DatacomGuy

Looking to research lift options for my 2018 4WD .. Trying to determine the height I want to go, and what the Good/Better/Best options are. Goals are to fit 35"s in a 20x12 flavor, with a -44 offset, if possible. I can go less, but i do like the negative offset look over 0 or positive. Trying to determine if I want to go 4" or 6" but certainly no bigger. I'm on the road 90% of the time.

I do not want to trim anything if possible.. Is this possible with a negative offset in a 20x12?

If there is a faq or a page, link, site, etc that details the various options, brands, and what i'm looking at (trimming, fabrication, etc) for install of the kits that would be huge.

thatdudethere

Tire choice will matter. In 35X12.50 size, measurements differ. For example: Toyo MT (35X13.0); Nitto Trail Grappler (35X13.4) vs Cooper STT Pro (34.69X12.4).
Also, some lifts don't give a true 6", so lift brand matters a bit too. In any case though, you'll have to cut the crash bars on a 6" lift. Depending on brand of lift and brand of tire, it will still rub the body on the rear side of the front inner fender. I've done most every 6" lift and the 7" ReadyLift and the only lift that cleared 35's on 12" wides was the 8" FTS.

4" lift: MAJOR cutting

DatacomGuy

Wow, so cutting on both 4 and 6"? ANY lifts that dont require cutting? And what type of cutting are we talking about? Just some trim on crash bars, or more?

This is why we need a faq

Jfabes

DatacomGuy

Ouch. And thats on all heights, all brands?

Jfabes

thatdudethere

Not all heights. An 8" lift will clear under most circumstances. Below that, all brands of 6" lifts will require cutting the crash bars and still likely rub the body.

Jfabes

To clarify, I was referring to cutting of the frame to get the lift in, not crash bars or anything else.

thatdudethere

Unless unless you've got a 2-wheel drive, you will have to cut that cross member leg, so the differential and front drive shaft can drop through that area.

Florida_F150

Just to clarify a bit more for OP, if you "level" your truck, you're adjusting the front struts / coilovers either by replacing the coilovers with taller ones, or adding a "spacer" to the existing ones to make them taller. The end result is your truck is higher, but nothing else changes. It is reversible. The downside is that nothing else changes. The front axles coming out of the front differential, and other suspension components have to sit at slightly different angles than Ford intended to reach the new height of your truck. This is why you can only level to a max of maybe around 2.5" Any higher and those angles are too extreme and "might" cause problems.

A lift is entirely different. It still raises your truck, but in addition, the frame and suspension components are altered so that the front differential is dropped back down. This puts the front axles back at the proper angles that Ford intended. That's why you can go 4" or 6" high with a lift, and not with a level. A lift drops the diff back down to where it's supposed to be. But, as others have mentioned, the process of dropping the diff requires altering the frame which is pretty permanent.