Does This Sound Right?

nick-o · November 24, 2008

Hey everyone, I just recently inherited a '99 sierra. I've been around the site, but never really posted much. Ill see what i can do about adding pictures.

Anyway, i'm lookin' at putting the truxxx leveling kit on it and getting some 285 tires on. I asked a shop to see how much they would charge to align the truck after i put it in, and they told me they wouldn't touch it. According to them the kits screw up the alignment past fixing, and they increase the tread wear.

Just wondering what your thoughts on this are. Oh, and is the truxxx kit a good one?

BraemerZ28 · November 25, 2008

Not sure what kits they've experienced, but the shop that aligned my 2008 Sierra after putting on the Truxxx kit had no trouble. They used the Truxxx specs on teh instruction sheet and also refered to the factory specs to make sure things made sense. They have everything set fine - no trouble after 2500 miles. I'd say, look for a new shop...

97SierraGMC · November 25, 2008

sounds like your shop either doesnt know how to do them or are too lazy to do them...

2000DV4.8 · November 25, 2008

Do a search on here, leveling kits for the torsion bar sprung trucks are nothing more than re-indexed torsion keys that allow you to over-crank the torsion bars. The highest you can go without affecting the ride a great deal, and causing excessive wear is about 1.5". This is easily obtainable by cranking the stock keys. Going any higher than that will make the truck ride like a tank, and you'll be racking up some nice repair bills. No offense to the guy 2 posts above me, but 2500 miles isn't exactly a long period of time, and certainly not long enough for any wear problems (tire, or suspension components) to arise.

EDIT: and I just noticed that Scott has a 2008, which is a COMPLETELY different suspension setup than your '99, so the kit he used isn't even comparable.

nick-o · November 25, 2008

SO.... when the truxxx kit claims 2-3" gains over stock in the front, by what you're telling me, they are really going to screw me when it comes to repair bills.

Oh, and Dan- Are those 285's? If you only did the 1.5 torsion crank, do they rub at all?

sounds like your shop either doesnt know how to do them or are too lazy to do them...

Yeah, i just was getting an opinion from a guy i know works at this shop. I've never delt with them. Don't know that i'd want to...

Zembonez · November 25, 2008

Hey everyone, I just recently inherited a '99 sierra. I've been around the site, but never really posted much.

I think the shop just doean't want to (or doesn't know how to) handle the alignment. Some techs don't like working on them. There are plenty of these trucks on the road lifted and doing just fine. I'd find another shop.

nick-o · November 25, 2008

Nevermind on the 285 question Dan, but do you think a 275 would be alright for fuel economy, rubbing, power?

TN_Z71 · November 25, 2008

I just put a set of 285x75R16's on my 04 after doing the 1.5 torsion crank. No problems with rubbing at all.

2000DV4.8 · November 25, 2008

SO.... when the truxxx kit claims 2-3" gains over stock in the front, by what you're telling me, they are really going to screw me when it comes to repair bills.
Oh, and Dan- Are those 285's? If you only did the 1.5 torsion crank, do they rub at all?

Yep, if you try to get 2-3" of lift out of the torsion bars, you'll have nothing but trouble down the road. This will put the suspension at such extreme angles that you run the risk of having ball joints and tie rod ends fail, and you will have accelerated wear on those parts, CVs and pitman & idler arms. Not to mention if you try to get that much height, your upper control arm will be resting on the droop stops (or very close), limiting down travel and making the truck ride like a tank.

If you want 3" of lift, either spend the cash for a true suspension lift (with dropped cross members, differential drop brackets, etc.), or go with a body lift. It's much more expensive up front, but it won't destroy the ride (a body lift won't change it at all), and you won't have to deal with replacing suspension and steering components all the time.

Nevermind on the 285 question Dan, but do you think a 275 would be alright for fuel economy, rubbing, power?

My tires are 265s, and I'm running about 1.5" of crank. 275s are a pretty uncommon size, but they shouldn't drop your fuel economy more than 1 or 2 miles per gallon at the most (depending on what size you're running now), and the power difference should be negligible, you might notice it a little off the line. Rubbing wise, I'm not sure, but if you do crank a little bit, you shouldn't rub, and if you do, it'll probably be on the plastic fender liner, which can be trimmed easily.

nick-o · November 25, 2008

i will forgo the kit then, thanks for saving me the money...

after the torsion crank, it should really be realigned right? As you can tell im not really a suspension guy.

J-man67 · November 25, 2008

Yes, have it aligned after you crank.

nick-o · November 30, 2008

Last question...

For cranking the stock TB's, do I still need the special tool, or can I still do it with the load on the bolt?

2000DV4.8 · November 30, 2008

Last question...
For cranking the stock TB's, do I still need the special tool, or can I still do it with the load on the bolt?

Here's a quick writeup on how to crank the torsion bars.

To crank the torsion bars, you will need to adjust the torsion key adjustment bolt, which is located in the torsion bar cross-member. The cross-member is pretty much directly below the seam between the front and rear doors. Follow the torsion bar into the cross member, then you will see an adjustment bolt. That is the bolt you need to... well... adjust.

Ok, so now for the adjustment process. You will need a jack and jackstands, a bottle of whiteout, an 18mm socket, and preferably a 1/2" drive ratchet.

Measure the original fender height heights with the truck on flat level ground. Then jack up the front of the truck, and put the jackstands under the frame. Mark the adjustment bolt and the cross-member with whiteout so you can better keep track of how many rotations the bolt makes. Each full revolution of the bolt equals about 1/4" of height. I'd start off with 4 revs, which should net you about an inch.

Let the truck down bounce on the bumper a little bit, and drive it around the block and make a couple of hard stops to let the suspension settle. Then park the truck in the same spot as before, and re-measure.

Repeat as needed until you get to the height you want, it is completely normal for one bolt to have more thread showing, or for one bolt to take more revs to raise the truck (I had to turn my drivers side bolt 2 full revs more to get the truck to sit level).

Just keep in mind, your ride will stiffen up, and if you go over 1.5" it will REALLY start to suffer. Also, if you go much over 1.5", you will start to wear through parts like CVs, tie rod ends, ball joints, and pitman/idler arms much quicker than normal. Keep the height reasonable, and you should have no problems.

And don't forget the alignment.