Chevy 1500 Questions

[jh504]

I just bought a 2004 Chevy 1500 reg cab long bed. I purchased it from a government auction. Judging by the color and the brush scratches down the side I think it was either a NFS truck or Wildlife Resources. I am new to late model, domestic trucks, so I dont know much about this one. The front of this truck sits very low and it has torsion bars. I have noticed that the 2500HDs sit higher in the front than my truck does. I have seen a few 2500s that sat very high and could clear 33s with no problem. Does anyone know the difference in the front suspension on the '04 1500s and 2500s? I want this truck to sit higher but I dont want to break down and buy a huge lift kit. I want to clear 285s with no problem.

 

[eugene]

someone may have adjusted the front lower for some reason. My 2004 1500 fit LT285-75 BFG's just fine. I should add that mine sits level, usually they sit higher in the back so when they carry a heavy load they are level so I think the previous owner may have cranked mine up.

 

[4x4mike]

Be careful about cranking t bars. It's a band aid fix and you'll need an alignment. Do you have a 4wd?

There are many differences between the 1500 and 2500 PU's. As far as t- bars go (for 4wd) each have their own. Keep in mind the 2500 has a different front end (engine, front diff, hubs ,etc) but on the older 1500 and 2500's you can switch the t bars. There after market ones and leveling kits and I'd look into those. I could fit 285's on my 1500 4wd with no rubbing but I had some after market wheels and the back spacing was different than stock. If you visit any of the chevy forums they will say you can fit the 285's on a 4wd that isn't clapped out.

The front end parts (suspension and steering) are quite weak and low quality on these trucks. I never broke anything but even with street driving I would wear through idler arms and pitman arms every 10 months or so.

In closing I'd look into a leveling kit and maybe get a 1 or 2 inch body lift if you want it to handle close to stock and keep the price down.

 

[eugene]

I've had my 285's on for over a year and a half and no front end wear yet. I had a tiny rub when they were brand new the little pointy things from the mold hit at full turn until they wore off.
If mine was cranked it must not have been too much, 82,000 miles yet with no worn out parts. Mine has the z71 package with the stock aluminum wheels. It came with 265-75 P ratted tires which are close to 32" and the 285-75 tires are 32.9 or 33" so its not that much of a difference.
However I did kill my gas mileage, between the size, weight, and traction (rolling resistance).

 

[string]

torsion twist

I have a '01 1500, I'm not sure if the newer model has torsion bars or not, but if it does you can pick it up and crank in the bolts at the rear of them for probably 1 1/2" to 2" of lift. It will stiffen the ride though.

 

[02TahoeMD]

I have my torsion bars adjusted on my Tahoe, using Ford F150 keys. Added 2" coil spacers in the back to get the truck about 2 inches higher overall. Taller than factory tires / wheels got another inch out of my lift. So far, no issues. Browse around on some other forums dedicated to GM trucks and you will find a wealth of information on the trucks and suspension components. I am pretty active on Z71Tahoe-Suburban.com and that is where I learned the most about my rig.

 

[Nimbl Vehicles]

Chevy1500

I have an 02 4x4 Z71 and run 255/85/16

I used a leveling kit to get more front suspension travel.
That gives you about 2 inches lift.
Had it for 7 years , 67k miles and never any problems.

 

[jh504]

Thanks for all the info folks. I did leave out that my truck is 4x4. I was able to do some more searching and found this link on another site;http://www.fullsizechevy.com/forums...keys-torsion-bar-cranking-replacing-tech.html
It looks like the heavier torsion bars are interchangeable for my truck. I am trying to figure out now if I can replace the leaf pack with an HD leaf pack as well. I will probably replace the leaf springs, add the Ford key to the front, and crank the bars a little. Then add a 1" body lift. With that setup I might try to fit 305s if they wont require too much trimming.

EDIT: After looking at things I think my torsion bars have been cranked down a lot.

 

[Cody1771]

if im not mistaken you should be able to run 33's on stock suspension, as far as the difference in design between a 1500 and a 2500 other than the 2500 has heavier suspension, is the guage of steel they use for the frame. the 2500 and 3500 use a thicker guage steel that makes the truck a little more ridged and lot stronger. this is mainly why you dont see diesels in 1/2 trucks. the frame just cant handle it for the most part (unless your talking a chev 6.2 or something lol) someone correct me if im wrong

 

[jh504]

if im not mistaken you should be able to run 33's on stock suspension, as far as the difference in design between a 1500 and a 2500 other than the 2500 has heavier suspension, is the guage of steel they use for the frame. the 2500 and 3500 use a thicker guage steel that makes the truck a little more ridged and lot stronger. this is mainly why you dont see diesels in 1/2 trucks. the frame just cant handle it for the most part (unless your talking a chev 6.2 or something lol) someone correct me if im wrong

Thanks for the insight. I think I'm going to go ahead and beef up my suspension with the 2500HD components to gain some ground clearance and also for camping. I dont plan on hauling heavy loads but I would like to eventually build this to be some sort of camper and I think the stronger leafs will really come in handy there.

 

[maximumrob]

I can honestly say I don't know anybody with any new-ish model Chevy pick-up that hasn't cranked their torsion bars to level it out. No problems that I've ever heard of, either.

 

[baca327]

Honestly a 3 inch body lift will 305's or 285's with ease. The thing to remember about leveling kits and cranking is the more that you crank the closer your control arm gets to the bump stop which in turn decreases down travel and makes the truck ride stiffer. I personally run a body lift with only like a 1 inch crank just because I like my CV angles nice and flat which if your too steep and your in 4 low and your trying to crawl over an obstacle that usually equates to a broken cv shaft, not always. I'm not putting down leveling kits by any means but I just personally prefer near stock suspension geometry. By the way I fit 285's on stock wheels with the front end cranked an inch. I put the body lift cause I plan on putting 305's on as soon as my 285's wear out. Some put 315's with a 3 inch body lift, but I like to go off road with out having to worry about a tire tearing up a fender. That's just my $00.02..

 

[jh504]

After looking at my ride height and camber angle pretty closely it looks like someone dropped the torsion bar bolts down really low and didnt get the camber adjusted. I cranked them up today and ended up with about 2" of lift and it didnt throw off my camber very bad at all. After filling up my tires to the right PSI I ended up about 1/4" higher on top of that. This makes a big difference on the trucks stance. It doesnt look like a low rider anymore. I will take it in and have it aligned as soon as possible.

 

[tlbrewer]

Check these guys out. They make everything you need for your GM suspension. The best as far as I'm concerned. They make a leveling kit(or lift if you prefer) that will keep your geometry correct.

http://www.cognitomotorsports.com/

Tom

 

[jh504]

Thanks everyone for the ideas. I will probably start a build thread once I get started with what Im going to do.