Ready to do Body Lift BUT ?????
Thread Starter
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Senior Member
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 156
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From: Bethalto, Illinois
Ready to do Body Lift BUT ?????
I am all set to do a 3" body lift on my 2001 Super Crew. After reading and searching all the posts I can find, I have a few specific questions that I hope someone can help me with....
I am concerned about the following:
--bumbers not fitting properly
--trailer hitch receive looking "dumb" 3" below the bumber
--radiator shroud....best way to handle
--stretching cables, hoses, gas filler pipe, etc.
--relocating brake lines, transmission lines
--shift linkage extension
--too small tires look silly
If anyone can address these areas, it would be great.....
I am concerned about the following:
--bumbers not fitting properly
--trailer hitch receive looking "dumb" 3" below the bumber
--radiator shroud....best way to handle
--stretching cables, hoses, gas filler pipe, etc.
--relocating brake lines, transmission lines
--shift linkage extension
--too small tires look silly
If anyone can address these areas, it would be great.....
Senior Member
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 290
Likes: 0
From: North Georgia
Youll need to raise the bumpers.
Yes it will look dumb.
Cut the bottom section of it out.
Shouldnt have to.
Shouldnt have to.
If it has a floor shift you would just cut and add three inches to the shifter.
Get bigger tires.
Hope some of this may help. Good luck
Yes it will look dumb.
Cut the bottom section of it out.
Shouldnt have to.
Shouldnt have to.
If it has a floor shift you would just cut and add three inches to the shifter.
Get bigger tires.
Hope some of this may help. Good luck
Senior Member
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 385
Likes: 0
Ok, I have a 3" body on my truck, here are your answers:
THe bumpers are a pain to line up right. Mine still aren't perfect. It took me 4 hours of work to get them where they are now.
THe trailer hitch looks 100% stock even though it is exposed more. THe hitch will hide the spare tire which would even be more visible without the hitch in the way. Take a look at JMTRUCK's website, he has a good pic of what the hitch looks like.
Radiator shroud takes 5 minutes if you have a dremel. Just unbolt the shroud and lift it upwards until it pops out of the plastic tabs. Now use your dremel tool to cut off the plastic at the edge of the shroud which hold the shroud to the plastic tabs. Don't cut away the tabs on the radiator. The way I see it is the radiator costs more than a fan shroud if you should ever have to remove the lift. Then lift the truck and install the brackets. Trust me the shroud is one of the easiest parts when doing the lift.
Every cable that will change or strech, comes with relocating brackets which are easy to install. The fuel filler was a piece of cake. You just cut the hose in half, install a metal tube, and clamp it. The drain off line they gave me in the kit was the wrong diameter so I just used some spare hose that I had laying around. I didn't need to install the bracket to lengthen my ground on the passenger side, I had enough room to stretch it.
Brake lines do not need to be relocated whatsoever. If you have a 5.4, no transmission brackets need to be touched. The parking brake doesn't even need to be touched.
With the 4x4 lever on the floor, you don't really have to do a thing, just let it pull down in the floor while you lift it. Mine just sits 3" lower now but still looks normal. I removed the one bolt which holds the lever on the T-case while I lifted the vehicle and then just installed the bolt when I was done. Or you could cut the lever and weld in the spool piece if you want it to remain the stock height after the lift.
Yes the small tires look dumb. I didn't even like driving the truck with the 3" lift and stockers on for the three days I had to. If you aren't planning on increasing the size of your tires, why are you even considering a body lift? Seem as though that is the body lifts main purpose.
Ok the hardest things in doing the lift are:
1. The bumpers were a pain in the *** to align
2. I had one body bolt which didn't want to come off, took some persuading, a 3Ft pipe wrench holding the mount, and a 2ft braker bar. My air gun wouldn't budge these bolts.
3. The torx head bolts in the bed were a pain. I stripped three T-47 sockets and I still needed to get the last one out with vise grips.
Let me know if you need anything, I will be glad to help.
kev
THe bumpers are a pain to line up right. Mine still aren't perfect. It took me 4 hours of work to get them where they are now.
THe trailer hitch looks 100% stock even though it is exposed more. THe hitch will hide the spare tire which would even be more visible without the hitch in the way. Take a look at JMTRUCK's website, he has a good pic of what the hitch looks like.
Radiator shroud takes 5 minutes if you have a dremel. Just unbolt the shroud and lift it upwards until it pops out of the plastic tabs. Now use your dremel tool to cut off the plastic at the edge of the shroud which hold the shroud to the plastic tabs. Don't cut away the tabs on the radiator. The way I see it is the radiator costs more than a fan shroud if you should ever have to remove the lift. Then lift the truck and install the brackets. Trust me the shroud is one of the easiest parts when doing the lift.
Every cable that will change or strech, comes with relocating brackets which are easy to install. The fuel filler was a piece of cake. You just cut the hose in half, install a metal tube, and clamp it. The drain off line they gave me in the kit was the wrong diameter so I just used some spare hose that I had laying around. I didn't need to install the bracket to lengthen my ground on the passenger side, I had enough room to stretch it.
Brake lines do not need to be relocated whatsoever. If you have a 5.4, no transmission brackets need to be touched. The parking brake doesn't even need to be touched.
With the 4x4 lever on the floor, you don't really have to do a thing, just let it pull down in the floor while you lift it. Mine just sits 3" lower now but still looks normal. I removed the one bolt which holds the lever on the T-case while I lifted the vehicle and then just installed the bolt when I was done. Or you could cut the lever and weld in the spool piece if you want it to remain the stock height after the lift.
Yes the small tires look dumb. I didn't even like driving the truck with the 3" lift and stockers on for the three days I had to. If you aren't planning on increasing the size of your tires, why are you even considering a body lift? Seem as though that is the body lifts main purpose.
Ok the hardest things in doing the lift are:
1. The bumpers were a pain in the *** to align
2. I had one body bolt which didn't want to come off, took some persuading, a 3Ft pipe wrench holding the mount, and a 2ft braker bar. My air gun wouldn't budge these bolts.
3. The torx head bolts in the bed were a pain. I stripped three T-47 sockets and I still needed to get the last one out with vise grips.
Let me know if you need anything, I will be glad to help.
kev
Thread Starter
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Senior Member
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 156
Likes: 0
From: Bethalto, Illinois
Thanks a bunch
Hey Kev,
That was a bunch of great info on the body lift...it relieved a lot of concerns that I had....
I fully intend to add bigger tires and wheels, but it would be a few weeks after the lift is on....I just don't want to be too embarassed to drive my new truck....
Mine is a 2001 Screw with 8500 miles, so I am hoping that all the bolts are not yet rusted together....I know I may be surprised...
Two other questions???
I don't have an air compressor so I won't be using an impact wrench....am I in trouble here??
Does the frame end stick thru the original moounting area for the tow hooks???
Thanks again for the great information...
That was a bunch of great info on the body lift...it relieved a lot of concerns that I had....
I fully intend to add bigger tires and wheels, but it would be a few weeks after the lift is on....I just don't want to be too embarassed to drive my new truck....
Mine is a 2001 Screw with 8500 miles, so I am hoping that all the bolts are not yet rusted together....I know I may be surprised...
Two other questions???
I don't have an air compressor so I won't be using an impact wrench....am I in trouble here??
Does the frame end stick thru the original moounting area for the tow hooks???
Thanks again for the great information...
Senior Member
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 385
Likes: 0
No problem. Yes your bolts should come off easier. Mine is a 99 with 45k miles.
Don't worry abou the air tools, mine were pretty much useless because the cheap impact gun I have wouldn't break free the body bolts. It did speed up the time a little in removing bumpers and other parts but it wasn't essential.
Yes the frame sticks through in the front a bit. Check out my photo gallary for a pic of the front. You can also see my bumper in that pic. I fixed it a bit since then but it is still not perfect.
kev
Don't worry abou the air tools, mine were pretty much useless because the cheap impact gun I have wouldn't break free the body bolts. It did speed up the time a little in removing bumpers and other parts but it wasn't essential.
Yes the frame sticks through in the front a bit. Check out my photo gallary for a pic of the front. You can also see my bumper in that pic. I fixed it a bit since then but it is still not perfect.
kev
