difference in level kits

johnnyg123 · February 22, 2018

is there any difference in quality in level kits? used the ready lift kit on the 2013 hd 2500 i had. was happy with the ride but didnt have them all cranked up either. now looking to go up about 1.75 inches on the front of the 2015 2500 all terrain x i bought. seems this package has more of a rake than the other 2500's. stopping at the shop who did the last install this weekend and he offers different brands.

EJCarter · February 22, 2018

Any reputable manufacturer that makes quality products will make a good leveling kit. In my opinion, "kit" is the key word. Using an engineered kit that consists of Upper Control Arms, Diff Drop Spacers, Torsion Keys, and Shock Extensions (or replacement shocks) is a kit that is designed to work together. We all know leveling is the "cheaper" way to lift our trucks, but utilizing all these components will drastically keep the factory geometry much closer to factory specs. Again, much closer to factory specs because depending on how high you crank, you'll get further and further from these specs...especially CV angles. Even with a good engineered kit, you may increase your frequency of replacing ball joints, idler or pitman arms, etc...but this replacement frequency can also increase with quality lift kits. Knowing this before we level or lift is the chance we take.

Some may say...just crank the stock keys and don't purchase a kit. You can, but, in my opinion, your ball joint angles, droop stop distance, and CV Joints will be much more out of the factory spec...

I purchased a leveling kit from Central Coast Motorsports (ccmoffroad.com). A small shop in the Central Coast of California. They manufacture their own kits which keeps cost down...

Here is a pic of their UCAs on my truck...

Big Whiskey · March 7, 2018

If you're staying under 2", then just crank the factory keys and add some shock extensions.

gearheadesw · March 9, 2018

On 3/7/2018 at 1:20 AM, Big Whiskey said:

If you're staying under 2", then just crank the factory keys and add some shock extensions.

This. Add an alignment if you would like...

Big Whiskey · March 17, 2018

On 3/9/2018 at 10:49 AM, gearheadesw said:

This. Add an alignment if you would like...

Yes. I forgot to mention the alignment. Thanks!

johnnyg123 · March 18, 2018

even though some said to just crank the bars i went with the ready lift kit. i used the same on my 2013 by the same shop and am happy with the results. went up a hair under 2 inches to leave some rake and the truck looks good and ride is the same.had it aligned and shock extensions installed. will probably have the ranchos swapped out next year when i bring it back to have alignment checked. next is to have the sport bar that came with truck painted to match the truck. had the front windows slightly tinted to keep it legal as there is a new law here in ny . the shop who installed the kit is an alignment shop that does aftermarket upgrades told me my right side was a almost a half inch lower than the left before he started. i never noticed