Questions for all with coil spacers/add-

Subject: Questions for all with coil spacers/add-
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I am getting rady to order a set of 2" daystar coilspacers and 1.5 add a leafs for my 02 clubcab. Just for the hell of it I emailed PLC to see what they had to say about this setup, and here is there reply:
PerformanceLifts.com does NOT recommend any add-a-leaf kit for the Dakota because it really ruins the ride. An unloaded Dakota with an add-a-leaf will be extremely bouncy and will NOT ride well. Because the Dakota has its springs mounted beneath the axle housing a block kit will not work. A shackle kit is available but it will require an exhaust modification no most vehicles, the 2000+ 4.7 included.

The front suspension will be at or near it's limit with 3" inches of lift - for this reason PerformanceLifts.com does not sell a 3" lift
spacer for the Dakota. You are wanting to do things that have been proven to not work well in the majority of Dakota trucks. If you wish to
purchase these items it will be at your request and not at the suggestion of PerformanceLifts.com - and on orders like these returns are not accepted for any reason. To answer your questions, a 3" lift
spacer will reduce your rebound travel to near zero. You will be at or near the limit of alignability - however note that both the 2" and 3" spacer lifts will require an alignment once they are installed. With ZERO travel any hole in the road will feel extremely uncomfortable. Over
speed bumps the truck will have a noticeably more harsh ride. New bump stops will do little good as the current stops are already very low
profile. A shorter bump stop would have a more metal to metal feel and would do nothing to cushion the suspension as it reaches its limit.

This got me a little concerned, cause I don't want to kill the ride of a new truck. I know it will suffer somewhat but will it really be this bad? I had spoke to a couple of you about this before and was told it wasn't too bad, but before I order this stuff I would like to be sure because I know everyone has a different opinion when it comes to ride comfort. I am also confused as to why they would not recommend an add-a-leaf for a newer Dakota when the Fabtech kit they sell comes with them. Any replies would be great. Thanks for all your help, and sorry about the long post. Thanks again, Mike.

rivermaniac
Dodge Dakota
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3/21/2003
20:49:02

RE: Questions for all with coil spacers/add-
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If I had the money or not I would do the fabtech 3" , That's what I have and it rides nice even better than stock in my opinion ( too soft ) The add a leaf thing .........I just laughed at that one , my ride in the rear is pretty much like stock , specially if you have the rancho 9000's you set them at 2 and you have pretty much the same ride as stock , the add aleaf thing is bull , If you want to see a pic of one , I'll send you one , of this set up , I even think I did send you one , And Im selling my 15x8 ea 589 if interested .........................with the 3" you'll have a least 1" uptravel and get 3 to 3.5 " lift in the front , plus you get new upper joints that are greseable , and not rivetted to the arms like stock , I really like mine , havent had problems .................

MechanicMike
Dodge Dakota
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3/21/2003
20:58:30

RE: Questions for all with coil spacers/add-
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I would like to see some pics. If you can send em my email is Misterwee@hotmail.com. Thanks. As for the wheels, I want to keep the stockers for now, I like the look. I wish I could do a fabtech but you can't run stock rims with it. I wish someone would start making spindles for our trucks. That would be awsome. Thanks again, Mike

Jeff
Dodge Dakota
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3/23/2003
05:39:00

RE: Questions for all with coil spacers/add-
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Owning a 2000 2wd Dakota with a 3" CST kit I can speak from experience. I tried using a Fabtech add-a-leaf in my truck but absolutely hated it when the truck was unloaded. I run Rancho 9000's and tried everything from 1 to 5 trying to reduce the amount of hop on the freeways. The non-asphalt sections of the 91 freeway in Southern California (among others) is loaded with joints that caused the rear of my Dakota to bounce like mad. It was so bad that after two weeks I yanked the AAL's out and decided to run the truck without any rear lift for a while - a much better ride was the reward. If any Southern California 2wd Dakota owner is thinking about lifting their truck and going the AAL route I'd be happy to take you for a test drive - one with the AAL's installed and the other without.

If you want to run a Fabtech control arm and retain the stock wheels consider a billet aluminum spacer for the front wheels. These spacers run around $100 bucks and will provide the necessary clearance to run a stock wheel with the Fabtech upper arm kit. I have a set on my truck with over 80,000 miles on them without a single problem. The only downside is the tire/wheel combo will stick out slightly further in the front than the rear.

Jeff @ PLC

MechanicMike
Dodge Dakota
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3/24/2003
19:27:13

RE: Questions for all with coil spacers/add-
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Hey Jeff, do you have any pics of how far the front wheels stick out with the spacerscompared to the back tires? Thanks Mike

diddlys dak
Dodge Dakota
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3/26/2003
17:23:59

RE: Questions for all with coil spacers/add-
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hey rivermaniac n i see those pics. send them to diddly4@aol.com

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