Spent the last few weeks and most of the weekend searching and reading up on the leveling threads. I've got an '06 XL 2wd and want bigger tires and/or wheels. I have 17s now with 235/65s. So I've read I need to get a level kit. So many choices. Sales guy steered me to a Daystar 2.5" poly kit, saying the poly helps dampen vibration and the new polys don't have the problems that have been posted here, i.e. deterioration, deformation, etc. But seems like posters here like the HBS or AS steel spacers. Been reading up on the Bilstein 5100s too. If you can afford them, they seem the way to go, although they don't look like a DIY project unless you have a spring compressor. Sorry, getting off topic. I measured the height difference between my front and back and only got 1 1/8". So do I even need a level kit? If I put in a 1" kit, is that going to be enough for slightly larger tires? I'm assuming if I put in a 2" or 2.5" that my front end is going to be higher than my rear. Then I'll need to install the blocks in the rear. Sorry for the long post. So if I want to install something like a 285/70/17, it looks like I'll need to install both a 2" leveling kit and some 1" blocks in the rear. Sound about right? Any and advantage/disadvantage going with a larger wheel, say an 18" or 20". Thanks, been learning a lot since picking up my truck last month.

 

I can't say right now, but after a little reading and research, I've picked up the Bilstien 2" lift strut for the front, and just ordered the rears. My XL has 77K on it and figure it needs struts/shocks anyway, so I get a lift plus the new dampers.
I'm going to go plus 1, maybe 2 tire sizes while staying with a 17" wheel...I'll have before/after shots after I get all the parts in and installed. For 2WD and no additional lift, I've heard nothing but good with this set-up...

 

Cool. Anxious to see the pics. I think I'm going with the Bilsteins too, with 1" of lift.

 

I had a leveling kit on my 4x4 but actuallt just removed it. If you want it for the larger tires that is understandable, I had a 2.5" readylift but when pulling trailers didn't like how the kit affected the way the truck sat (tilting even further in the rear due to the kit) I would go no larger than a 2" on a 2wd and would personally recommend a 1", because I believe that would give the truck a more aggressive look while also giving you more clearance room in the wheel wells. Just be careful about going too large, or your truck will sit higher in the front than back which I think looks bad.

 

Yeah, that's what I'm thinking. The height difference between my front and back is only 1 1/8". But is it really worth the expense and trouble to put a 1" level kit in? I thought with the Bilsteins, I can go an inch now, and later, if I put a block in the rear, I can adjust the Bilstein another inch and then get the larger wheel/tires.

 

Which is why I put in add a leafs........ cuz I do tow often, and the add a leafs increased my towing ability while still giving me the look I wanted... I like the factory rake- but not 3" inches of it..... I put 3" level in the front, 2" aal in the back and my truck sits 1.5 inches higher in the back, compared to the 2.5 inches it was from the factory...



If I had the money to buy the bilstiens that would be the way too go... otherwise I would get a 2.5 front, and either a add a leaf in back if you do tow heavy regularly or a block if you tow but nothing heavy, leave the back alone if you never ever pull... But it all depends on the look you want and what you do with your truck... I don't want my truck to be perfectly level for two reasons, 1. I do like the look of the back sitting higher, just not the extreme it is from the factory 2. I tow- and you don't want the front to be higher than the rear because your steering diminished.