I researched a bit before I did this but couldn't find much info on it other than "it should work". I tow a popup camper and a 5,500 lb boat regularly (Not at the same time) and wanted to retain the factory rear shocks. They're the self leveling ZW7 "Premium Smooth Ride" Nivomat shocks and seemed to do the job pretty well at stock height. They would sag down when the trailer was attached and then after very little driving they would "ratchet" back up to within 1" of the normal ride height. I wasn't 100% sure how these things worked and if extensions and spacers would somehow have unintended consequences on the self leveling functionality.
Anyway, I added 2" spacers in the back plus 2" shock extenders on the top and everything is working as expected just 2" taller. So, if you're considering this it does actually work.
I bought the spacers, extenders and keys for $147 shipped from a seller on eBay called "leveling.suspension" who answered a few pre-sale questions quickly and then shipped unexpectedly fast. All was of good quality and the only issue I had was that the upper sleeves in the shock bushings were a hair too wide to fit in the extenders. I had to bump each one with the grinder and everything was fine.
In the front I was a bit lopsided at stock height. 1/2" lower on the Driver's side. So, I cranked the driver's side up 3" and the passenger side up 2.5". I put the Bilsteins in at the same time and it feels like I got a slightly net positive effect on the ride. It's certainly not worse or rougher. All of the angles look fine at this height and I was happy with the ride so I opted not to push it and went ahead and got it aligned.
I retained 1" of factory rake which is what I wanted (It had a 2" rake stock). I didn't want a "cali lean" when I connected my trailers. Since the Nivomats allow an inch of sag it sits perfectly level with a trailer connected.
Then I opted to go with P285/75 R17 Nitto Terra Grapplers for several reasons. Yeah, that's right they're P-Metric, not LT. 1) This is my daily driver and they're 23 lbs lighter per tire than a D load range in the same size/tire. I only gained 17 lbs per tire over stock vs. the 40 I would have gained with D or E LT tires. 2) The Load Index for the pair is 40% more than the rated capacity for my rear axle and 50+% more than the capacity of my front axle. LTs would have just been overkill on weight carying capacity 3) I've been running on P-Metrics on this vehicle and my last one with the same two trailers and was never unhappy with the performance. These are actually a 117 load index vs. the 111s that were on there 4) They were a decent amount less expensive. I paid $720 out the door, mounted and balanced.
In the end this doesn't appear to have hurt my MPG at all. It was terrible before and it's still terrible. It's down a couple 10ths on the DIC but then I get to multiply that by 1.069 since the odometer/speedometer are now 6.9% pessimistic and it appears to be about a wash after a few weeks of driving.
I also went with some different OEM wheels that I liked better. Here's a before and after.
Anyway, I added 2" spacers in the back plus 2" shock extenders on the top and everything is working as expected just 2" taller. So, if you're considering this it does actually work.
I bought the spacers, extenders and keys for $147 shipped from a seller on eBay called "leveling.suspension" who answered a few pre-sale questions quickly and then shipped unexpectedly fast. All was of good quality and the only issue I had was that the upper sleeves in the shock bushings were a hair too wide to fit in the extenders. I had to bump each one with the grinder and everything was fine.
In the front I was a bit lopsided at stock height. 1/2" lower on the Driver's side. So, I cranked the driver's side up 3" and the passenger side up 2.5". I put the Bilsteins in at the same time and it feels like I got a slightly net positive effect on the ride. It's certainly not worse or rougher. All of the angles look fine at this height and I was happy with the ride so I opted not to push it and went ahead and got it aligned.
I retained 1" of factory rake which is what I wanted (It had a 2" rake stock). I didn't want a "cali lean" when I connected my trailers. Since the Nivomats allow an inch of sag it sits perfectly level with a trailer connected.
Then I opted to go with P285/75 R17 Nitto Terra Grapplers for several reasons. Yeah, that's right they're P-Metric, not LT. 1) This is my daily driver and they're 23 lbs lighter per tire than a D load range in the same size/tire. I only gained 17 lbs per tire over stock vs. the 40 I would have gained with D or E LT tires. 2) The Load Index for the pair is 40% more than the rated capacity for my rear axle and 50+% more than the capacity of my front axle. LTs would have just been overkill on weight carying capacity 3) I've been running on P-Metrics on this vehicle and my last one with the same two trailers and was never unhappy with the performance. These are actually a 117 load index vs. the 111s that were on there 4) They were a decent amount less expensive. I paid $720 out the door, mounted and balanced.
In the end this doesn't appear to have hurt my MPG at all. It was terrible before and it's still terrible. It's down a couple 10ths on the DIC but then I get to multiply that by 1.069 since the odometer/speedometer are now 6.9% pessimistic and it appears to be about a wash after a few weeks of driving.
I also went with some different OEM wheels that I liked better. Here's a before and after.
Last edited:
