a '06 Titan that I bought in 2014 with around 100k already on it...)

I remember others mentioning Cognito UCA, what's the benefit of that?

Side question, looks like you were running the same wheel/tire setup before and after? What size is that? This is one I KNOW I'm weird on but I don't really want to step up tire size much, but don't want to look like I'm riding on bike tires.

Lol, it was freaking cutting my truck, but I was tired of level height.

UCA, benefits are better angle and makes a world of a difference. I ran the stock UCA for three months and wanted to get better ones. I felt a difference in the handling right way. Truck huge the road better. As for tire size I ran 33x12.50x20. Once I put the lift on, it was way to small for my liking and went with 35”. I also added a Bora 1.75 wheel adapters to the rears to balance out the rims for sticking out.