Hey guys,

I am new to the forums but you guys seem to be on top of everyones questions.

My actual question is: If I get the Rouch Country lift with the 1.5' rear lift will my truck sit dead level. It seems like if this would make the truck sit with the front end sag below the rear. Am i wrong? Also, I want to fit the biggest tires on as possible without cutting and minimal rubbing.
The recommended tire size from the company (as im sure most of yall know) is 265/75 which is 31.6 inches but is it possible to fit 255/75 ( which i think is 32.1). I just want my truck to look agressive and make sure that the front is level or a little higher than the back.

I hope im not confusing anyone.

Thanks for yalls help

Cheers,

Jake

 

Welcome to DF Jake!

As far as the rear lift, the trucks gonna be really raked. From the factory, the front sits a tad lower than the rear. So if I was you I would lift the front in order for it to sit level. I havent leveled mine, but there are plenty of guys on here who have. I am sure they will chime in soon. Tire size, you have got the right number. Now a 255/75 would be smaller, its a 31 unless you meant a 255/75 17?

I am actually looking into lowering the rear, with the lower shackles which is another options for ya.

Good luck and keep us updated

 

The truck that you have right now, sits 2" lower in the front. So if you do JUST the front kit, it will sit more then level, .5" too high in the front, if you do the 1.5" rear blocks, then it will have a 1" rake.

But trust me when I say, it is going to look great with the 2.5" front, 1.5" rear.

Look at my signiture picture, that mine with a front 2" leveling kit and rear 2" blocks. So I have a full 2" rake.

The shocks they give you in the kit are way too long, and even with the blocks installed, will be useless. You can use your factory shocks with blocks are big as 2".

It's my opinion that you should buy the front leveling kit from whoever you want, most of us have Daystar, or Trailmaster leveling kits. And if you want to do the rear, you can buy a block and longer u-bolt kit from nearly anywhere for $20-$30. My truck has the 2" daystar levleing kit, and 2" block kit from Advanced Auto.

If you want the rough country kit, you can spend the extra $50 to get the rear blocks and u-bolts. If the shocks actually worked then that would be a great deal for an extra $50, but they are way to long, and look like they are better suited for a 6" lift kit.

Short Answer: You need at least a 1" block in the rear if you are doing 2.5" in the front. The front will sit too high with just the 2.5" kit, the rear blocks will help, plus you get more lift in the rear, who doesnt want that?


EDIT:

Here is a picture of a 2" front and 2" rear lift:

HPIM3236.jpg

The result of your truck would be a little bit more in the front, a little bit less in the rear. (if you use rough countrys kit)

And here is a picture of the rough country kit installed, with no rear kit:

P4100751.jpg

 

If you want the truck perfectly level you can also get the 2" front leveling kit (most of them) as opposed to the 2.5" (which if you have a 4x4 I would be wary of, 2" is about the limit). I have the Trailmaster leveling kit on mine with no lift in the rear:

DSC00409.jpg

 

Ok guys, thanks a lot for the quick responses. I think I will get the Rough Country leveling kit for the front and do the 1" block in the rear. I did mean 255/75r17 too btw sorry, forgot to specify. What tire size would yall say would work the best for my application?

Cheers

 

Welcome!!! I got the Daystar 2" Leveling kit in the front and nothing in the back!

Sacha.jpg

 

Thank Dakota_Raven. Any thing else I should know about leveling and tires? haha

 

Altair is right about 2.5" possibly being to much lift for a 4x4. From what I understand, a 2" leveling kit puts a pretty big angle on the CV joints, I am sure 2.5" would take it to the point where you would chew through them.

That leveling kit should be for a 4x2 only, I am pretty sure it says that on the Rough Country site. Just FYI.

If you have a 4x4, stick to 2".

If you have a 4x2, you can do the 2.5". I have the 2" daystar and when the wheels are off the ground, the upper ball joints are near maxed. No issues, but I am not sure if 2.5" would create issues. Not many of us have anything over 2".

 

Not to jack the thread, but MonkeyWrench, your truck is 4x2, right? What made you go with the 2" level as opposed to the 2.5", especially being that you did the shackles in the rear? Just curious.

 

Good question.

Alot of people will say that leveling kits will slightly increase the wear of front end componenets. Some say its negligable, and you would never notice, since these front end parts have a huge failure rate gap, example: some balljoints are shot at 40,000 miles, others at 100,000 miles.

BUT, there is such a thing as TOO much lift with a leveling kit. The front end is designed specifically for the stock factory length strut. Once you lengthen it with a leveling kit, you risk damaging components if you are not careful.

I am going to use daklorado's write up picture to show what I am saying:



I circled a bunch of angles on the picture. These are the angles of a front end with a 2" levleing kit. (but with the wheels off the ground, at full droop.) Since the 2" kit allows 2" of greater travel in the suspension, notice how it pulls the upper control arm down and ***** the balljoint to just about max. The control arm is actually 1/8th an inch away from touching the coil spring, and the balljoint isnt completely maxed, but very close. (this would not occur if the strut wasnt longer, the arm would get no where near the sprin, because it wouldnt be getting pulled down so far) Also, the cv joint angles are close to being concerning while at full droop. Again this is with 2". Now I dont have cvs, but I do have the upper control arm, and with ANY thicker of a levleing spacer the control arm will contact the coil spring, and the ball joint WILL be maxed. This will wear the balljoint fast.

Short answer: the 2" leveling kit is the maximum i find acceptable to keep the front end reliable on these trucks. I think 2.5" will be too much, and isnt a smart idea, BUT, people DO have them, and thats the owners choice to make.

Thats just my opinion. Now I have a buddy with an f150 and they have a similar situation as ours. There are 2", 2.5" and 3" kits, and 2.5" seems to be the max that they seem aceptable, but he and many others run 3" kits and simply knock on wood that they havnt had any problems.

I feel 2" is the better choice for BOTH 4x4 and 4x2 because of the control arm issue.