Man, I’ve been wanting to lift my pickup truck for a while now. It’s just a regular old truck, nothing fancy, but I figured a little extra height would be cool and maybe help with some light off-roading. So, I finally took the plunge and decided to do it myself. Let me tell you, it was a bit of an adventure.
First, I spent a good chunk of time researching. I’m no mechanic, so I needed to figure out what kind of lift I wanted and what was even possible with my truck. I read through tons of forums and watched a bunch of videos. There’s a lot of information out there.
I landed on a basic suspension lift kit. I read that body lifts and leveling kits take a certified mechanic 1.5-3 hours to install, while suspension lifts typically take 5-15 hours. It seemed like a good balance between getting some decent lift and not being too complicated to install. Plus, I wanted a bit more ground clearance for those bumpy trails. I found a kit online for around $600, which seemed reasonable. The estimated cost for a modest lift is between $200 to $1,000. If you want a serious lift, like for fitting 35-inch tires, that’s a whole other story and a lot more expensive.
When the kit arrived, I cleared out my garage and got all my tools ready. I’m talking wrenches, sockets, a torque wrench, jack stands, the whole nine yards. I’m not gonna lie, seeing all those parts laid out was a little intimidating. I double-checked that I had everything the instructions mentioned.
The first step was disconnecting the negative battery cable. Safety first, you know? Then came the fun part, jacking up the truck and taking off the wheels. I made sure to put the jack stands in the right spots, I didn’t want the truck coming down on me. It would be a disaster.
Next, I started removing the old suspension components. This involved a lot of unbolting and wrestling with rusty parts. Let me tell you, those bolts were not happy about being moved. I used a lot of penetrating oil and elbow grease. Some of them were really stuck, but a breaker bar saved the day.
With the old parts out, it was time to install the new lift kit. This was actually a bit easier than taking the old stuff off, thank goodness. The new shocks and springs were shiny and new, and they slid into place pretty easily. I just had to make sure everything was lined up correctly and torqued to the right specs.
After I got the new suspension installed, I put the wheels back on, lowered the truck, and reconnected the battery. It was time for the moment of truth. I started the engine and slowly backed out of the garage. Success! The truck was definitely higher, and it felt great. I would estimate the whole process took me around 10 hours, which is within the average time frame of 5-15 hours.
- Suspension lift kit (cost me about $600)
- Basic hand tools (wrenches, sockets, etc.)
- Torque wrench (important for getting the bolts tightened just right)
- Jack and jack stands (safety first!)
- Penetrating oil (for those stubborn bolts)
- Breaker bar (for extra leverage)
Here’s what I used:
I took it for a little test drive, and it handled great. It’s not a huge lift, only about 4 inches, but it makes a noticeable difference. I’m pretty proud of myself for tackling this project. It wasn’t easy, but it was definitely rewarding. Plus, I saved some money by doing it myself instead of taking it to a shop. Now, I’m ready to hit some trails and see what my newly lifted truck can do!
