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CST 4" Spindle Lift, Leveling 2wd

8K views 14 replies 6 participants last post by  4.8 Liter Of Cola 
#1 ·
2002 V8 4.8L Chevy Silverado ECSB 2wd

I want to lift my 2wd truck to level it out. I don’t want to put any money into this truck, but the rake stance disgusts me. I don't want to level it out by dropping the back.

I am currently running 255/70/16 with stock GM tires. I want to run 285/70/17 tires after the lift.

I want to go with the CST 4” Spindle lift and 2” blocks for the back. I don’t believe I can use stock wheels with CST spindles so I will have to purchase new wheels in addition to the tires.

I will need the following parts:
CST 4” Spindles
Upper Ball Joint Taper Sleeve
2” Lift Blocks (U-Bolt kit with nut and washers)
New Shocks
285/70/17 BFG A/T
17x8 Wheels with up to 4 5/8” backspacing

Questions:
• I would like to go with Bilstein shocks. Where is a good place to buy them from and what kind would I get?
• What purpose do the upper ball joint taper sleeves serve? I know little about the technical stuff.
• The CST Site says 285/75/XX tires will fit. How are 285/70/XX different? Smaller width?
• As long as I don’t add the coil spacers I will not be putting any additional stress on my parts aside from what the bigger tires will add?
• Going from 255 to 285 tires, do I really need to regear? I currently have 3.73s and am very easy on the gas. Will this be putting a lot more stress on my transmission with only 3.73s?
• How big of a hit in mpg can I expect to encounter from the bigger tires? It’s not really a big deal with 285s right (although I do only have a 4.8L if that makes a difference)?
• I don't really care about the ride as long as everything is working but should I go with add a leaf instead of the block? Maybe replace the entire stock leafs with a better set?
• I have no experience working on trucks and can’t afford to fuck something up so I will probably take it to a local place in San Antonio (XTC, Planet Pickup, etc) How much would be a good price to install all of this?

BFG A/T:
http://www.discounttire.com/dtcs/fi...false&cs=285&pc=38566&rd=17&ar=70&ct=&rf=true
CST 4” Spindle Lift Info:
http://www.cstsuspension.com/products/sfID1/7/sfID2/8/sfID3/31/productID/97
Performancelifts.com: Good place to order from?
http://performancelifts.com/cgi-bin/cart/CST0005.html

For Wheels I will probably go with some cheap black ones. I will be building a kayak rack (fishing) for my bed soon so I’m not trying to make it look fancy etc.

2 1/2 years ago I decided not to drop 4k+ on lift and all that, but this rake is just killin' me.
 
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#2 ·
-Correct, you have to use aftermarket wheels with the CST spindles.
-Don't know about the shocks...
-The CST spindles are designed to be used with their 7" kit, which includes an UCA w/ a uniball balljoint, which has a thicker stud. So, you need the shim, to go around your stock balljoint stud, so make up for the difference in the diameter of the stud.
-a 285/75-16 and 285/70-17 are essentially the same exact size. Same width, just different aspect ratio, but the difference in rim size nullifies that difference.
-3.73's with a 285/70-17 will be fine...of course going up to 4.10 would be nice, but if your on a budget, not necessary.
-I wouldn't plan on getting anything better than 15 mpg in town
-Spindles are rediculously easy to install, hell, my subframe was simple...but, if you must pay someone else, a few hundred bucks, tops. It shouldn't take much more than an hour start to finish. The most time consuming part is re-routing the brake lines.

If you REALLY wanted to...you could drive to FL and I'd sell you my whole set up for probably the same price if not less than you'd be paying for all of this.

GL with it...if you need help with it just let me know...I like to pretend I have some kind of an idea of what I'm talking about:crazy:
 
#5 ·
IMO, the rear is 2.5" higher in the rear (3-3.5" if you have a rollpan). you wont need a 2" block, maybe a 1" block (hell, i wouldnt even throw a block back there), dont do an add-a-leaf, it just stiffens up the back a lot. dont be so hard on teh gas pedal and you wont need to regear (if you do, 4.10s would be fine). stick with the 285/75 if you dont plan on trimming
 
#14 ·
I was talking to Bayfront since he has an 02, damn those 05s :flame:
Those are nice. I probably won't get around to this for another month or two though. Gotta do my IRA first.

One of HellFire's freinds had a crazy good deal for BFG A/T's on Ebay about a year ago that I foolishly passed up thinking I would never lift my truck :bawl:
 
#15 ·
that would mean that rear of the truck is only 1" higher than the front :think:
I have seen 2" shackles on other trucks come within .5" of being level (rear is still high) and sometimes level. I'm just not seeing how a 3" block will level it out with a 4" spindle
its off about .5 to an inch, but you really cant tell unless you whip out the measuring tape.
 
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