Lift or no lift.... that is the question...

[AirborneJohn007]

Alrighty... I just so happen to have a brand new set of 37X13.50R17 Mickey Thompson Baja Claw radials sitting at the house that I was going to use on a previous lift but never did because my truck was stolen.... I'm thinking of putting them to good use. But first I have a few questions before I decide for sure... I know all about gas trucks but this is my first DIESEL!!! and i'm getting some mixed opinions.

1. Am I going to have to get new gears to handle those 37"s? If so what do you reccomend? With a gas truck I would be looking at 4.56 as a minimum but I know diesels are different.

2. How much additional wear and tear is this going to put on my truck? Its only got 50,000 miles on it. The bottom line is its a daily driver and I need it to last.

3. How much will my fuel mileage suffer? I'm getting 19MPG right now...

4. How much lift should I go? 6.5", 8", or 8.5"?

5. Anyone got any pics?

Thanks for any help,
John

[Diesel Freak]

Confused with the "GAS" mileage! What year? These diesels are tuff and carry lots of torque. A 6.5 inch lift should give you enough clearance for your 37" Micky's. But,,, bigger is better hu!? Depends how you like climbing into your rig. GO FOR IT!!

[AirborneJohn007]

LOL, I fixed it... I'm still new to this whole diesel thing... It will not happen again....LOL

[lifewitlooie]

here is a pic of mine with a 6 inch lift. 38.5 inch tires 15 inches wide. Wheel rub slightly in the front, i cut the bumper obviously but rubbing still occurs inside the tires on the linkage.. only a little. i make wider turns to compensate. If this happens to you the cure for that ailment is Wheel spacers, about 100-150 bux for the set. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO REGREAR at all. my MPG went down like3 or 4, but that was down from 15. its probably not cuz of the tires though, well partially but i have crappy intake. and was running old oil this last trip.. im babbling heres a pic
lifewitlooie - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

[Rob]

here is a pic, 6'' Pro Comp, 37x13.50x18 Toyo Open Country M/T's. they rub a little on real tight turns, but it isnt too bad to deal with. your mileage is going to go down a little, not sure how much but with a lift your increasing the wind resistance so the engine has to work harder to go, plus pulling larger tires too. i run my stock gears, 3.73's and have no problem turning them, but i am thinking of regearing to help with mileage and low end torque.

[Blue01F250]

hrmmm... I'd say level it, but don't lift it hehehe <----not a lift fan

[alabamafrog]

You got to make sure the tires are rated for the weight of a superduty truck. I would love to lift mine but I can’t use it to pull with if I do. May as well get a ½ ton gasser if you can’t use it for nothing but looking good. I had to put a 5” lift on my camper just for my factory truck lift and the camper is still too short to fit level. And my tool trailer barely clears too. My early 99 does sit a couple inches higher from the factory than a 99.5-03 anyways. If it is a show truck just to ride around and look pretty then lift it but if it has to pull double duty as a work truck then be careful of how high you go and tire ratings

[dieselcrawler]

Sure, a lifted truck has some downfalls, but they sure do look good...
Not any time soon, but someday you may see my F350 sitting on 6 mud tires about 35" tall... when I can afford the dually rims to fit wider tires, new gears so I can still tow stuff, and the lift kit to fit it all.
If it's what you wanna do... do it! Just show us some pictures!
Greg

[Raul@Stealth Automotive]

K i would go with 4.30 gears for those tires... its what im putting on... your milage should drop a lil but not too much im guessing 1-2mpg because of the added wind resistance... i would go at least 6.5" here is my rig with an 8" lift running 37" extreem all terrains...once you get past that sexy guy in the pic youll notice their is a truck their

[AirborneJohn007]

Thanks for all the replies... Decided to do the lift, now I'm trying to decide between 6.5" and 8". How high can I go before I have to worry about driveline angle and drive shaft length?

John