WARNING: this is really long. I dunno if this will be "sticky-worthy", but it should help answer all questions for the noob and no-so-noob guy looking to level his truck. I have included everything to learn about the process, and every potential pit-fall that I found during my experience. While there are a lot of threads on this, none seem to cover everything that the fussy PITA (me) needs to know before getting started. I'll try to add pictures tomorrow.
Adjusting Torsion bars:
There's a few things to know FIRST...
Section 1 - torsion bars, ride, green zone, and keys... don't overcrank!
In my experience, I got a better ride in the front end by lifting my front end with the torsion bar preload adjusters, as compared to stock. In stock trim, my lower control arm sat on the yellow compression snubbers and it gave a rough ride over the small bumps. Cranking the front end brought the control arm hovering above the snubber and small bumps are now absorbed nicely.
Optional info not needed but might be a point of confusion to some:
Many think that the torsion bar adjustment will change your spring rate. This is untrue. Your torsion bar adjusters are a preload adjustment. You are adjusting how much tension is on the "spring" at rest. The spring rate is constant and doesn't change. So you will feel a stiffer initial ride with the preload adjusted above factory spec, but the spring rate will be the same as you travel through the suspension. The only issue could be if you overcrank the bars and the springs just don't have much travel left to offer a large bump, and you hit the limit of travel; OUCH.
You must also follow the sage advice of NORCAL-NICK and not crank the front end too far! There must be a minimum gap of 5/8ths of an inch between the upper control arm and top out pad. 5/8ths to 3/4" will give you lift without a harsh ride associated with overcranking the front and smacking the top-out limit during suspension travel.
"Keys" - my 2008 didn't need any change of key to raise the front end to full safe height. Some years might, but check your first. Many people buys keys right away as though they are always required, and are often under the misguided assumption that the keys will give them a better ride then cranking the bars with the stock adjusters; FALSE.
An oversimplified explanation of how the new keys work - stock keys and adjusters allow you to raise the front end from an imaginary range of 1-10. The new keys have a shape that preloads the bars further at their lowest adjustment then stock keys and give you adjustment range from the imaginary range of 5-15. They do not make your ride better, they just let you twist the torsion bar further. Overtaxing the torsion bar is not good, and people often incorrectly crank the front end beyond what Nick calls the "green zone" (less than the aforementioned 5/8ths" top out gap).
Another problem with overcranking is that you create less then ideal angles for your ball joints and your CV joints in the front end. You can create a situation that may have an outcome ranging from premature wear of these parts, to all out failure of these parts.
How to crank the bars
The actual cranking of the bars is easy but not without caveat. I suggest cranking your bars to wherever you like the front end to sit within the green zone. On level ground, adjust the truck to sit level at your desired height (likely 2.5" or so max). Don't worry about how many turns on each side, but I'd try to start off with the same number of turns and then fine tune each side. This adjustment must be done with the side or front end JACKED UP IN THE AIR. Failure to do so may result in a broken adjuster. Raise, adjust, lower, bounce the front end, measure, raise, adjust, etc. as needed. The front end needs to have a final adjustment by the alignment guy. Even if you get the sides perfect, the alignment process can throw that out if he doesn't adjust the bars while it's on the rack; so don't overthink this and go crazy.
Since I was able to adjust my stock setup to the max height (as referenced by the green zone explanation), I am not going to cover those who need new keys installed first to reach the same height.
Front end is where I want it... now... New problem - shocks!
Ok, the front end is "leveled" and looking cool! You are psyched and ready to have it aligned and be done. NOPE. Your stock shocks do not have enough length, now that you raised the front. WHAT? Yes, it's true. There's two problems with the stock shocks. First, they are too short and will become damaged now. Secondly, they are designed with a "sweet-spot" in their operating stroke, and now you are out of that range in the stroke. You either need some shock extensions or new shocks! Again, Nick has great pictures and write up on this.
At this point, I would try to give it a day of short driving and parking lot squinting to be certain that this is a good height for you. Don't drive much because your tires will wear funny, but a day or so of short trips won't kill anything and you can readjust if needed.
ok, got new shocks in and front end cranked; ALIGNMENT!
For me, this was the biggest PITA. I am surrounded by chain stores like Sears that do alignments. I did my truck on a Sunday knowing they were open and I could get my truck on the rack. BIG MISTAKE. Without going into my problem, giving them 2 attempts, I'll just tell you what you need to know.
You need to go to a real shop! Find some (hopefully recommended by a buddy) good auto shop and bring it there. Don't go to a chain. I found a shop that also does autobody work, since I figured they had experience in aligning problem cars after accident repairs!
Spend a few minutes talking to the guy that will actually do the work. The service writer is a nice guy but doesn't give much of a shit about what you tell him... the tech doesn't give a shit about what he passes on (if anything), so cut to the guy that's going to do the work!
Now that you have his attention; be brief. Tell him you adjusted the bars and need an alignment. Tell him that you want him to level the truck side to side and align the truck, with attention to the caster because it is known to be a pain to get right. Tell him you are fussy and appreciate him taking the time to do it right. Then leave him alone. He doesn't want to talk to you, doesn't want you telling him his job, but also needs CLEAR EXPECTATIONS.
When you get the truck back, examine the alignment printout. Make sure that everything is in spec. before you leave; especially the caster. If not, get back inside! Don't let them bullshit you - Sears tried to tell me it doesn't affect tire wear, so don't worry about it. True! But it does affect your feeling of center, steering effort, wandering, and deflection when you hit a surface irregularity. My truck was fine in town but crap on the highway until I got it realigned and the caster within spec. I'm betting it would be even worse if I was towing.
If you read this far... wow. I'm sitting here with my 1 week old on my lap, so I'm stuck
Please post any corrections or additions!!!
Hope this helps!
Wally
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