Sean.. and this differential looks to be lower than the ARCHED crossmember. But it is also protected..

 

First I would like to thank everyone for their comments and I really appreciate everybody keeping a level head and not taking things too seriously which has happened on a number of threads. As BOB stated I dont really abuse my truck offroad minor mudding and beach days in summer. and with a 4yr old, my budget is limited so I have some hard thinnking to do

 

Thanks for all the help guys. Im not sure what im going to do for sure. My wife is nagging me already about the cost. So i need to do it fairly cheap. I want 6" or more. Ill probly go with the fabtech, ive seen it for around 1500 with free shipping. I still may think about the superlift and a leavling kit. just haf to see the price diff. from the fabtech.............

 

DadWillis.. Why are going to put a leveling kit ontop of the lift? If you are interested in having 6-8"'s of suspension lift why not just get the FabTech, RIZE or RCD system. When I installed the Superlift suspension I removed the Leveling kit. and just used the 4.5" lift components and the rear 1.5" add-a-leaf to make my truck have a more even stance. And with my 35" inch tires I am very happy with this setup.

However I do see numerous members with 6-8" suspension kits running the additional leveling kit. Is this just your way of acheiving that much lift at the lowest cost? I am just wondering... BoB

 

How much does the superlift lift kit cost?

 

ya that was my thinking, getting at least 6 inches of lift at the lowest price. I will probly get fabtech. 1500 bucks isnt that bad at all.

 

Hello, HV14.4... When I purchased my Superlift kit back in July 06 they were running a special. I paid ~1270.00 including shipping. I did not realize I had to order the add-a-leaf separately and it was an additional ~99.00 including shipping. So I paid around 1400.00. I do not know what the prices are right now. Good luck with what ever system you select. I think most of the popular name suspension kits are tried and proven systems. It really boils down to personal preference and what options you perfer, and of course how much $$$ you have to spend BoB

 

bob...the skidplate on the rize protecting the differential is rounded at the body which makes it hard for debris to get hung up on.
now on the superlift theres a squared lip & a gap between the differential skidplate & the main skidplate. this is where i usually saw branches & such & other debris wedged between.

today when i get in the shop ill ask around to see what we did with the knuckles , but to my knowledge we sent them back to the manufactures.

im currently in the process of trying to get my dad to buy a digital camera for the shop so we can take before & after pics & things like that.
he says its not a currently needed item & personally thinks its a waste of time & money.

now to the price, last time i looked at the system it was a lil under $1500 & the kit with the bilstein shocks about $90 more. now these kits included rear add-a-leafs
about a week ago we had a customer come in & wanted a superlift 4.5" with the bilstein shocks & if i remeber correctly he paid us a lil over $1500 cash out the door (installed it himself). but ill look up the invoice when i get to the shop & check to see.
i wish everyone a great day & stay warm lol
sean

 

[QUOTE=sean_somer]bob...the skidplate on the rize protecting the differential is rounded at the body which makes it hard for debris to get hung up on.
now on the superlift theres a squared lip & a gap between the differential skidplate & the main skidplate. this is where i usually saw branches & such & other debris wedged between.

So the .5 inch gap on the Superlift skid plate catches more debris than the two inch wide slots on the RIZE? Sure looks like to me if you are talking about branches jamming into exposed openings then that RIZE lift is going to have branches hanging all under it... Look at all all those places for branches to jam into. I just disagree with statements made as "Hear Say" I do know my lift is one of cheapest made. But I have not had any of the issues you said were common. The bending, the rubbing, the exposed differential... I do use my truck and I'm happy with the overall ride and quality of my aftermarket parts. I get numerous compliments and as of yesterday I've logged over 9K miles on the suspension with No rubs, No bends, No errors. BoB

And of course... Happy Holidays to you as well. I still would like to see some pictures

 

got into the store today & every one of the knuckles were sent back to the manufactures (had to to get new ones under warranty)

oh & i looked up the price & it was $1593.91 out the door (included the bilstein shocks & add-a-leafs)

anyways, maybe superlift had problems with the first versions of the lift & have now fixxed them all. like i said ill put it on our 05 & put some good miles on & offroad to see how it does. im hoping itll be a really good system so we can have another lift to sell, cause the bigger the variety the better.

that sounds good & i hope you get 90k more miles out of it, but you probly dont beat the crap out of it like the guys here do, i mean, if you gave em a abrams m1 tank they would come back walking saying they dont know what happened to it

do you remember if you can use stock wheels with that kit or is aftermarket mandatory?
sean

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by sean_somer

do you remember if you can use stock wheels with that kit or is aftermarket mandatory?
sean

Sean, I live in the country and utilize the service of a very small FORD dealership. When my truck goes in for service I must install the factory wheels and tires in order for it to fit their lift system.(track lift instead of under body) I drive over 75 miles one way to the dealership. The stock wheels and tires fit fine. I looked underneath and behind the stock stuff and there is no binding, or rubbing. I hope this helps. This is another reason I originally purchased the SL 4.5" lift kit. I was told I could use stock wheels with up to 35" tires as long as I did not exceed 12" in tire width.(personally I do not know if a 12" wide tire will even fit a stock wheel, do you?) I must add that I was told this "by SL representative, Mike is his name" But after I installed the lift I decided to add after market wheels with **** Cepek Fun Country II tires.

Thanks again for your PROFESSIONAL comments and mature posts. I look forward to seeing your familys shop and some of the Modified trucks you turn out. I just enjoy seeing those before and after pictures... What a transformation BoB

 

Thanks for the information guys and it was good to see you all keep it professional. I'm looking for a lift for my truck and will be doing it in the spring and one of the lifts I was considering was the Superlift 4.5". I love the 6" fab tech or Rize but I use my truck to haul things and don't want it to high in the air. Plus I don't off road it really just doing it for looks and I save the crazy off-road stuff for my dirt bike, it's cheaper to fix

Can I run 33's with the super lift without it looking stupid or would I have to run 35's. I'm new to the lift thing so don't know a lot about them. Also would I need to add the add a leaf in the back? I just want my truck to sit and look level but might be towing a trailer of some kind by spring time.

BlueOval is your truck an 06 Smokestone color?

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by HillBilly

Thanks for the information guys and it was good to see you all keep it professional. I'm looking for a lift for my truck and will be doing it in the spring and one of the lifts I was considering was the Superlift 4.5". I love the 6" fab tech or Rize but I use my truck to haul things and don't want it to high in the air. Plus I don't off road it really just doing it for looks and I save the crazy off-road stuff for my dirt bike, it's cheaper to fix

Can I run 33's with the super lift without it looking stupid or would I have to run 35's. I'm new to the lift thing so don't know a lot about them. Also would I need to add the add a leaf in the back? I just want my truck to sit and look level but might be towing a trailer of some kind by spring time.

BlueOval is your truck an 06 Smokestone color?

HillBilly... I think 33" tires would look fine. I was going to go with 33's but I ended with 35's. They just seem to fill the wheel well a little more and really did not cost much more. The only thing I would have done differently would be my tire widith. I went with 35 X 13.5" tires. I wish I would have gotten a 12-12.5" tire width. The reason, less rubbing(I actually trimmed the valance and moved the bumper forward .5" ) to prevent tire rub on full lock turns. Other than that this kit was easy to install. I have NO squeaks. And the ride is better than I thought it would be. The tires are a good quality tire and I have No shimmy in the steering wheel. The truck handles well off-road(We camp often in the mountains) and spend numerous weeks on the beach(Where we go vehicles are authorized on the beach). I also tow a tandem axle trailer with a tractor and bush hog. the trailer is 18.5 ' long and the tractor is a Kubota 2100. The truck tows very well. I realize there are other "More popular" brands of Suspension's available. And most people use Rancho, RCD, FabTech, RIZE(My choice also if I wanted that much lift), Procomp, and one called Trailmaster. I did some research and narrowed my needs and options down to the Rancho or SuperLift. I really can't say why I selected SuperLift over Rancho... It was just a choice. I have no regrets. The SuperLift comes with the add-a-leaf rear kit. It helps with towing and adds about 1.5" to the rear height. Good luck with your selection... And yes my truck color is Smoke Stone. BoB

 

Wow, what a refreshing read. Nobody slamming others because they spent more, or had the best lift, or more lift, etc. It sure is nice to read a post like this. Way to go guys, nice to see the respect and maturity this board deserves.

I do have one question for Blue Oval Breath. I too am split between the Rancho and Superlift, if/when I get one. My question concerns the towing post-lift. I am looking to get a TT and wonder how a lifted rig might tow. I also have a Kubota B7510 that also gets towed occasionally.

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by ian51279

Wow, what a refreshing read. Nobody slamming others because they spent more, or had the best lift, or more lift, etc. It sure is nice to read a post like this. Way to go guys, nice to see the respect and maturity this board deserves.

I do have one question for Blue Oval Breath. I too am split between the Rancho and Superlift, if/when I get one. My question concerns the towing post-lift. I am looking to get a TT and wonder how a lifted rig might tow. I also have a Kubota B7510 that also gets towed occasionally.

IAN51279... I have rental property in South Carolina. The property is on a natural lake, It consist of 5 acres mostly waterfront. I towed the tractor with(with front bucket & rear bush hog) about 220 miles one way. The biggest problem I had was braking with this load. I still run stock brakes and found that with the larger tires that my braking really suffered. The rear of the truck sagged slightly but I also tow a tandem axle trailer that helps with load distribution. Of course my speed was slower and I do NOT use OverDrive, so gas mileage really drops off. To be honest though I did not buy this massive truck and then modifiy it thinking I was going to get great gas mileage. The truck bed was also loaded to the hilt with a gas generator, Chainsaws, Food and spare parts.(For the equipment, not my truck )

I did see another member here who has a 6-8" lift, with 35-37" tires and was towing a tandem trailer with a project/race car on it. He was using air bags in the rear. His rig looked very even. I think he got them from firestone or JC Whitney...not sure? I wish I could find his post. I am thinking of adding the air bags during those times of towing "HEAVY" loads.

Your TT(Travel Trailer) is it tandem axle? Some of those have these extra bars that help with tongue weight distribution... I'm not sure what they are called. Either way... I think your truck is more than capable of your needs. The rear add-a-leaf I installed really helped alot. I'll try to find some Photos of my truck and trailer with tractor on it. Good luck with your decision. BoB