2014 Sierra All Terrain w/ Zone 4.5"

william17 · March 8, 2015

I just had my Zone 4.5" lift kit installed. I have 20" Moto Metal 970 wheels -24 offset with 33x12.5 Mickey Thompsons ATZ tires.

I really like the way the truck looks, but it rides like a box truck. I assumed the ride was going to be different but it's pretty significant and I feel every bump in the road now.

What options do I have to soften the ride up? The front still has the factory rancho shocks and the rear are the new zone white body shocks.

I have a set of Bilstein 5100s I was going to put in the front but I wanted to get some opinions on best solution.

Thanks

seansharley · March 9, 2015

Did that kit come with new control arms? What are your tires set at? I had the same complaint, wound up changing upper control arms, then dropping tires from 44psi to 38, helped immensely

william17 · March 9, 2015

The kit did not come with new control arms. I didn't check the psi but the mechanic told me they were at 35 psi.

Which control arms did you put on?

V1ZION · March 9, 2015

I don't have any solution to the ruff ride, but can you take more pictures of the truck, maybe some down the side to see how far the wheels stick out. I think it looks great.

william17 · March 9, 2015

I don't have any solution to the ruff ride, but can you take more pictures of the truck, maybe some down the side to see how far the wheels stick out. I think it looks great.

This is all I have at the moment.

Doobs41378 · March 9, 2015

Sharp looking truck....

seansharley · March 10, 2015

They came from ready lift. It didn't change much for rolling down the road, but definitely helped with going over speed bumps, and drainage ditches. Think the stock ones were bottoming out. I would do the control arms, and bilsteins you already got at the same time

seansharley · March 10, 2015

I think we get spoiled with the soft ride theses new trucks have from the factory with the P rated "car" tires they put on. Switching over to heavier LT "truck" tires makes you feel everything in the road, little give, and take I suppose you would say. Great looking ride BTW. I also did a diablo tuner to adjust my speedo, and correct my fuel economy reading.

Coppertone · March 10, 2015

The stiffness in ride is coming from those LT - E-rated tires, not necessarily the suspension.

lockey14s · March 10, 2015

truck looks great! perfect height in my opinion. and I agree... its all in the tire. these trucks ride too soft anyways haha

arkenzo · March 10, 2015

Anyone else think the 20's are slightly to blame as well? Minor issue in my opinion. Truck looks great.

Trza · March 10, 2015

I agree with everyone else. The factory ride was so smooth...as soon as I leveled the truck and went with 33's, it got quite a bit rougher. I had the same setup with my old Tundra and comparing the 2, the Sierra is still the better ride.

william17 · March 12, 2015

I called bilstein today and spoke with a guy who was pretty helpful. He was familiar with the zone kit and the Mickey Thompsons. He said that adding the bilsteins probably won't make for a noticeable ride change. He said the tires are most likely the issue. I didn't realize load e was going to be a problem or I wouldn't have bought them. He said to drop tires down to 27psi and I should notice a change. I'm going to give that a try tomorrow.

Rickbo · March 27, 2015

Truck looks great. I have the same truck and just ordered the zone 4.5, Iim having it installed next week with the new kmc xd monster 2 in a 20x10-24 offset, with nitro trail grabber 295/55/20. Did your tires run? Did you have have trim? Not sure how large or a tire I can go with without a lot of trimming.

crafferty · March 27, 2015

First off there is nothing wrong with your 20" wheels or Mickey Thompson tires. I have 20" wheels and 35" tires with zero drive-ability/comfort problems. As previously mentioned your tires could be inflated a little more than needed and that will cause a rough ride. But in your case what is causing the rough ride is the 4" strut spacers. Strut spacers will not doing anything to help your ride quality. Installing the Bilstein 5100's will help out a lot in my opinion. My previous truck was a 2012 Denali AWD with a 4" lift from CST that used strut spacers. I'm not sure how they accomplished it by my truck rode great and part of that was due to the 5100's. Down the road you can always get a set of coilovers which would remove the need for the strut spacer and probably give you a better than new ride. Fox and King are two names that come to mind right off the bat.