Called Trick Trucks yesterday and asked what it would cost to get the front leveling kit put on, and they said around $500.00 bucks, that was to purchase install and do the alignment, That is with the aluminum bushings not the poly, Is that a decent price ? What did you guys pay ?? Steve.

 

Lets see. $89 for the AutoSpring leveling kit and about $75 for the alignment. That leaves $336 for the labor. It is about a 2.5hr job so I think it is a little high. Although they could be using a more expensive leveling kit.

 

haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa....(big breath) haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

whoa, I'm all lightheaded. someone is trying to rip you a new one.

my 2.5" cost me $94 in the end. $89 for the kit off of eBay. I got the Autosprings one. BTW, Autosprings is the best kit, period. someday I'll get the alignment done. right now I'm hoping the wife doesn't notice so I have an excuse to buy new rubber

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2004-...QQcmdZViewItem

there are 2 ways to do the leveling.
1. remove the coil-over and place a "spacer" between the coil-over and the frame mount.
2. remove the coil-over and disassemble it. then insert a bushing and re-assemble the coil-over and put back into the truck.

option 2 places alot of stress on the coil-over and causes premature failure. if you're halfway competant with hand tools, you can install the spacer kit in your driveway. I did it in my driveway with hand tools. Took me maybe 3 hours all said and told (had to go to parts store to buy a socket).

here is the thread from when I installed mine

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/5...installed.html

with it taking me, a garage mechanic <3 hours to install in my driveway, I can't see how a shop can't do it in <2 hours. no question. the going rate for work in my area is $100+ an hour. so, I'd be looking at about $300 for the install (i'm figureing the alignment into the labor cost).

most other places probly don't charge that much in labor though. I just happen to live in a s***hole state

 

I put the 2" AS leveling kit on my dad's truck for $80 + $40 for an alignment. I had all the parts ready, and took my time makeing sure I did everything on one side which took me 1.5 hours, and the other side is the exactly the same thing, so it only took me 1/2 hour.

Off road shops in my area charge $50-60 an hour, and I new the install would be so easy and I knew I could save my dad a few bucks.

 

I paid 120 installed (I already had the spacers) with alignment. i could have done it but for that price i didnt feel like it. keep checking around. some tire places install them too, may want to check on them for pricing.

 

So Tylus, your saying the spacer can go either underneath or inside the coil over? It makes sense that under would be stronger if this is the case, but wouldnt the stress be the same on the top side of the mount? Or is it just the added stress on the spring.

 

this is the spacer itself. just some 1/4" steel welded together that is 2 or 2.5" thick with 3 studs ontop and 3 holes drilled in the bottom.

in the top photo you can see the top of the coil-over and the frame bucket. that little bit of black steel that is mostly hidden is the spacer. the spacer bolts to the top of the coil-over, then the top of the spacer is bolted to the frame bucket.

imagine a sandwhich where the frame bucket is one piece of bread, the spacer is the meat, and the coil-over is the other piece of bread. that is what this spacer does. this is the best way to level your truck because it doesn't modify the coil over, and maintains the coil-over geometry the same as stock. it simply pushes the lower edge of you lower control arm downward 2-2.5" to lift the front of the truck. this will NOT affect your trucks ride quality. it remain the same as stock, just taller.

the other method is to completely dismantle the coil-over itself and place a puck of metal/poly inside the coil-over and then re-assemble the coil-over. this lengthens the shock shaft lenth and changes the angles inside it. eventually the coil-over will fail due to the extra stress it is being subjected to. it may also affect the ride quality of your truck...maybe

 

That is actually the easiest and best way to describe the AS leveling kit.Funny, but very true.

 

thanks, I had that epiphany while my daughter was pestering me for a PB&J sandwhich