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Leveling a 2015 Sierra 2500HD SLT


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I am ordering my 2500HD SLT this weekend!! Can't wait. My '07 Sierra 1500 has been an awesome truck...and gave me 120,000 miles of very hard work and excellent service. I'm going to be towing a bigger race car trailer so moving up to the 3/4 ton, but sticking with the 6.0L gas engine. Feel good on that decision having driven both the gas & diesel, weighing all the pro's and con's, etc.

 

What I DO need some advice on would be what everyone is using to level out the new 2500HD's?? I have had a Rough Country Level/lift kit on my '07 and other than wearing out the upper ball joints a couple of times - it worked great.

 

I would like to get the front end up and level as I like that stance/look - and was hoping some of you here on the forum had done so and would have some suggestions.

 

Thanks!

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Hmm...seeing that you will be towing a trailer...just my opinion...but full leveled with a load behind puts the nose up higher, especially the heavier you go. I did 5 turns on mine, got about 1.2" out of it. 6-8 would give you 1.7-2.0 of height leaving about 1.4-1.0" rake front to rear and still have that bit of rake so your nose doesn't go up too high. I just turned the bolts and aligned on mine. Much better front geometry on the 2011+ up HD frame. For a sense of security, you could throw Cognito upper control arms to take care of any upper ball joint angle worries.

Edited by newdude
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Just crank up your torsion bars, get an alignment, and you're done. Leveling kits for the HD's are a waste of money, because cranking the stock keys does the same thing as the aftermarket keys...it put more torsion on the bars, which raises the front end. The end result is the same. The front will sit taller, but will also ride a little stiffer. The sales pitches about aftermarket keys riding better than cranked up stock ones is bologna. The new keys are only helpful if you can't get enough lift out of your stock keys...but if you're wanting to go over 2-2.5" you should probably get a true suspension lift anyway. Some guys say that shock extensions help the ride a little bit.

 

As far as warranty issues....if you've got your torsion bars maxed out, and the upper ball joints wear out too soon....or you over-extend a shock and blow the valve...you're probably on your own. Other than that, there isn't much to worry about. There's a whole lot of HD trucks running around with the torsion bars cranked a few turns...without any problems. Basically, if something on your truck broke, GM would have to prove that cranking your torsion bars was what caused the part to fail.

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I am going to level my 2015 soon. But I am going the other way. I am lowering the back with a $60 set of 2" drop shackles. Not worried about any squat, since if I am loaded heavy, the air bag suspension system I will be putting on will take care of that. I just don't like the rake.

Edited by Cowpie
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Thanks for the feedback everyone. Great input and help. I think I will crank the keys to get about 2" in the front and see how that looks, rides & hauls.

 

I did have my '07 completely level and I did need to use the equalizing hitch to keep it from squatting when hauling my race car trailer (partially due to the leveling, partially because it was a 1500).

 

Can't wait to get it ordered Saturday!!

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Crank the torsion bars up until you like the way it looks, if you turn the bolts all the way and still want it higher you will need new torsion keys, get a alignment afterwards.

 

If it rides bad install shock extenders, if it still rides bad install Cognito upper control arms.

 

There is a entire bucket list you can do to the front end, if you can be happy with only 2in. I think simply cranking up the bars, installing shock extenders, and a alignment will get you there.

Edited by SMiller
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  • 1 year later...

Hello,

Thanks for the input on the leveling of a 2500HD. I have a 2015 crew cab 2500HD. I would like to level it but....I do pull trailers. Specially I have a 32' tow behind camp trailer. It weighs about 8000 pounds loaded. I am concerned about 2 things when I level the truck. 1) The ride of the truck. I love the smooth ride and really don't want to sacrifice the ride. 2) I really don't want to have a reverse rake when I tow my camper. I do use the Equalizer level/sway bars for the camper but do not want the back to ride lower than the front pulling.

 

If you turn the torsion bars and align the truck will it affect the ride in a big way. And is does anyone know of an air suspension system that can be added to the truck to increase the back end when towing. Or am I over thinking this too much.

 

Any suggestions or help would be appreciated.

 

 

Thanks,

Jim

Edited by jimbu
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Hello,

Thanks for the input on the leveling of a 2500HD. I have a 2015 crew cab 2500HD. I would like to level it but....I do pull trailers. Specially I have a 32' tow behind camp trailer. It weighs about 8000 pounds loaded. I am concerned about 2 things when I level the truck. 1) The ride of the truck. I love the smooth ride and really don't want to sacrifice the ride. 2) I really don't want to have a reverse rake when I tow my camper. I do use the Equalizer level/sway bars for the camper but do not want the back to ride lower than the front pulling.

 

If you turn the torsion bars and align the truck will it affect the ride in a big way. And is does anyone know of an air suspension system that can be added to the truck to increase the back end when towing. Or am I over thinking this too much.

 

Any suggestions or help would be appreciated.

 

 

Thanks,

Jim

I have a TT that is around 9600 fully loaded. I used the drop shackles and used the 1" drop setting, instead of the 2" setting. It leaves enough rake that it doesn't squat with the trailer. Also, it's level enough that it's easier to get in and out of the bed and also looks better without being so jacked up in the back. The ride is unchanged, so that shouldn't be a concern.

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I cranked my t bars 2 inches. I also pull heavy trailers (tongue weight) so for $600 i bought ride rite air bags and put them in. The instructions were very shitty so it took two of us about three hours to put them in. With about 1400 pounds of tongue weight on the hitch i put in about 55psi and it has about an inch or two of rake again. Air bags are great for occasionally towing.

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I lowered mine 2" in the back with a set of McGaughy's shackles ($49) and have had a ton of stuff in the back and still not a lot of squat. Decided that air bags in the back not necessary. The 2" drop didn't quite level it out, left a little bit of rake. But even with a ton of concrete blocks and other stuff in the back, it only leveled it out totally. The 2500 is set up far better all the way around than the 1500's by a long shot.

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I lowered mine 2" in the back with a set of McGaughy's shackles ($49) and have had a ton of stuff in the back and still not a lot of squat. Decided that air bags in the back not necessary. The 2" drop didn't quite level it out, left a little bit of rake. But even with a ton of concrete blocks and other stuff in the back, it only leveled it out totally. The 2500 is set up far better all the way around than the 1500's by a long shot.

Cowpie, I found that the stock rake is generally 3.5-4" on these CC standard bed 4wd. That sound about right in your experiences? I've got around a 2" rake but it looks like far less than stock. I went with the 2" drop setting at first, but found it a bit too low when towing the camper, so I adjusted it back to the 1" setting.

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  • 2 years later...
On 10/26/2016 at 8:34 PM, ShotgunZ71 said:

I have a TT that is around 9600 fully loaded. I used the drop shackles and used the 1" drop setting, instead of the 2" setting. It leaves enough rake that it doesn't squat with the trailer. Also, it's level enough that it's easier to get in and out of the bed and also looks better without being so jacked up in the back. The ride is unchanged, so that shouldn't be a concern.

Do drop shackles work with air bags?  I reached out to AirLift and they didn't recommend this approach.  How has it worked for you?

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6 hours ago, Jason Plank said:

Do drop shackles work with air bags?  I reached out to AirLift and they didn't recommend this approach.  How has it worked for you?

I’m not sure about the air bags, as I did not have them. The drop shackles took out the excessive rake and left about 2” of rake which looked better and was pretty level when towing.

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