Hodges 2016 Bilstein Build

[ram1500rsm]

No I haven't installed them yet, need a jack and taller stands to fully droop the rear axle safely. Shooting for Monday morning install, supposed to be like -10* so work is shutting down, but ill get them installed.

Rear fender is sitting at 39.5"

I'm gonna remeasure hub to fender the day of install in the same spot I took my after picture. I won't be reusing the air bags with the new coils, so I let the air out and want to see if there's a variance in rear height

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Measure you rear springs to see if they were different as well. JB1 had a thread about his stockers having this much difference too. makes me wonder if there is a diiference in coil thickness in the case of this springs being longer on one side.

 

[hodge-xj]

Measure you rear springs to see if they were different as well. JB1 had a thread about his stockers having this much difference too. makes me wonder if there is a diiference in coil thickness in the case of this springs being longer on one side.

I'll measure the oem ones once I pull them out and check to see if the tags are still in tact with part numbers. I have a noticeable drivers side lean in the rear, especially when approaching from a distance. Visually it's apparent but it always seems to measure out when I put a tape to it. I want to try and remember to measure when I have it parked and notice the lean, it's not all the time, but it's always to the drivers side.

The bilstein springs don't look to be any different in diameter, the drivers side is just a bit longer. I don't have calipers to confirm this tho so it's hard to say by eye.

I have to assume they'd have a heavier or longer spring in the drivers side, accounting for the fuel and drivers weight. I still have yet to treasure the front height as well. I'm definitely sitting higher than the advertised 2.3" even under the diesel.

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[ram1500rsm]

I'll measure the oem ones once I pull them out and check to see if the tags are still in tact with part numbers. I have a noticeable drivers side lean in the rear, especially when approaching from a distance. Visually it's apparent but it always seems to measure out when I put a tape to it. I want to try and remember to measure when I have it parked and notice the lean, it's not all the time, but it's always to the drivers side.

The bilstein springs don't look to be any different in diameter, the drivers side is just a bit longer. I don't have calipers to confirm this tho so it's hard to say by eye.

I have to assume they'd have a heavier or longer spring in the drivers side, accounting for the fuel and drivers weight. I still have yet to treasure the front height as well. I'm definitely sitting higher than the advertised 2.3" even under the diesel.

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Do you have the 25 or 32 gallon tank ?
Edited: never mind you have a Diesel, i think yours come in 26 only ?

 

[hodge-xj]

Do you have the 25 or 32 gallon tank ?
Edited: never mind you have a Diesel, i think yours come in 26 only ?

Yep, only the 26 gal tank, plus the 5 gallon or so def tank on the same side.

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[hodge-xj]

Install is done! Wheels up to wheels down was just under 2 hours including a bit of pictures and messing with the dog. These are super easy to install. Dropped the lower shock bolts, sway bar, and brake lines and everything was able to pop in nice and easy.

I deleted the air bags, since they are stuck in the stock coils and couldn't get them out, as well as I just didn't need them. I also removed my rear sway bar, just to see if it makes a discernable difference and if I like it. Also removed the heat shield for the spare as it was close to my brake line after I lowered it.

A little trick I used to drop the brake line, and this will work even if you retain the sway bar. I flattened out and bent the wire bracket that is used in the oem location to fit the upper sway bar bolt. After I disconnected everything it kinda naturally dropped to that position, I popped the abs line out of its push pin position, zip tied it to the brake hard line and voila, no need to mess around much.

The ride.... man this thing rode like **** before. I can say its nice and smooth. It's definitely firmed up, but I can say that it's so much smoother than before. I have a few wash board pot hole infested roads by me that used to slam and make the truck skip and chatter over the hits, now it's just audible thuds and no drama at all. With my sway bar removed, air bags gone and all new suspension my truck feels totally different. I'm not used to it so I'll do an overall review after some seat time and let everything settle.

Hub to fender, wheel off in rear - 25"
Ground to fender
D/F- 39".5
D/R-40"
P/F-39.5"
P/R-40"

I drove around some more, parked in front of my house and the rear was at 40" on both sides and a bit under 39.5" up front.


Stock rear coils were different. I'll have to check my part numbers again, I referenced the wrong numbers!!!! I was looking at the wrong tag number.

Time.for pics.

If anyone need or wants any special pics lmk I'll be happy to get some.


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[Truck Fun]

Were your rear fender measurements equal side-to-side before installation? Wondering if these would correct my truck being slightly lower on the driver's side due to the gas tank weight.

 

[hodge-xj]

No, my rear drivers always was about 1/2" lower, it was definitely noticeable when approaching the truck from a distance. I'll take some more measurements tomorrow after i drive around a bit. With the rear sway removed the truck has a tendency to list a bit depending on how I turn into a spot. If i can pull straight into a spot it holds true to my numbers posted.

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[joshuaeb09]

No, my rear drivers always was about 1/2" lower, it was definitely noticeable when approaching the truck from a distance. I'll take some more measurements tomorrow after i drive around a bit. With the rear sway removed the truck has a tendency to list a bit depending on how I turn into a spot. If i can pull straight into a spot it holds true to my numbers posted.

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I'd be curious to know what the squat situation is like now when you've got a little weight back there. I've got these on my radar for sure now having seen the pic's for when I do my upgrades.

 

[JB1]

So did you get 1" of lift or more?

Any side view pics of the entire truck with the new coils?

 

[hodge-xj]

I'll post a full truck pic tomorrow, it got dark and I was racing the sun and rolling around in the snow. These don't seem much firmer than stock, so I don't think they will impress many with load capacity, but I don't load it up much on a daily basis. Honestly i would get another airbag setup that was external to the coils or timbrens and call it done. The air bags would ride harsh when empty in the coils, kinda like another bump stop.

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[hodge-xj]

So did you get 1" of lift or more?

Any side view pics of the entire truck with the new coils?

I got about 1" of lift. I always ran about 10psi in my bags to maintain level, now I have 1/2 rake, hopefully these 6112s settle some more. I definitely got way more than the 2.3" of the lift they said I'd get per the height adjustment.

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[JB1]

I'll post a full truck pic tomorrow, it got dark and I was racing the sun and rolling around in the snow. These don't seem much firmer than stock, so I don't think they will impress many with load capacity, but I don't load it up much on a daily basis. Honestly i would get another airbag setup that was external to the coils or timbrens and call it done. The air bags would ride harsh when empty in the coils, kinda like another bump stop.

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Omg I just looked closer at the pics and I see the snow/ice lol

 

[hodge-xj]

Omg I just looked closer at the pics and I see the snow/ice lol

Yea, I made sure I had all my tools ready to rock, it gets cold quick laying on cold wet snowy concrete. But it was at least warmer today, like 35* by monday its gonna be in the negatives and I wasn't even gonna humor that crap

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[hodge-xj]

Had 7 cans of fuel for the house, 37gals of diesel @ 6.91lbs/gal = 256lbs of fuel strapped against the tailgate, measured 39" loaded and 40" unloaded roughly. My driveway isn't perfect but I did the average between both side since the truck sits a bit off with sway bar out. These coils don't seem to be any heavier rate than oem, so may not be a great option for heavy use. They do ride absolutely fantastic so for me it's a worth while tradeoff since I run empty most of the time, aside from my bed box which weighs about 200lbs loaded

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[JB1]

That's great, I'm glad to hear it rides so good. Any plans to reinstall the sway bar?

 

[hodge-xj]

That's great, I'm glad to hear it rides so good. Any plans to reinstall the sway bar?

Honestly I'm still torn, I drove it a ton today and didn't notice it. That being said, this whole lean thing erks the **** out of me. So I may reinstall it and see. It's so small it really csnt make much difference

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[JB1]

Honestly I'm still torn, I drove it a ton today and didn't notice it. That being said, this whole lean thing erks the **** out of me. So I may reinstall it and see. It's so small it really csnt make much difference

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Well it would give you good comparison of with/without

 

[hodge-xj]

Well it would give you good comparison of with/without

As soon as I posted that I went out and reinstalled it and was going to say exactly this. Funny thing, even with a slight side to side variance, the bolts all slid in easy peasy, which makes me truly question our measurement points. As with anything hard mounted, if it was truly uneven side to side I should have the holes out of alignment, which wasn't the case. I'll report back since I need to make another fuel run tomorrow, depending on the storms intensity. I don't think I'll be taking the bar back off to be honest either way.

Once this weather breaks and I have a sunny day, I'll go out and see if I can find a spot that's not impossible to easily utilize to measure from. I may use the bump stop strike pad on rear axle and the bump stop cup. Should be more consistent than trying to hold hub center, or relying on the ground. The front, I'm not sure.....

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[ram1500rsm]

Honestly I'm still torn, I drove it a ton today and didn't notice it. That being said, this whole lean thing erks the **** out of me. So I may reinstall it and see. It's so small it really csnt make much difference

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Is it still leaning out towards the driver by 1/2" ?, is the lean the same on the driver side front and back or rear driver is lower, front passenger is higher ?

 

[hodge-xj]

I reinstalled the sway bar, that way all the variables are known, but it's been consistent 1/2 lower on the driver side front and rear. Oddly enough the sway bar lined right up even tho the tape shows a difference side to side. I did fill both tanks today that way it's the heaviest it'll be without me in it.

1/2 isn't noticeable, but now that I know, it's bothering me

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