96 Ford Ranger 4x4 XLT 4.0 leaning to driver side after Class II skyjacker 6" lift installed,

[RangerRough]

Hello everyone, been awhile.
I come seeking more knowledge from the community. I recently installed a Skyjacker Class II 6 inch lift and now my truck leans to left (even with me out of it). I am wondering what could be causing it to lean? Seems like both front and rear driver sides are leaning. My truck does have a bad alignment right now and pulls to the right rather hard when driving, i was thinking maybe that could be causing the lean but i am not sure. Also, my rear suspension got a whole lot stiffer and it is supposed to be soft ride suspension. My front shocks only have about 3.5 inches of shaft visible on the right and 3 inches visible on the left. Honestly, I am VERY DISPLEASED with this kit which cost $2500 + tax, there was hardware missing, instructions seemed like they were written by someone with autism, for this price is should have came with replacement pivot bushings etc. The paint on almost all the new mounts and radius arms was chipped badly and was packaged VERY POORLY with paper as a means to keep the pieces separated. The boxes were ripped and the cheapest of quality. The skyjacker stickers for the shocks were folded in half, the sticker on the right radius arm was scratched and torn from shipping. OHHHH! I almost forgot, didn't notice it until i went to install the left radius arm and saw that the bottom shock mount was bent, truly frustrating, i bent it back with crescent wrench very carefully, was an easy fix and not bent badly but still not straight. Enough of the venting, can someone help me please if they know anything that could be causing it? I have pictures but the truck is not on a level surface so the measurements are not accurate, I just rolled my ankle today so i wont be able to take better pics until tomorrow after work. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

UPDATE : think it might be the back that is leaning and causing the front to lean a little as well, or i have frame damage, i do not know. look how bad this lean is from the back.

and here is the picture of how much shock shaft is exposed!

 

[BlackBII]

Most Rangers lean a bit to the drivers side, because the fuel tank and the driver are both on that side.

The lean on your truck is substantial though. It's hard to tell without more pictures. Are the leaf spring hangers all in good shape and not bent? Is the body perhaps leaning more than the frame as a result of bad/smashed body bushings?

 

[Snoranger]

That looks like you got the wrong rear spring.

 

[Bird76Mojo]

That looks like you got the wrong rear spring.

I was thinking the same thing. Two different leaf springs. A guy could remove them and lay them side by side, with the bushings on one end aligned, and see if the other ends are even with one another.. Also, measuring the thickness of each leaf in the pack, on both packs, might show something as well.

More pictures of everything might help. The rear spring hangers, shackles, etc..

The coil springs could also be different from one another.

 

[Jim Oaks]

Is your pivot bolt in all of the way? Looks like it's sticking out.

 

[Shran]

That pivot bolt is sticking out for sure. Good eye Jim. Hope it hasn't come out in the past two months.

FWIW my Skyjacker 6" lift did the same thing... 10 years ago. I lived with it. Skyjacker tech support was NOT helpful, borderline rude... they basically told me that it's my fault, my truck's fault, Ford's fault, God's fault, but sure as hell not theirs.

I pulled the springs about 3 years ago to paint and do some maintenance and found that one of them was bent. I wheel it fairly hard so it's totally plausible that I did something, but the lean was there from day one. I replaced that 4" pack with a 6" pack and still had a 2" lean on the rear, which has actually gotten worse since then. It's probably 3" lower in the rear only now. In my case, it is NOT the gas tank or anything else - my truck has a rear center mounted gas tank and the spare tire & toolbox are right in the middle of the bed. The front sits level.

I am probably going to do an add-a-leaf on the driver's side and maybe a taller block on that side as well to correct it. This was the last straw with Skyjacker, I will never buy any more of their junk again.

 

[Bgunner]

I to agree that the rear springs look off, looks like the left's curve is less than the right's. Not a body mount issue since the bumper is also leaning to the same side indicating a suspension issue. My suggestion is to measure the springs, both front's and back's to see if they are riding at the same height or less than each other. Next compare the springs to see if they are the same. just my 2 cents on this issue.

 

[bobbywalter]

ranger rough and shran......did you switch the springs left to right...???

how does it look out front?


i do that if the front alignment is correct and the rear axle is square to the chassis and front wheels.

when not square it can draw down....especially if it has a toe out on the front as well.

 

[farmer]

Had this issue on all my trucks, with or without the SJ kit. Solution was an extra leaf on the drivers side, typically stolen from another spring pack (I'm a big fan of building bastard pack leaf springs), and a couple washers under the driver side coil to shim it up, although the front didn't need much.

My biggest complaint with the Skyjacker kit was it advertised 6" lift, and the crummy coils only had about 4". As much as I hate coil spacers, its the best solution to maximize your kit.

 

[Shran]

ranger rough and shran......did you switch the springs left to right...???

how does it look out front?

Front looks fine. Should mention that I have 6" Duff early Bronco coils and a D44 SAS in it... and 6" SJ lift springs in the rear with the factory blocks. I thought it might be a C bushing/radius arm parallel issue in the front causing it but have ruled that out. I have not swapped rear springs side to side yet. I had the whole thing apart a couple years ago to do bushings and measured the frame and everything... unless it's somehow twisted in a way that I don't see, it appeared to be a spring issue.

Had this issue on all my trucks, with or without the SJ kit. Solution was an extra leaf on the drivers side, typically stolen from another spring pack (I'm a big fan of building bastard pack leaf springs), and a couple washers under the driver side coil to shim it up, although the front didn't need much.

Yeah that's how I plan to handle it. I had to put 3 Bronco Graveyard spacers under my driver's side coil in my Explorer to level it out. That one leaned an inch front and back and the washers fixed that one.

 

[JMF661]

Going to revive this thread!
Just finished up my skyjacker 4” lift on a 94 4.0 4x4 ranger. Started with 1” worth of spacers under the front coils from bronco graveyard.
Ended up with a nasty lean to the driver side. Real bad and noticeable I. The front and back. New rear leafs from skyjacker were observed to be in line and congruent.
Pulled some measurements from the bottom of the fenders through the center of the hubs to the floor to get any idea of what I was working with. Took out 0.75” of spacer on the passenger front coil, everything sat real nice after that.
Honestly the passenger side coil bucket seemed kind of funny to me compared to the driver side, it didn’t have as much of an easily distinguishable termination point for the clock of the coil spring as the driver side did.
Anyway, maybe this info will help someone.

 

[tw205]

I believe the right side axle beam you pictured should be mounted in the bottom hole of the pivot for a 6”lift. I have the same lift on my BII with no issues. Being in the top hole if actually levering the right side higher giving the appearance of left side sag.

 

[Jim Oaks]

Mine is bolted in the top hole. I started in the bottom and the alignment shop had me move it up. Skyjacker use to offer an 8-inch kit.

 

[tw205]

Mine is bolted in the top hole. I started in the bottom and the alignment shop had me move it out up. Skyjacker use to offer an 8-inch kit.

I was going under the assumption it was/is a 6” skyjacker class III ( because that’s what he said) Instructions show bottom hole for axle pivot bolt. If using 4” springs I would venture use of the top hole would be accurate. Thus it would hold true that an 8” axle pivot drop bracket ( skyjacker use to offer) using the top hole would be correct for 6” springs.
Comparing the said brackets in his photo and mine I would venture they are the same leaving me inclined to say he may well be in the wrong hole. ( lets keep it clean)
TTB is a fulcrum and lever suspension. If we raise the point at which one end of the lever attaches the other end will lower to oppose that rise. Amount of lowering will vary dependent on the location of the fulcrum ( pivot point , in this case the spring ) along the plain of the axle beam.
Am I wrong?
Please help me understand.

 

[JMF661]

With the truck on the ground and unbound (maybe roll it back a forth 20 feet or so) measure from the bolt holes to the ground, and the center of your hub to the ground. Use the hole that makes the vertical height the closest. This would make camber alignment easiest. It really wouldn’t matter if it’s a 4” or 6” lift in this situation.

Edit: Your actual lift height depends on springs, engine weight, cab weight, ect. I ended up using washers under my springs to balance the ride, and the upper hole on one side, the lower hole on the other.

Edit 2: I’m not certain if the 8 inch pivot drop bracket would “work” with 6” springs using the upper hole may not get the camber close enough.