1.5" Body Lift Test Fit & How To (Part 1, Body Spacers)

[ssgjurista]

Disclaimer
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A 355nation How To presented by
ssgjurista & Supermodulation

Project Name
Test Fit & How To Install Suspension Maxx 1.5" Body Lift Kit

Project Description
Canyon/Colorado owners generally use one of two means to lift the body on their trucks: hockey pucks for 1" of lift or buying the 3" PA kit. The Suspension Maxx 1.5" kit was designed to offer a compromise between the two. It features more lift and potentially more durability than traditional hockey pucks and serves as an economical alternative to the higher priced body lift. Installs with basic hand tools. Gives your truck a nice lifted stance without exposing too much of the frame.

Skill Level
Easy to Moderate

Project Vehicle
Make: Chevrolet
Model: Colorado Z71 LS 4x4 Crewcab
Year: 2005
Engine: 3.5L
Power windows: Yes
Sun Roof: No

Project Vehicle
Make: GMC
Model: Canyon Z71 LS 4x4 Extended Cab
Year: 2006
Engine: 3.5L
Power windows: Yes
Sun Roof: No

Note: Supermodulation's truck already had the Skyjacker 4" suspension lift installed.


Tools Needed
Jack and wood block
Wheel chocks
1/2" drive torque wrench
1/2" drive breaker bar
1/2" drive ratchet
1/2" drive extension, 9" length
1/2" drive extension, 6" length
1/2" drive extension, 2" length
15, 18, 19, and 22mm sockets
1/4" drive ratchet
Drill and 17/64" drill bit
Torque wrench
1/4" Allen wrench
Hammer
File
Pliers or vice grips
Flat tip screwdriver
Three 4" X 4" wooden blocks
Anti-seize
Blue Loc-Tite
Spray paint

Project Time
3-4 Hours

Project Cost
To be determined


Kit Contents: 12 - 14 Polycast 1.5" polycarbonate spacers, Grade 10.9 bolts and washers, fan shroud lock retainer, and billet steel 1.5" steering extension with Grade 8 Allen head bolt (pre-drilled) and safety wire.










Install Tips:
A. The cab bolts included in the kit have a black oxide finish. While rust resistant to a certain degree, they are not rust proof. I used some left over black spray paint and applied several light coats to each bolt and allowed it to dry.

B. Inspect the parking brake cable where it comes down from the cab and starts along the frame. Loosen the adjuster nut several turns where the front cable joins the rear cables to allow for extra slack.

C. (Optional) As an additional precaution, disconnect the negative battery cable. Caution: this may cause the Body Control Module (BCM) to go into 'protective' mode, causing the door locks and driver's front window to stop working.



Note: Please observe safety at all times and wear eye protection. If you have installed additional accessories make sure they won't be affected by lifting the body.

Before Bumper Pics







1. Chock one front and one rear wheel.

2. Remove the front skidplate (if equipped).

3. Unplug factory foglight harnesses (if equipped).

4. You will need to trim the tab in the center of the bottom fan shroud.





5. Release the 'horseshoe' tab on the left side of the bottom fan shroud by prying the tab towards the fan blades.



6. Rotate the bottom fan shroud 180 degrees so it is now directly under the top half of the fan shroud.

7. Measure in 1 & 5/16" from the edge of the shroud and centered between the symbols and drill a 17/64 hole thru both sections of the fan shroud. Install the plastic push pin retainer to keep the fan shroud sections from moving.





Note: for the purposes of this install, the front cab mount next to the radiator is #1, the mount behind the front wheel is #2, the mount under the center is #3, and the mount at the rear of the cab is #4. Depending on cab configuration ypu may only have 3 mounts on each side.

8. On the driver's side, remove the inner splash shield.



9. Warning: Place one end of a bungee strap around the steering wheel and secure the other end to the seat frame.







10. Remove the bolt holding the upper end of the intermediate steering shaft to the firewall steering shaft.





11. Separate the intermediate shaft from the firewall shaft. Clean the end of the shaft to remove any rust.



12. On the passenger side, loosen but do not remove the four cab mount bolts.

13. On the driver's side, loosen and remove all four cab mount bolts and bottom half of the cab mounts.



Here is a pic of the upper half of a cab mount still on the frame. Note the shape where it goes thru the frame.



When I removed the #1 bolt, the center sleeve came out with the bolt. Rust had built up where the bolt passes through. So I cleaned the spacer before reinstalling in the upper half of the mount. The large end goes into the mount first.



14. Place a jack and wooden block under the driver's side rear corner of the cab. Be careful where you jack so as not to damage the sheet metal on the cab floor. The metal reinforcements running across the bottom of the cab are excellent places to lift from since they are heavier sheet metal.



15. Slowly raise the jack and block until there is room to add a spacer between the cab floor and the #3 mount. Don't be surprised if you hear the cab make a bit of noise as you lift.







16. Slowly lower the jack until the cab almost touches the spacers. Make sure the upper half of the mounts are still seated in the frame.

17. Apply a thin film of anti-seize to the unthreaded portion of the new cab bolt and a few drops of Loc-Tite to the threads. Now place the lower half of the cab mount on the bolt and put the bolt thru the #3 upper half and spacer. Once the bolt is started, turn it by hand several turns to make sure it isn't cross threaded.

18. Repeat Steps 15 thru 17 for the #4 cab mount.

19. Carefully inspect the underside of the cab and under the hood to ensure no wiring harnesses, etc are stretched. Also inspect the parking brake cable where it comes down from the cab and starts along the frame. I had to loosen the adjuster nut several turns where the front cable joins the rear cables to allow for extra slack.

20. Lower the jack and move it closer to the front of the cab. I chose a cab reinforcement just to the left of the transmission. Using the block and jack slowly raise the cab until you can add a spacer on top of the #2 mount.

21. Repeat Steps 16 and 17.

22. Lower the jack and move it directly under the metal radiator support next to the #1 cab mount. Slowly raise the cab until you can put a spacer on top of the #1 mount.

23. Repeat Steps 16 and 17.

24. Lower the jack and snug all four bolts, then loosen about two turns.

25. Raise the hood and carefully inspect all harnesses and brakelines on the driver's side.

26. Move to the passenger side and remove all four bolts.

27. Place the block and jack between the #3 and 4 cab mounts and under the reinforcement.

28. Slowly raise the cab until you have room for a spacer on top of the #4 mount.
Note: At this point the entire passenger side of the cab had lifted so I was able to install all four spacers.

29. Carefully inspect the underside of the cab and under the passenger side of the hood to ensure no harnesses, etc are stretched.

30. Slowly lower the jack until it almost touches the spacers and repeat Step 17 for the four bolts.

31. Completely lower the jack. Torque all cab mount bolts to 59 ft lbs.

32. Install the steering extension from the kit onto the upper end of the intermediate shaft.



33. Install the Allen head cap screw and tighten to 25 ft lbs.






34. Place the safety wire thru the holes in the bolt head so equal amounts of the wire protrude from each side of the bolt head.

35. Take the piece of wire protruding from the left/top side and wrap it clockwise around the head of the bolt until it reaches the wire protruding from the right/bottom side.

36. Hold the wires together and approximately 1" from the bolt head, grip the wires securely with pliers or vice grips.

37. Twist the wires clockwise until you have made 6 -8 twists in the wires.

38. keeping the twisted portion of the wires tight against the steering extension, route the untwisted portions over and under the intermediate shaft.

39. Grip the wires again and make another 6 - 8 twists to produce a 'tail'. Cut off the excess wire below the twist and fold the tail back over the shaft along the original wire.





40. Place the upper end of the steering extension into the firewall shaft, install the factory bolt and tighten.







41. Install the splash shield and remove the bungee strap from the steering wheel.


Note: You can raise the bed of the truck by using the block and jack under the bed crossmembers. Other options include having a helper lift the cab while you install the spacers and lifting a rear corner of the cab and placing a 2 X 4 between the frame and bed.
When lifting the box by hand, lift from the bottom of the tailgate itself, not the sheet metal lip underneath.


42. Remove the five 10mm bolts from each of the plastic liners inside the rear wheel opening and remove the liner. This allows you easy access to the front bed mounts and also lets you monitor the hose between the filler neck and gas tank.

43. Loosen but do not remove the three bed mount bolts on the passenger side of the box.



44. Loosen and remove the three bolts on the driver's side bed mounts. For the rear mount you may have to unbolt the trailer harness connector box from the frame to allow room to access the bolt.

45. Lift the bed and install spacers on each bed mount. Don't be alarmed if the bed shifts, there is an easy fix later on.

46. Apply a thin film of antiseize to the unthreaded portion of the bed bolts and a few drops of Loc-tite to the threads.

47. Install the three bolts and turn them by hand for several turns.



48. Inspect the hose between the filler neck and gas tank for kinks or stretching. If necessary you can loosen the clamp and slide the hose. In my case, no adjustment was necessary.



49. Move to the passenger side and remove all three bed mount bolts.

50. Repeat Steps 45, 46, and 47.

51. Realign the bed if needed. Grab the bottom edge of the tailgate and push the bed forward until it stops. Examine each front corner to see if one side sticks out from the cab further than the other. You can push on the inside of the wheel well where the side of the bed meets the floor to move the box from side to side. Once the bed is centered, you may pull it slightly to the rear to adjust the gap between the rear of the cab and the bed.

52. Torque the bed mount bolts to 59 ft lbs.

53. Reconnect the factory foglight harnesses and install skid plate. Remove the wheel chocks and start your truck. Observe the instrument cluster and listen for any unusual noises. If everything is in order go for a short test drive and check the brakes and steering.

54. Reconnect the foglight harnesses and install the skidplate.

55. Check for proper operation of the following:
A. Steering
B. Brake function - check brake line routing and fluid level.
C. Fan clearance.
D. Battery cable slack.
E. Air conditioning and heater hoses.

56. Reconnect the negative battery cable (if disconnected).

57. Start the engine; observe the instrument cluster and listen for any unsual noises. If everything is in order, test the brakes and steering and go for a short drive.

Here are some after pics of the bumpers.










Pics of the Gap Between the Bed and Frame







What appears to be harnesses are actually the air lines going to my airbags. I wrapped them in wire loom to protect them.


Part 2 will cover a Test Fit & How To on raising the front bumper.

[07ColoradoBLK]

not too bad any after shots of the bumper height?

[JosueZQ8]

VERY nice Scott! Looks like another quality product from SMAXX...

[ssgjurista]

Originally Posted by JosueZQ8

VERY nice Scott! Looks like another quality product from SMAXX...

Thanks! Your thread on the hockey puck lift served as my inspiration.

[Supermodulation]

Nice work, can't wait to see part 2!

[kerad11]

x 2 on part 2. good job.

[zuschke]

Great job Scott!

I already have a 1.5" body lift using nylon spacers. I am very interested in fixing the front and rear bumpers. There is simply no way around making new brackets. I hope SMAX makes a kit with a bumper solution.

I used spacers on the front bumper to make it stock location but the braces on the sides of the bumper (in front of the front tires) are no longer connected. This is fine for looks but the bumper is not braced well enough so the fog lights vibrate with bumps in the road.

[brewer15650]

Very nice man. Thanks Sus. Maxx

[ssgjurista]

Originally Posted by zuschke

Great job Scott!

I already have a 1.5" body lift using nylon spacers. I am very interested in fixing the front and rear bumpers. There is simply no way around making new brackets. I hope SMAX makes a kit with a bumper solution.

I used spacers on the front bumper to make it stock location but the braces on the sides of the bumper (in front of the front tires) are no longer connected. This is fine for looks but the bumper is not braced well enough so the fog lights vibrate with bumps in the road.

Yep. Raising the rear with new brackets would be expensive because the new brackets would have to curl under the frame like the factory ones otherwise you lose some of the mounting strength. SM's fix is to leave the rear bumper alone and make a black urethane strip to fill the gap.

For the front, I will use spacers under the bumper. For the side brackets, Larry is designing an innovative plate to fit between the bracket and the cab mount. Will allow for raising the bumper and still being able to attach the brackets.

[ssgjurista]

Instructions updated to include installing the safety wire and additional photos.

[camorado]

i didn't install the steering wheel extension piece and mines still the same.

[ssgjurista]

When I tested the first kit, there was no steering extension. It overextended my steering shaft so Larry decide the kit needed one for safety.

[scarface!!!]

what is the price for this

[scochatm]

PerforMAXX 1.5" body lift with 1" bumper lift: $249

[ssgjurista]

Originally Posted by scochatm

PerforMAXX 1.5" body lift with 1" bumper lift: $249

$199 without the bumper lift.

[scochatm]

opps my bad i missed that one.

[scarface!!!]

Originally Posted by ssgjurista

$199 without the bumper lift.

front and back or none at all

[coloradochick7311]

Where do you order this from?

[filli57]

coloradochick i have one for sale if you are interested. brand new.

[coloradochick7311]

How much are you asking? Does it come with the stuff to lift the bumpers also?