Upgrading BDS lift from 6" to 8"?
07-04-2013, 10:57 AM
#1
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Upgrading BDS lift from 6" to 8"?
How can I upgrade my 6" BDS lift to 8"
I have the basic lift with strut spacers and block and add a leaf in the rear.
The shop told me that I wouldn't be able to do it because I have the strut spacer instead of the strut and just buying the strut wouldn't work.
Is this true?
I know I will need to buy new struts if I want to go to 8" but could I just buy an 8" strut or would I need a 6" strut then add a spacer for 8"?
Thanks
I have the basic lift with strut spacers and block and add a leaf in the rear.
The shop told me that I wouldn't be able to do it because I have the strut spacer instead of the strut and just buying the strut wouldn't work.
Is this true?
I know I will need to buy new struts if I want to go to 8" but could I just buy an 8" strut or would I need a 6" strut then add a spacer for 8"?
Thanks
07-04-2013, 11:58 AM
#2
I have the 6" bds kit as well and I was wondering the same thing. A while back I was told that I would need the bigger cross member and maybe a few other things to keep the angles straight.
07-04-2013, 12:02 PM
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Just looking through your pics. Did you paint your fenders? I have been thinking if doing that, but it seems like it is more work than it is worth to do it the right way, and strip the bumpers of everything and remove them from the truck before painting. How hard was it to do?
07-04-2013, 12:21 PM
#4
Just looking through your pics. Did you paint your fenders? I have been thinking if doing that, but it seems like it is more work than it is worth to do it the right way, and strip the bumpers of everything and remove them from the truck before painting. How hard was it to do?
07-05-2013, 09:51 AM
#6
Possible? Yes with adjustable coilovers such as Fox or Icon. You will have some angles that won't be great and I'd recommend uniball UCA with the Hime joints so you can try to dial it all in. You will also need blocks or leafs and longer shocks for the rear. Other option is to go with a body lift, this will be alot cheaper as coilovers, UCAs like Total Chaos leafs and shocks will run you $3500-5000 grand depending on what you pick just for parts.
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07-06-2013, 09:59 PM
#9
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Of course you can just add the 8" BDS struts to your lift. That is exactly what you would get if you bought the 8" kit directly from BDS.
I did what you did. I bought the 6" BDS kit with the 6" struts. I wanted to bump it up to 8" and thought I could just add a 2" spacer...I could but the coilovers (strut + coil spring), were at a weird angle because the BDS struts come with an angled top plate and when I added the Autospring 2" kit, it made you rotate the coilovers 180 degrees. So now they were angled away from the truck and I could get like 2 rotations on the inner strut bolt. So after 3 months of a crappy ride and wondering if my struts were gunna explode, I just ponied up and bought the 8" struts for like 425 bucks from my local BDS dealer.
The ride is much better and it works like it should. My angles look way better than when i had the 6" + 2" method. I havent had a problem with the CV's binding or anything while offroading.
So, in conclusion, you most certainly can just buy the 8" struts for your original 6" BDS lift. Dont let anyone tell you otherwise. They are BS'ing you or simply dont know what they are talking about. I can say that because I have EXACTLY what you are asking.
Another option for you would be to get the Bilstein leveling struts and set them at 2" that way you can keep your 6" spacer. However, if you are gunna spend 320 bucks on those, you might as well spend the extra 100 (abouts) and get a better ride overall by ditching the 6" spacer and just getting the 8" BDS struts.
Oh and if you wanna check the kits out for yourself, go to the BDS website and look at the part numbers between the 6" kit and the 8" kit. You will see the parts are 99% universal other than the struts. The only other option is for the rear and you can get the BDS leaf pack instead of the block and AAL like is standard.
I did what you did. I bought the 6" BDS kit with the 6" struts. I wanted to bump it up to 8" and thought I could just add a 2" spacer...I could but the coilovers (strut + coil spring), were at a weird angle because the BDS struts come with an angled top plate and when I added the Autospring 2" kit, it made you rotate the coilovers 180 degrees. So now they were angled away from the truck and I could get like 2 rotations on the inner strut bolt. So after 3 months of a crappy ride and wondering if my struts were gunna explode, I just ponied up and bought the 8" struts for like 425 bucks from my local BDS dealer.
The ride is much better and it works like it should. My angles look way better than when i had the 6" + 2" method. I havent had a problem with the CV's binding or anything while offroading.
So, in conclusion, you most certainly can just buy the 8" struts for your original 6" BDS lift. Dont let anyone tell you otherwise. They are BS'ing you or simply dont know what they are talking about. I can say that because I have EXACTLY what you are asking.
Another option for you would be to get the Bilstein leveling struts and set them at 2" that way you can keep your 6" spacer. However, if you are gunna spend 320 bucks on those, you might as well spend the extra 100 (abouts) and get a better ride overall by ditching the 6" spacer and just getting the 8" BDS struts.
Oh and if you wanna check the kits out for yourself, go to the BDS website and look at the part numbers between the 6" kit and the 8" kit. You will see the parts are 99% universal other than the struts. The only other option is for the rear and you can get the BDS leaf pack instead of the block and AAL like is standard.
07-06-2013, 10:12 PM
#10
Of course you can just add the 8" BDS struts to your lift. That is exactly what you would get if you bought the 8" kit directly from BDS.
I did what you did. I bought the 6" BDS kit with the 6" struts. I wanted to bump it up to 8" and thought I could just add a 2" spacer...I could but the coilovers (strut + coil spring), were at a weird angle because the BDS struts come with an angled top plate and when I added the Autospring 2" kit, it made you rotate the coilovers 180 degrees. So now they were angled away from the truck and I could get like 2 rotations on the inner strut bolt. So after 3 months of a crappy ride and wondering if my struts were gunna explode, I just ponied up and bought the 8" struts for like 425 bucks from my local BDS dealer.
The ride is much better and it works like it should. My angles look way better than when i had the 6" + 2" method. I havent had a problem with the CV's binding or anything while offroading.
So, in conclusion, you most certainly can just buy the 8" struts for your original 6" BDS lift. Dont let anyone tell you otherwise. They are BS'ing you or simply dont know what they are talking about. I can say that because I have EXACTLY what you are asking.
Another option for you would be to get the Bilstein leveling struts and set them at 2" that way you can keep your 6" spacer. However, if you are gunna spend 320 bucks on those, you might as well spend the extra 100 (abouts) and get a better ride overall by ditching the 6" spacer and just getting the 8" BDS struts.
Oh and if you wanna check the kits out for yourself, go to the BDS website and look at the part numbers between the 6" kit and the 8" kit. You will see the parts are 99% universal other than the struts. The only other option is for the rear and you can get the BDS leaf pack instead of the block and AAL like is standard.
I did what you did. I bought the 6" BDS kit with the 6" struts. I wanted to bump it up to 8" and thought I could just add a 2" spacer...I could but the coilovers (strut + coil spring), were at a weird angle because the BDS struts come with an angled top plate and when I added the Autospring 2" kit, it made you rotate the coilovers 180 degrees. So now they were angled away from the truck and I could get like 2 rotations on the inner strut bolt. So after 3 months of a crappy ride and wondering if my struts were gunna explode, I just ponied up and bought the 8" struts for like 425 bucks from my local BDS dealer.
The ride is much better and it works like it should. My angles look way better than when i had the 6" + 2" method. I havent had a problem with the CV's binding or anything while offroading.
So, in conclusion, you most certainly can just buy the 8" struts for your original 6" BDS lift. Dont let anyone tell you otherwise. They are BS'ing you or simply dont know what they are talking about. I can say that because I have EXACTLY what you are asking.
Another option for you would be to get the Bilstein leveling struts and set them at 2" that way you can keep your 6" spacer. However, if you are gunna spend 320 bucks on those, you might as well spend the extra 100 (abouts) and get a better ride overall by ditching the 6" spacer and just getting the 8" BDS struts.
Oh and if you wanna check the kits out for yourself, go to the BDS website and look at the part numbers between the 6" kit and the 8" kit. You will see the parts are 99% universal other than the struts. The only other option is for the rear and you can get the BDS leaf pack instead of the block and AAL like is standard.
