Hello, I have a 1999 Ram 1500 sport and I am looking to add a leveling kit to it. I have some concerns and questions I hope yall could answer for me. Have any of yall had any experience/ tips for choosing a brand and height of the kit? How does the level affect the truck's ride? Will I need to buy and adjustable swaybar? What is the best brand to buy? How difficult is the installation process? Thanks for any help!

 

I measured the rake of the truck and bought the kit that matched (mine was 2.5" and still had a .5" rake)

It rode a little rough in my opinion.

No you should not

Don't matter as long as it's a metal one (currently running the plastic one but I just like metal it has more strength)

Not to difficult have to remove the spring (will need a special tool but you can rent it from an auto parts store) and remove the shock.

 

No experience with leveling pucks but I added a 3" lift kit myself ten years ago. I researched the 2-2.5" leveling kits and they just weren't worth the effort. Mainly, they mis-align the factory geometry. Using longer control arms, shocks, and track bars from kits are really the best bet. But there were many people with 2" leveling kits back in the day. It will work okay.

By lifting the truck above the spring and stretching the shock and other components the ride will suffer and you'll need an alignment as the Y steering will change it when lifted. At least get longer shocks for the front if you get the pucks.

Never heard of an adjustable sway bar. Did you mean track bar? The track bar will accommodate 2" but 3" will need lengthening bracket or new longer bar.

Install is not easy but not hard. You'll need several jacks and a spring compressor (rent from stores). Lift the front end from frame, letting axle droop. Remove tires and track bar on one end. Jack up passenger hub and remove driver side spring. Install puck. Compress driver spring and reinstall. Repeat process on other side. Reinstall track bar. Lower truck and perform alignment.

 

thanks for the help, I meant to say track bar😂

 

Years ago I put a 1.5" spacer on my front springs to level it (Hellbent Steel). Not difficult, and yes you'll want to get it aligned afterwards. But I don't think 1.5" will really make a difference with your track bar. Did not affect the ride as the springs and shocks were still the same as before.

One thing I noticed afterwards though; by raising the front, it lowered the back measured at the receiver hitch (lower than before I put on the 1.5" spacer). Think of a see-saw. When one side goes up. the other side goes down. The rear axle was the pivot point. The measurement at the center of the rear fenderwell will not really change (because that's in-line with the rear axle/pivot point), but your back bumper will be a little lower, and you'll notice it when you drop your tailgate. So I put about a 3/8" thick strip of steel as a lift block between the rear spring and block (bolted it to the spring pack like a no-rate add-a-leaf) and it brought the back-end back up to compensate for the drop.

Later (it has been quite a few years now) I put a 2" taller spring up front and a 2" lift rear (long-leaf) add-a-leaf in the back and 285/75/16" tires (pictured). I have yet to do anything track-bar wise. I don't think 2" makes enough of a difference to have to deal with needing adjustable track-bars.

I never used a spring compressor. With proper jacks and jack-stands, I just let the axle drop enough (watch your brake lines) to where I could get the springs in-and-out.

 

That is SUCH a pretty truck.

 

Thank-you. The original color was Driftwood. Then years later I got it repainted at Maaco (factory paint was peeling off) the same color, then a few years later they repainted it again (same factory Driftwood color). Then in 2015 I wanted it a different color (I don't remember now if the paint was going bad or not), so I went with 2015 Corvette Shark Gray by an independent paint shop. Not badmouthing Maaco. They repainted our minivan and it still looked like new years later when we sold it.