I thought that I would briefly share my experience with the install and end results of the Fox 2.0 coilovers. This is not meant to be a detailed, how-to, but merely to help someone that may find themselves in a similar situation as I was prior to install. First, I am not trying to fault anyone at all or discredit anyone else's experiences with these. They are marketed as providing 2" of lift out of the box. They are specifically made for the Silverado/Sierra, which has a lot in common with our suspension, but it appears that there are enough differences that people are getting very mixed results with these on the SUV's.
I also want to give a huge shout out to some of the users on here that have posted their experiences as well. Olyelr shared with me his experiences with an install on a Denali and saw almost 3" of lift with his application. I also owe Z71_BURBAN big time as he took the time to go out and get measurements for me on his Suburban and let me know how much exposed thread were on his coilovers from the factory. The people here are huge assets to the community and I thought the least I could do would be to share my experience and try to benefit someone else as well.
Anyhow, the install was on a 2015 Suburban Z71. At the time of install, I had 114k on the original factory suspension so it was tired and could benefit from new struts and shocks at a minimum. I had noticed prior to install that some other trims of the full size SUV line-up seemed to sit a little bit lower in front than mine did, which indicated that something may be different with the suspension set-up, but I wasn't sure exactly what that was. I was looking for around 2" of lift and the thought that I could get 3" concerned me as I didn't want the rear end to squat lower than the front, and I didn't want to be forced into new control arms. As received, the Fox 2.0 coilovers had 39 exposed threads which measured at 2.75" of exposed threads. I initially saw that much out of the box and was already worried that I was going to get way too much lift already. I had reached out to Z71_BURBAN as I mentioned earlier because he had installed them on his 2019 Suburban Z71 and mentioned that he got about 1.75" of lift from his install. He was gracious enough to climb under his and measure his exposed threads and confirmed that he too had about 2.75" exposed. This comforted me a little prior to install because I was seriously starting to question whether I was going to have to turn them down before I ever put them on the truck.
With this information in hand, I was feeling much more confident in moving forward and decided it was time to go for it. The install itself was really quite simple. I found this process to be much easier than installing the leveling blocks that I have installed in the past. I have installed lower leveling spacers on our previous 2009 Suburban and a 2007 Silverado in the past and this was a far easier install. Remove the three upper nuts, loosen the sway bar end link, and remove the two lower bolts. Pull the strut assembly out of place and reverse the order for the new coilovers. Needless to say, I was pleased with how easy this was. Of course, follow the install with an alignment.
Below is a picture of the new coilover next to the stock strut that was removed.
It is a cell phone picture, so I apologize for the lack of clarity. I should have also shown with a measuring tape the difference in length between the two. The new coilover is about 3/4" longer than the factory strut. Once installed, like Z71_BURBAN, I experienced 1.75" of lift and am very pleased with the height. The ride is also superior to that of a leveling spacer, in my opinion. I know that it may settle a little, and I certainly hope that the settling isn't too extreme or I may have to remove them and turn them up a little to restore lost height. Here they are installed, followed by a couple pictures of the completed truck.
Overall, I am very pleased with the outcome, and I would highly recommend them as an alternative to traditional leveling kits. They are more expensive than leveling spacers, but I really do like the ride quality with these. I hope more than anything else, that someone might find this information helpful if they are looking to install these for their own application.
I also want to give a huge shout out to some of the users on here that have posted their experiences as well. Olyelr shared with me his experiences with an install on a Denali and saw almost 3" of lift with his application. I also owe Z71_BURBAN big time as he took the time to go out and get measurements for me on his Suburban and let me know how much exposed thread were on his coilovers from the factory. The people here are huge assets to the community and I thought the least I could do would be to share my experience and try to benefit someone else as well.
Anyhow, the install was on a 2015 Suburban Z71. At the time of install, I had 114k on the original factory suspension so it was tired and could benefit from new struts and shocks at a minimum. I had noticed prior to install that some other trims of the full size SUV line-up seemed to sit a little bit lower in front than mine did, which indicated that something may be different with the suspension set-up, but I wasn't sure exactly what that was. I was looking for around 2" of lift and the thought that I could get 3" concerned me as I didn't want the rear end to squat lower than the front, and I didn't want to be forced into new control arms. As received, the Fox 2.0 coilovers had 39 exposed threads which measured at 2.75" of exposed threads. I initially saw that much out of the box and was already worried that I was going to get way too much lift already. I had reached out to Z71_BURBAN as I mentioned earlier because he had installed them on his 2019 Suburban Z71 and mentioned that he got about 1.75" of lift from his install. He was gracious enough to climb under his and measure his exposed threads and confirmed that he too had about 2.75" exposed. This comforted me a little prior to install because I was seriously starting to question whether I was going to have to turn them down before I ever put them on the truck.
With this information in hand, I was feeling much more confident in moving forward and decided it was time to go for it. The install itself was really quite simple. I found this process to be much easier than installing the leveling blocks that I have installed in the past. I have installed lower leveling spacers on our previous 2009 Suburban and a 2007 Silverado in the past and this was a far easier install. Remove the three upper nuts, loosen the sway bar end link, and remove the two lower bolts. Pull the strut assembly out of place and reverse the order for the new coilovers. Needless to say, I was pleased with how easy this was. Of course, follow the install with an alignment.
Below is a picture of the new coilover next to the stock strut that was removed.
It is a cell phone picture, so I apologize for the lack of clarity. I should have also shown with a measuring tape the difference in length between the two. The new coilover is about 3/4" longer than the factory strut. Once installed, like Z71_BURBAN, I experienced 1.75" of lift and am very pleased with the height. The ride is also superior to that of a leveling spacer, in my opinion. I know that it may settle a little, and I certainly hope that the settling isn't too extreme or I may have to remove them and turn them up a little to restore lost height. Here they are installed, followed by a couple pictures of the completed truck.
Overall, I am very pleased with the outcome, and I would highly recommend them as an alternative to traditional leveling kits. They are more expensive than leveling spacers, but I really do like the ride quality with these. I hope more than anything else, that someone might find this information helpful if they are looking to install these for their own application.
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