I had tons of trouble finding a lift now a days for the 2nd Gen 2wd Dakotas. After finally finding a 2.5 suspension and 3 inch body (have not installed body yet but it is made specifically for 2nd gen), I made this post to help anyone or prevent anyone from running into the problems i did and will also provide pics of lift. First i'll start off with the rear lift.

Rear Lift:
For the rear, if your leaf springs are above you'll need blocks. If they're under the axle you'll need a shackle lift. Pretty sure all 2wd's are under the axle like mine so here is a 2 inch shackle lift in this pic.



I found these shackles at Pep Boys for $39.99. You can find them on ebay or amazon as well, but the Ride Effex ones at Pep Boys, Oreily's, or any local auto store will fit this truck. They're going to be called "lowering shackles" but thats if you flip them, they work the same for lifting. When installing, you'll need to jack up your truck of course. (You dont need to take off tires for the rear) I lifted it by the hitch bar, so i can get both sides knocked out without doing them one side at a time. For the bolts and nuts holding the stock shackles in place, they were pretty difficult to remove at first, until we redneck rigged a pipe onto the wrench to give us leverage. You'll want PB blaster too, that will help. Once you've gotten em'out, jack up the truck more to fit the new shackle. Once its lifted enough put the new shackle in place. NOTE: you might need to get your exhaust pipe relocated like mine. We disconnected the exhaust from the frame temporarily to fit the shackle, and after we set the truck back down, the new shackle and leaf spring will sit on your exhaust pipe and eventually rub a hole right through and wear down on your brand new shackle. You'll either need to get the pipe straight out or over the axle and out the side like mine below.






Another thing, when you put in the new shackle, with the Ride Effex ones you'll need to kind of tap it in place in the upper hanger with a hammer (make sure you align holes), its a tight fit. I do not know about the ones off ebay or amazon if you'll need to do that. Other than that, bolt the new shackles in real tight and let the truck down easy, and Wha-la your rear suspension is lifted 2 inches.

Front Lift:
For the front, i didnt want to mess with the torsion bars or any of that, so i ordered coil spacers from ebay from Rad Rydz for $43.99. I suggest getting the upper spacer for this, not sure if the installment process is different but the bottom ones were a pain. I actually had a guy do mine because the steps are painstaking. You'll need to lift the front end of your truck, take off the front tires, sway bars, control arms, and basically everything in that area and also need to remove the coil. After all that putting the the new coil spacer in place and the coil back in along with the 20 other things disconnected, moral of this story just have a professional do the front, its faster and they will need to align your tires afterwards. When the guy set my truck back down he said the coils bowed so he lifted again, rotated the coils, set it back down and it fixed the problem. NOTE: The coil spacers i ordred said 3 inches of lift, and i only got 2.5 inches. It's not a big deal for me but i thought that was kind of stupid. So, if you order this type of coil spacer that says 3 inches, your probably only going to get 2.5. Here is a pic of the bottom spacer in place and the difference from the 2.5 inches of lift.






It might cost you a couple hundred bucks to get it installed but its worth the time and effort. I paid $200 for my installment. Depends on where you go.
If any questions about the lift or mods i have feel free to ask! You can also text me at (904) 608-4397. I respond faster by phone.

-Devon