So Ive had my truck since March and have been lurking around to see what kind of lift, tires, rims, etc. to add to my truck.

I've read articles and posts... heard the good and bad. But I'm still not quite sure what exactly to do.

I'd like to add 6" suspension and 3" body. At the time, I wanted to use the RCD kit - but now I've been hearing FabTech has cleaned up their act... so are they the better deal for the money now?

Who should I go with regarding body lifts?

If I wanted to do all of this myself, is there someone who could tell me how they've done it?

Just some questions. I know alot of this has been gone over in the past, but information changes over time.

Thanks in advance!!!!

Erica

 

Sounds good Erica but, you'll have to give up those short skirts.

 

erica.....to put a 6inch lift on and then throw 3 more you are looking at a big truck....please keep in mind that you will need big tires to go with your big truck.......after about 36inch tire(my opinion) you are going to get a considerable wear on your engine....i was also looking at the fabtech 6 with a 3 inch body.....but was told that it acts like a box spring and is all over the place.......not only that but you are probably going to need new gears and stabilizers and such....please do not let me change your mind ( i would like to see your truck if you do decide to go with that lift) but i would keep in mind everything else you are going to have to do with your truck to make it handle the lift you want and also the loss of a street ride feeling..... here is a picture of my truck.... with 3 inch spindles and 3 inch body...and 33's

 

That's a nice looking truck. So I'm assuming yours is also a 4x2. I've looked into the possibilities of crapping out my drive quality(which I'm use to from my old dodge ram that had a ten inch overall lift with the 35's..but it was a 4x4).

The lift will be mostly for show. I'm ready for the cost of re-gearing...and have a good idea of what ratio I should be using. Someone mentioned doing that themselves, as well. Would be interested in taking on the job if I had a good idea of how to do it. I've done lowering springs on cars before. So it's not entirely new to me.

I don't want to go with just a body lift... I'd rather have a combination of suspension and body... as far as I know - I wouldnt be able to fit 36's, even with the size lift I've been desiring.

Also, I plan on doing a shave job on the front part of the fender well/bumper in front to accomodate the 35's.

And as for short skirts... just make sure to wear shorts under them

 

i have a 6" rcd with 35" bfg muds and a 3" pa body lift. its also 2 wheel drive. it looks like you got your truck at the same time i got mine. the body lift was a piece of cake to install. took me and my brother 6 1/2 hours to install (including lunch). as far as suspension install, i personally wouldnt do it. i would rather pay someone to do that who has the right tools and has delt with it before. i dont think they are that difficult, but its a little more detailed than a few nuts and bolts and a jack like the body lift was. email me if you have any more questions. mitch

 

I will be sending an email your way. Very nice looking truck.

 

LiftedTruckGirl, don't get turned off by being told that tires over 36" will increase engine wear, if you change your gears your golden. I'm running 4.56's and that's somewhat taller than I'd like but it's still a good setup. When I goto 42's it may be a little sluggish, but the O.D. compared to my 39.5's isn't much taller. Anyways, I've always been told that Rancho's are the best all together for the smaller type lifts, I've never delt with them myself, but I run their shocks and they're nothing but good. The Rancho 4" and a 3" TrailMaster body kit along with Weld Typhoon 16.5x9.75's and Super Swamper TSL Radial 35x14.50R16.5 will run you around $3,800. That's not including your gear swap but it's not a necessity with that tire size, as someone mentioned before, and I feel this is a good rule of thumb, 36" and over consider re-gearing up into the 4's. Send me an e-mail if you have any further questions or just post back here, I'd love to hear from you.
-Kelly

 

Hey there Kelly,

Thanks for the good info - but that's only good on a 4x4...isn't it? From what I understand - all rules change with a 2wd truck. I've been told these general guidelines, and please tell me if I'm misinformed:

Nothing taller than 6" suspension+3" body lift
No tires taller than 35"
Rim size cannot be 16.5x9.75. Must be smaller to fit the 2wd frame.

Help a sistah out here, guys!

Erica

 

Well I was running a 3" body lift, 3" spindle lift and some coil spacers with 35" bfg all terrains on 16.5x9.75's

On my 4x2

 

ccla - I hear that the 2001 is a little bit different in the wheel well area. I don't know how true that is. One offroad store had told me that the well is actually smaller and over time, Ford is making it harder to fit lifts on the trucks at all. Again, not sure how true this really is.

I do know that the lift packages have been different from certain companies from 1997-1999 and then 2000-2001.

Has anyone had any problems with transmissions being damaged? or extreme loss of power?

Conejo offroad in thousand oaks told me today that I might not have to re-gear with 35" tires... even though I have only a 4.6 litre engine.

Seems like everyone has had different experiences so far.

 

Here's how I feel suspension wise. I'm bad with wheels and tires and that comes easy to some people so I'll just give you my input regarding the suspension aspect of things. I would personally go with Fabtech's 6.5" long travel system. http://www.fabtechmotorsports.com/fo...0_late_LT.html

This would just get rid of adding a body lift all together and going with all suspension, IMHO that's the best way to go, I couldn't do that in my case, if I could have, I would have. Hope this helps, post another if you have any other questions. I would also suggest Pro-Comp's new X-terrain's for a machine like this, that's the ultimate 4x2 in my mind!
-Kelly

 

Just the lift alone you have options and it depends on what you plan on doing with the truck, in a way. My friend had a '98 F-150 with the fabtech setup, and I would say that it was the best lift I've ridden on. I loved it. It was smooth, and the truck had a lot of travel. I'm not sure about it wandering down the road, but his did cuz we did a lot of baja runs in it.
I would say if you are going to run the dunes and the whoops, 100% fabtech would be the way to go.
Superlift also has a good lift, but not quite as much travel. I have an '01 F-150 4X4, and if Fabtech had a lift for my truck right now (I heard that they are working on one) I would have it on my truck. I am waiting around to see if they come out with one.
Like the other guys said, you should look into getting some lower rearend gears to make up for the taller tires.

 

Boogie, that sounds good...but ya gotta remember, mine is only a 4x2...rules totally change for offroading in a 4x4 as opposed to 2wd. The lifts available for a 4x4 are different than what I have available to me.

Whiplash - how did you get a ten inch suspension lift on yours? I'm thinking that you have a 4x4 as well. I'll take a look at the Long Travel again, but I dont believe they have it for 2wd...

 

quoted from fabtech....


The installation of our tubular upper and lower control arms provides 4" more front suspension travel and plenty of room for 33" tall tires.
The ultimate long travel system combines our long travel system and 3" lift spindles for incredible ground clearance and the
peak of performance. Tire height increases to 35" tall.


http://www.fabtechmotorsports.com/fo...0_late_LT.html


Hope this helps. Wish I could afford it!

 

Thats one beautiful truck Whiplash_F150... We started a club for Florida F-150 owners...the website is www.FL-150.com if you are interested.
Damon