need some opinions

[jsbrewster1]

i met up with Spink7124 the other day and saw how a really well built 1008 looks. he went far further than i am thinking of going but it looked good. he built his own lift and has roughly 40in tires on it. im not thinking of going that big, im thinking of 37s at best. but what im wanting to know is what do you all think i should do to make them fit. lift? finder triming? both. give me some help guys im on a budget.
thanks

PS. Here are some pics of his next to mine. mine looks small

 

[blzrgb]

I went with 6" front springs and a shackle flip in the rear with 13.5x37 tires and works great. The taller tires will take a little gear out of it and let's it do the highway speeds a lot better.

 

[jsbrewster1]

thanks does anyone else have some ideas?

 

[Scarecrow1]

Man I think everyones on a tight budget these days . If you think about it like your doing then its simple ....You think of what you want it to be in the end , and work towards it . It dosen't matter what you add to it because it yours .From a cost stand point try to stay in the middle of the road . Very seldom is the most expensive one the best, its just the highest. The most important thing Iv'e found is the more money you spend in a project narrows the amount of return on your resale . If you put 5K in a 2K truck dosn't mean your going to get a 7K return ....................With that said if it don't have tunes and ground clearance & nice big tires I don't like it . I can live with 2 out of 3 but it takes all three to make my day...........

 

[dependable]

While the modified truck does indeed look cool, You have a nice stock truck. The modifications not only cost to install, they have higher ongoing maint costs, ie less life for u-joints, transfer case and front end. A stock 1008 still looks and is way cooler than most civy pickups, Just my opinion.

 

[Croatan_Kid]

I did a 5" lift up front and 3" out back. 4" Tuff Country HD springs, ORD Zero Rate, moved the axle forward 1.5", 3" cast iron block in the rear. Fairly inexpensive, easy, reliable, tough and rides good. Moving the axle forward really helps with getting a bigger tire in there, it gets the tire away from the rear of the fender.

 

[steved454]

My m1028 is going to a spring shop that a buddy of mine owns and we are going to fab a 4 to 5 inch front and rear lift. I am going with 35 inch tires. In the past that size tire does not put much strain on the powertrain and I should be able to get a little better highway speed out of it. 37 inch tire would give you better top end but will also make the truck even slower and you will be doing minor fender trimming. with a 4 inch lift you just have to relocate brake lines and change pitman arms, any higher than that you are putting more severe angle on the driveshaft. anyone fill free to correct me. good luck with whatever you do and merry christmas!!

just my 2 cents

 

[allrevup]

I Ditto croatan_kid. 4" spring up front and zero rate spring from one or another supplier, 3"- 4" blocks in back and a 3"-4" correction steering block and top bushing in front. Good long travel shocks Hydraulics as oppose to gas charge are better for most situations short of high speed pre runner Baja or cold climates, Good for 35"-37" (with minimal to no trimming) tires some brands are off of by as much as an one inch in true diameter and should be more then adequate for most light to medium off-roding with just relocation of the excising brake lines and no drive line vibration issues and a total cost of Less then $1000 dollars and 6-8 hrs to do. If you buy descent spring for the money IE: Tuff Country good articulation with out stressing the rest of the suspension components or need to mess with drive shaft at this point you may have to at least replace the OEM steering damper for good measure. Acceleration will be a bit less but you will gain top end and reduce RPM which is better for this anemic engines longevity any way, just learn to drive anticipating the trail or traffic flow ahead do not used the brakes and work the 1800-2200 RPM 6.2 L sweet spot, it should makes for entertaining and participation driving, momentum and inertia are your friends with their power band.

 

[Cucvnut]

cross over steering helps alot also when you go over 3 inches on a lift

 

[allrevup]

Sure ! Cross over and high steering would improve the 'GM '73-'01 problems , along with custom adjustable spring mounts, longer hangers and reverse shackles and better or custom springs. If money was no object, why not go all the way and put custom reservoir coil over shock, shock or coil towers mounts, multi link suspension with HD rebuild able joint, custom drive shaft and a bullet prof Lo-max NP 205 3:1 and an under drive. But all that difies the purpose of a low budget spartan and stoic stock truck. You just as well buy a new or used modern truck and ad or built a solid axle or go all the way and built a front and rear long arm idependent suspention truck (like modern military) if money is no object with all THE GADJECTS OF THE PLUG AND Play VIdeo Generation. THIS are PRCTICAL If ARCAIAC SOLID AXLE TRUCKS. All that deficts the form follows purpose concept for simplisity and relaybility that makes this trucks great right out of the assembly line with little money and a few hours of work and research.

 

[Cucvnut]

que?

 

[allrevup]

Cucvfreack, Que no entiendes?

 

[PorscheTech911]

Sell it and buy a 5 ton? Those sit higher

 

[Cucvnut]

just fyi cross over steering is not more than an extra 400 bucks and in the big picture its worth doing

 

[jsbrewster1]

thanks everyone i appreciate all of your input. you have given me some great ideas and will begin to do some small mods at first and get funds together for the big stuff. as it comes together i will put some post up letting you know how it is coming with pics. thanks again

 

[allrevup]

" Of course it is and I recommended" But he is on a budget and for a 3" to 4" inch lift is sufficient , if he decides to go higher is only about $100 dollars of the $1000 dollars that includes NEW springs, correction steering block, new studs, upper king ping bushings, "U" bolts, a new steering damper and alignment. If he decides to go higher later he can do cross over and a gear box support

 

[ssgtwright-usmc]

cross over steering helps alot also when you go over 3 inches on a lift

Very well said, a cross over will also get rid of most death wobbles!!!

 

[AJMBLAZER]

While the modified truck does indeed look cool, You have a nice stock truck. The modifications not only cost to install, they have higher ongoing maint costs, ie less life for u-joints, transfer case and front end. A stock 1008 still looks and is way cooler than most civy pickups, Just my opinion.

Uh huh...cause Dana 60's and 14FF's wear out from 37" tires...uh huh...

My m1028 is going to a spring shop that a buddy of mine owns and we are going to fab a 4 to 5 inch front and rear lift. I am going with 35 inch tires. In the past that size tire does not put much strain on the powertrain and I should be able to get a little better highway speed out of it. 37 inch tire would give you better top end but will also make the truck even slower and you will be doing minor fender trimming. with a 4 inch lift you just have to relocate brake lines and change pitman arms, any higher than that you are putting more severe angle on the driveshaft. anyone fill free to correct me. good luck with whatever you do and merry christmas!!

just my 2 cents

I have 38's on my truck and I bet it's no slower than most of you guys with stock trucks. Not to mention when you're bouncing off the governor at 55mph I can go 70. I can go faster but my ears hurt...about like yours at 50ish.
You need at least a true 36" tall tire to overcome the deep gearing these have.


Frankly I wouldn't lift it at all.

-Buy some 36x12.5R16 Interco Super Swamper TSL Radials or perhaps 305/85R16 Gumbo Mudder Radials. Put them on the stock wheels.
-Trim the fenders minimally.
-Buy the ORD bolt on steering brace.
-Do the Jeep Cherokee XJ steering shaft conversion.
-Consider ORD's Zero Rate 1" lift add-a-leaves and using them to lift the front 1" and locate the front axle forward 1" or 1.5". This centers the tires in the wheel well and eliminates most of the issues with the tires rubbing on the rear of the wheel well opening.
Even with the 38" tires I have on my truck fits under a 7' garage door jam. Just barely but it does. I can tow a regular trailer without having to have a super drop hitch and my bed isn't so high you can't use it or need a forklift to load it.

Beyond that...season to taste. Stereo, cup holders, free flowing mufflers, a Class V hitch, cold air intake, 12v conversion, etc etc etc are all up to your tastes.

 

[steved454]

Love the " Big Ugly" project! saw the whole post you have on it. Cup holders is on my christmas list as a must! best mod ever. Do you think the stock wheels will be fine with 36 inch tire? I was going to buy some black steel wheels 16x 10.50's but I have noticed that they have $50 dollars a wheel to almost $99 dollars a wheel from my last 3/4 ton project. I think now I am going to the 36 inch interco tires now that you mention it.

 

[AJMBLAZER]

Thanks. I'm trying to make it useful AND capable as both a "bumping around in the woods 4x4" and general pickup truck. It's not a rock crawler, mud bogger, or Ram 2500 Cummins diesel tow truck but it does what I want to do well enough. Few more things and it'll just be cosmetic stuff.

Yes, the stock steel wheels would be great with the Interco's. The Radials in 36x12.5R16 are famous for being a bit narrow so the rims would work great. I've had real 12.5" wide tires on rims slightly narrower than the stock wheels these came with...worked fine. Not perfect but worked well enough all the same.

Too bad you can't get the 9.00R16 or 255/100R16 Michelin's here like you can in Europe. 36x9.5R16 Load Range F tires. One of our Italian members on here has them on his M1008.