Finished Body Lift Today

Ford SportTrac Forum

Help Support Ford SportTrac Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

H D

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 2, 2010
Messages
3,435
Reaction score
2
Location
, GA
I did the body lift this weekend. It was more tedious than difficult.



Here's all anyone will care about:



[Broken External Image]:

[Broken External Image]:

[Broken External Image]:

[Broken External Image]:

[Broken External Image]:



Tires are near the wear bar, but still have some life in them. I'll update when I get new tires. Probably going to go with 32s, maybe Grabbers.
 
So TT/shackle and body lift now ???



Todd Z
 
Looks good man, definitly more tedious than difficult !! I'd go with 32's, I have 285/75/16's and they rub on the back of the front fender and toeboard even with trimming/ cutting. I have 1.5" spacers on front/ rear with 1.5" TT, WP lift shackles and 3" BL. I think the spacers are making the tires rub though. I'm eventually do a SAS up front like Chad did and lift it more, not too keen on :supercool::haveabeer::driving::banana:the IFS with lifts.
 
So TT/shackle and body lift now ???



No TT. Don't see any reason for it.



I have 285/75/16's and they rub on the back of the front fender and toeboard even with trimming/ cutting. I have 1.5" spacers on front/ rear with 1.5" TT, WP lift shackles and 3" BL. I think the spacers are making the tires rub though



These reasons are exactly why I think I'll go with 32s. No rubbing and no need for spacers. I think 32s will allow more wheel travel on trails, too.



I'm eventually do a SAS up front like Chad did and lift it more.



That's my ultimate plan. I want to wait until I pay off the truck or destroy the IFS, whichever comes first.



The BL looks good, but I always end up giggling at the look of OEM tires with a BL.



I can take the temporary embarrassment. I'm just glad I resisted doing a TT earlier, or I think it would look worse. I put the body lift on this weekend because I'm not sure of when I'd have time to do it in the future.



I posted this because I had a hard time finding pictures of a body lift on OEM tires. Maybe it can help somebody later.
 
Another note worth mentioning:



I paid $80 for the BL. I bought it from a local girl with a 2wd and 9" of lift. She didn't want another 3". I love craigslist. And also, a huge thanks to everyone on this site. Your help has been invaluable.



I have a ring to buy this month and I'm figuring out the money situation before buying tires. The current tires only have a couple more months on them anyway and I figured I might as well get as much out of them as possible. Besides, I'm driving to NY from Atlanta at the end of this month and will get better gas mileage with the current tires and will probably need to replace them after that anyway.

 
I like it! Looks great! I want to do the body lift on mine but I cant do it...Or I'm atleast to scared to attempt it, I think I would mess it up. Great job though! Post when you have the new tires as well.
 
Thanks. It's really not that difficult. I was really intimidated by it because I had never done anything like this and have never worked on a vehicle newer than 1969 except for oil changes and tire rotations.



If you have the right tools, its not that hard. All the complaints seem to come from people in the northern areas where salt and rust take a toll on the vehicles. The body bolts were hard, but with a little WD40 and a breaker bar, they came out with less effort than I was expecting. Everything else is tedious work. Of course, if you have the right tools and lots of time, it makes all the difference in the world.



I may be singing a different tune if I didn't have a reciprocating saw, impact wrench, an incredible assortment of different size sockets and wrenches, and a few days. It took me and my girlfriend's dad and brother three 6-8 hour days to finish this and I had all the tools and think I was pretty well prepared. Some people report to have done it in less and even with less help. I don't know how.



The instructions are not very detailed and the pictures are sometimes unclear, but otherwise the instructions are adequate and can get you through it. If anyone ever needs any help, I will try to answer any questions. This site has been very helpful to me and I feel I should do my best to help other members. Any questions can be sent via email posted in my profile.



To anyone who made it this far, sorry for the long-winded post. I will definitely post pictures when I get new tires.
 
Are you switching to 15" rims to run the 32's, what size are you going with ? Cottonwood, I felt the same way, he'll I had the BL for 5 months before I finally said screw it and did it. The lift itself is easy to do, it's just all the tedious things you have to disconnect, adjust, reconnect, etc. that takes all the time. Just follow the instructions step by step and you won't have any issues.
 
I think I'm going to stay with the stock wheels, I kind of like the design, just not really the finish. I'd like to powder coat them black or gunmetal eventually, if I keep them. I'm thinking 265/75R16.



I am considering getting some black 15" Super 8s, though. I don't want to spend too much money on it right now, so if I do get new wheels, these will definitely be the way I go. I'm trying to keep my priorities straight. I have a set of 15x8 AR Bajas, but they don't clear the calipers. Too bad.



Why do you ask? Any suggestions/wisdom? Lifted Tracs are so few that I like to hear any information from people who have already done them.
 
If you go with 15" rims, bigger tires will be ALOT cheaper. My 17" tires are expensive but I paid extra cuz i dont like the little wheel and the giant tire look. I am dreading purchasing my 37" tires :cry:
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Cost would be the only reason I would go to 15". It would definitely be temporary if I do. I don't really like the little wheel/big tire look, either.



I just read my last post and I apologize for the "Super 8s" mistype yesterday. Obviously, I meant Soft 8s.
 
How did you cut your front bumper? I'm having issues with mine. Just looking for a point in the right direction lol.
 
Top