2014+ Leveling Kits

amxguy1970 · September 24, 2017

So I was excited about getting my 2.5" Rough Country leveling kit on my 2017 Chevy High Country 4x4. I put it in yesterday, the lower piece on the bottom of strut, removed the strut spring and put in the round preload spacer, and then put in the 2" blocks. No issues installing. Have my factory 20" 275/55/20 tires and ordered Open Country II Extreme 285/55/20 and will leave them on factory rims for now.

SO IT RIDES LIKE A TANK after install!!! Is this normal? Rough Country says you can keep factory shocks. It feels like there is very little give. I see on so many posts that their trucks ride so good, man I'm jealous. I tried to upload photos but it says files are to big.

Do y'all have any ideas why it's riding so rough?

Should I take out the preload spacer?

Did you like your own post?

You should have done your homework, 2.5 is not what your front end is going to love. Most importantly though is you installed a pre-load spacer, that is why it is riding rough. Pre-load does just that, compresses the spring. When a spring is compressed it becomes stiffer, same thing happens with those who install the Bilstein 5100 leveling shocks, they also pre-load the spring. If you want a stock ride, get a top or bottom mount spacer. You can change shocks in this instance and it may help some but it won't change the spring being compressed and stiffer.

The closer to stock height the better, everything above that increase the wear and tear on your front end. 1 inch is better for your front end than a 2 inch, a 2 inch is better than 2.5 which is better than 3 and so forth. Research, do homework and see what others are doing and what is happening.

BTW, the extreme tires you are going to install are E-rated judging by their site, those will ride stiffer than your stock P-rated tires by a descent amount. Most likely you have no use for E-rated tires if you are concerned about ride, stick with P-rated unless you are going to regularly off road (is that why you bought a 4x4?) or tow and haul heavy loads often; other wise your mpg will take a nice hit as will your ride. Homework...

Tyler

mnm99 · September 24, 2017

So I was excited about getting my 2.5" Rough Country leveling kit on my 2017 Chevy High Country 4x4. I put it in yesterday, the lower piece on the bottom of strut, removed the strut spring and put in the round preload spacer, and then put in the 2" blocks. No issues installing. Have my factory 20" 275/55/20 tires and ordered Open Country II Extreme 285/55/20 and will leave them on factory rims for now.

SO IT RIDES LIKE A TANK after install!!! Is this normal? Rough Country says you can keep factory shocks. It feels like there is very little give. I see on so many posts that their trucks ride so good, man I'm jealous. I tried to upload photos but it says files are to big.

Do y'all have any ideas why it's riding so rough?

Should I take out the preload spacer?

Can you post the kit your are talking about?

ChevyGuy72 · September 24, 2017

#1312

2.5" kit with 2" block

For stamped steel lower control arms

ChevyGuy72 · September 25, 2017

2017 Chevy High Country 4x4

Criscone · September 25, 2017

Took some new photos today. No issues at all with this setup, except wanting to go higher without cutting my truck up..

RC 2” front level only

33x12.5x20 tires (305/55/20) says both sizes on tire

20x9 +0 wheels

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Edited September 25, 2017 by Criscone

cowboysfanmd · September 25, 2017

I would assume the dealership did it as well... but i would pay attention to the tire wear. If the alignment is off the tires will be wearing more on one side than the other.

The alignment appears to be perfect, it's more that the feeling of the wheel is light Like the difference in having no power steering to having power steering. Take my wife's keep Grand Cherokee for example, it takes more strength to turn the wheel from right to left. the same was for the 17 loaner I had. If that makes sense.

OmniCamaro · September 25, 2017

The alignment appears to be perfect, it's more that the feeling of the wheel is light Like the difference in having no power steering to having power steering. Take my wife's keep Grand Cherokee for example, it takes more strength to turn the wheel from right to left. the same was for the 17 loaner I had. If that makes sense.

These trucks with the electric steering definitely take some getting used to. I think it feels too loose or touchy also. I wish we could tighten it up some.

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tjrinaldi · September 25, 2017

i have just purchaced A new 2017 LTZ 4x4, while it was in the dealership for some warranty work.I had had a Readylift 2.25" front and a 2" blocks for the back added to the truck. I love the look of the truck and am going to upsize the tires as soon as I can decide which to buy.

My question is, have any others noticed a difference in the feel of the steering wheel, when turning compared to the way it felt prior to the level kit and blocks?

In my opinion the steering is "lighter" meaning there is less resistance when turning the wheel. It does not matter which way I steer the truck, it does doesnt seem to have the same resistance.

I spoke to the Dealer , Ready lift AND 4 wheel parts, all of them said there should be little to no difference at all. I just received a loaner truce which was also a 17 4x4 and I can definitely tell the difference in the steering.

Have any of you experienced the same feeling in the steering, or is it just me? I have not found any comments on ANY blogs that reference these symptoms so I am beginning to wonder.

Also, will changing the shocks with 2.0s or something comparable, make my ride feel closer to the factory ride. Right now it kind of feels a little sensitive to bumps or un eaten roads.

I will appreciate any feedback you have to offer, thank you.

here is my two cents to this post:

I am coming to you from the European sportscar road-racing world, and what I can tell you about suspension geometry in lifting/lowering the center of gravity (SUSPENSION/BODY) in relation to the wheel is that of caster.

Consider the exact spot where the tire hits the pavement. This is like a small square area as wide as the tire or so. More CAMBER narrows the tire-to-tire distance as measured from the inner wall. Less CAMBER, or NEGATIVE CAMBER, widens the distance from inner lower tire to inner lower tire. Road racers run negative camber in order to gain handling through corners.

Let's talk CASTER though. Caster involves the wheel position as it relates to the vehicle's center of gravity and ultimately the steering pivot points. As the pivot points of steering drift behind the wheel, the CASTER becomes more positive (like the steering angle of a bigwheel when we were kids). The steering effort would be greater in this sense. More negative CASTER would create greater moment arms, resulting in lesser effort to maneuver the wheels of the vehicle, lending to a "looser" type feel. Incidentally, less caster makes the tires want to follow all the grooves in the pavement. More caster gives us this "stable" feeling of the steering at higher speeds i.e., the tires want to go along the path you tell them to thus increasing the effort it takes to maneuver them off that path.

Is it possible that lifting the geometry just a little bit is enough to decrease caster? Maybe YES. I wonder if GM has the provision to adjust caster as part of the alignment of the front end... a lot of stock suspension setups do not allow for caster adjustment....

tjrinaldi · September 25, 2017

Mines in the shop now getting the 2.5" Motofab level and 285/70/17 (32.7x11.2) MC MXT's on the stock wheels. Everything I've read says it shouldn't rub but I'll know for sure shortly!!! I think there are a lot of variables so we shall see....

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any chance you now have a pic of this setup? I want to do the same... without rub.

2017 silverado 8Jx17 STEEL wheels.... looking to do RC 2.5" level kit and 285/70 R17

tyrich88 · September 25, 2017

any chance you now have a pic of this setup? I want to do the same... without rub.

2017 silverado 8Jx17 STEEL wheels.... looking to do RC 2.5" level kit and 285/70 R17

You should be fine on a level. I ran 285s on a level with stock wheels for over a year and had no issues on or off road.

Bomber55 · September 25, 2017

any chance you now have a pic of this setup? I want to do the same... without rub.

2017 silverado 8Jx17 STEEL wheels.... looking to do RC 2.5" level kit and 285/70 R17

Been running it for a few weeks now, no rubbing and rides perfect. I’m very happy with this set up....better than I was expecting.

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mnm99 · September 25, 2017

What PSI are you guys running the E rated tires at?

KyleGT · September 26, 2017

#1312

2.5" kit with 2" block

For stamped steel lower control arms

Weird. Mine is this one. Has a spacer that goes on top of the strut assembly rather than a preload spacer.

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Criscone · September 26, 2017

Yes that’s the older style, for non-stamped control arms.

Weird. Mine is this one. Has a spacer that goes on top of the strut assembly rather than a preload spacer.

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JV2522 · September 26, 2017

I have been searching through this post for a while, and cant find exactly what i am looking for. I have a 2015 All-Terrain that has a 2" level kit ( i don't know the brand, bc was put on before i bought it) on front and an 1.5" zone body lift. I am going to be needing tired in next couple of months. Currently have 275/65/20. Is this the largest can put on with no rub?