First off...thank you to all of you on this forum who provide information that we can all use to make doing things to our trucks easier. I read multiple threads on here and searched all around for answers to my questions and I was almost always able to find exactly what I was looking for here.

Second...I want you to know that I blame you all for the money I will be spending on my truck now.

I purchased the Daystar 2.5" Coil Spring Spacers from Performance Lifts: http://performancelifts.com/cgi-bin/cart/CSEC163.html to level out my '05 2wd. I'm not planning on writing a how to article here because I followed the one written by TXST8tj at https://dodgeforum.com/forum/3rd-gen...eling-kit.html

A couple of things that I would like to note that were a bit different on my install:

1. I did use a coil spring compressor since I was doing this by myself. I don't know how I would have ever gotten the springs and spacers back in without it.
2. The first side (passenger side in my case) took much longer than the other side even following the guide and instructions. Once I did it once the other side was really easy.
3. I purchased a Pitman Arm Puller from Advance Auto for less than $18. And it barely fit. I had to modify it a bit in fact but then it was easy to disconnect the ball joint.
4. I contacted Daystar because in the guide that TXST8tj wrote he used the coil spring isolator with the spacer. The Daystar rep responded back to my email within a few minutes to let me know that the spacer is to be used to REPLACE the isolator. I figured that. Also, if I had left the isolator in with the spacer I would have raised the front of my truck past level.

So, all total doing the work by myself it took me about 3 hours I guess. Not too bad. So now some pictures. Ignore the dirt and the bald tires. Those are the original tires that came on my truck when I bought it new in December 2004. 56,000 miles later they definitely need replacing…that’s next.

Here is the truck before:


The space above the front wheel before (about 5.5” or so):


And here is what the truck looked like after:


The space above the wheel after (just under 8”):


And for comparison the space above the rear tire. So they are pretty close to level now:


The truck definitely rides rougher now. Much stiffer. I still have the stock shocks on there so I will be looking to replace those soon. A couple of questions about that. What length is the right length? I have heard people mention 2” longer shocks but some people then get the issue where the control arm hits the spring bucket. So I guess I need to know what the “right” length should be so I don’t trade one issue for another one. And then, do I need to replace the shocks before I get the new tires and get the alignment done?

I’m going to be getting new tires this week, hopefully. It appears that I will be going with the Nitto Terra Grapplers. My current tires are 265/70/17. I’m hoping that I can fit 305/70/17 but if not I will go with the 295/70/17. The shop where I am planning to get the tires said they would test fit them for me. I’m planning to keep my stock rims.

So…things I’m planning to do in the future not in the order they will necessarily be happening:

·Fog lights: My truck is the SLT so I already have the wiring harness, fuse and relay for the fog lights. I just need the lights and the switch.
·Shocks
·Possibly CAI and exhaust
·New speakers, amps, subs

I have thought about changing out or painting my headlights but I’m not sure what that would look like on a silver truck. Maybe keeping them as they are would look better.

Anyway...there it is...it has begun.

 

Looks good. Man that little font at the top is hard for us old fella's to read

 

looks good the only thing i see wrong is that thingy up in the left corner with teeth.....and i got a good link for a good cai for a great price i tell everyone that has a 4.7 l....http://cpwstore.carpartswholesale.co...S-V218205.html
ilove mine i just recommend a new better filter.....but the price you cant go wrong.....

 

Looks good and job well done. Just so you know, even though the spacer is to replace the isolator, there is nothing saying you cant put the isolator on the bottom of the coil and the spacer on top to get the extra height. Thats how I did mine and I never had any issues.

Hell, now that I think of it, thats how it is now with my setup.

 

Heh...sorry about that lxman1. I had written it up in Word so I could catch my misspellings and when I copied it over I didn't notice the font size.

Thanks for that link jusjay727. Oh and...GO GATORS! ;-)

And weedahoe I'm sure putting the isolator on there too is fine. But it would have meant I would have had to lift the backend a little too to get it leveled. The spacers were 3 inches tall. They are sold as the 2.5 inch spacer which they are when you take into account the indention for the coil spring to sit in and the tapered top I guess.

 

im just picking on ya they are a great team but lately ive jumped onto the locals even tho they are behind quite a bit not been doing so good since grothe got hurt....but im still a noles fan you guys have quite the qb tho very impressive....go on and get that intake its worth it.....ooooooohhhhhooooooohhhhhhhh.......

 

Ahhh, thank you for linking that site. I've finally found a suspension lift for an 08 2wd ! I may not be getting it in the near future, but just knowing one exists already is satisfying enough And to get the 4" with spacers to make it a custom 4" 5" or 6" lift is neat haha

 

Glad my thread was able to help.

I have a couple of questions:

Apparently the Nitto Terra Grapplers will fit my 17x8 stock rims. That's good news. But one guy I talked to mentioned that they are 10 ply tires and heavy. What kind of issues could that cause? Worse gas mileage?

What are some good, aggressive looking tires that aren't overly heavy and won't cost me my first born?

I was looking around at performancelifts.com today and they have the Daystar 2.5" level spacers now with longer shocks. The shocks they offer are 1" longer than stock. Is that the right length? Does 1 inch really make that much difference? I need some new shocks bad.

 

lotta people here rave about the LTZ. Me I went more on the aggressive side but..... i had to give up the first born..... I havent seen too much decrease in gas, maybe a .10 when im pissed but it sure is a dog on the interstate. My kit came with relocation brackets and my shocks are still going strong but as soon as theyre done im going with ranchos 9000x or something like that.

 

Looks GOOD! Leveled my 07 2WD like 2 weeks ago and the stance is so much better, gives it a completely different look. I had to use the spring compressors as well but since I wanted maximum height i left the stock isolator in...ended up pretty much perfectly level cause after riding on it for a couple of days the front settled down a bit.