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73-87 Chevy _ GMC Trucks => 73-87 Chevy & GMC Trucks => Topic started by: 425hp87chevy on June 05, 2010, 02:30:26 pm
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I've had a few 73-87's with 6" of lift, and I'm thinking of putting a 3" body lift in along with my 6" suspension. I just want to know if this is gonna be hard to drive on the highway. I'm worried about it being top heavy. If anyone has one lifted like this could you let me know how it handles.
thanks!
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Body lift...BLAH! :P
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Lots of old Chevy's are done just like that. While I hate body lifts it has nothing to do with it. The 6in. lift makes things bad enough already as far as safety on the high way, the problem with a body lift on top of that is that there will be a lot of play in the bushings, making it even worse to drive safely. If you like the looks and the stance and the truck is just a around town\show truck then go for it but know if you have a blow out or have to swerve on the highway things could go very bad.
I would skip on this one but at least the body lift is cheap enough to put on and take off if you don't like it.
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Brake lines for the suspension lift yes but you won't notice a difference with the 3" body lift after the tires and suspension lift just go with wide tires that helps out with a little bit of the lift sway IMO. But once you get used to it its no different than driving a reg truck but blow outs or trying to stop real fast yeah right good luck with them
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6" suspension is as high as I'll go for the road. I never use body lifts for anything and hate them with a passion. If you're cranking on the highway I'd go no bigger than 35"s
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thanks for the advice!, and is there any type of stabilizers i can put on to help out with this?
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You can use the stock steering stabilizer and ladder bars for the rear if you want them. If your not crawling I would def put the steering stabilizer back on with a drop kit
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If you have ever seen what happens to a 3" body lift in the event of an accident, you would never put one on your vehicle. My buddy had a light jeep with a 4" susp, and 3" body, a crazy lady tried to cross his lane, and he hit her, the pucks for the body lift looked like this /. The body went forward on the frame almost an inch and a half. And he was only doin about 40 kph when he hit her.
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yea i smashed an 87 with a 3" body and broke the back two body mount bolts off, and i was planing on running 345/75/16's
(http://i755.photobucket.com/albums/xx195/jamie_jennings71/GetAttachmentaspx.jpg)
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I think you had bore to worry about than a couple bolts and the way I see if they do smash and bend well its taking some shock away from you
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Call me crazy but I like body lifts. Lower center of gravity than a comparable suspension lift and gives you ability to run larger tires. Much better option, for a cheap lift, than cranking bars and munching front end parts constantly. Irish brought up a good point about BL taking some of the energy out of a crash. I hadn't thought of that.
Now for your question, I had 4" lift and 2" BL on my Suburban with 315s (35s). I didn't feel any more unsafe or unstable after I added a 2" BL. That was IFS so sorry if that isn't too helpful.
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6" suspension is as high as I'll go for the road. I never use body lifts for anything and hate them with a passion. If you're cranking on the highway I'd go no bigger than 35"s
x2
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I got my truck on the highway with 38s 6" and a 3" now it had blocks in the rear bad ride and now I have all springs and its not a super ride but its better than the blocks. But if its a dd I would go with 35s but if you have a mud pit out back that if you want to play in it you better have 38s or bigger then go bigger the wider the tires the better it feels imo I have 38x16x16 everyone likes its stance and seams to handle pretty good
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I have a 12" with a 3" body lift. In no way is it a daily driver but if I want to take it out, I drive it anywhere I want. I used to have 44" tires with a 5:38 gear nice for driving around as far as stability you gotta know your not driving a sports car and treat it as such. Now I'm running 38.5" radials really for a truck it rides good, again its not a cadillac but it wasn't built for that either. Its kinda like when people ask me all the time what kind of gas miliage do I get. Well duh! Its not a gas saver either. I guess build it how you want and drive it with the respect of what it is and it will be fine. My 2 cents.
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lol, I HATE that question. Who really cares, actually my response is usually don't you mean gallons to the mile? ;D
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Or people who say they get X amount of miles per TANK. Hello people, tank sizes are different, even for the same vehicle. Start using MPG (or GPM as Vile stated) people!
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I get tired of some complaining about gas mileage. I understand if yu have a stockish 2wd halfton and only get about 12 mpg with a 305, you have issues. If you buy a crewcab dually, a 3/4 ton, or a 1/2 ton 4x4 with 36s or larger on it and complain about 12 mpg, get over it. The trucks just mentioned are not and have never been meant to be gas savers. They are work trucks. The dont ride smoothly either. Im sorry if I offend anyone, but if you cant afford the gas in one of these things, chances are you dont need it. I feed my 01 crewcab only when it goes to work, and the work it does, my halftons cant. Now, some just like the rumble of a bigblock, or a stroker motor (guilty here) but gas mileage isnt our primary concern.
I know the newer trucks ride smoother, but I dont think they are the work horses the our trucks are. More powerful engines, better brakes, yes, but anyone who has squatted a newer 3/4 ton with just a car on a trailer knows what Im talking about. I had an 01 3/4 ton crewcab that rode great, but squatted with the smallest load. My 11ton however rides like a buckboard empty, ut barely squats when loaded. Thats the way it was built.
As far as too much, that is up to the preferences of the owner of the vehicle. You are the only one that needs to be happy. I dont like body lifts, but see where they have their purpose, I also dont like blocks n the rear, but have to live with them until I can buy the proper springs. With the price of tires and wear and tear on the vehicle, I prefer 35s and a 6 inch lift max. If I ever went with a bigger tire, it would also be with a larger diameter rim to keep the side wallthinner and improve the rdie and handling if its a daily driver. For a weekend warrior, its hard to beat the looks of mammoth rubber sitting on the ground.
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Clearly the most accurate way to determine mileage is how many times per week you have to fill it up. ::) I run 33's with an extra leaf at each corner, and if I wanted to go bigger I would rather cut sheetmetal than mess with the factory steering geometry, and I think body lifts are an abomination.
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and I think body lifts are an abomination.
Ur face is lol j/k but the other day I saw this hybrid with a sign on the back of it that said "eating meat is worse than driving this car" I wish I was in my 79 but I was only in my 94 :(
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With enough nonsense bumper stickers we can save the environment 8) When these trucks were produced the Interstate speed limit was 20 mph less than it is now, and if I drive it accordingly I get an extra 3-4 mpg.
Having a body lift sure would have made it easier to hook up those hoses at the fuel tank though.