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Lower leveled the truck. Updated pics and info post 27
Edit: I ended up cutting half of a coil off on the front springs and going to the 2" hole on the rear shackles, pics and info on that as you go through the thread, final pic in post 27. And the sales guy was retarded when he told me the shackles were for 2 different drops, that's why I cut mine. Skip all that and just bolt in the 2" shackle in the top hole.
I have been trying to figure out how low I wanted to lower this truck and mostly I just wanted it level and I definitely didn't want to lift it so I experimented a little today and I like the results.
I took the lift blocks out first and liked it but wanted a little more, so I drove to autozone and grabbed some drop shackles and put them in the 1" hole. The shitty thing is I got the 1"- 2" kit and I couldn't get the shackles on in the 1" hole with out cutting some of the shackle off. They hit the spring before they would get to the hole. If you like this look and don't want to cut they did have a 1" drop shackle.
On with pics. First pic is stock. Second is without the lift block. 3rd is with no lift block and 1" shackle drop. I only had a few minutes to drive it and so far I notice no drive line vibration or issues.
Last edited by 00pooterSS; 08-20-2018 at 04:27 PM.
15 mile drive home, half highway half city, and the truck drove the same as before. I went through parking lots with speed bumps all was good. I have always had a very little very quick drive shaft shake at 55-59 ish mph under heavy throttle, it's still there but it actually seems to be a little bit better. I've heard with 2" shackle drop you need to shim the rear.
I brought the truck home and put the struts under the control arms and it dropped the front 2.5", I don't think I want to go quite that low because I'm not a fan of the rake look and I hate the idea of the strut being under the arm and all that weight only supported by two little bolts. I may cut the front coils about 3/4 of a coil to 1 full coil off the top.
I think if I get it somewhere in between where it is now and how low it is in these pics it'll look great.
I was wondering how it would be with the lift blocks out. Been debating doing that to mine.
Still on factory shocks with the block delete and drop shackle? Did you get shorter u bolts after you pulled the blocks? Looks good for cheap. Way better than stock I think.
I was wondering how it would be with the lift blocks out. Been debating doing that to mine.
Still on factory shocks with the block delete and drop shackle? Did you get shorter u bolts after you pulled the blocks? Looks good for cheap. Way better than stock I think.
How low are those last pics?
Yes factory shocks with no lift block and a 1" drop shackle, and ordered shock extenders to put the shocks back in their stock travel range, $22 at pepboys.
The factory U bolts worked great. No problems re using those, i'd heard you need shorter ones but I did not.
The last pics are the front end down 2.5". I'm currently cutting half a coil off the front springs that should net me about 1.5" down in the front. I'll post pics later.
I'll also put it on the alignment rack later and see if I need new alignment cams or if the factory ones will retain enough adjustment.
Got done cutting the front coils. Took off half a coil off the top of the coil spring and it dropped the truck .9"-1"
I'll put it on the alignment machine after lunch but I expect it'll align fine, if not I'll update y'all.
I'm gonna leave it like this for now and drive it over the weekend and tow the boat etc and see how it does. I have 1" left in the rear I can go down by putting the drop shackles in the 2" hole and I can easily cut a little more off the front coil if I want to go lower but for now I got what I was after.. no drastic changes to the truck, no cutting off things that aren't easily reversible and retaining factory ride quality. Shock extenders for the rear are on the way and once I get those I'll be into this $80. I'll also check the u joint/pinion angles soon and if I need shims they were $10 at autozone.
Stock
Removed lift block and 1" shackle, half of top coil cut off on front.
Last edited by 00pooterSS; 05-04-2018 at 05:52 PM.
As far as aligning the truck I was able to align it good but I had to max out the adjustments to do it and the caster is out of spec, but it's out of spec in the way I set up front ends anyway, I always add a little caster over what the manufacturer calls for so it's in good shape. Right now it's at -0.1 degree camber on the left front and 0 degrees on the right (it drops a tenth or two on the passenger front with someone in the driver seat so that's perfect). And the caster is at 5.0-5.1 degrees. Any lower and I would have to get camber correction cams for the front.
Originally Posted by BudRacing
Looks good. I'm a fan of a mild drop. The wheels and tires seem to fit in those wheel wells much better now.
I agree and I didn't want to put larger tires on it and kill performance and mpg etc. Plus the truck is just a 2wd. I'm never gonna offroad it, and if I really need to it's still high enough. Funny thing is, with it lowered it's now the same height as my service writers 98 Z71 with big tires on it. These trucks are way too high up in the clouds (stock) in my opinion.
One funny thing is, it's so much easier to reach into the bed now, it aggravated me how hard it was to get over the bed rail and reach down into it.
That looks way better. How did cutting the coil affect the ride in the front?
You’re actually doing all the stuff I’ve been debating doing myself so thank you for being the guinea pig lol
05-03-2018, 05:58 PM
Lower leveled the truck. Updated pics and info post 27
