Body Lift, Tow Hooks, Painted Bumber Cap

mdub · February 22, 2004

Once you install a body lift on an '03/'04, there's really no good way to re-install the factory tow hooks. I finally found a relatively simple way to solve the problem. Here's the process and pics:

1. Buy a pair of '99-'04 'HD' tow hooks (Ebay, this forum, etc.)

2. HD hooks are significantly longer, so grind the rear portion off making them approximately the same length as the 1/2 ton tow hooks.

3. HD hooks are threaded for a short bolt on each side, 1/2 ton tow hooks just have a long bolt that goes all the way through, so drill out threaded cross hole to larger bore size of 1/2 ton tow hook bolt.

4. Drill rear mounting hole through HD tow hook to match footprint of 1/2 ton tow hook (this step is optional, but I did it to give the hooks the same strength as originals).

5. Grind notch in HD tow hooks to make them lay flat against the frame.

6. HD tow hook cross-mount is narrower than a 1/2 ton tow hook, so make 4 ea. spacers out of ~3/8" water pipe to fill the gaps between the frame and cross-mount.

7. Mount using original cross bolt. On each HD tow hook, cross bolt goes through frame, spacer, HD tow hook, spacer, frame.

End result is a pair of very strong OE-looking tow hooks.

-Mdub

pacodiablo · February 22, 2004

Looks good!

Tungsten · February 22, 2004

Looks great, I was wanting to do that to my truck (same truck) Did you ask the dealer if it will void any of the warranty?

mdub · February 22, 2004

Tungsten,

I installed the body lift about three weeks after I bought the truck (3/03). Dealer hasn't said a word about the body lift, and it's certainly been back enough times to give them opportunities.

All the dealers I've worked with have been great about aftermarket mods (GM and others). Unless the mod directly affects the component in question, they legally can't complain. In the case of a body lift, of course it raises the body three inches, but doesn't affect suspension, engine, electrical, etc. A suspension lift and overly large tires would give them more to complain about, but still they have to prove the alterations caused the warranty issue.

The only time I thought they would turn me down for warranty work was when I had an annoying velcro-type noise coming from the headliner. Techincally, they could've argued that the body lift altered the integrity of the cab, and told me I was on my own. They were great though and fixed it, even after three frustrating returns to get them to find it.

The truck has also been back numerous times trying to convince them that harsh mechanical clunks during 1-2, 2-3 shifts aren't normal or mechanically sound. But the GM techs have been trained otherwise. I've finally given up -- I'm just anxiously waiting for the tranny to grenade so I can say I told 'em so.

Other than the tranny clunk, and a lack of torque needed for Northwest hills, I love the truck.

I'm extremely happy with the body lift and highly recommend it. IMO, on older trucks, a body lift causes an excessive amount of frame to show. On the '03 trucks we have, after the body lift you actually end up with slightly less frame showing than an '03/'04 HD truck, so many people just think it's a 3/4 ton with the torsion bars cranked. It even fooled one of the techs at the dealer who thought it was a 3/4 ton. I thought it was funny that he didn't notice the 1/2 ton wheels and Z71 stickers.

Thanks for the comments.

-Mdub

zshumo · February 23, 2004

What is the difference between a suspension & body lift; which is better? I would like to get a little more clearance to avoid getting hungup in snow/ etc.

chevy4x4trucks · February 23, 2004

The body lift will lift your body 3" off the frame. A suspension lift will give you up to ??? inches ( i guess as high as you wanna go ).

The big difference is price. A body lift is about 200-300 dollars and takes a day to install. A suspension lift is usually up around 1,500 and the skill level on the install is quite a bit more so chances are you'd want a pro to install it.

The two both have there pros and cons.

mdub · February 23, 2004

Also, a body lift won't help ground clearance since the lowest components remain in place (tranny, transfer case, differentials, frame, etc.). Of course, a body lift may allow slightly taller tires which will result in slightly increased ground clearance.

Tungsten · February 24, 2004

Would you happen to have any shots of the back? I'd like to see what the reciever and tail pipe look like.

mdub · February 24, 2004

Don't have any photos of the back of the truck, but I can certainly take some. My better half is traveling and has the digital cam, but she'll be back by Friday. I'll try to have more pics posted by this weekend.

You're probably worried about that space between the bumper and receiver. Actually, I wasn't too thrilled with the 3-inch spacers provided for the receiver -- they leave the only obvious clue that the truck has the body lift. I may try to find a better way to camouflage the spacers with a painted metal covering. The optional gap guards in the fender wells appear as though they came from the factory, and do a great job of hiding the gap between the frame and the body.

The tail pipe doesn't look bad at all. If you don't like it being so low relative to the body, it's possible a muffler shop could bend the existing pipe (for a minimal fee).

If you have the floor shifter, keep in mind that you have to remove the shifter, cut the lower arm, and weld in a 3 inch extension. Once you've released the lower linkage, the 4x4 shifter lifts out easily from the top by removing the plastic cover, and removing several screws. This was my only complaint about the kit, it came with a 3/8 rod extension, but my shifter actually used a ~1.5 inch flat-iron shifting arm. No big deal though... I had some scrap flat iron laying around and welded in my own -- it's held up just fine. Of course, this is a non-issue if you have the Autotrac 4x4 pushbutton.

Installation of the kit is easy, but very time consuming. Plan on reserving at least a full day, and possibly a weekend depending on the help you've recruited. Half the battle is trying to interpret the tiny illustrations provided in the instructions, especially when sorting out the various bumper bracket pieces. It goes like a lot of things.... the first install is difficult, but the next one could be done in half the time, and without instructions.

Hope this helps,

Mdub