1980 d50 2wd lift questions

[1980 d50]

hey i was thinking of trying to lift my 1980 d50. is there and lift kits availible? or can i use arms from another brand or truck? only for the front.

[1980 d50]

also i want a suspention lift not body lift

[pennyman1]

the only way to lift a 1st gen I know of was 3" lift coils and an axle flip to the bottom of the leaf springs. John Baker performance sold them in the 80's - purple spring company that camoit used for his truck could make them if you want to go that route. I had a set of those on a 85 ram 50 royal I bought new - it put the upper control arms on the high stops and tore the ball joints out in 50 - 60k miles due to the suspension being pushed to the limit all the time.

[1980 d50]

yeah i have just a rubber spacer and i think its maxed out but all it did really is level it haha

[pennyman1]

the spring will need a higher spring rate to compensate for the lift - I think stock is 400#, so a lifted spring would be 500# or better, and the spring would be taller. Rancho also sells a helper leaf that adds 2" of lift in the rear - check your main leaf to be sure it isn't cracked like mine were - they cracked front to back not side to side though, very weird.

[camoit]

There is not much you can do with the 2WD. You can give it a small body lift that looks good but as far as suspension your kind of stuck. On my Camo truck I put in larger front coil springs. They were about 1.75 inch longer and somthing like a 5/8" or 3/4" bar. I also did add 1 leaf to the rear. It made it ride like a buck board but she will corner better then any thing I have ever owned before. There is just not much you can do with 5 inch travel and 3/4" spindles. Once I get my build truck done I hope to start on a second version that I can reproduce over and over.

[1980 d50]

how much did it cost to build ur race truck?

[camoit]

I don't know the exact number but it's somewhere around $55,000.00

[1980 d50]

ohhhhhhh shit lol have you driven it?

[camoit]

Not yet. April will make 3 years. But I'm doing the paint now. So it's nearly ready to go back together. Once I get the under coat inside the cab done it will go fast. Click the live camera in my signature to see what changes.

[1980 d50]

forsure man, i really wish i can lift mine but its just too much money haha i already have a prerunner ford explorer so im thinking if im able to keep it i might just lower it

[crock1990]

I have a 89 power ram 4x4 whats the cheapest and easoest way to get 2 or 3 inches?

[92bluemax]

I'd like a few inches of lift:grin:

[pennyman1]

1st gen montero upper control arms and the rancho add a leaf.

[87octane]

I developed some 2wd front lift springs that max out the travel just like Pennyman described in post #3. They are 20% stiffer than stock, progressive wound, direct fit, same uninstalled free height as stock. They require better shocks, Rancho 5000 would be the least that would qualify. You need better quality lower bushings and all balljoints. Installation is a chore, can advise on custom spring compressor if you don't have the good $100 KB tool.
PM me if interested.

[yamahlr]

WHOA! $55,000 thats a bit steep, thought it was only $54,000....:grin: