2wd leveling Kit - Installed
#1
2wd leveling Kit - Installed
I installed a 2wd leveling kit on my 01 2wd over the weekend, and just wanted to share my experience with you guys.
I bought it through ebay from fatbobsgarage, which i believe is a site sponsor.
First thing i noticed, was that the stud extension was about 1/8 too long.
This allowed the washer to sit too high and allowed the coil spring to float around and not sit square.
I knew there wasn't a chance I was going to shorten that extender, I'm guessin it's grade 8. So I took the stock spacer / washer and ground the oblong part off, and put it under the plastic spacer. This made the spacers more like 2 1/8.
After that, I was able to take up most of the distance between the washer and the spacer, and the coils lined up nicely.
Before:
After:
Looking at it this morning, it looks like there is still a bit of a gap between the spring and the spacer,
hopefully it isn't enough to let the spring move around.
I've got her scheduled for an alignment in the morning, it's clearly way, way out.
I bought it through ebay from fatbobsgarage, which i believe is a site sponsor.
First thing i noticed, was that the stud extension was about 1/8 too long.
This allowed the washer to sit too high and allowed the coil spring to float around and not sit square.
I knew there wasn't a chance I was going to shorten that extender, I'm guessin it's grade 8. So I took the stock spacer / washer and ground the oblong part off, and put it under the plastic spacer. This made the spacers more like 2 1/8.
After that, I was able to take up most of the distance between the washer and the spacer, and the coils lined up nicely.
Before:
After:
Looking at it this morning, it looks like there is still a bit of a gap between the spring and the spacer,
hopefully it isn't enough to let the spring move around.
I've got her scheduled for an alignment in the morning, it's clearly way, way out.
#3
#5
Looks good, Joe. I'm not sure I understand the part about "grinding off the oblong part".
Oh... I have confirmed with FB's that the extenders are in fact Grade 8.
I received my kit from FB's last week, and will be investigating the options of purchasing UHMW round stock and making my own spacer kits.
Turning the UHMW stock on the wood lathe will be a snap, and I think I can improve on FB's design by not using a square shouldered recess underneath the spacer... have to check it out carefully, though, before I know for sure. I also have a neighbor who has his own thermoplastics company and he may be able to custom machine the pieces for me for less than I can buy the plastic myself.
The real trick is in geting a good price on the stud extenders - those little buggers have been really hard to find. I've also been looking for a single hardened replacement bolt of the correct length as an even better option because that would let you get away from the two-part fastener created by using the extenders. No firm info on either the stud extenders or the replacement bolts yet, though, but I'm still investigating.
Either way, I have a kit and I will definitely be installing it before much longer. Need to wait and see if I can go ahead and get a set of 4 Bilsteins to go in at the same time before the Shockwarehouse sale ends this month. If I can't get the shocks, the kit will go in as-is.
Oh... I have confirmed with FB's that the extenders are in fact Grade 8.
I received my kit from FB's last week, and will be investigating the options of purchasing UHMW round stock and making my own spacer kits.
Turning the UHMW stock on the wood lathe will be a snap, and I think I can improve on FB's design by not using a square shouldered recess underneath the spacer... have to check it out carefully, though, before I know for sure. I also have a neighbor who has his own thermoplastics company and he may be able to custom machine the pieces for me for less than I can buy the plastic myself.
The real trick is in geting a good price on the stud extenders - those little buggers have been really hard to find. I've also been looking for a single hardened replacement bolt of the correct length as an even better option because that would let you get away from the two-part fastener created by using the extenders. No firm info on either the stud extenders or the replacement bolts yet, though, but I'm still investigating.
Either way, I have a kit and I will definitely be installing it before much longer. Need to wait and see if I can go ahead and get a set of 4 Bilsteins to go in at the same time before the Shockwarehouse sale ends this month. If I can't get the shocks, the kit will go in as-is.
#6
Once you get your stock rubber / plastic insulator off, you'll see that it has an egg shape that is designed to keep the coil spring from moving around.
Mine didn't have a square shoulder, it had a flat side that I assumed was to line up with the flat area of the spring, but it would seem that it was mfg. to such loose tolerances that it didn't matter what way you turned it.
Also, you'll find that without the extender in there to fill the slop, the spacer moves around on the bottom mount too much.
Also, you'll find that without the extender in there to fill the slop, the spacer moves around on the bottom mount too much.
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Stewart... thanks. I won't be doing anything with the kit at all unless I can offer either "a significant design improvement at the same price" or "an improved design at a lower price" than that on eBay.
I'm short on time right now, too, so this will be a spring/summer type project for me. In fact, now that I have the stud extenders, I want to visit a few local machine shops to see what they can do for me on a small quantity basis.
I'm short on time right now, too, so this will be a spring/summer type project for me. In fact, now that I have the stud extenders, I want to visit a few local machine shops to see what they can do for me on a small quantity basis.