Body Lift Pros vs Cons

[snomaker321]

Im considering putting a body lift of my '04 ranger edge 4x4. The most popular kit seems to me the PA 3" kit for about $200.

With the bumper relocation brackets, what happens in the event of an accident?
What is the modification to the front frame horns?
What happens to my trailer hitch? Do I just leave it 3" lower than the rear bumper/will it look silly?
What are the negatives of a body lift?

All I can think of for now. I just dont want to sacrafice anything for a body lift.

 

[Lil-Pony]

I've been wanting to now the answer these questions as well, except mine would be an 84 and I think they don't have relocation brackets

 

[MastuhWaffles]

My dad has said it causes the body to bend and things like that. I'm not really sure if that's true or not.

 

[4.0B2]

body bending, well no...


pro's are extra tire room and extra room to work on things
con's are the extra room sometimes makes it hard to work on things. Things don't line up. the hitch is lower. bumper ain't mounted to frame directly, some of the brackets are weak, some are not. more frame shows.

for the money, it's not a bad way to add extra room... I had one and took it off b/c I didn't like it. I went all suspension lift. I like the stock-ish look of the body being where it's suppose to be.

 

[PanamaExpat]

Biggest con... Everyone on here will laugh at you until you remove it and do a proper suspension lift.

Raises the center of gravity so it might be a bit more squirrely in curves at highway speed.

I was going to do one but thought that with my 30" tires it would look ridiculous. I also wasn't sure what happens when you add three inches of extension to the shifter. Might hit dash or cup holders on console. A short throw shifter kit would fix that but they cost about $250.

Pros... If you need to drop the transmission you can get at the bell housing bolts.

 

[snomaker321]

Biggest con... Everyone on here will laugh at you until you remove it and do a proper suspension lift.

Raises the center of gravity so it might be a bit more squirrely in curves at highway speed.

I was going to do one but thought that with my 30" tires it would look ridiculous. I also wasn't sure what happens when you add three inches of extension to the shifter. Might hit dash or cup holders on console. A short throw shifter kit would fix that but they cost about $250.

Pros... If you need to drop the transmission you can get at the bell housing bolts.

Ha, If there was a reasonable option for a suspension lift for these newer trucks I'd do it in a heartbeat.

Mines an auto do i don't have a shifter to worry about anyway

 

[4x4junkie]

Raises the center of gravity so it might be a bit more squirrely in curves at highway speed.

Not as much as a suspension lift does...
A body lift raises only the body.
A suspension lift raises everything except the axles & wheels.

Body lifts have their place.
Like was said, they make things easier to work on, as well as providing more room for engine/transmission swaps. A body lift allows you to gain additional height without as many headaches with things like steering linkages.
On later-model IFS trucks, suspension lifts provide almost no increase in front suspension performance unlike with older TTB (or straight axle) vehicles.

Biggest downsides are primarily cosmetic (frame showing, etc.), though in theory, a severe enough collision can cause the longer bolts to shear easier, though reports of this are rare on trucks not already suffering a bad case of body rot.

 

[bigtruck94]

I don't Like body lifts. Unreliable and they could be unpredictable. It would look stupid to have your hitch dangling around. The worse thing is my uncle got into a wreck because the blocks got crushed and the body just went down in a snap and went into the ditch. We changed the scout 2 with a complete 4 inch suspension lift and we will never look back at body lifts. Not saying you should not get them, but there are some dangers of having a body lift on.

 

[4.0B2]

personally I'm a huge fan of the 1.25" body lift.
tummy tucks... ease of working on some things...

but that's Jeep stuff.

 

[JoshT]

Having owned both TTB and and SLA rangers this is the way I see it.

TTB: Go with suspension lift to the max, when you run out of suspension lift and still need bigger tires get a body lift until you can do an SAS. If you know you will be going SAS from the start, but want a little larger tires for now, then save your money for the SAS and go with a body lift for now.

SLA: Body lift is the only way to fly, unless you want to do an SAS. If you have the $2000 in your pocket for a Super Lift you can probably do a clean SAS. If you have the $5000+ for the other lift (can't recall who made it) then you can probably swap the rear too. If you are planning to hit the dunes or pre-running that needs a lot of suspension travel, get and build a 2wd for a lot less.

Get a body lift and be happy. Luckily they don't look near as bad on a Ranger as they do on some other trucks. On an S10 with a body lift, you can see almost the whole frame standing beside the truck. On the Rangers I've seen it still tucks up under there petty well.

That's just my 2 cent. Take it for what it's worth (which is a lot less).

 

[PanamaExpat]

A 1.25 to 1.5 lift might not be too bad. Like 4.0B2 said it would allow you to get your hands into places you just can't without one. Also wouldn't look so bad with 30" tires. You also wouldn't need to place an extension in the steering column or the shifter.

I am planning on making a set of sliders for my truck as grandma needs a step so she can get up into it. Nerf bars are far too expensive for what you get and sliders will give you some side impact protection. If you have seen our taxis you would understand why you need that. So a short body lift would allow me to mount them a bit higher on the frame.

Since you are IFS well then maybe the 3" body lift is just what you need. Are you off roading or mall crawling?

 

[Lil-Pony]

Who would y'all recommend for a 1-2" body lift of both 84 and 04 bronco2/ranger.
Not trying to thread jack

 

[4.0B2]

For a 1.25 or so... And not for a Jeep. You'll have to custom make it (OH NO!!!).
Yeah, in our world we have to fan some stuff. Best you MIGHT find is a 2". 3" should be easy to find.

 

[snomaker321]

A 1.25 to 1.5 lift might not be too bad. Like 4.0B2 said it would allow you to get your hands into places you just can't without one. Also wouldn't look so bad with 30" tires. You also wouldn't need to place an extension in the steering column or the shifter.

I am planning on making a set of sliders for my truck as grandma needs a step so she can get up into it. Nerf bars are far too expensive for what you get and sliders will give you some side impact protection. If you have seen our taxis you would understand why you need that. So a short body lift would allow me to mount them a bit higher on the frame.

Since you are IFS well then maybe the 3" body lift is just what you need. Are you off roading or mall crawling?

I have 265/75-16 tires(about 32") so I think it should look pretty good with a 3" bl. The biggest tire id put on this truck would be 33".

Im basically just mall crawling and playing around in the snow. Im mainly going for the look, but i also like the idea of having my front bumper/valence higher for playing in the snow.

On another note, anybody know how much a 3" body lift affects gas mileage?

 

[PanamaExpat]

For a 1.25 or so... And not for a Jeep. You'll have to custom make it (OH NO!!!).
Yeah, in our world we have to fan some stuff. Best you MIGHT find is a 2". 3" should be easy to find.

I was going to make the 3"... It costs more to get it shipped than it does to buy it. That's why I have a workshop.