You Lift Me Up
All told, this was the biggest part of Part 4. The process involves a lot of deconstruction of the truck’s underbelly, mostly focusing on the wheel areas, especially the front. In fact, the lion’s share of the parts went into improving the smoothness of the truck’s ride. For starters, the techs at Custom Auto lifted the truck up onto jack stands to take off the wheels. Then they removed the brackets from the rear axle and put on the new 4.5-inch spacer blocks.
Next, they moved to the front wheels and began a significantly more involved process. After getting the wheels off, they removed the existing tie rods, idler arms, pitman arms, and idler arm brackets. Here’s where they spent the most time, since everything having to do with the suspension and the steering mechanisms is out of the way and under the truck.
The Idaho-based shop then pulled out the front differential, both to get it out of the way but also to make some positively Frankensteinian modifications to it and the truck’s frame itself. Namely, by taking a reciprocating saw to the frame by the front axle to make room for the lift kit. This is actually pretty standard, contrary to how it might sound. Ryan Hillman, shop manager at Custom Auto, says, “Every lift kit you do, that’s normal. It’s not a big deal.”
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With the cutouts in frame done, the techs polished the cuts to make a smooth fit for the lift spacers. After making a few final adjustments to the cuts with a grinder, they then welded the spacers into place.