2014+ Leveling Kits

jimmyboy8301 · December 5, 2018

Got it. Thanks for the info. Great looking truck btw.

Anyone know if I just put a 1.5 spacer with stock wheels and tires if that will work out ok?

Im just trying to eliminate some of the extreme rake

You can do that and be just fine

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TXGREEK · December 5, 2018

Got it. Thanks for the info. Great looking truck btw.

Anyone know if I just put a 1.5 spacer with stock wheels and tires if that will work out ok?

Im just trying to eliminate some of the extreme rake

Thanks

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SilveradoMikeB · December 5, 2018

2 hours ago, jimmyboy8301 said:

You can do that and be just fine

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Thanks for all the help. Looks like I’ll get a minor front end level and stay with stock sizes tires. 95% of my driving is highway so not a big deal. Appreciate all the info everyone

Fix29 · December 6, 2018

That’s if you raise the rear as well when leveling.

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You can add say an 1" to the rear and be totally fine on the factory shocks. If your going 2" or more you'd want to get the longer shocks but at that point your not leveling anything.

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TXGREEK · December 6, 2018

You can add say an 1" to the rear and be totally fine on the factory shocks. If your going 2" or more you'd want to get the longer shocks but at that point your not leveling anything.

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Adding 1” to your existing 1” makes it two, highly recommended to switch out rear shocks for having a 2” in the rear so you do not over extend the cheap factory shocks. Bilstein makes the 5100’s, a very good entry to medium level shock.

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jimmyboy8301 · December 6, 2018

Adding 1” to your existing 1” makes it two, highly recommended to switch out rear shocks for having a 2” in the rear so you do not over extend the cheap factory shocks. Bilstein makes the 5100’s, a very good entry to medium level shock.

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If you’re swapping the stock rear blocks (because you NEVER stack blocks) which are 1.25” for say a 2” block that’s only a net lift of .75”, for that you don’t NEED to replace the rear shocks. Once you start talking 3” (net gain of 1.75”) or bigger blocks, at that point you need to swap shocks

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Fix29 · December 6, 2018

Adding 1” to your existing 1” makes it two, highly recommended to switch out rear shocks for having a 2” in the rear so you do not over extend the cheap factory shocks. Bilstein makes the 5100’s, a very good entry to medium level shock.

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Adding a 1" taller block out back gives you 1" of lift over stock not 2". A 1" lift block is actually 2.25" tall if that's what your referring to but the OEM shocks are designed to work with the factory block. Sure it will ride nicer with Bilstein's but it is not neccessary for an inch. There was zero detectible ride change with a 1" taller block and reusing the factory shocks. I'm speaking from personal experience.

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TXGREEK · December 6, 2018

Adding a 1" taller block out back gives you 1" of lift over stock not 2". A 1" lift block is actually 2.25" tall if that's what your referring to but the OEM shocks are designed to work with the factory block. Sure it will ride nicer with Bilstein's but it is not neccessary for an inch. There was zero detectible ride change with a 1" taller block and reusing the factory shocks. I'm speaking from personal experience.

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The Bilstein 5100’s are taller than stock shocks and that’s why they ride better than stock when you add to the rear block. My personal experience. I’ve only leveled one truck in my life and hated the ride quality.

I’d highly recommend anyone interested in leveling or lifting to consult an expert that does installs for a living as that’s who guided me to understand better fit and finish.

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jgraves13 · December 6, 2018

The Bilstein 5100’s are taller than stock shocks and that’s why they ride better than stock when you add to the rear block. My personal experience. I’ve only leveled one truck in my life and hated the ride quality.

I’d highly recommend anyone interested in leveling or lifting to consult an expert that does installs for a living as that’s who guided me to understand better fit and finish.

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Or follow this simple guide:

- best ride quality & most expensive: coilovers

- cheapest: pick a spacer and throw it in, ride quality will not be as good as stock, but not unbearable

- budget: Bilsteins. They ride stiff, but the truck is more planted and takes bumps "better" (that's a very subjective statement)

- want a lift: CST, BDS, Or zone. Keep factory ride, or see coilovers section above

This will cover 98% of people on this forum. Do I install these for a living? No, but I do sit in front of a computer all day and have done more research on these trucks than I probably should have [emoji3]

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jimmyboy8301 · December 6, 2018

Or follow this simple guide:
- best ride quality & most expensive: coilovers
- cheapest: pick a spacer and throw it in, ride quality will not be as good as stock, but not unbearable
- budget: Bilsteins. They ride stiff, but the truck is more planted and takes bumps "better" (that's a very subjective statement)
- want a lift: CST, BDS, Or zone. Keep factory ride, or see coilovers section above

This will cover 98% of people on this forum. Do I install these for a living? No, but I do sit in front of a computer all day and have done more research on these trucks than I probably should have [emoji3]

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That about sums it up 100%. Leveling and lifts are pretty basic stuff lol

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TXGREEK · December 6, 2018

Or follow this simple guide:
- best ride quality & most expensive: coilovers
- cheapest: pick a spacer and throw it in, ride quality will not be as good as stock, but not unbearable
- budget: Bilsteins. They ride stiff, but the truck is more planted and takes bumps "better" (that's a very subjective statement)
- want a lift: CST, BDS, Or zone. Keep factory ride, or see coilovers section above

This will cover 98% of people on this forum. Do I install these for a living? No, but I do sit in front of a computer all day and have done more research on these trucks than I probably should have [emoji3]

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You get what you pay for, Bilsteins are a great entry and way better than stock, stiffer. I’ll never use Bilsteins ever again after my CST lift and CST Coilovers with rear resi’s. Again, anyone can get the look, you get what you pay for.

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jgraves13 · December 6, 2018

You get what you pay for, Bilsteins are a great entry and way better than stock, stiffer. I’ll never use Bilsteins ever again after my CST lift and CST Coilovers with rear resi’s. Again, anyone can get the look, you get what you pay for.

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My post outlines this exactly. For some, Bilsteins are perfect, for others (you and others I've heard from) they're not, which is why it's subjective.

That being said, not everyone has $3k+ to drop on a lift kit and coilovers like you did. I agree that your setup is the best of the best, but not everyone desires to spend that much on their truck just for the lift kit. Which is where the Bilsteins come in

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pronstar · December 6, 2018

Or follow this simple guide:
- best ride quality & most expensive: coilovers

And just to muddy the waters for ya...not all coilovers (or shocks for that matter) are created equal.

And, depending on who did the valving, you could have a good setup, or a crappy setup, even with the same brand and part numbers.

A King or Fox sticker on a piece of car jewelry isn’t a guarantee of anything.

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Fix29 · December 6, 2018

The Bilstein 5100’s are taller than stock shocks and that’s why they ride better than stock when you add to the rear block. My personal experience. I’ve only leveled one truck in my life and hated the ride quality.

I’d highly recommend anyone interested in leveling or lifting to consult an expert that does installs for a living as that’s who guided me to understand better fit and finish.

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I'm no expert but I have owned several lifted and leveled trucks. That being said I just don't want to spread misinformation about what is "needed" or what is merely an opinion about ride quality.

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TXGREEK · December 6, 2018

And just to muddy the waters for ya...not all coilovers (or shocks for that matter) are created equal.

And, depending on who did the valving, you could have a good setup, or a crappy setup, even with the same brand and pet numbers.

A King or Fox sticker on a piece of car jewelry isn’t a guarantee of anything.

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That’s absolutely correct, to each their own. My experience is you get what you pay for. Anyone can get a lift but save up and get the best cause the look matters nothing as well as big shiny wheels. Ride quality is second to none with high quality parts.

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