Bilstein 6112 thread for ‘19-‘20

Tcolburntexas · September 12, 2020

Just ordered my Bilstein 6112 kit for my ‘20 GMC Sierra 1500 SLT 5.3L Crew cab X31. Trying to decide if I want to set at the 4th or 5th position. I’ve learned that anything on a ride height adjustable is best avoided at the very top height position 6. Leaning towards slot 5 which should be about 2” even. Also think the very top 2.5” position will need new UCAs to be safe, hoping to avoid that.

Also, would like a slight rake, so who makes a rear block that is 1” gain? I’ve seen 1.5” and 2” rear blocks but not a lot 1”. At stock height my truck has about a 2” - 2.25” factory rake, 1” would be perfect IMO. Do these trucks come with a factory rear block? I’ve seen some people say yes, others say no....don’t know what to go off of.

Post up your installs and input!

Rtalliston · September 12, 2020

10 hours ago, Tcolburntexas said:

Just ordered my Bilstein 6112 kit for my ‘20 GMC Sierra 1500 SLT 5.3L Crew cab X31. Trying to decide if I want to set at the 4th or 5th position. I’ve learned that anything on a ride height adjustable is best avoided at the very top height position 6. Leaning towards slot 5 which should be about 2” even. Also think the very top 2.5” position will need new UCAs to be safe, hoping to avoid that.

Also, would like a slight rake, so who makes a rear block that is 1” gain? I’ve seen 1.5” and 2” rear blocks but not a lot 1”. At stock height my truck has about a 2” - 2.25” factory rake, 1” would be perfect IMO. Do these trucks come with a factory rear block? I’ve seen some people say yes, others say no....don’t know what to go off of.

Post up your installs and input!

I just installed the 5100s on my 20 silverado and set them at 2" and added a 1 inch block in the rear....left me with about 1/2" of rake...i ordered the blocks off ebay...came with u bolts and was about $45...if you're gonna do it yourself i can walk you through it....took me about 3 hrs

ScX31 · September 18, 2020

Anybody have this kit installed yet?

BossTaco2020 · September 30, 2020

Bump! Would love to know if anyone has the 6112's on a TrailBoss?

leverett.scott · October 1, 2020

Correct me if I'm wrong. You said that if a person uses to high of a setting that you would need new UCA's.

If you have the shock installed and you lift the front of the truck off the ground so the front is at full droop on the bump stops and the shock clears, it should clear on whatever setting it is on. Correct?

If it hits around full droop, you need new UCA's.

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ullose272 · October 2, 2020

Correct me if I'm wrong. You said that if a person uses to high of a setting that you would need new UCA's.
If you have the shock installed and you lift the front of the truck off the ground so the front is at full droop on the bump stops and the shock clears, it should clear on whatever setting it is on. Correct?

If it hits around full droop, you need new UCA's.
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I would replace the a arm anything over 2.5" lift

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Justinv113 · November 1, 2020

I've got a set of 6112 on order. Planning to set them at position #5. Hoping it will match the stock height on my AT4. I'll measure before and after and post results.

Duramax3oh · November 16, 2020

Do these come with new coils or do you use the factory OEM coils already on the truck?

So essentially you do not need to worry about aftermarket UCA's if you have the 3.0L or the 6.2L (or the 5.3L on setting 5 or under)?

For the rear Bilstein 5100/5160's I'm a little confused on the Regular vs. Trailboss ones. Example: My LT (non-TB) does not have a rear block so normally you'd think the 0-1" Regular rear shocks would no brainer. But what if the rear is lifted more than 1" ala 1" add-a-leaf plus 1" rear block? Or any sort of lift say 2"... will the advertised "for 0-1 inch lift" not be the right choice?

Justinv113 · November 16, 2020

The 6112's come with new coils. You only reuse the top hat from the oem coilover.

Uca's are probably not needed for most drivers, but they will improve the ride quality some at higher lift settings because they will allow for another 1-2" of droop. I have not found good dimensions on the 6112's, but they advertise pretty much the same allowable lift as the 5100's, so I'm assuming they are the same extended/compressed lengths. If that is the case, then they will have more travel than the factory shocks, so the uca's will be able to utilize the additional droop. If you get shocks that are the same extended length as the factory ones, then there is no need for uca's because the shock will be the limiting factor, when it comes to droop/extension.

If you get 0-1" lift rear shocks, they will still bolt on and work, but they will limit the droop of the rear axle. Basically, if you add 2" of lift to the rear, the 0-1" shocks will be near their full extension at ride height. You can jack the back of the truck up and measure how many inches the rear suspension unloads before it stops, and that will show you how much down travel there is. The shock is the limiting factor, so if you add 2" blocks then you will lose 2" of that droop, but you load capacity will remain the same, and you will not need to add bumpstop extensions.

Adding 2" of lift in the rear, you would ideally want longer shocks and possible a 1-2" bumpstop extension to prevent the longer shocks from bottoming out and getting damaged. If you never haul anything with the pickup, then you will not likely bottom out the rear, and you could probably get by without bumpstop extensions.

Justinv113 · December 5, 2020

Installed the 6112 a couple weeks ago on my AT4 with the 5.3. Coils settled to exactly 1/8" of lift on postion #5.

ScX31 · December 5, 2020

5 hours ago, Justinv113 said:

Installed the 6112 a couple weeks ago on my AT4 with the 5.3. Coils settled to exactly 1/8" of lift on postion #5.

How’s the ride compared to factory?

lapoolboy · December 6, 2020

6 hours ago, Justinv113 said:

Installed the 6112 a couple weeks ago on my AT4 with the 5.3. Coils settled to exactly 1/8" of lift on postion #5.

1/8" of lift

tomthetrex · December 6, 2020

9 hours ago, Justinv113 said:

Installed the 6112 a couple weeks ago on my AT4 with the 5.3. Coils settled to exactly 1/8" of lift on postion #5.

1/8in? Really that is it?????

Justinv113 · December 6, 2020

1/8" over the stock height of the AT4, so it would basically be 2" of lift for a non TB/AT4 pickup.

Ride quality is not as impressive as I was expecting. Had high hopes. It does ride better, but definitely more firm. It is a pretty good improvement in the dirt and on larger bumps. Small bumps are a little better than the ranchos, but nothing stellar. What I consider "small bumps" would be your typical back road that gets neglected by the county and is always getting those cheap pothole repairs rather than getting repaved.

On my 2011 silverado 1500, I had uca's and extended travel, custom valved, fox 2.5" remote reservoir coilovers from Accutune. The 6112 does not match that setup, but its also less than 1/3 the price. I have yet to disconnect the sway bar to see if that helps with the 6112 package. It helped with my previous setup, but the sway on turns was noticeable. Unsure as to wether the fancy traction control in the new truck will disagree with added body roll. I'll definitely try it out though.

Justinv113 · December 6, 2020

I forgot to mention that I have king 2.5" piggyback shocks in place of the ranchos on the rear. Just so happened that after removing the rear block on the AT4, the shocks are the same length from the previous generations, so I was able to cop them off of the old pickup. Those were a dramatic difference over the stocks. Definitely recommend getting bilsteins to replace the junky ranchos on the rear. King 2.5's are almost certainly not needed to tame the rear of these trucks. I can elaborate more if needed.