CUSTOM STOPPING POWER
January 3, 2023
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THE AUTO BUILDER
Featured
539HP 383 On Pump Gas
Time and time again, our advice to those interested in learning about stout-running engines is that it’s the total combination that makes it all happen—considering, of course, that components are prepped, cleaned and assembled as if in a “clean room.”
Cool Breeze
When Tony Gonzalez says that it is his business to be cool, he really means it. Gonzalez owns an air conditioning repair and installation company, but what gets him hot in his spare time (read, winter) is to build and ride in his 1995 Chevy Silverado.
GOING AFTERMARKET
You’ve probably heard those Zen sayings that ask questions like, “What is the sound of one hand clapping?” or, “If a tree falls in the forest and no one hears it, does it make a sound?” Those particular questions may be a little weighty for the scope of this article, but Ford’s new Vehicle Personalization plan has us asking a few questions of our own.
Spotlighter
Super-High Super Duty
Selecting a Superlift kit for big-meat clearance and ride quality
Tall lift kits used to mean a rough ride. Times have changed—the suspension aftermarket has figured out how to accommodate huge meats without inflicting permanent kidney damage on the driver and passengers. Computer-modeling and other engineering advancements prioritize ride quality into the suspension design. Spring packs with more, thinner leafs is an example of how tall-truck suspension philosophy has evolved.
Author
Tom Morr
Photos by Tom Morr & Brian Cox
The Super Duty as a Prime Candidate for Lifting
Newer Ford Super Dutys are prime candidates for serious lifting. Stock, they look somewhat rugged and industrial-strength, but raising them up and slapping on aggressive rubber makes Super Dutys truly outstanding.
Installing the Superide Select 8” Kit on a 2001 F-250 4×4
To demonstrate that the competent do-it-yourselfer can still add a tall lift to a late-model truck, this article shows highlights of Superlift’s Superide Select 8” kit going on a 2001 F-250 4×4. (The system shown here fits leaf-sprung 1999-2004 F250/F350 4x4s.)
Features of the Superlift Super Duty Kits
The Superlift Super Duty kits offer several premium aspects. As mentioned already, ride quality is addressed with more, thinner leaves per pack: 9 or 10 in front (depending on lift level) compared to some other manufacturers’ 5 or 6.
Available Kit Sizes and Benefits
- 2” – fits 34” tires: This kit includes replacement front springs and U-bolts, a heavy-duty track-bar bracket, and front bumpstop lowering brackets.
- 4″ – fits 35” tires: Includes the 2” kit’s bracketry with taller front springs, longer front anti-sway bar links, and rear add-a-leafs.
- 6″ – fits 36” tires: Above components but taller front springs and a dropped pitman arm; rear leveling combines 2.5″ rear lift blocks with add-a-leafs or optional replacement Superide Select springs.
- 8″ – fits 38” tires: Builds on the 6″ kit by adding rear bump-stop drop brackets, front brake-hose relocation hardware, and either 4″ rear blocks for use with add-a-leafs or replacement Superide springs (shown here).
- 10″ – fits 40” tires: Adds new leafpacks at each corner with 2″ rear blocks for leveling; includes replacement front spring hangers, Bulletproof braided-steel brake hoses, an adjustable front track bar, extended front and rear swaybar links, and a rear-shock crossmember mount that has tabs for running optional dual shocks.
Optional Upgrades for Superlift Kits
All complete systems come standard with Superlift’s Superide shocks: gas-charged fronts and hydraulic rears. For this job, we upgraded to Superlift Select Series (SS) monotube shocks (Bilstein 5100s).
Additional Superlift Upgrades for Performance and Style
We also opted for a few other Superlift upgrades. First, dual front shocks mounts and dual steering stabilizers really optimize ride and handling.
Professional Installation and Final Adjustments
Superlift recommends that these Super Duty kits be professionally installed. However, they’re straightforward compared to many IFS kits, so we relied on Richard Kale and Alfredo Valadez at Off Road Unlimited (ORU) to give curious do-it-yourselfers an idea of what’s involved.
Results: A Super Duty Ready for the Road and the Trails
A day at ORU accomplished the mission. Now the daily-driven truck rides on 37” Cepek Fun-Countrys, and the 8” Superide Select springs (backed by multiple SS shocks) are softer and more compliant than the ride from the previous 6” springs.
1. With the vehicle raised and secured, begin the front by removing the tires. Superlift also recommends removing the front bumper (which ORU chose not to since this one has an aftermarket grilleguard). Then unbolt the track bar at its upper mount. ORU zip-ties the bar to the tie-rod.
2. Disconnect the swaybar links, then remove the front shocks.
3. Remove the upper track-bar mount and the front bumpstops.
4. Make sure that the front axle is supported, then remove the front springpacks, U-bolts first.
5. Undo the shackle bolts second and the front eye last. Then the existing springs can be swung free.
6. Use lithium grease to install the bushings and sleeves into the Superlift springs. Reverse the removal process to install the new springs. ORU disconnected the front driveshaft so that the axle’s locating pins could be jockeyed under the new springs more easily. All hardware is hand-tightened and will be torqued to spec once the vehicle is on the ground.
7. Separate the draglink from the pitman arm using a pickle fork or other suitable tool. Count the exposed threads and orientation of the existing draglink adjuster sleeve. Remove it and install the Superlift adjuster sleeve in the same position.
8. Note the indexing of the existing pitman arm. Then remove its cotter key and jam nut before freeing it with a pitman-arm puller.
9. Install the Superlift dropped pitman arm in the exact same position as the old arm. Torque the jam nut to spec (ORU uses thread-locking compound) and install a new cotter pin. Then the draglink can be reconnected to the pitman arm.
10. The Superlift track-bar bracket installs to the factory holes using existing hardware. (Notice the sporty laser-cut “S” logo in the bracket.) The track bar can be reconnected at this point.
11. Remove the factory upper swaybar mounts and replace with the Superlift brackets.
12. Install the extended Superlift swaybar links at the upper (frame) mounting points. ORU finishes this and other buttoning-up details later when the vehicle is back on the ground.
13. Superlift’s optional front dual-shock kit uses new upper mounting brackets. These catch existing frame holes.
14. The kit’s bumpstop extension brackets and multi-stage snubbers install using factory holes and hardware.
15. The brakelines need to be relocated to span the extra distance between the frame and caliper. Two options are to remount the stock hardline and hoses or upgrade to longer hoses, such as these Superlift Bulletproof braided-steel ones. The Superlift dual-shock bracket accommodates and relocates the factory bracket. ORU secures them to the ABS cable.
16. Optional Superlift SS monotube shocks by Bilstein were chosen here. The tops mount to the new brackets, and the lower eyes use the existing shock mount and the kit’s sleeves.
17. The optional dual steering stabilizer uses a zinc-plated center bracket, which Alfredo centers on the tie-rod.
18. The stabilizers’ outer mounts attach to the spring U-bolts.
19. The stabilizers are installed finger-tight, then the hardware is torqued down after tie-rod clearance is checked and verified.
20. The skidplate’s frame is bolted to the truck’s front crossmember.
21. Once the frame is in place, the brushed-stainless skidplate can be marked and drilled to match the mounting holes.
22. ORU recommends upgrading to a long-spline front driveshaft (left) if the truck will see off-road action.
23. In the rear, ORU removes the existing springs with shackles in place.
24. The shackles are then swapped onto the new springs.
25. The Superlift rear springs are direct replacements; ends are even marked. ORU sometimes uses a come-along to maneuver the axle under the springs so that the locating pins seat properly.
26. The Superlift kit includes rear compression-stop extension brackets, used here with the OE stops. Optional progressive rear compression stops that are designed to help retain load-carrying capacity are also available.
27. Single rear Superide SS shocks are installed in the factory locations.
28. To minimize the chance of driveline vibration, ORU adds carrier-bearing shims. The goal is to have a straight line from the transfer case to the rear pinion.
29. The Superlift 8” kit will clear most 38s. However, we went for a little extra sheetmetal clearance for this daily driver by choosing 37x13.50R17LT Dick Cepek Radial F-C IIs, which were recently re-engineered and reintroduced by Mickey Thompson Performance Tires. They’re mounted on 17x10 Weld EVO XT Velocity 8 wheels.
30. McGard wheel locks and heavy-duty lugnuts help ensure that this rubber will continue to meet the road while attached to the F-250.
ARTICLE SOURCES
McGard
1-800-444-5847
Mickey Thompson Performance Tires
(330) 928-9092
Off Road Unlimited
(818) 563-1208
Superlift Suspension Systems
(408) 627-5171
Weld Wheels
1-800-788-9353
