New lift...unsure of what I need

I have an problem. I don't know much about lift kits at all. I bought an '03 Ram QC Hemi recently and the seller advised me that the truck already had a 5.5" Fabtech suspension lift. I'm not sure if I believe that or not since the closest thing I found online was a 6" Fabtech lift.

I just had a shock go out on me, and there is another shock in dire need of replacement. I'm thinking that I want to get the most lift I can without any major mods and now is the best time to do it since I need new shocks anyhow.

• Can I piece together parts to achieve a 6" or 7" lift without buying a new kit? (that will be a hard sell with the wife because of the cost)
• I assume that I already have either 3" or 4" spindles. Would I just be able to purchase new shocks and springs and achieve this?
• What'll be the cheapest way for me to get 6" or 7" of lift?
  
  
  Any help that you can provide would be greatly appreciated. I feel crippled without knowing what I'm doing right now...

it could be the 6 inch kit but he only got 5.5 out of it...I know it happens that way sometimes when lowering...

adamwilkes14 said:

it could be the 6 inch kit but he only got 5.5 out of it...I know it happens that way sometimes when lowering...

Click to expand...

That's kinda what my initial thought was. I've been lowered before, but never lifted. I think I'll call Fabtech this morning to find out what size spindles and shocks are on this kit. I'm thinking they're 3" spindles but I could be very wrong. Hopefully they're 4" spindles because then all I need are 3" lift springs and new shocks...I should be set. But as I said....I'm not as familiar with lift kits, so I'm trying to double check.

Hopefully Jeff reads this today and can give me some input too...since I heard he knows his shtuff pretty well.

Is this a 2wd? 4x4? 1500? 2500?

-Jeff

My bad....that would probably help to know that stuff.

2003 Hemi 1500 2WD

You are pretty much stuck at the height you've currently got. The Fabtech kit for this truck is a 6" subframe kit. You cannot replace the steering knuckle used with the Fabtech kit, that knuckle is built 100% specific to the kit. Here's why... Fabtech relocates the lower control arm mount with their drop subframe. This means the distance between the upper arm and the lower arm is increased by the height of the drop subframe. The knuckle used in the Fabtech kit is taller by this same amount. Trying to use a CST 4" lift spindle absolutely will not work, the CST spindle would be too short to even bolt up.

The Fabtech 6" kit uses a special length coil spring too. The 3" spring that CST offers for use with their 7" kit is again way too short to work with the Fabtech subframe. If you wanted to add a 1" spring spacer that will normally work and allow you to achieve a proper front end alignment. Going with a taller spacer may cause problems with the alignment. A 1" spacer is pretty cheap too: PerformanceLifts.com -- Daystar 2009-2010 Ram 1500 1" Lift Spacer - 2wd Only!

The 2002 through 2010 Ram 1500 2wd with the coil spring front end can use the same spacers.

Here's what the Fabtech kit looks like before it is installed:




The previous owner might be calling it a 5.5" kit but... Fabtech does not advertise or sell the kit as a 5.5" lift. He might have only achieved 5.5" inches of lift but it's still called a 6" lift.

-Jeff

Well crap....that's not good news. I'll need to scrap the Fabtech kit at some point in the future so I have more flexibility. At least I can still throw a 3" body lift on it.

At what point will I have to start modifying other things like the steering linkage?
I've heard that 6" is about the highest you can go without messing with that stuff.

You have a great kit on the truck already... I don't see any reason to scrap the Fabtech kit in favor of anything else. The CST 7" lift with the CST 3" lift coil spring won't give you a full 7" inches of lift on a Quad Cab 5.7L equipped model anyway. With a 4" CST lift spindle and a 3" lift coil spring spacer you'll have approximately 1" more lift than you have now.

If it were my truck and I wanted a small bump in height I'd add the 1" lift coil spring spacer and call it a day. If you need to raise the rear up more to match the increase in front height that's easy, a taller block and U-bolt will get you there.

-Jeff

PerformanceLifts said:

You have a great kit on the truck already... I don't see any reason to scrap the Fabtech kit in favor of anything else. The CST 7" lift with the CST 3" lift coil spring won't give you a full 7" inches of lift on a Quad Cab 5.7L equipped model anyway. With a 4" CST lift spindle and a 3" lift coil spring spacer you'll have approximately 1" more lift than you have now.

If it were my truck and I wanted a small bump in height I'd add the 1" lift coil spring spacer and call it a day. If you need to raise the rear up more to match the increase in front height that's easy, a taller block and U-bolt will get you there.

-Jeff

Click to expand...

So the most I could go up without buying a whole new kit is 1" plus a 3" body lift?

I should have bought a 4WD instead of a 2WD....because 6" of lift isn't enough on a 2WD truck but it would have been a lot different on a 4WD.

Thanks for your help Jeff!

Even if you purchase a whole new kit you will not be gaining any more height than you can with the Fabtech 6" kit with a 1" spacer installed. The CST kit cannot go any taller than 7" inches, any taller and the upper control limits the rebound suspension travel. For instance, you can't get 8" inches of lift with the CST 7" kit no matter what combination of parts you use. That's why I'm suggesting keeping what you have and if necessary adding a 1" spacer.

With the Fabtech 6" kit installed you should have enough room for small 35" tires (like a BFG 315/70/17 or similar) if the wheel has the correct back space. With a 3" body lift and some slight inner fender modifications (trimming & relocating) you can clear up to a 37" tire. And with some more extensive trimming, a 9" combined lift will clear 38's.

-Jeff

I just got new Bilsteins installed in the truck. I think I'm going to leave the suspension lift where it's at for now and just throw on a 3" BL down the road. I'd still like to be taller than that (I like standing out in a crowd, and the taller I go the easier that will be) but I think that it's cost-prohibitive right now.