I agree, so ended putting a set of super springs for the rears. They have added some roll stability with or without loads. Can also use air bags. Depending on setup, these can negatively impact ride comfort, but for the most part, guys adding bigger tires/level kits don't mind or prefer a stiffer ride anyways.

Stock truck vs. level kit/tires totally changes the look of the truck for the better imo even tho it cost some mpg's, but I didn't buy a truck for those attributes.

Before:



After:

 

I had a 2.5" autospring on the front and 3" blocks in the rear.

I wont be doing it on my new 2011 coming in. I love the look of a slightly lifted truck but the ride was much harsher, and if I hit a big bump the whole truck would be thrown to one side or the other instead of holding the road.

When I test drove a factory 2011 compared to my lifted 08, it was like I was driving a Land Rover.

 

Yes, there are multiple notches in the newest 5100 struts to set the height of the lower spring perch...including the lowest setting which retains stock ride height. However, since the the inner shaft only extends out a finite distance, when you move the lower perch up say 2", it requires you to compress the coil spring an additional 2" in order to be able to install the bushing, top plate, and retaining nut...resulting in a firmer/harsher ride. At least that was the way they were on the '04-'08 models

 

I like the before picture!!

 

I have said it before and I'll say it again, a leveling kit is the quick, cheap and dirty way to lift a truck just a bit. I'm a staunch proponent of full suspension lifts as the only way to properly lift a vehicle. For many folks though its an economical option, and I hope anyone with a leveling kit would at least consider the possibility of a full suspension lift down the road.


The harshness in ride from a spacer on top comes from the loss of droop travel in the suspension. Hit a pothole and now the suspension has absolutely no way to 'droop' and absorb the downward travel and results in the UCA banging the coil spring. You will have upward suspension travel for days, but its virtually useless since droop travel is all but gone.


The 5100's use 'preload' to get lift, that is in a nutshell compressing the spring more so it spreads the strut out. Spreading a coil spring (lowering the spring perch on the strut) would result in a loss of ride height because it's no longer at the correct preload to hold up it's rate value, say a "16x600" is a 16" spring rated to hold 600# just to give an example. This is why the '0' setting on the 5100's is factory ride height, factory preload; anything beyond that is not going to serve you well.


This is how bilstein 5100's come, set to the maximum preload.


The next notch to the left (or down the shock body) is 2", then 1", then 0" or factory.

 

Do all the 5100 ride adjustable for say, the 2011 come with a lower perch? I was under the impression that they did not according to the instructions. It says that must be re-used, and I'm thinking that the OEM are probably welded on?

Given that, if a person wanted to bring the front end up a bit, which would be a better choice here: a daystar 1" (really 1 3/8" spacer) or a set of the bilstein 5100 ride adjustable at 1.75"?

Bear in mind please that I'm not interested in any other suspension mods than that.

 

I don't beleive that the OEM perches are welded on, however I am faintly familiar with the 2011 setups, but assume it is similar to 10, and possibly 04-08.

So what your saying is the bilsteins didn't come with a 'perch' and you have to reuse the factory one? I think that is how it was with my 04-08 bilsteins too, and it was not welded on at the time.

It really depends on how much you want to raise the front end, it looks like you want to just give it a tougher stance. I am not familiar with Daystar as of late, but assume it is still a poly type coil spacer? If so, both type of kits will require some disassembly of the factory coilover in which case I'd go with the bilsteins for the better ride quality and flexibility of choices. I probably answered your PM wrong after seeing this thread... I'll have to look into the 2011 bilstein struts to offer more help, or maybe PM 'paw-paw' he is a member here with first hand experience with adjustable bilsteins on his 2011

 

Wow, you are one lucky man, I lost nearly 2mph with the level and another 1 with the 33's. And yes, that's with a VMP tune.

 

Although I agree that a "true" lift kit that raises the vehicle while maintaining full suspension geometry and travel is the best and always recommended method, the reality is that there are ZERO such lift kits under 4".

The majority of truck owners do not want to do anything more than "a couple inches" maximum, for whatever their reasons. For example, very few want to put massive 35" tires, while 33x12" may be more acceptable but won't typically fit under stock height trucks with aftermarket rims. Others may want to just add a little more space between the front fender and tire so just having the rear lowered to level the vehicle will not suffice. Another big issue is that access to both the vehicle and the bed become more difficult the higher the vehicle is lifted (especially when family and kids are involved). Lastly, the higher the lift, the less likely you will be able to fit that truck into parking garages (important for us city folk).

Unfortunately, the costs involved with having a complete custom suspension kit that only provides 2-3" of lift would probably not be received as well as a 4"+ kits as those customers that truly are "diehard" lift proponents willing to spend that much money typically go for the 6" kits with 35"+ tires (any smaller diameter tire with such high lift would probably look very odd).

And all currently available 4x4 4"+ kits for 09+ require cutting off parts of factory components, meaning there is no easy way to return to a stock suspension if the need arises.

 

I have not yet opened the bilsteins I got from amazon and yes the daystar is the poly kit.

 

Exactly

 

Sure, yes, uh huh...

I guess hauling around large, bulky boxes, spare parts, mountain bikes, furniture, sheets of plywood and drywall, dimensional lumber, picnic/grilling equipment and chairs, recyclable material, hazardous material, lawn mowers, air compressors, all my "deuce" gear and seabags, and even my niece's baby stroller (heck, even a tank road wheel and track adjusting link) counts for nothing towards using my truck since none of them amounts to 500 pounds or more any given moment.

Using that metric, then all of us F150's owners are really just "sissy" truck owners as we REALLY should be driving F350's with the 6.7L Power Stroke diesel and towing my house around with it 24/7. Wheeee....

 

That's when I got interested YATYAS.

 

Hehe, YATYAS!

 

So on a 4" Rancho life, the back is lifted 4" and the front 6ish"? Or is the back only 2" and the front 4ish"? Or do you have a choice once you buy the full suspension lift? Yeah, I don't even change my own oil. I know jack about vehicles. I just want it to look cool. 2 wheel drive lifted would be fine for me.