Level/lift kit question

[GrumpyHiker]

Replace them, or you could end up like me - calling every tow company within 100 mile radius trying to convince them to drag you out of a 4wd road. Then, spending the rest of your hunting season and more money replacing the UCAs and other parts that broke when the wheel damn near fell off because you were being cheap. That tow alone cost me almost $1K.

I can’t speak for Rams, but I will never lift/level another vehicle without upgraded UCAs.

 

[Weldor]

Thank you for the feedback, and one nice feature of the RAM air ride is that it automatically inflates the rear to level the load when hauling trailers.

I like the Ram air ride , unfortunately I could not find it in a Megacab back 2019. Makes it super easy to hook up a trailer. One small tidbit, did you see your small sticker reminding you to grease your front Cardan joint every oil change? I just was working on friend's son truck last week and he never seen it. It's 2016.

 

[onlybrowning]

Do the upper control arms and get the best coilover you can afford. I recently did this and went with a kit that has Eibach coilovers and Grimm Offroad UCA's on my Ford. From my limited research, I chose those over Fox because the Fox need to be rebuilt every so often. Really wide offset wheels add a lot of stress, too.

 

[Geewhiz]

I have a 17 2500 and put in a 2.5 inch level without new uca’s. Only about 20k miles so far but no issues to speak of

 

[fmyth]

Do the upper control arms and get the best coilover you can afford. I recently did this and went with a kit that has Eibach coilovers and Grimm Offroad UCA's on my Ford. From my limited research, I chose those over Fox because the Fox need to be rebuilt every so often. Really wide offset wheels add a lot of stress, too.

All shocks have seals and oil that begin to degrade over time. When this happens you will experience diminished performance. The Fox shocks can be rebuilt. Yours will need to be replaced. I usually pay $125 per shock on Kings and Fox shocks for a rebuild and have to wait one to two weeks. Not ideal on a daily driver but fine for my purpose built off road vehicles. The other advantage to a Fox or King shock is that they can be "tuned" to your vehicle/terrain/driving style by changing the valving and shim stack while they are down for a rebuild. This is a deep hole where you can spend $$$$$ and a tremendous amount of time. I'm lucky to live in an area where off road racing is big and have many choices of shock specialist for rebuilding and tuning. I'd never go down this path on a daily driver or occasional off road vehicle that sees varied terrain.

 

[jjohnsonElknewbie]

I like the Ram air ride , unfortunately I could not find it in a Megacab back 2019. Makes it super easy to hook up a trailer. One small tidbit, did you see your small sticker reminding you to grease your front Cardan joint every oil change? I just was working on friend's son truck last week and he never seen it. It's 2016.

I've never noticed that myself and will give it a shot next time I'm underneath.

 

[jjohnsonElknewbie]

Do the upper control arms and get the best coilover you can afford. I recently did this and went with a kit that has Eibach coilovers and Grimm Offroad UCA's on my Ford. From my limited research, I chose those over Fox because the Fox need to be rebuilt every so often. Really wide offset wheels add a lot of stress, too.

I hate the offset wheels with all that poke. I sold my factory 22"s and got some factory takeoff 18"s since I live on gravel and wanted more sidewall. If I recall, I'm running a 275x70x18 Cooper AT3 XLT, and they've been really good tires so far. They're E rated and are a hair over 33" diameter.

 

[Dr. Dirt Nap]

FWIW, I had my 2019 Ram leveled in '19 and have put ~40k on the truck with no issues - did not replace UCAs. Knock on wood.

 

[Beendare]

Thank you for the info. Did you have the air ride or standard shocks/springs? I have air ride and looking at the revel block and links.

I have a 19 Ram 1/2 ton with Air ride....and I installed the front spacer and longer adjustable linkages myself- easy.

It doesn't give me 2 1/2"...more like 11/2". The good thing about that air ride as you know is if I need more clearance I bump up the lift switch. That Ram w/air ride is still the best riding truck I've ever been in- right there with there Raptors.

Edit- I would add, I have had one time in a really bad mud bog with rocks that knocked my one side linkage out. Easy fix, just pop it back on....but if I was doing a lot of hard core 4 wheeling, that air ride is not a bulletproof system- the linkage is the weak spot.

The truck still runs with the linkage disconnected, it just doesn't compensate for turns and load like it should.