I cranked my T-Bars 2" to level the front. The ride still seems okay, but I want new shocks.

I'm going with the Bilstein 5125's.

Is this correct?

FRONT - BE5-6140-T5

REAR - BE5-6248-H5

The rear of my truck will NOT be lifted.

What will I need to get to make the Bilsteins work? I've read you have to modifiy something...

If so, where can I get what I need?

I ordered:

BE5-6140-T5 for the front.

BE5-2550-H1 for the rear.

2 bushing - 98108G

2 Sleeves - 423730


About $295 for everything. I opted for the HD replacements for the rear because I will rarely off road my truck and these are a little cheaper and easier to install overall.

Hopefully they'll ride a little softer as well.

Yep, those will work. I think you'll like the ride improvement.

I am looking online for new shocks and I keep coming up with this number for the fronts - BE5-6928-H0. is that the wrong shock?

That's the Bilstein OEM replacement (yellow & blue body). The 5100's aren't that much more and offer a smoother ride, plus they're zinc coated and look better.

Has Bilstein released the front shocks for 07 yet??

Ken-

HOw difficult was it to crank those down? I mean to get it level left to right, etc? Did the raise to the front affect the ride with vibration or anything? I had contemplated that a few months back and was told it could sometimes cause issues.

Any advice is appreciated. I wouldn't mind trying it before I buy new tires. Do yu require the new shocks with the lift? Or is that just a preference?

Thanks again-

Busa

quote:

Originally posted by Hayabusa1:
Ken-

HOw difficult was it to crank those down? I mean to get it level left to right, etc? Did the raise to the front affect the ride with vibration or anything? I had contemplated that a few months back and was told it could sometimes cause issues.

Any advice is appreciated. I wouldn't mind trying it before I buy new tires. Do yu require the new shocks with the lift? Or is that just a preference?

Thanks again-

Busa

Its not difficult at all if you have a solid jack, and some jack stands. I'd probably recommend buying a kit with new keys, the cheapest you can find the better (I got a skyjacker kit for 126 that had 2 keys), theres nothing to them, just a chunk of forged metal, they're solid, the OEM ones have an extra hole, which makes it slightly weaker. It also says to have a T bar tool, we used C Clamps (bent a clamp over though, make sure yours is strong). Its as easy as turning a bolt once you have the new keys on, drop your jack, measure, jack it back up, crank a bolt alittle, drop it back down until they're level. The ride is definitely not as good as stock, not really because of vibration but because you're actually imparing your suspension, since T bars are your front suspension, more pressure on them equals less ability to take bumps out of your ride. It doesn't require new shocks, its just that its recommended to replace shocks at 50,000 anyways, and stock shocks are pretty cheap to begin with, so you're deminishing your ride quality with the t bars, with bad shocks you'll really jar over pot holes.

RLN-

Many thanks for the explanation. If I am reading you right, you are saying that the impairment to the front is a stiffer ride? I.E- I get added lift, but the truck will feel more like a 3/4 ton? I could live with that, however I do not want the opposite. Added lift with a lessened suspension would not work for me.

I'll check out the kits...


Busa

Yup, feels and looks like a 3/4 ton, just won't haul like one.

quote:

Originally posted by RLN 05 SLT:
Yup, feels and looks like a 3/4 ton, just won't haul like one.

That really depends on the shocks (and shock valving) you use. There is a sweet spot with just the right combination of torsion bar tension (spring rate) and shock valving. It keeps the front end from wallowing over rough terrain and leaning in turns while still absorbing bumps. You can improve control without sacrificing ride quality.

A guy on DTW has some Bilsteins for sale, but here are the part numbers....

F/R

part#52121458ac part#52121451ad

Not sure if these are what I would need or not with the torsion bar lift.