I still have some deciding on for my truck, due to having to save up and whatnot. Iv been trying to decide which would be better. A body lift or a suspension lift. I tried searching, but nothing really came up on the actual main difference and which one is better for your truck. I see that the Body lifts come in 3". Does the 3" body and the 4" suspension ride about the same heighth? I liek the heighth that the 4" Rancho lift comes, but an awful lot of money and trying to figure out what all the differences are. Im looking at running 35" tires and for it to sit high, but not too high(seems like a 6" would be too high for me). Any help is greatly appreciated.

 

Truck specs?

 

well assuming you understand the differences between the two you realize the price difference. the BL is just a bunch of spacers where as the suspension lift has alot of new parts.

the bl will retain the factory ride. id suggest you do a suspension lift and get the 6" since once you do either the bl or the 4" youll want to go bigger.

 

Both are fine. Body lifts are a great value, if you can install them yourself. Body lifts are a pain in the rear to install on the 04-08 trucks so shops charge a lot to install them.

 

Ah ok. One good thing i do have going for me is my buddy has a garage and said he's willing to assist in the project. What im kind of wondering, basically is, does parts wear out quicker (IE bearings, steering) with either or? What are kind of the benifits over the other? The installation not too worried about, either im figuring is going to take a while haha. I really don't know too much about lifts and whatnot, so im trying to find all the advice i can haha.

 

the BL doesnt touch the suspension so it wont mess with anything that wears out unless you run HUGE tires haha.

the suspension lift will replace alot of stock parts with bigger and stronger components and also allows you to replace worn parts at the same time. the kits are designed to give a factory like setup for the wear of parts. changing things on them like adding spacers and what not may cause more wear

 

Ah sorry.

I have a 2004 FX4 Ext Cab 5.4
Looking at running 35" BFG's A/T's

 

Ok. So the suspension lift is probably a better thing for in the long run so im replacing the parts now and won't really have to worry about it as quick?

 

your truck with 6" and 35"s would look sweet (assuming its looks alright now haha)

with the suspension lift youll have everything apart and its the perfect time to replace parts and like me my truck rides alot better with the lift over the level it had. might have been since i had a broken shock and the new ones are so smooth but still

 

You won't be replacing many wear parts with the parts included in a suspension kit. The shocks are the only thing that come to mind. The rest of the kit is pretty much steel (crossmembers, spacers, steering knuckles, etc.). Things like ball joints and tie rods will cost you more, but as stated, if you need them, it's a great time to do it since it's apart.

 

Keep this in mind as far as increased wear. A taller, wider heavier tire is gonna increase wear and tear on your truck slightly. However, the type lift isn't gonna really affect that. Let's take a 35x12.50 tire, because it's so common. Whether you mount them on a stock truck, one with a body lift or one with a suspension lift, the wear and tear they create is gonna be pretty much the same. The only variable would be the wheels as a wider aftermarket wheel with less backspacing is gonna add to the wear and tear a little also.

 

Yes, and no. It depends on what kit you use. The least expensive kits don't replace as many parts.

-Front driveshaft. Most kits suggest that you modify or replace the front driveshaft. If you don't, you may get vibration and premature wear down the road.

-Brake lines. Few kits include brake lines. Do a search here and find the posts where people have had to replace them later. Not a huge expense, but it's nice when a kit includes them, and you avoid a potentially dangerous situation.

An option for you might be a combo body lift-leveling kit. That will save a lot of money.

 

Ok, Im really appreciating everyones help, because im not really too familiar with suspensions and whatnot with trucks, a pretty grey area to me. But definately learning a lot, just making sure i do a lot of researching and question asking before i spend the money and not do it right or get something wrong or whatnot. Because im definately finding out that the equipment isn't cheap and im figuring i have a few months saving up to figure out what im going to get.

I think im getting a good idea (thanks to everyones help on here) on what i want to get. Was looking at the Rough Country 4" susp. lift, but the more i'v been looking, i think i may save the extra 800$ or whatever more it is and go with a Rancho lift. Probably looking at getting BFG A/T's with the 35" tire with an 18" (either stock or MB gunner 6) wheel. The only other problem il have is going to try and figure out the backspacing and offset and that sort of thing. Don't really know to much about that. The only real other question is...whats the main difference in the tire sizes between like the 35x12.5x18 and the 325/65/18? What my main goal with the wheels are i don't want them to look skinny from the front or back.

 

the skinny thing is fixed by getting wheels with a good backspace that will stick them out 1-2" from the fenders. not sure what bs that is on the 04-08 trucks

 

You are not going to clear 35" with just a 4" lift. You'll need a 6" for that.

If you want to go that route, check out http://www.central4wd.com/inventoryd...7;folder|98364