Im about to get a body lift done and was wondering if anyone knows how much it is to get it done. just got 22 kmc monster for graduation on 35, but dont fit. so i wanna get bilstein shocks and a body lift to clear them.

 

well bilsteins will run ya about 500 installed and a body lift with gap guards will be close to 800 bucks to a 1000. so you might as well just get a pro comp 6" suspension lift and install it yourself. besides 35's on 22's with a body lift would be silly IMO

 

im getting the body lift and bilsteins for right now then get a 6 inch fabtech to run 40's on 22's when my 35 run out. just wanted to see how much for a body lift to see if i have enough and i do. ill make a new thread to put pictures up. will be done in like 2 weeks.

 

Do it yourself, it will probably cost twice as much as the lift kit to pay someone else to do it right. it's time consuming, and somewhat labor intensive, but by no means is it overly complicated.

 

what year is your truck! From what i read the newer 04+ are really a pain to do! They body lift and gap gaurd will only cost you under $300. However i recieved a quote when i went and picked mine up (standard service i had already planned on puttin mine on) of 900 just in install plus the 200+ for the bodylift.

 

trimble, what i wonder is why the 04-08's are such a PITA to do? everyone says they are, and I don't doubt there may be a valid reason, but what is it that makes them that much harder to put on an 04-08?

 

what would make these trucks different from any other to make them more difficult? personally i think any body lift isnt the easiest job..... in the fact that it definatley takes time. plus, if you dont have a wlder to extend the linkages and such, it makes it more difficult.

 

Im just typing what i have been told and what i have read! Im not sure why people say the are so much of a PITA but ive heard it on here ive heard it at 4wheelparts store, ideal automotive, leroys 4x4, and northside! They all hate doing them but im not sure why!

I know the cabs are heavier but not that much. im really not sure... and so far no one one here has done one on the 04+ thats saying something! Also theres only a hand full of guys on here even running a bodylift on the 04+ and all that ive talked to had them installed or bought the truck with them installed!

 

I can't speak to the newer 04+s, but I've installed 2 BLs on a 00 and an 03. I have also heard that the 04+s are a PITA, more so that the older 97-03 older body styles. Why this is, I don't know.

Installs on the 00 and 03 weren't that bad at all. Yes they are time consuming, but the most difficult part on both installs was getting the bed bolts out. After that, it was pretty smooth sailing for me on both.

No welder is needed to extend the linkage, at least on the 97-03s. The 04+s may be a different story but I doubt it. The kits come with everything you need and can be installed with basic shop tools. It is helpful to have air tools however but not necessary.

OP - If you have a 97-03, I would try to install it yourself. I pics of the install process with descriptions in gallery. You're looking at about a $900 install price on a $200 kit. That's a bit costly IMO. Even if you have an 04 or newer, I would still probably try to tackle it myself first with a couple of buddies. The 04+s can't be that difficult. Just my .02 though.

 

the reason the 04+ body is considered are to lift is because the bolts that hold the body in place go from top to bottom, and not bottom to top. this means you need to pull up some of the carpet, some of the plastic trim, and the back of the rear seat needs to be removed in order for you to access the bolt heads. then to make it worse, the nut needs to be held in place while loosening the bolt or it will just spin making it difficult for one person to do.

 

that's not any different than a 97-03. on a scab you have to pull the back seat, and in a reg cab you have to pull them as well. just not in a screw. ford uses the same PITA threadlocker as well, and one guy has to hold the bottom of the bushings w/ a pair of channel locks while one loosens them for the front two cab bolts, as well as the front two bushings. i did mine myself, i am speaking from my firsthand experience.

what i was perhaps wondering was if the radiator actually HAS to be pulled or something along those lines that would make it a definite PITA. on my 03, we got away w/ not even draining the coolant, despite what the instructions say you have to do. and yes, it was a proper install. every bolt/nut/fastener got threadlocker and went where it was supposed to go.

 

I just put a 3" PA in mine yesterday. The biggest pain was the bed bolts. Ended up cutting 3 of them off. The body bolts were easy, didn't even have to hold the bushings or anything on the bottom, just used a 3/4" drive ratchet and spun them all out.

I didn't drain my radiator either. I didn't even unbolt my powersteering or tranny cooler just left them hooked up and had absolutely no problems putting everything back together. I had a buddy sit up in the front and watch all the lines while I raised it up. Worked like a charm.

The only thing I had problems with was the new shift linkage adapter they tell you to use. I tried it every direction possible, and it just doesn't work. When I had it hooked it put the linkage on the tranny at a bad angle and made it a pain to shift between gears. I left it off and hooked it up the way it was stock. I had just enough cable yet underneath the dash that it wasn't needed. Just pulled enough of the cable down towards to the tranny to get it hooked up. It works fine, still got just a little bit of slop down by the tranny and up by the shifter so it shouldn't cause any problems.

 

Im waiting to see pics... mines going on thursday! with some help of course! MM

 

Will get some up this afternoon.

 

That's nothing new - with the exception of the bolts being threaded from top to bottom, everything you listed needed to be done on the 97-03s.

I pulled the backseats on the SCab and SCrew, pulled the trim and peeled the carpet back to access the body bolts also. I still don't see what makes the 04+s more difficult than the 97-03s. Oh well, if someone installed a body lift on an 04+, I'd love to hear ya chime in.

There has to be something that is more complex to do on the 04+s than there was on the 97-03s. Anyone? Unless it's just a big misconception...