Lifting 101 ????? Please?

[Allengator]

I am NOT new to all things mechanical... BUT I am an old hot rodder, and am brand new to 4x4 mods...

I am familiar with lowering cars and trucks with springs, spindles, etc... but know nothing about lifting...

Can someone point me to a good reference as it applies to Tahoes?

I am unfamiliar with:
Keys?
Bars?
Spacers?
Etc...

Are there different options?
Pros vs cons, etc...

Thanks!
ALLENGATOR
2004 Tahoe Z71 (stock)

 

[Allengator]

really? no one?

 

[YukonandtheHOE]

Body lifts are best for obs

 

[jarydM]

There is a wealth of information on here and other sites for the NBS and lifts. I can search the forums well due to bandwidth restrictions at work.

In short summary, I've learned most of it from reading various build threads by users here, looking for what I want out of my truck compared with theirs.

Ford keys are what you are looking for, but essentially these are Torsion bars keys that replace our stock ones, there is a complicated and dangerous process for changing these, so I suggest doing some heavy reading on them before getting started. The keys should be available as part of a kit, from Rough Country for instance, or separate from a seller on eBay.

Spacers are for the rear coil springs, and this will only be applicable if your truck is a Z71 already, if not you have to do a auto-ride delete, and install the Z71 coils, then the spacers are installed on those to create an extra few inches of lift.

Raising the vehicle up to about 3in can be done relatively easily and cheaply by anyone who can turn a wrench. and the 3in lift will cause extra stress on your front end components, but 3in or less isn't going to make that big of a difference in wear.

good luck!

 

[Countryboy07]

Good starting point would be to know what your goals are with your Tahoe. Are you wanting a full suspension lift? Or just a simple key and spacer lift?

Full suspension lifts start at 6" (can crank down to around 4"- 5") and go up from there.

Key and spacer lift (also know as level) are good for 2.5" without making your angles terrible.

Here is my 2005 Yukon XL with eBay keys, 1" eBay coil spacers, 275/60/20 Falken Wildpeak AT3's on OEM 20's, and 1.5" wheel spacers.



Entire "lift" set up cost me less than $150.00. Ran shock extenders on the front for a while but recently replaced with Bilstine 5100's and the ride is great!

 

[05alive]

The front suspension is IFS. It has torsion bars (bars, tb, or tbars), instead of springs, that fit into keys that can be adjusted by turning a bolt. Maxing out the adjustment bolts probably will not give you enough lift in the front end to level it. You may want to invest in re-indexed keys, also called leveling keys. They run 40-50 bucks for just the keys. Limit yourself to about 2 inches of lift (ie, don't max out aftermarket lift keys) to keep the front cv axle angles in check. Too steep and you run the risk of damaging components. Spacers (for the 2000-2006 trucks) refer to coil spring spacers in the rear.

For a leveling kit, or a 2-3 inch lift kit, you should be fine with keys (just level) or keys and spacers (lift kit) anything more and you'll need to install a full drop lift kit.

Keys aren't that hard to install, there is a tool (40-100 bucks) to hold the bars and slowly release the pressure on them to remove and reinstall the keys, but many people have had success with a bj press.

Z71 is the offroad package. Just because you don't have z71 doesn't mean you have autoride (rear air suspension). If you have autoride you'll need to modify the sensor arms or delete the autoride (new springs and shocks at the least).




Unrelated, Josh's Yukon looks awesome and looking at it again makes really really not want to sell mine.

 

[SlimJim]

Good starting point would be to know what your goals are with your Tahoe. Are you wanting a full suspension lift? Or just a simple key and spacer lift?

Full suspension lifts start at 6" (can crank down to around 4"- 5") and go up from there.

Key and spacer lift (also know as level) are good for 2.5" without making your angles terrible.

Here is my 2005 Yukon XL with eBay keys, 1" eBay coil spacers, 275/60/20 Falken Wildpeak AT3's on OEM 20's, and 1.5" wheel spacers.

View attachment 72842 View attachment 72843

Entire "lift" set up cost me less than $150.00. Ran shock extenders on the front for a while but recently replaced with Bilstine 5100's and the ride is great!

So
I can buy a 6 inch lift and “de-crank” the keys or whatever to make a 4 inch lift?

 

[GreyStone]