3" body lift for 3rd gen!
05-10-2006 | 08:56 AM
#1
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3" body lift for 3rd gen!
has anyone installed a 3" body lift on a 2500/3500 yet?? i have a 6" superlift, but it just isn't tall enough yet. running 35's on a 3500 swr.. just don't want to spend all the bucks to change springs/index the transfer case/ spring paks and longer control arms and of course longer front drive shaft. expensive to do all over again. the body lift was a thought and need lots of reaserch before i will do a body lift?? so i'm reaching out here to for anyone that HAS installed one ??? any takers or info would be so cool.. thanks 
05-10-2006 | 09:00 AM
#2
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From: Place with no quail:(
You can't clear 35' with 6" of lift?
IMHO body lifts are bad. Borderline unsafe, look bad, add no function, just ride height. Plus because of the intercooler, I am not aware of one for a diesel.
Fender trimming and flares would be a better setup IMHO.
IMHO body lifts are bad. Borderline unsafe, look bad, add no function, just ride height. Plus because of the intercooler, I am not aware of one for a diesel.
Fender trimming and flares would be a better setup IMHO.
05-10-2006 | 09:03 AM
#3
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From: Chicago, IL
Originally Posted by rizzo
has anyone installed a 3" body lift on a 2500/3500 yet?? i have a 6" superlift, but it just isn't tall enough yet. running 35's on a 3500 swr.. just don't want to spend all the bucks to change springs/index the transfer case/ spring paks and longer control arms and of course longer front drive shaft. expensive to do all over again. the body lift was a thought and need lots of reaserch before i will do a body lift?? so i'm reaching out here to for anyone that HAS installed one ??? any takers or info would be so cool.. thanks
05-10-2006 | 09:12 AM
#4
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From: VA
A 6" lift should clear 35s all day long. What tire/wheel combo are you running? What kind of backspacing and offset?
Body lift on diesel trucks is a bad idea due to the weight carried on the front of these trucks, even if you never plan to pull anything, in my opinion. You might also have to contend with rerouting tubing for the intercooler and what not. Also the fact that they just plain look bad (and not the good kinda bad either
) I would stay away from a body lift at all costs, especially on a diesel.
Body lift on diesel trucks is a bad idea due to the weight carried on the front of these trucks, even if you never plan to pull anything, in my opinion. You might also have to contend with rerouting tubing for the intercooler and what not. Also the fact that they just plain look bad (and not the good kinda bad either
) I would stay away from a body lift at all costs, especially on a diesel.
05-10-2006 | 09:46 AM
#5
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From: State College, PA
Lots of people on here run 35s with no lift, and I am one of them. I wouldn't put a body lift on my truck if was given to me. There is a guy on dodge truckworld that has a 6 inch superlift and a 3 inch body lift as well that hasn't had any problems.
05-10-2006 | 09:46 AM
#6
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3"
i will try to post some pic's soon.. i forgot.. plenty of room "now" for my 35's moving up to 38's or 40's. theres a guy with a long bed like mine "diesel" and instaled it year and a half ago and running 40" tires. i haven't called him yet. so far the shop that installed it just gave me his number. as they said to me yesterday, he has had NO problems with the kit?? makes me wonder? it is a cheap way to get more room.. i have never been a big fan of body lifts. the guy at the shop also said he runs that truck harder than most. kinda has a bunch of money with no worries if it falls off kinda thing. so at this point planning on meeting this guy to see how it fits and look for cracks or shifting problems due to hard off road use. always concernd about the safety issuse's?? oh and about intercooler lines? i can't wait to see who they did that. i appreciate all info so far. just looking to get more room w/out spending a ton of money again..
05-10-2006 | 05:47 PM
#7
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From: Lakeview, Arkansas
Anybody that is afraid of a body lift probably hasn't installed one.
Body lifts are cheap ways of getting some extra tire clearance and I personally think they are a cheap way of lifting a truck by itself. People that take a stock truck and slam a body lift on it are cheapskates in my opinion.
However, stacking a body lift with a suspension lift is not as bad as many people would lead you to believe. The only reason you don't see a kit made for the diesels is because of the intercooler. Several people have installed body lifts from a gas 3/4 ton and trimmed a little plastic around the intercooler tube and have been fine.
The extra weight of the diesel is on the frame, not the body.
Lifting the body off of the frame an extra three inches doesn't change anything except the distance between the frame and body. You are still using the same number of body mounts. Have you seen the factory body mounts? They already use pucks! When you are using 6 big bolts per side of the cab and 4 more for the bed, you are talking about 20 bolts holding the body onto the frame. That is more than enough. You can come back and say that there is extra leverage on the body mounts and those bolts because of the extra height. The only time that will make a bit of difference is in a very hard impact, and even in that circumstance, the body tends to stay in tact unless the impact is so hard that the truck is totalled out anyway.
Benefits of a body lift are that you do not change your driveline angles, you do not raise your center of gravity, and you get some extra clearance for not a lot of money. It also makes working under your truck much easier. You can fit wrenches in places that you could not fit them before.
Body lifts don't look bad on a Dodge because the frame is tucked up behind the body so much. Now GMC's, that is a totally different story. I run a body lift on my gas powered Dodge and I wheel HARD, I'm not talking about splashing through mud and lame junk like that, I'm talking rock crawling, trails, hillclimbs, just beating the crap out of my truck. I've had the body lift on for at least two years and have not had an ounce of problems out of it. I check the bolts once in a while and they have never loosened up or shifted. Make sure you use loc-tite on the bolts and you'll be good.
Body lifts are cheap ways of getting some extra tire clearance and I personally think they are a cheap way of lifting a truck by itself. People that take a stock truck and slam a body lift on it are cheapskates in my opinion.
However, stacking a body lift with a suspension lift is not as bad as many people would lead you to believe. The only reason you don't see a kit made for the diesels is because of the intercooler. Several people have installed body lifts from a gas 3/4 ton and trimmed a little plastic around the intercooler tube and have been fine.
The extra weight of the diesel is on the frame, not the body.
Lifting the body off of the frame an extra three inches doesn't change anything except the distance between the frame and body. You are still using the same number of body mounts. Have you seen the factory body mounts? They already use pucks! When you are using 6 big bolts per side of the cab and 4 more for the bed, you are talking about 20 bolts holding the body onto the frame. That is more than enough. You can come back and say that there is extra leverage on the body mounts and those bolts because of the extra height. The only time that will make a bit of difference is in a very hard impact, and even in that circumstance, the body tends to stay in tact unless the impact is so hard that the truck is totalled out anyway. Benefits of a body lift are that you do not change your driveline angles, you do not raise your center of gravity, and you get some extra clearance for not a lot of money. It also makes working under your truck much easier. You can fit wrenches in places that you could not fit them before.
Body lifts don't look bad on a Dodge because the frame is tucked up behind the body so much. Now GMC's, that is a totally different story. I run a body lift on my gas powered Dodge and I wheel HARD, I'm not talking about splashing through mud and lame junk like that, I'm talking rock crawling, trails, hillclimbs, just beating the crap out of my truck. I've had the body lift on for at least two years and have not had an ounce of problems out of it. I check the bolts once in a while and they have never loosened up or shifted. Make sure you use loc-tite on the bolts and you'll be good.
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05-10-2006 | 06:08 PM
#8
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From: Central NC
I agree with DJ on this one.
Performace Accessories makes one of the best kits I've ever seen also. I've installed 3, wheeled the heck out of the one I had on a Bronco without so much as an ounce of problems. Had one on my '01 and just loved it, no problems there either. I also knew and individual running a 3" body lift on a otherwise stock full size bronco who got T-boned at an intersection rolling the bronco almost 3 times and not a single piece of the body lift broke. That's alot less bolts holding it to the frame than on a full size trucks. No problems there either.
As far as price, the PA body lifts for the CTD's are pricey. And I bet a real pain in the neck after you move all the intercooler tubes and stuff. But I would have absolute faith in running one.
If you've already done a suspension lift and still need a little more, the body lift would be the next best bet. Or hack the holy $h!t outta your fenders and cab corners.
My two cents.
Performace Accessories makes one of the best kits I've ever seen also. I've installed 3, wheeled the heck out of the one I had on a Bronco without so much as an ounce of problems. Had one on my '01 and just loved it, no problems there either. I also knew and individual running a 3" body lift on a otherwise stock full size bronco who got T-boned at an intersection rolling the bronco almost 3 times and not a single piece of the body lift broke. That's alot less bolts holding it to the frame than on a full size trucks. No problems there either.
As far as price, the PA body lifts for the CTD's are pricey. And I bet a real pain in the neck after you move all the intercooler tubes and stuff. But I would have absolute faith in running one.
If you've already done a suspension lift and still need a little more, the body lift would be the next best bet. Or hack the holy $h!t outta your fenders and cab corners.
My two cents.
05-10-2006 | 11:39 PM
#10
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From: Los Angeles
I put one in my 79 Chevy stepside...
I will admit that it was a PITA to make it look right.. Because of the outside the frame mounted gas tanks I had to raise both of them, I also cut the frame horns off and rewelded them in the front to raise the bumper.. In the rear I had cut and reweld all the bumper brackets and completly rework a the Hitch receiver (I also added an extra crossmember for the hitch).
Instead of the rubber donuts for the cab mounting I put in Urathane donuts and checked everything regularly.
After 4 years of off roading and twisting the truck up enough that I could see the bed in the rear window a few times I never had a problem with the body lift. (hooray for the magical Twistoflex frame)
I had a 4" suspension and a 3 inch body lift with 38.5 tires. Loved that truck wish I never sold it. !!!!
I will admit that it was a PITA to make it look right.. Because of the outside the frame mounted gas tanks I had to raise both of them, I also cut the frame horns off and rewelded them in the front to raise the bumper.. In the rear I had cut and reweld all the bumper brackets and completly rework a the Hitch receiver (I also added an extra crossmember for the hitch).
Instead of the rubber donuts for the cab mounting I put in Urathane donuts and checked everything regularly.
After 4 years of off roading and twisting the truck up enough that I could see the bed in the rear window a few times I never had a problem with the body lift. (hooray for the magical Twistoflex frame)
I had a 4" suspension and a 3 inch body lift with 38.5 tires. Loved that truck wish I never sold it. !!!!
05-11-2006 | 07:36 AM
#12
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From: New Braunfels, TX
Why don't you just buy a taller lift? Or, if your lift is all spring, buy a spacer for your front and a lift block or taller springs for the back. http://www.rockkrawler.com/ has an 8" lift that would clear those tires. I've always been told that if you can avoid it don't use a body lift. With tires that size other things in your truck are going to wear out faster.
