I have a 1998 F-150 Supercab 4x4 and the rear of the truck sets really low compared to the rest of the truck. I use the truck on the farm and there is always alot of tools and other stuff in the back end of the truck which is one reason it sets low in the back but I've always wished the truck set up a little higher like a 4x4 is supposed to. I'm not really wanting to jack it up a lot but I'd like to see it up 2 or 3 inches and I'd like to see it setting level. I've been told that a leveling kit helps it not squat as bad if you carry a lot of stuff in the back of your truck but don't leveling kits raise the front of the truck to match the back? And my rear needs raised, not necessarily the front...So what are my options? What can I do to raise it up and make it look like it has like a 2.5 leveling kit on it? But again, it needs the rear raised up, and not the front...even though I wouldn't care if the front was raised a hair too because even when I went from 245 tires to 285's, it still sets a little low for a 4x4 and squats bad. I can measure the difference in the front and rear (truck to ground distance) if I need to...to help give everyone a better idea of the situation. Oh and the truck squeaks real bad when driving down the road, could it be a ball joint?

 

how can you raise the rear w/out raising the back?

look into an AAL (add a leaf), normally i'd suggest a larger block or air bags but since you work on a farm and will have constant loads an AAL in my opinion is the way to go.

if you want to fiddle with the front at all, you can crank your torsion bars if you haven't already. DO NOT BUY AFTERMARKET KEYS, stock keys will crank as much as you will want without destroying your front end components. will require an alignment afterwards.

 

Sorry, I meant the rear needs to be raised and not the front

 

Yup since your constantly probably going to be using the bed and have weight back there go with a add a leaf or a set of replacement springs that are more heavy duty.

 

I agree. I'd go with an AAL.

 

Why wouldn't a 3" block be ok in this situation? I think that would add maybe 1 1/2" or so?

 

I measured the truck to ground distance at the front and at the rear. At the front, it was 18 inches from the bottom of the side of the truck to the ground. At the back, it was 17 inches from the bottom of the side of the truck to the ground. (the truck is full of tools right now like always) So I guess this is my question that I'm needing to know the answer to...What do I need to do if I want the truck to measure about 20 inches from the ground at the front and 20 inches from the ground at the back? Dirty Ape, are you saying a 3 inch block at the back? And then adjust the torsion bars at the front to make it set up 20 inches? 20 inches would be the minimum I would want to see it setting from the ground...21 inches max probably.

 

Because he uses the bed a lot and probably carries a decent amount of weight in there all the time with tools so a block would be a bad choice in this situation, you'd end up breaking something fast.

For the front just crank the torsion bars up about two inches to get to that 20" that you want and for the rear I'd go with a add a leaf, it won't hurt carrying capacity of the bed like a block would, if anything it would probably help.

 

Ok thats what I'll do. I'll go with the add a leaf for the back and crank up the torsion bars on the front. So where do I buy the add a leaf kit and how much does it cost? Can I get it from a ford dealership so they can adjust the torsion bars for me too? I ordered a leveling kit from the ford dealership one time so that's why I'm wondering if I can have all this done at the dealership. And do I need to order a certain add a leaf kit to get the back up 3 inches or are all add a leaf kits the same and you adjust them? I know nothing about this and it probably shows...

 

You'd be best ordering it off the internet so you don't pay 3 times as much from a dealership, and cranking your torsion bars is pretty easy, so if you know your way around a wrench I'd recommend doing it yourself to save you a lot in labor.

 

Just trying to help.. don't know anything about torsion bars at all. I've just seen lots of guys add a block after a level kit makes them a bit nose-happy though.

 

Ok, just a few more questions and I'll hopefully be done bugging you guys about this. Which website do you recommend ordering the add a leaf kit from and is there a specific one I need to order? I'm a farmer and use tools all the time but I'm not familliar at all with torsion bars...how do I adjust them and are there any do's and don'ts to keep it safe on the road?

 

torsion bar cranking, climb under your truck behind your front tires you will see a "rod" going from your front end to under the cab at the frame (probably 2" diameter or so) at the end of those where they hit the frame you will see a bolt for each one of those rods. just get a socket and you can crank them, will make it easier with it on jacks but it's easy if you have a breaker bar for leverage. one way will lower the truck and one way will crank it up. have an alignment done afterwards if you want your tires to wear correctly.

for the AAL, call a local offroad shop or check out truckaddons.com, truck toyz, top gun customz, 4wheelparts (if you have one locally i'd go that route even w/ how much i dislike them). if you call and tell them your truck they will be able to get the correct part for you. i paid $110 for my BDS aal. they qouted me around $125 install IIRC, decided to do it on my own. isn't too hard but you need the correct tools (AAL should come w/ instructions) and be careful as those leaf springs have alot of pre-load in them when pulling them apart.
edit: instructions http://bds-suspension.com/instructions/addaleaf.pdf