Came Back To Gm, Lift Questions

BillH · February 5, 2008

Just traded in my F250 for a 2004 Sierra z71 1500, 5.3 engine, 3.73 rear with an Eaton locker. My last GM truck was over ten years ago, and there have been a lot of changes since then. I would like to lift it a little and beef it up, both for hauling firewood and for appearance. I was thinking of an add a leaf in the rear like I did with the F250, but I'm not sure what to do with the front, crank up the torsion bars or put on a 2" leveling kit (new torsion keys). If doing either option to the front, will it need an alignment? I don't think that I will need new shocks for this amount of lift, but I could be wrong. I'm sure some of the members here have done the same thing. Thanks for your help.

GatorFan · February 5, 2008

Check out the 4X4 section on the forum. There are tons of guys (like me) who used different methods of lifting their truck in the front. You can find all the info you need from that section of the forum alone. As far as an alignment, yes you will need one once you mess with the T-bars or put any leveling kit on the front of your truck.

2000DV4.8 · February 5, 2008

Just traded in my F250 for a 2004 Sierra z71 1500, 5.3 engine, 3.73 rear with an Eaton locker. My last GM truck was over ten years ago, and there have been a lot of changes since then. I would like to lift it a little and beef it up, both for hauling firewood and for appearance. I was thinking of an add a leaf in the rear like I did with the F250, but I'm not sure what to do with the front, crank up the torsion bars or put on a 2" leveling kit (new torsion keys). If doing either option to the front, will it need an alignment? I don't think that I will need new shocks for this amount of lift, but I could be wrong. I'm sure some of the members here have done the same thing. Thanks for your help.

A 2" leveling kit is the exact same thing as cranking the stock keys 2". The only difference with aftermarket keys is that they are re-indexed, which allows you to is crank further, which is a bad thing. The further you crank, the worseyour CV/tie rod angles get, which puts too much stress on those parts. Overcranking can also cause balljoint failure. The maximum you should crank is about 1.5", after that your ride will really start to stiffen up, since the suspension will be resting on the top bumpstops, and won't have enough down travel when you go over bumps. You will have guys telling you that "they've been running a 3" crank for 4 years or something, and never had any problems" but that is not the norm. Most people have servere wear issues. Overcranking the t-bars is not safe, for you, or those around you either. Say you're going down the highway at 70mph, and a ball joint fails. You're pretty much screwed at that point.

Yes, you will need an alignment any time you make any changes to the front suspension.

And you will not need longer shocks, since when you crank the t-bars, you are not changing the actual length of suspension travel, you are just increasing the spring rate so that the suspension doesn't sag as much under the weight of the truck.

If you're looking simply for stance, I'd go with a 2" or 3" body lift, since that will allow you to keep your stock ride.

If you don't want to go the BL route, an AAL or block for the rear, and a 1"-1.5" MAXIMUM t-bar crank should get you a better stance. Aftermarket keys are usually a waste, since in most cases you can crank the stock keys as far as you'd ever need to.

By the way, welcome to the site, and lets see some pics of the truck! Glad to see you came over from the dark side

bumbo · February 9, 2008

Thanks DV2000NJ. I'm new here and did a search for this topic. You answered my question as well as saved me some $$$. I was going to get the aftermarket T keys.

ws6_guy · February 9, 2008

Welcom back to the General Motor side, a 4" suspension lift sounds like it would fit you good

2000DV4.8 · February 9, 2008

Thanks DV2000NJ. I'm new here and did a search for this topic. You answered my question as well as saved me some $$. I was going to get the aftermarket T keys.

Glad I could help. Really the only time aftermarket keys are any good is if your t-bars are sagging, but that rarely happens, and usually only on older trucks.