I posted a few topics on cranking my t-bars to give my front end a little lift a while back and i went to some shop on the turnpike but i forgot the name of it so i'll have to think of it later. But i mentioned cranking my t-bars to a guy and told him i wanted to go like 1.5 to 2" or whatever cranking the t-bars would get me height wise and he was just talking to me like i was stupid (probably because I was a kid) and he said "that's a lot of height to do" he was also saying how its gonna throw the speedometer off and all this other crap that made me not want to do it but again it popped in my head and i think this guy was full of you know what, all i need to do is crank the torsion keys and go get a front end alignment right? It shouldn't throw off all my gauges right? Since its starting to get warmer out i have been thinking about going at this again.

Thanks

 

It WILL stiffen the front end (you'll feel bumps a lot more and the ride will be more jarring) the higher you crank, the stiffer the ride. You WILL need an alignment after doing it.

The speed is read off the ring gear in the back of the truck, raising or lowering the truck will effect nothing as far as any gauges go. The guy knows nothing of what he says!

Now raising the truck AND going to a different size tire WILL make your speedo and odometer off...

 

I just raised my '02 QC 4x4 and it runs alittle rougher... i have some shuddering when I slow down rather quickly but its a truck and I like the way it looks.

Hammer gives good advice so listen well. Just dont bottom out the bolts, cause you run the risk of shearing one off and the pushing the torsion key to high and that will snap the torsion bar. I tightened 'em down and got about 2" out of her and shes not bottomed out. So youll be fine. Now your gonna need some new bigger and beefier tires....

 

it wont throw off your speedometer. you need to pick a spot and measure from the ground up to make sure you are lifting both sides the same,cause it probably wont take the same amount of turns for both sides. and yes,get a alignment. and i would recommend new longer shocks. it will help keep that factory ride quality.

 

Once again HAMMER and all of his followers speak the truth!! The so called mechanic guy is full of SH**!

 

Cranking the T-bars is not something I would ever do or reccomend. it's a poor boy's way of getting a few extra inches. It stresses them to an extreme and I just don't like the whole idea. it's your truck though. I'd spend the extra few $$$ and install a level kit with new shocks and be done. That's the very next step up from poor boys lift....lol It's a much smoother ride too.

 

AAAHIGHT DOG! Wha you got agin the po' boy?lol

 

You know 'dog, I used to agree with you 100%. As a matter of fact if you read the "Lifting a Truck - 101" I wrote some time ago for the newbies, you'll see where I recommended the keys over cranking the bolts.

But I got kinda "into it" with the local 4x4 shop here, and the guy actually showed me that the keys put just as much tension on the bars as turning the screws. Unlike a suspension kit, where the rearward position of the bars is also raised, the position is unchanged, therefore the amount of torque is the same. Granted, the keys let you take it a little higher than just the bolts, but other than that, it's really the same.

I agree though, that the keys are larger and can withstand the pressure better than the bolts, and is a safer lift, and that you should get shocks. But I really have seen no issue with cranking the bolts if you leave 2" as your extreme limit...

 

I wish i had the money to afford a suspension lift.. but i have little expendable income... so cranking on the torrsion bars works for me!

 

hmmm, so the keys provide a different angle of positioning to alleviate the extra tension while still allowing additional raise??? Yet you say the position hasn't changed? The angle must then.