Lift question for dummies

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RandyDaytona

RandyDaytona

10 Year
Joined
Sep 26, 2012
Threads
16
Messages
187
When I bought my 2014 LC, I added the OME “medium” lift as follows:

Medium Replacement Suspension ~2" Lift - $1145.00
(Retail Price - $1349)
Part# OME200L
1 - Front OME Coils* (Pair)
2 - Front OME Nitrocharger Sport Struts
1 - Rear OME Coils* (Pair)
2 - Rear OME Nitrocharger Sport Shocks

Since then, I’ve added a Kaymar rear bumper and 40-gallon LRA fuel tank. I’m getting ready to add a front bumper (ARB, likely).

Regarding an upgrade to the “heavy” lift…

1). Do I need to buy the entire “heavy” kit or just certain parts from the kit? Just heavier springs, maybe?

2). Will this give meany more lift? What would? Springs with a longer travel distance?

3). I am a rock hound and frequently camp out west in the desert, returning home with enough rocks that my steering is a bit squishy (for lack of a better term). Will the “heavy” upgrade alleviate that, and what will it do to the steering/handling/ride when empty?

Thanks in advance for you feedback and apologies if this has been covered. I did a search, but much of the info is in “lift-speak,” meaning I had no clue what folks were talking about, to begin with. I guess I need the info broken down to plant life (lol).
 
Best advice i can give is go cat scale weigh your rig and compare the coil options for the rear with what you bought to return to your normal lift amount compensating for your new added weight back there.

Unresponsive front end could easily be attributed to your rear axle weight levering the normal rake balance the platform is designed around.

I think new rear coils and you are good!
 
Are you going to do the work yourself? I see you have specced a relatively low end option for your struts and springs. The incremental cost to go up a little to a more premium option is not that much when paired with the install cost. I'm great at spending your money, I know, but just a thought while you are at it. Seems like you are spending $$ elsewhere - bumpers LRA etc.
 
Thanks for the replies, fellas. And sorry for my slow response: been out east helping my 90-year-old father-in-law dig out 50 years’ worth of my mother-in-law’s hoarding from their basement. Talk about a time capsule of useless stuff 🙄.

I would not be doing this work myself. I prefer it be done correctly (!).

And there’s no way you could possibly spend my money any faster than my wife already does.
 
I think an airbag setup would be perfect here. Your rig will handle and feel exactly as it does now, but when you add so much cargo weight on your trips you can easily increase the support of the rear by adding air to the bags as needed. Also they are pretty cheap and easy to install.

Otherwise any coil that can better handle the temporary weight in the back will add lift and harshness when empty.
 
bloc said:
I think an airbag setup would be perfect here. Your rig will handle and feel exactly as it does now, but when you add so much cargo weight on your trips you can easily increase the support of the rear by adding air to the bags as needed. Also they are pretty cheap and easy to install.

Otherwise any coil that can better handle the temporary weight in the back will add lift and harshness when empty.
Click to expand...

Unless i misread OP added bumper and a 40 gal? So thats more or less a couple hundred lbs. of static load.

But airbags are cool and 40 gal of fuel is a dynamic 240lbs on its own. The bag route may not be a bad plan…
 
Gonna try to break things down and help build your understanding.


1). Do I need to buy the entire “heavy” kit or just certain parts from the kit? Just heavier springs, maybe?

I think it all depends on your goals for how the truck rides and how it looks. You could add the front bumper and think “Hey, this looks and rides great!” Then you can continue with your current setup and be done! If the rear end of the truck is a little too low, you could get a “shim” installed that’s just a piece of plastic that sits on top of the coil that boosts the rear that amount. Alternatively you could do airbags like some have suggested and have an adjustable rear end height.

If the front is too low, I think the best course of action is to upgrade the whole coil over shock. There are “shims” for the front shocks available, but I’m unsure if the OME coil overs work well with them (could make the shocks too long). Alternatively, some front coil overs have adjustable perches or “pre load” but I do not think this applies to your OME shocks. The final option for front height adjustment are “spring spacers”. Haven’t tried them personally but there is a thread around somewhere.

Once the truck is sitting at the height you like, you can determine if you need to change out the shocks. If it seems fine, then great! If it seems floaty, the heavier damping will be needed.

2). Will this give meany more lift? What would? Springs with a longer travel distance?

The heavier coils will result in more lift over the medium coils. This is mostly due to a “stiffer” coil from a thicker material and/or more “coils” the spring. The other way to get more lift for a given stiffness of coil is to make it longer. The heavy OME coils may be both stiffer and a little longer than medium.

3). I am a rock hound and frequently camp out west in the desert, returning home with enough rocks that my steering is a bit squishy (for lack of a better term). Will the “heavy” upgrade alleviate that, and what will it do to the steering/handling/ride when empty?

It could be that your rig + load is just too much for the dampers to handle well, resulting in a floaty feeling. In this case the heavy shocks will help.

Another scenario could be that load in the back of the vehicle, especially behind the rear axel is reducing the weight on the front end by acting like a lever. The more central you can place the weight in the vehicle, the better it will handle.

Cheers!
 
Last edited:
daneo said:
Gonna try to break things down and help build your understanding.


1). Do I need to buy the entire “heavy” kit or just certain parts from the kit? Just heavier springs, maybe?

I think it all depends on your goals for how the truck rides and how it looks. You could add the front bumper and think “Hey, this looks and rides great!” Then you can continue with your current setup and be done! If the rear end of the truck is a little too low, you could get a “shim” installed that’s just a piece of plastic that sits on top of the coil that boosts the rear that amount. Alternatively you could do airbags like some have suggested and have an adjustable rear end height.

If the front is too low, I think the best course of action is to upgrade the whole coil over shock. There are “shims” for the front shocks available, but I’m unsure if the OME coil overs work well with them (could make the shocks too long). Alternatively, some front coil overs have adjustable perches or “pre load” but I do not think this applies to your OME shocks. The final option for front height adjustment are “spring spacers”. Haven’t tried them personally but there is a thread around somewhere.

Once the truck is sitting at the height you like, you can determine if you need to change out the shocks. If it seems fine, then great! If it seems floaty, the heavier damping will be needed.

2). Will this give meany more lift? What would? Springs with a longer travel distance?

The heavier coils will result in more lift over the medium coils. This is mostly due to a “stiffer” coil from a thicker material and/or more “coils” the spring. The other way to get more lift for a given stiffness of coil is to make it longer. The heavy OME coils may be both stiffer and a little longer than medium.

3). I am a rock hound and frequently camp out west in the desert, returning home with enough rocks that my steering is a bit squishy (for lack of a better term). Will the “heavy” upgrade alleviate that, and what will it do to the steering/handling/ride when empty?

It could be that your rig + load is just too much for the dampers to handle well, resulting in a floaty feeling. In this case the heavy shocks will help.

Another scenario could be that load in the back of the vehicle, especially behind the rear axel is reducing the weight on the front end by acting like a lever. The more central you can place the weight in the vehicle, the better it will handle.

Cheers!
Click to expand...
Thanks so much for the detailed response! Been on my 7th road trip since retiring in November, so apologies for the tardy reply!
 
@RandyDaytona

From your opening post, I think I’m in the same Boaty boat as you.
Have you pulled the trigger on changing your set-up? And if so, how do you like it?
 
I'll just add that having airbags has been great for a lot of different situations, from towing to putting on a rooftop tent that I take on and off.
 
Idaho Savage said:
I'll just add that having airbags has been great for a lot of different situations, from towing to putting on a rooftop tent that I take on and off.
Click to expand...
How so on the RTT?

While I do load up my LC, I don’t think I’ll ever tow anything.

I’ve been searching this forum on the merits of airbags vs stronger springs and 98% of what I find is for towing. But there are occasional posts from people who like them absent towing.
 
MCtree said:
How so on the RTT?

While I do load up my LC, I don’t think I’ll ever tow anything.

I’ve been searching this forum on the merits of airbags vs stronger springs and 98% of what I find is for towing. But there are occasional posts from people who like them absent towing.
Click to expand...
I’m probably in that 2% that don’t use airbags for towing. I wanted to keep the factory ride and manage weight when we go on trips. I hate a sagging rear so I just add air when loaded down and remove air as I unload gear.
 
MCtree said:
How so on the RTT?

While I do load up my LC, I don’t think I’ll ever tow anything.

I’ve been searching this forum on the merits of airbags vs stronger springs and 98% of what I find is for towing. But there are occasional posts from people who like them absent towing.
Click to expand...
I have a pretty heavy clamshell RTT and you can absolutely feel it on the rig (medium OME) in the steering and ride. With the airbags, all is well.
 
Idaho Savage said:
I have a pretty heavy clamshell RTT and you can absolutely feel it on the rig (medium OME) in the steering and ride. With the airbags, all is well.
Click to expand...
Ha! I was thinking you maybe lowered the vehicle some to allow for easier egress to the tent.
 
FWIW I have the Air Lift bags and remote system.

WirelessONE

www.airliftcompany.com www.airliftcompany.com

It has been absolutely flawless. I've been really impressed relative to all the older systems I had on 1 ton trucks, etc.
 
MCtree said:
@RandyDaytona

From your opening post, I think I’m in the same Boaty boat as you.
Have you pulled the trigger on changing your set-up? And if so, how do you like it?
Click to expand...
I am heading to Colorado around the end of July or early August (waiting on a date) to have Slee install the ARB front bumper and both Slee skid plates and sliders. The very helpful gentlemen I’m working with said I would only need springs and not an entirely new suspension, so they’re going up add those as well.

I’m also planning to stop at Gamiviti for a roof rack.

It will be an expensive trip- lol.
 
Agreed, the guys at Slee are very helpful and informative. And patient with my dumb questions.
For what it’s worth, when Slee installed my rear number and Aux tank, they were going just going to install springs.
Christo actually recommended that I hold off on the shocks to see how I like it and get those later if necessary.
When I picked up the vehicle, they told me they didn’t install the springs because they measured before and after and my ride height had remained the same. So they left the original springs in.

Problem is that over the last 1.5 years, after lots of heavy use, I think the springs have sagged quite a bit. I wish I would have measured then so I could be sure, but I think I’ve lost at least an inch in the rear.
Though, to be fair, I have since also added a single goose gear drawer and the goose gear base plate. But that’s only about 60lbs or so.
 
Thanks to all the helpful input above, I have decided to upgrade my tires (275/70r18’s) on Monday. I’ll drive them for a bit and then upgrade my suspension, and then add an airbag if I think I still need it.

But then I’m stuck on what to “upgrade” on the suspension. Or how to upgrade it.

What are you guys’ thoughts on Tinkerer’s Adventures video on the differential drop?



To me, there is a logic in not lifting a vehicle 2” only to drop the differential 1”.
(Approach and departure angles notwithstanding.)
Since I’m not looking for a giant lift (wife and garage constraints) I am contemplating a 1” lift. And this would allow me to avoid a lot of the other changes one needs to do when lifting.
But I am only seeing 2” minimum lifts out there.
Or maybe I misunderstand what I’m seeing out there.
For instance, if you buy a dobinson kit, you can select springs for 1” lift springs for cars with no load, but then if you have weight added to the LC it jumps to 2” springs for different weights. There aren’t any 1” springs for a loaded vehicle.
Or am I missing something? Are there 1” to 1.5” suspension lift kits for a mediumly modded truck?



OP: I again apologize for hijacking your thread, but the title you picked seems so perfect for my stupid suspension questions. Let me know if you would prefer if I start my own thread.
 
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