Another body Lift complete

ace · Post by **ace** » Fri May 26, 2006 9:43 am

I'm putting the body lift on this weekend and I've looked over the application page. Anyone else have any additional tips? I'm soaking most of the bolts in wd-40 tonight and tomorrow and doing the lift the next day.

BobbleSmitty · Post by **BobbleSmitty** » Fri May 26, 2006 10:04 am

Get a good set of air tools! Also, have both metric and standard sockets. I believe it was a 17mm (or was it a 19mm??) that will be needed alot! Just take your time and follow the directions. Good Luck!

top_sgt · Post by **top_sgt** » Fri May 26, 2006 11:38 am

the nut that holds the oil line to the side of the oil pan is a pain.....just take your time with it.!!!!!!

killian96ss · Post by **killian96ss** » Fri May 26, 2006 11:43 am

Watch out for that (fuel filler?) ground strap. Mine needed to be re-routed to give it a safe amount of slack. I didn't notice it until about a week later and it was very tight.

Oh and don't forget to follow the instructions!

Steve

F9K9 · Post by **F9K9** » Fri May 26, 2006 2:02 pm

HJ has a picture somewhere of how the front bumper side braces are supposed to look. One bolt would be easy to install while you are lifting the cab.

I found it

Those brackets have eaten up 2 hrs for some members as posted here

BobbleSmitty · Post by **BobbleSmitty** » Fri May 26, 2006 8:02 pm

Heres how those bumper bracket things work

ace · Post by **ace** » Sat May 27, 2006 5:51 am

I'm going to look at that bumper bracket. So while someone is lifting the cab someone needs to put a bolt in there?

F9K9 · Post by **F9K9** » Sat May 27, 2006 5:58 am

ace wrote:I'm going to look at that bumper bracket. So while someone is lifting the cab someone needs to put a bolt in there?

If you'll look at HenryJ's photo, the front cab mount is right behind the bracket and space is limited. It is just easier to toss a bolt in there while the cab is up and the mounts are free. It's is no big deal if you don't. My kit was short one bracket so I just moved mine up one bolt hole.

killian96ss · Post by **killian96ss** » Sat May 27, 2006 8:59 am

f9k9 wrote:HJ has a picture somewhere of how the front bumper side braces are supposed to look. One bolt would be easy to install while you are lifting the cab.

This is the first time I have seen this pic, and it's nice to see I actually put it together the right way.

Steve

top_sgt · Post by **top_sgt** » Mon May 29, 2006 3:36 pm

well........................how did it go, ace??????

ace · Post by **ace** » Tue May 30, 2006 6:17 am

I got it done!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I should say my dad, my mom, and my brother got it done. Yes I needed each of their help at different times. I must admit It took me awhile to complete the install and I consider myself pretty mechanically inclined. Though I do like to do things right the first time. I started at 10am and finished at 11:30pm. I took my time a few things and had a few things take some extra time. Here's a few things about the experience.

1. Why did they make me take off the vacuum actuator and the positive terminal? Their was plenty of slack in those and reactached no problem after the lift. I'm glad I did not drill the holes they said too.
2. The nuts on the oil lines on the oil pan did suck. I did reattach the bracket and two nuts after the lift. I did not like the lines resting on the bolt.
3. I did put the lower fan shroud on the way they said to after the lift.
4. My ground under the hood was tight after the lift but not too tight.
5. I did not follow the directions totally because we lifted the cab and then reassembled the cab before attempting the bed. This worked out great and we actually thought about stopping and doing the bed another time. So this kinda answered a question of mine if you could do the lift in two parts and the answer is yes.
6. The front bumper brackets took some time but the photo's did help and I kept referring to them. Thank you!
7. The fuel filler posed a few problems. Their wasn't much room to extend the hose but as someone pointed out their wasn't anything in the kit to extend the hose that would fit anyway.
8. I cut one of the zip ties on the ground strap on the fuel filler and that wasn't enough. The strap was really tight after the lift so I reached up there with a wire cutter and cut the other zip tie and it had enough slack and was perfect.
9. Aligning the bed so the bolts would go in posed some challenges.
10. The plastic clip that was holding the brake line on the frame took some time to get open but it had to come open, their was some strain on the line when lifting. I also bent the lines away from the shock mount after the lift. They were close.

I'm very pleased with the results! I still don't have my tires on just yet but I was surprised that it doesn't look to bad with the small tires. What I thought was really cool was that after the mod I could actually feel sitting up higher when driving. I thought maybe you wouldn't notice but I could. I'm thinking I will raise the step bars but I'm not to sure on the hitch just yet. I tow a pretty heavy camper and drilling holes in the brackets etc. just doesn't sit well with me just yet (all my opinion though.) I feel like I just went through initiation for this site by doing this mod. I know it's the beginning of many more but it all started with this. I'm already thinking in my mind of doing the boise spring kit.

Side notes:

1. My mom helped with lifting the bed!

2. We used an impact and it still took awhile.
3. It did take awhile because we were missing some sockets and spent a lot of time searching for the right tools. I could of shaved a ton of time off by having all the tools organized.
4. Speaking of tools it would of been nice if the instructions told you what size wrench or socket to use.
5. I wasn't attacked by bees but it was blazing hot here.
6. Need to adjust the headlights after the lift.
7. My hands and face were black with grease and undercoating after I was done I laughed when I looked in the mirror.

7. Bought my PA bodylift off ebay along with a brush guard all for $150.00 and turned around and sold the brush guard for $200.00 So my lift was free with a $50.00 profit!!

"and that's all I got to say about that..."

Post by **Walt** » Tue May 30, 2006 6:45 am

Ahem.....pics?

ace · Post by **ace** » Tue May 30, 2006 6:54 am

wamason wrote:Ahem.....pics?

I took a before picture but I still need take an after photo. I don't think I mentioned i just did this yesterday.

Post by **Walt** » Tue May 30, 2006 7:01 am

ace wrote:
wamason wrote:Ahem.....pics?
I took a before picture but I still need take an after photo. I don't think I mentioned i just did this yesterday.

Come on now! A day is plenty of time.

ace · Post by **ace** » Tue May 30, 2006 7:20 am

wamason wrote:
ace wrote:
wamason wrote:Ahem.....pics?
I took a before picture but I still need take an after photo. I don't think I mentioned i just did this yesterday.
Come on now! A day is plenty of time.

I'm half awake today at work because by the time I was done last night, eating dinner at 11:30 and driving back to my house I got to bed about 1:30am. It's all good though. It felt good to get in the truck this morning.

top_sgt · Post by **top_sgt** » Tue May 30, 2006 4:05 pm

glad to see ya got it done!!!!!

jeff024 · Post by **jeff024** » Tue May 30, 2006 5:19 pm

nothin like doing it yourself
good job congrats everything else is easy now

ace · Post by **ace** » Wed May 31, 2006 4:06 am

jeff024 wrote:nothin like doing it yourself
good job congrats everything else is easy now

That's definitely true. It feels good when you know you did it yourself.

ace · Post by **ace** » Sat Jun 10, 2006 7:05 pm

Post by **HenryJ** » Sat Jun 10, 2006 7:15 pm

Big difference!

jeff024 · Post by **jeff024** » Sat Jun 10, 2006 7:37 pm

what size tire did you go 2

BobbleSmitty · Post by **BobbleSmitty** » Sat Jun 10, 2006 7:42 pm

Looks sweet! Did you crank the TBs too?? Now you have to raise the step bars

F9K9 · Post by **F9K9** » Sat Jun 10, 2006 7:49 pm

Looks good! AM glad you took on the task and saw it through

Jigg · Post by **Jigg** » Sat Jun 10, 2006 8:17 pm

Looks awesome!!! Good Job!

Next thing i'd do is a set of shackles and i'd hack off the bottom 6" of that tailpipe

F9K9 · Post by **F9K9** » Sat Jun 10, 2006 8:24 pm

Jigg wrote:Looks awesome!!! Good Job!

Next thing i'd do is a set of shackles and i'd hack off the bottom 6" of that tailpipe

I see we really do think alike. He's doing all his work at home and thought we might "ease" his parents into the idea

Post by **Walt** » Sat Jun 10, 2006 9:17 pm

f9k9 wrote:
Jigg wrote:Looks awesome!!! Good Job!

Next thing i'd do is a set of shackles and i'd hack off the bottom 6" of that tailpipe
I see we really do think alike. He's doing all his work at home and thought we might "ease" his parents into the idea

I agree

Bubaloo makes great shackles (I have a pair)

top_sgt · Post by **top_sgt** » Sun Jun 11, 2006 5:35 am

goog job, ace!!

ace · Post by **ace** » Sun Jun 11, 2006 5:44 am

Thanks guys, I love the parents comment too! I definitely got a kick out of my mom lifting the bed during the install. My mom has a colorado so now she wants to get new wheels and start modding her truck. The front looks a little raised up in the picture but I think it settled down now and is even with the back. I was thinking about shackles but I do some towing and someone mentioned that sway might be an issue and rub. Surprised no one mentioned my blue walls

I still haven't washed that protective coating off yet. I'll have to take a close up picture of my tires they are awesome.

Jigg · Post by **Jigg** » Sun Jun 11, 2006 6:00 am

ace wrote:I was thinking about shackles but I do some towing and someone mentioned that sway might be an issue and rub.

I have shackles on my blazer, and i haven't experienced any noticable sway after putting them on. I wouldn't worry about it at all.

Post by **HenryJ** » Sun Jun 11, 2006 6:39 am

Jigg wrote:I have shackles on my blazer, and i haven't experienced any noticable sway after putting them on.

Hobie was the one who experienced this. The longer driveshaft and fuel tank position are probably the differences that count in this instance.
His truck did have a fuel tank shield. That reduces available clearance a little as you can see in this picture -

After installing the shackles there is an increase in the amount the rear of the springs can sway side to side , due to the increased leverage. Also it needs to be mentioned that we do not have a panard bar/ track locator like the ZR2 trucks have. This allows the axle to shift sideways more than usual and is significantly pronounced when pulling a trailer around a corner. The Car trailer Hobie was pulling carried a dragstrip Camaro. The combination was well under towing limits for our trucks.
Here is the thread - 09/15/02 Sun pulled 4200 lbs. this weekend
( That took some looking. Way back to the first crew cab forum )

ace · Post by **ace** » Sun Jun 11, 2006 8:48 am

I wonder if having the air shocks pumped up that I'm gettting whether it would still sway or not as much because the tongue weight isn't pushing down so much.

Post by **HenryJ** » Sun Jun 11, 2006 10:07 am

It is not the tongue weight that creates the issue. More the side loading when turning. Lateral forces rather than horizontal loading.

The shock might help some if they were splayed instead of straight up and down.

Having the rear sit higher might help a little. The air shocks might be of help in that instance. I really don't know.
One thing is for sure, the stock aluminum shaft will not take much rubbing.

ace · Post by **ace** » Sun Jun 11, 2006 6:33 pm

jeff024 wrote:what size tire did you go 2

I went with 31"x 10.50". They have an actual diameter of 30". I have had no problems with rubbing even at full lock. Here is some pictures. They look even better in person.

Upsized the images ( normal_ ) -HJ

F9K9 · Post by **F9K9** » Sun Jun 11, 2006 6:50 pm

Daaaaaym. Blue was better than that Golgate White!!!!!!!!!! Consider coming to the "DARK SIDE' :hehe:

GeorgesBlazah · Post by **GeorgesBlazah** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 3:55 am

Truck is lookin great! Man sometimes I wish I had a CC.

Jigg · Post by **Jigg** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 5:10 am

GeorgesBlazah wrote:Truck is lookin great! Man sometimes I wish I had a CC.

Chop your roof off past the rear seats!

ace · Post by **ace** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 5:42 am

f9k9 wrote:Daaaaaym. Blue was better than that Golgate White!!!!!!!!!! Consider coming to the "DARK SIDE'

I think the black walls look good with black rims but the zr5 rims look good with the OWL tires IMO. Plus side biters rule!

Post by **HenryJ** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 1:28 pm

ace wrote:... the black walls look good with black rims but the zr5 rims look good with the OWL tires IMO.

Haven't you heard..."Black is beautiful" -

BobbleSmitty · Post by **BobbleSmitty** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 3:43 pm

Gotta go with the white letters!!

04crewvt · Post by **04crewvt** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 4:41 pm

The body lift looks sweet and the White is Right.

Now I really want to lift mine.

ace · Post by **ace** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 5:15 pm

Haven't you heard..."Black is beautiful" -

I HAVE heard Black is beautiful....

With white lettering...

F9K9 · Post by **F9K9** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 6:34 pm

04crewvt wrote:The body lift looks sweet and the White is Right.

Now I really want to lift mine.

The green and the graphics are outf__king standing

Post by **Walt** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 6:41 pm

ace wrote:
Haven't you heard..."Black is beautiful" -
I HAVE heard Black is beautiful....

With white lettering...

In your case, I agree 100%! However, after letting things grow on me, I think I'll probably go with black out when I get my 33's. I think it'll look better with my wheels.

Jigg · Post by **Jigg** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 8:15 pm

White out:

F9K9 · Post by **F9K9** » Tue Jun 13, 2006 1:32 am

That is a little hard to argue with, Jigg

04crewvt · Post by **04crewvt** » Tue Jun 13, 2006 2:07 am

he green and the graphics are outf__king standing Thumbs up!

Thanks for the compliment. The graphics were a bit of a pain to install (about 1 1/2 hours each side mostly to make sure they were even on both sides as well as doing all the cutting around the door handles/body gaps and on the other side the gas door, but it really makes the truck stand out. I get some great looks when I am out and about not just because of the graphics but also because I have only seen three other crews around here and they are just factory stock.
If anyone is interested I got the graphics here Graphics

F9K9 · Post by **F9K9** » Tue Jun 13, 2006 2:29 am

There are more CCs in this little one horse town than there are 2nd gen Beetles and I have no clue why. There is a sonoma crew here with GMC wheels that I know I have only seen on Jimmys and the owners look older than dirt so, they didn't mod the truck.

Jigg · Post by **Jigg** » Tue Jun 13, 2006 5:28 am

04crewvt wrote:Thanks for the compliment. The graphics were a bit of a pain to install (about 1 1/2 hours each side mostly to make sure they were even on both sides as well as doing all the cutting around the door handles/body gaps and on the other side the gas door, but it really makes the truck stand out.

I believe it, it took me like 2 hours (total), to install those "Synergy Offroad" decals on the side of my blazer. The last thing i wanted was to have them come out crooked. I really like your CC, i love the color.

Reed... lol thanks, i figured it'd be an ok pic since it has the ZR5 rims.

04crewvt · Post by **04crewvt** » Tue Jun 13, 2006 5:22 pm

Around here it's Mini Cooper's - or is that speed bumps? - that plague the roads. Nothing quite like getting stuck behind one on a snow covered hill with no place to pass to make you wish you could just go over them and be done with it.

chumley · Post by **chumley** » Sun Jul 02, 2006 2:42 am

I guess its just personal preferance but I always went black out. I think it makes the tires look bigger. My Blazer had white out when I bought it and I turned them in when I bought the new rims.