Installed 2" Daystar and 2" rear blocks. Tips inside.
#1
02-22-2009, 10:05 AM
Installed 2" Daystar and 2" rear blocks. Tips inside.
Hey all.
OK, I am done installing the Daystar 2" leveling kit, and the 2" rear blocks. Can't take any pictures yet, its snowing outside this morning, but I will ASAP.
I figured I would give everyone a few tips that are going to be doing the installation of a leveling kit and blocks soon.
Firstly, If you are in a winter area where salt is spread, WD40 every bolt and nut that is going to be removed a half hour in advance.
One of the first steps in my instructions was to unbolt the sway bar from the sway bar end link, and the picture showed the guy removing the nut above the sway bar, on top. DON'T! It is much safer and easier, to remove the sway bar mounting bolt under the lower A-Arm. (the bolt UNDER the a-arm, under the end links ball joint.)
You need a pair of small or medium vice grips, have them squeeze the end link just under the ball joint boot, which is just above the lower a-arm, if you dont, the whole end link will spin when you turn the nut. (you must do the same when putting it back on, once it gets close to being tight, it will no longer be required)
How do I know all this? Well, I tried listening to the instructions and snapped the threaded end of the end link right off when i tried to remove the bolt above the sway bar. all the WD40 and wrenching techniques could not save it, it was in bad shape and rusted. So I thought I was screwed there, but luckily I was installing the kit in a metal shop, and my father, the owner, was able to tap out the top of the sway bar end link, cut the head off a fresh bolt, and thread a new bolt end on the end of the end link. Better then new!
Now we have to remove the bolt under the ball joint for the upper control arm to be free from the knuckle. Just loosen the nut until its near the end, as low as it can go, but dont take it off. Now get a hammer, (or you can go the fork route, i did not) and smack the knucle a few times, and I even had to smack the upper a-arm Upwards, and POP the ball joint will release.
Grab a bungy cord and secure the knuckle to the frame as it is heavy because its supported the entire hub.
OK! So now I unbolt the top end of the strut, the 3 bolts, and the lower large bolt, and try to yank the strut out of there. HMMMM. The sway bar end link is in the way of the lower strut mount. OK? Solution? the sway bar end link, even unbolted will hold the lower a-arm to high in place, not allowing it to droop. Get a pipe, a 2x4 or whatever you are using to pry in this project, and pry the a-arm down, you may have to lightly tap on the end link, and it will pop out, and the a-arm will drop much farther down. Now yank that strut assembly out.
Easy part: mount the spacer on top of the strut.
Now its time to put it back in! This can be tricky, here is how i did it.
DO NOT FORGET to put the end of the sway bar end link into the lower a-arm mounting spot, because once you get the strut in, its much harder, because you are going to pull the a-arm back up!
You will discover that your new longer strut is tricky to get bolted back in on the lower a-arm. Do this: Slide the strut assembly back up and into the 3 holes of the upper frame mount plate, but dont bolt them. Then, your going to have to use some elbow grease to get the lower strut mount to line up with the mounting point on the lower a-arm. We needed to push it IN, while someone stuck the bolt in there. Now that the strut is longer, it tends to stick out away from the mounting point. So someone is going to have to push a bit to get the bolt in, Make sure you have that lower a-arm fully drooped as discussed earlier, and someone may need to jack the lower a-arm a TINY bit to get the strut to line back up with the mounting point.
THIS IS IMPORTANT, make sure when you are jacking the lower a-arm up, that you are NOT jacking it under where the bolt for the end link pops through. IF you do, the whole truck will jack up, and the a-arm wont come up 1 bit!
So once you have your lower strut bolt in, ensure that the top 3 bolts are in the correct spot and through the plates holes. Now jack the lower a-rm up a bit, and the 3 small bolts up top will start to come up through the holes. Get your new bolts on them, and tighten them up until they are tight, this will pull the strut up, the lower a-arm up, and snug everything into place.
Ok, lets bolt that upper a-arm back to the knucle! Easier said then Done! This is probablly the hardest part for most people. You are going to have to get that lower a-arm to come up as much as possible, so your going to want to jack it up with the jack placed as far out twoards the hub as it can safely go, and make sure your not blocking the end link bolt hole as discussed earlier or you will get no where. Start jacking it up, my truck came off the jack stand on my side, Every pump would move the lower a-arm a little, and the whole truck off the stand alot, so it seems like its not working, but it is. Now, you need a buddy for this: Get a pry bar, and place it againts the top of the upper a-arms ball joint pressed spot (it sits higher, its right in the top middle of the a-arm) and then put the bar under the right bolt for where the a-arm mounts to the frame, and pry that f*cker down hard! Have your buddy line up the knucle and ball joint bolt, and as you pry pry pry, have him attempt to start to thread that bolt. If you cant quite get the threads to pop out the first few trys, check to see if you can get the lower a-arm to come up anymore, and if you can, try again, you WILL get it, don't quit. Once its threaded, you can stop prying, and bolt it tight. It is going to spin though. so, use vice grips until you can get it as tight up as you can go with the grips on, the remove the grips and release the pressure from the lower-arm with the jack, and let it droop down again, this will put pressure on the upper a-arm ball joint, and it will no longer spin, and you can bolt it tight.
Once you have that bolted up, just bolt the sway bar end link back up to the lower a-arm underneath the lower a-arm, remeber to use vice grips to stop it from spinning. Once thats tight double check everything and you are done!
Repeat on the second side.
On to the rear end!
I used 2" steel blocks and longer u-bolts from advanced auto. Autozone has a kit too but its aluminum and I wanted the steel.
after the truck is on jack stands, use the jack to support the rear axles "pumpkin", and get under there and unbolt the shocks from the axle, and just let them hang. Then, go over to both sides of the wheel wells and unbolt the u-bolts, and take them all out. now, lower the jack until you think you can clear the blocks, and place them in.
IMPORTANT: when you throw the new longer u-bolts on, MAKE SURE you do the driver's side FIRST, and make sure the e-brake is OFF. The ebrake cable on the driver's side doesnt have much slack, and for some reason, if you bolt up the drivers side last, you cant get the axle to line up with the leaf spring, its off about an inch, and you cant pull the axle, cause the ebrake cable is so tight. So do the driver's side first, it will line up, THEN do the passengers side.
So its done.
The truck rides good, i got exactly 2" in the front, and exactly 2" in the rear (of course)
Struts and shocks perform the same, the 2" blocks get close to maxing the rear shocks but they work fine. The front struts don't get extended with this kit, so of course they perform normal.
Upper a-arm ball joint is at a larger angle, but nothing that makes me feel it will become damaged.
It was worth doing, and cost me $75 for all the parts. However, it was a PITA, and if I wasnt in a heated garage, I would rather have paid someone.
Got it done though, pics to come when it stops snowing. Good luck!
OK, I am done installing the Daystar 2" leveling kit, and the 2" rear blocks. Can't take any pictures yet, its snowing outside this morning, but I will ASAP.
I figured I would give everyone a few tips that are going to be doing the installation of a leveling kit and blocks soon.
Firstly, If you are in a winter area where salt is spread, WD40 every bolt and nut that is going to be removed a half hour in advance.
One of the first steps in my instructions was to unbolt the sway bar from the sway bar end link, and the picture showed the guy removing the nut above the sway bar, on top. DON'T! It is much safer and easier, to remove the sway bar mounting bolt under the lower A-Arm. (the bolt UNDER the a-arm, under the end links ball joint.)
You need a pair of small or medium vice grips, have them squeeze the end link just under the ball joint boot, which is just above the lower a-arm, if you dont, the whole end link will spin when you turn the nut. (you must do the same when putting it back on, once it gets close to being tight, it will no longer be required)
How do I know all this? Well, I tried listening to the instructions and snapped the threaded end of the end link right off when i tried to remove the bolt above the sway bar. all the WD40 and wrenching techniques could not save it, it was in bad shape and rusted. So I thought I was screwed there, but luckily I was installing the kit in a metal shop, and my father, the owner, was able to tap out the top of the sway bar end link, cut the head off a fresh bolt, and thread a new bolt end on the end of the end link. Better then new!
Now we have to remove the bolt under the ball joint for the upper control arm to be free from the knuckle. Just loosen the nut until its near the end, as low as it can go, but dont take it off. Now get a hammer, (or you can go the fork route, i did not) and smack the knucle a few times, and I even had to smack the upper a-arm Upwards, and POP the ball joint will release.
Grab a bungy cord and secure the knuckle to the frame as it is heavy because its supported the entire hub.
OK! So now I unbolt the top end of the strut, the 3 bolts, and the lower large bolt, and try to yank the strut out of there. HMMMM. The sway bar end link is in the way of the lower strut mount. OK? Solution? the sway bar end link, even unbolted will hold the lower a-arm to high in place, not allowing it to droop. Get a pipe, a 2x4 or whatever you are using to pry in this project, and pry the a-arm down, you may have to lightly tap on the end link, and it will pop out, and the a-arm will drop much farther down. Now yank that strut assembly out.
Easy part: mount the spacer on top of the strut.
Now its time to put it back in! This can be tricky, here is how i did it.
DO NOT FORGET to put the end of the sway bar end link into the lower a-arm mounting spot, because once you get the strut in, its much harder, because you are going to pull the a-arm back up!
You will discover that your new longer strut is tricky to get bolted back in on the lower a-arm. Do this: Slide the strut assembly back up and into the 3 holes of the upper frame mount plate, but dont bolt them. Then, your going to have to use some elbow grease to get the lower strut mount to line up with the mounting point on the lower a-arm. We needed to push it IN, while someone stuck the bolt in there. Now that the strut is longer, it tends to stick out away from the mounting point. So someone is going to have to push a bit to get the bolt in, Make sure you have that lower a-arm fully drooped as discussed earlier, and someone may need to jack the lower a-arm a TINY bit to get the strut to line back up with the mounting point.
THIS IS IMPORTANT, make sure when you are jacking the lower a-arm up, that you are NOT jacking it under where the bolt for the end link pops through. IF you do, the whole truck will jack up, and the a-arm wont come up 1 bit!
So once you have your lower strut bolt in, ensure that the top 3 bolts are in the correct spot and through the plates holes. Now jack the lower a-rm up a bit, and the 3 small bolts up top will start to come up through the holes. Get your new bolts on them, and tighten them up until they are tight, this will pull the strut up, the lower a-arm up, and snug everything into place.
Ok, lets bolt that upper a-arm back to the knucle! Easier said then Done! This is probablly the hardest part for most people. You are going to have to get that lower a-arm to come up as much as possible, so your going to want to jack it up with the jack placed as far out twoards the hub as it can safely go, and make sure your not blocking the end link bolt hole as discussed earlier or you will get no where. Start jacking it up, my truck came off the jack stand on my side, Every pump would move the lower a-arm a little, and the whole truck off the stand alot, so it seems like its not working, but it is. Now, you need a buddy for this: Get a pry bar, and place it againts the top of the upper a-arms ball joint pressed spot (it sits higher, its right in the top middle of the a-arm) and then put the bar under the right bolt for where the a-arm mounts to the frame, and pry that f*cker down hard! Have your buddy line up the knucle and ball joint bolt, and as you pry pry pry, have him attempt to start to thread that bolt. If you cant quite get the threads to pop out the first few trys, check to see if you can get the lower a-arm to come up anymore, and if you can, try again, you WILL get it, don't quit. Once its threaded, you can stop prying, and bolt it tight. It is going to spin though. so, use vice grips until you can get it as tight up as you can go with the grips on, the remove the grips and release the pressure from the lower-arm with the jack, and let it droop down again, this will put pressure on the upper a-arm ball joint, and it will no longer spin, and you can bolt it tight.
Once you have that bolted up, just bolt the sway bar end link back up to the lower a-arm underneath the lower a-arm, remeber to use vice grips to stop it from spinning. Once thats tight double check everything and you are done!
Repeat on the second side.
On to the rear end!
I used 2" steel blocks and longer u-bolts from advanced auto. Autozone has a kit too but its aluminum and I wanted the steel.
after the truck is on jack stands, use the jack to support the rear axles "pumpkin", and get under there and unbolt the shocks from the axle, and just let them hang. Then, go over to both sides of the wheel wells and unbolt the u-bolts, and take them all out. now, lower the jack until you think you can clear the blocks, and place them in.
IMPORTANT: when you throw the new longer u-bolts on, MAKE SURE you do the driver's side FIRST, and make sure the e-brake is OFF. The ebrake cable on the driver's side doesnt have much slack, and for some reason, if you bolt up the drivers side last, you cant get the axle to line up with the leaf spring, its off about an inch, and you cant pull the axle, cause the ebrake cable is so tight. So do the driver's side first, it will line up, THEN do the passengers side.
So its done.
The truck rides good, i got exactly 2" in the front, and exactly 2" in the rear (of course)
Struts and shocks perform the same, the 2" blocks get close to maxing the rear shocks but they work fine. The front struts don't get extended with this kit, so of course they perform normal.
Upper a-arm ball joint is at a larger angle, but nothing that makes me feel it will become damaged.
It was worth doing, and cost me $75 for all the parts. However, it was a PITA, and if I wasnt in a heated garage, I would rather have paid someone.
Got it done though, pics to come when it stops snowing. Good luck!
#2
02-22-2009, 02:08 PM
Congrats on getting it done. Make a world of difference, doesn't it.
You said- " the 2" blocks get close to maxing the rear shocks but they work fine"
That is very true. Too much suspension drop and the rear will bottom out the shocks.
Easy fix for that, and a much improved ride.
Bilstein F4-BE5-6682-H6
Just make sure and get the correct bushings and metal insert for the Dakotas mounting bolts.
One thing to be sure of, when at full droop in the rear, make sure you are not stretching your rear brake lines. Mine did, so I had to "adjust" the brakeline brackets.
If you feel that the rear is now a little "loose" or sloppy feeling, let me know and I will help you with some brackets/blocks to get the rear anti-roll bar back into proper alignment. Just those 2" blocks will make the bar be at an "unnatural angle".
No one has these blocks, so I designed and made my own out of billet aluminum.
I may have missed it, but did you get the alignment yet?
You said- " the 2" blocks get close to maxing the rear shocks but they work fine"
That is very true. Too much suspension drop and the rear will bottom out the shocks.
Easy fix for that, and a much improved ride.
Bilstein F4-BE5-6682-H6
Just make sure and get the correct bushings and metal insert for the Dakotas mounting bolts.
One thing to be sure of, when at full droop in the rear, make sure you are not stretching your rear brake lines. Mine did, so I had to "adjust" the brakeline brackets.
If you feel that the rear is now a little "loose" or sloppy feeling, let me know and I will help you with some brackets/blocks to get the rear anti-roll bar back into proper alignment. Just those 2" blocks will make the bar be at an "unnatural angle".
No one has these blocks, so I designed and made my own out of billet aluminum.
I may have missed it, but did you get the alignment yet?
#3
02-22-2009, 02:57 PM
Congratulations on getting it all in, now pics! 
That's a really nice write up too, if you can get some pics to go with it would make a great DIY, I have a couple pictures of the front suspension with the wheel off if you'd like to steal those go ahead
http://s59.photobucket.com/albums/g3...%20Suspension/
That's a really nice write up too, if you can get some pics to go with it would make a great DIY, I have a couple pictures of the front suspension with the wheel off if you'd like to steal those go ahead
http://s59.photobucket.com/albums/g3...%20Suspension/
#4
02-22-2009, 04:46 PM
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#5
02-22-2009, 11:24 PM
Hey, thanks everyone. To answer, NJJer's question, no I did not get an alignment yet, but am planning to very soon. The truck is probablly out of alignment, but its tracking straight, and when I get some time I will get it aligned.
The rear seems ok to me, I didn't really notice the brake lines being an issue, but I will have to double check that. I feel like they seemed to have no slack before i tightened everything up, but once the blocks were tight, it had just enought at full droop.
I have had the truck on the highway as fast as 60mph, and been around town with it a few times today and all seems to be pretty decent, and handles well. I really do not notice much of a difference in ride and handling from stock at all.
I will get pictures of the truck up on here tommorow, it snowed/rained most of the day here today, so I didn't bother.
The truck definately looks a hell of alot better. I don't know why they were made to sit so low from the factory. Looks aren't everything though, and I really hope this setup lasts the test of time, because I never plan to take it off.
The rear seems ok to me, I didn't really notice the brake lines being an issue, but I will have to double check that. I feel like they seemed to have no slack before i tightened everything up, but once the blocks were tight, it had just enought at full droop.
I have had the truck on the highway as fast as 60mph, and been around town with it a few times today and all seems to be pretty decent, and handles well. I really do not notice much of a difference in ride and handling from stock at all.
I will get pictures of the truck up on here tommorow, it snowed/rained most of the day here today, so I didn't bother.
The truck definately looks a hell of alot better. I don't know why they were made to sit so low from the factory. Looks aren't everything though, and I really hope this setup lasts the test of time, because I never plan to take it off.
#6
02-22-2009, 11:36 PM
King Jackass
#7
02-23-2009, 08:41 AM
Here are the pictures of the finished product:
Although it may not be a dramatic difference, it is a big difference. 2" around sort of looks like some factory option. But either way, sitting next to another dakota of the same year, the stance is greatly improved. My truck is wearing worn out 265/75 on the 16x7 painted steel rim.
DSC04932.jpg
DSC04927.jpg
DSC04928.jpg
DSC04929.jpg
DSC04930.jpg
DSC04931.jpg
Although it may not be a dramatic difference, it is a big difference. 2" around sort of looks like some factory option. But either way, sitting next to another dakota of the same year, the stance is greatly improved. My truck is wearing worn out 265/75 on the 16x7 painted steel rim.
DSC04932.jpg
DSC04927.jpg
DSC04928.jpg
DSC04929.jpg
DSC04930.jpg
DSC04931.jpg
Last edited by MonkeyWrench4000; 02-23-2009 at 10:52 AM.
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#8
02-23-2009, 12:09 PM
Ok after taking a pic of the rear blocks, i realized i needed a car wash bad, so heres a few more post car wash:
if you lookm at the pics above in my last post, at the picture of the rear end underneath, i may be doing a good cleaning and painting in the spring to hold off the rusting. I really want to keep this truck for the long run. I'm sure I will be posting about that in 2 months.
DSC04935.jpg
DSC04936.jpg
DSC04934.jpg
if you lookm at the pics above in my last post, at the picture of the rear end underneath, i may be doing a good cleaning and painting in the spring to hold off the rusting. I really want to keep this truck for the long run. I'm sure I will be posting about that in 2 months.
DSC04935.jpg
DSC04936.jpg
DSC04934.jpg
Last edited by MonkeyWrench4000; 02-23-2009 at 12:11 PM.
#9
02-23-2009, 12:46 PM
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#10
02-23-2009, 05:55 PM
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