When you're looking for good parts for a truck, it's up to us to cover a diverse selection of products so you can see firsthand what your truck would look like with these components. After a quick review of our editorial lifts, we found that we missed coverage on the Dodge Ram. Even though you've seen how to remove a knuckle about a thousand times, the Dodge truck is substantially different than the Ford or Chevy truck.
We chose the Fabtech 6-inch lift to illustrate what a lifted '01 Ram looks like with such a lift. The kit went on with many of the same methods that most kits use to lift a truck, with a few differences. One of the major differences is that a new bumpstop will need to be welded to the frame. This is essential in making sure the new suspension doesn't cycle too far. For one, it would allow the tire to tear off the fender. Secondly, it would bind and snap the ball joints, letting your spindles and tires fly off.
The Fabtech lift uses a taller spring and offset spindle to increase the ride height. Therefore, it rides like a typical lifted truck. A 6-inch lift is relatively conservative, but your center gravity will increase, adding to the leverage placed on the antiroll bar. Fabtech address this issue by increasing the spring rate. Different shock valving provides a smooth ride with the increased spring rate. Here's how the kit goes on.
1.It takes more than a lift...
1.It takes more than a lift kit to provide better off-road performance. Good rolling stock is in order to make things right. A 315/75R16 is about the largest tire size for a 6-inch lift on our Dodge. Pro Comp's All Terrain tires provide good traction in the dirt and a smooth ride on the highway, plus they look good with Pro Comp's aluminum wheels, with or without the bead-lock look.
2.Preassembly The Fabtech...
2.Preassembly
The Fabtech kit comes with new ball joints. When installing the ball joints to the tubular upper A-arms, some type of thread lock is a good idea.
3.Right behind the ball joint is a bumpstop that will prevent the truck's suspension from dropping too low and binding the ball joints. Install the bumpstop to the new arm, as it will be virtually impossible to install after the arm is on the truck. Applying some grease to the inside of the A-arm bushing hole will allow the urethane bushing to move, which will prevent the bushing from squeaking when the suspension moves under pressure. Some grease inside the A-arm bushing will allow the inner bolt sleeve to slide in with ease. It will also allow frictionless movement, dampening suspension noise. Make sure you only preassemble one side of the A-arms bushings to make room for the cross-shaft that will be installed later.
4.Disassembly Removing the...
4.Disassembly
Removing the tie rod will give you the ability to rotate the knuckle back and forth without having to contend with pushing or pulling on any of the steering components.
5.Dodge's engineers were thinking...
5.Dodge's engineers were thinking when they made this antisway bar endlink. It has a flat area on it, so the use of some pliers can be used to remove only the upper endlink nut. This way, you won't need to remove the whole link to install the lift.
6.Removing the brake caliper...
6.Removing the brake caliper is needed to install the new offset spindle. If you look, you can see the clips from a bungee cord ready to hold the brake calipers so they're not dangling from the brake line.