Lowering a 96 2wd after Rebuild

floridabob

floridabob

New member
Joined
Dec 8, 2008
Messages
167
My truck is currently living at Wrongway's shop here in central Florida. It has undergone a government-style escalating cost rebuild. Not crazy to some, but to me it was more than I thought it would need. Gary's not committing to what kind of HP to expect, but I would not be surprised if she broke 800 after tuning--based solely on extrapolation from other peoples builds and results...so who the heck knows.:bs:

Now the point of this thread (feel free to move it if I put it in the wrong place) is to ascertain if the suspension mods make sense. I have decided to lower the front 2" and level the rear with it (might be about 4"). Not a lot of people lowering trucks but I have seen a few and what they did. I am thinking Belltech lowering springs in the front. 2" drop shackles in the rear (maybe Belltech again?). Pull 2 leaves out of the pack and put in Caltracs and air shocks in the rear. It will need to be streetable and able to tow (only around 10k max) and maintain some payload. I have some 20x9 Helo 185 wheels with Nitto 420s tires. And still be fun at the track.

We are going to be needing some shocks up front so I would love some feedback on what you have used or seen used.

Second, what input do you have on the rear plans? Sound solid? Any need to make a small notch above the axle?

Third, what about pinion angle? Suggestions? "Use a 0 rate shim backwards to get your pinion angle up" has been suggested...not exactly sure how to execute that, though.

Pile on, please.:pop:

Thanks
bob
 
Doesn't Gary race his 2wd? I'd copy his suspension setup and then make adjustments as required.

In my humble opinion, there is a snowball's chance in hell of your 2wd hooking up 800 HP with your planned suspension mods and 20" wheels. You need to look into 15" rear wheels with nice 31-33" tall slicks at least 14.50" wide.

I don't claim to be a suspension expert, but I've had a lot of trial and error getting my lowly 600 HP truck to hook up. I'm now working on ballast because it's dang near impossible to hook up with the poor weight bias of a 2wd long bed Cummins powered truck.
 
Gary's is a 4wd now. Its his set up from his old 2wd we're using. So your suggestion was spot on there.

As for hooking up at the track, he suggested the same as you: race tires/wheels. That will come later, I'm sure.

The real focus point is getting it lowered properly and maintaining ride quality while getting that "look" that I'm aiming for.

Thanks for the suggestions.
bob
 
One thing that will really help with traction is getting good springs for the front end. If you were to say chop a coil or two off the front springs to lower it, that would be a huge mistake as far as drag racing traction. If you were to install stock length springs from a 1500 and suspension droops an additional 2" to end up with your lowered stance, that would be move in the right direction for drag racing traction. As far as towing, I don't think the 1500 springs will handle loads as well and your front end will probably feel too squishy. Beltech lowering arms with stock springs might be your best option for a dual purpose truck.
 
Last edited:
I dont see a Belltech lowering arm listed on their website for a 2500. But I did email them to see if they have them. Quick google search didnt turn one up, either.

I will keep hunting, though.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top