Guide to Lowering, Leveling, and Lift Kits for Your Silverado

Feb 19, 2016

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Congratulations on your decision to purchase a Silverado! The Silverado is a beautiful beast of a vehicle, coming with cool tech features, a handsome exterior, and of course, all the power you need to help your friends move or haul your trailer or boat. Really, you can’t go wrong with the Silverado 1500. Before you decide to mod your new truck, make sure you take a look at your warranty to make sure that you aren’t voiding it.

If you’ve decided to customize your truck, now’s the time to think about how. Lift, leveling, and lowering kits are among the most popular ways that truck owners use to give their rides that extra flair. The question is: Which kit should you choose for your Silverado?

Lift Kits

What Lift Kits Do

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As the name implies, lift kits raise your truck’s suspension so the chassis is farther off the ground. The raised suspension will allow you to make more modifications to your truck. For example, you could install larger tires that are well suited for off-road driving. You could also choose enhanced shock absorbers, so you and your passengers experience a smooth ride wherever you go.

The Pros

The advantages of installing a suspension lift kit include:

Increased ground clearance. This is helpful on uneven roads or if you want to take your truck across flooded streets without getting water in the engine.
A raised truck is a status symbol; it looks downright cool.
You can install larger wheels. Larger wheels and tires add another dash of style to your truck’s appearance. Be careful about choosing your tires, though;some larger ones deliver a rougher ride.

If you want to reap all the advantages of a lift kit, make sure you choose a suspension lift kit and not a body lift kit. Body lift kits only raise the truck’s body; they do not come with any suspension benefits.

The Cons

Before you invest in a lift kit, there are a few potential drawbacks you need to be aware of:

Driving with a raised suspension may be dangerous. This is because the truck’s center of gravity will be higher, increasing the risk of rolling over. You’ll have to be careful not to take corners too sharply
Some state laws regulate what you can do with lift kits. If you raise your Silverado too far, you may get a ticket. Furthermore, some lift kit equipment is illegal in certain states. For example, front lift blocks are illegal in Tennessee.
You may have trouble parking in parking garages. In large cities, some parking garages have an extremely low clearance, sometimes as low as six or seven feet. You may not be able to find a place for your Silverado.

Some Kits to Consider

Here are a few of the top-rated suspension lift kits for the Silverado 1500:

Rancho Complete Lift Kit:This comes with everything you need, except shocks.
Bulletproof Suspension Kits:Bulletproof Suspension offers a hearty warranty on all suspension parts.

Leveling Kits

What do Leveling Kits do?

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Does your Silverado feel a little uneven? If you’ve made modifications to the front or the rear of the vehicle — for example, if you have an extra heavy bumper on the rear — one end of the truck may be closer to the ground than the other. A leveling kit raises or lowers only one end of the car, so it can easily fix that issue.

The Pros

If one end of your vehicle sags, it could end up scraping the ground on uneven roads. Furthermore, the sag could affect the way your truck handles, contributing to a less-than-optimal driving experience. Besides fixing these problems, a leveling kit, such as a lift kit, can make room for slightly larger tires, and it can even improve towing performance.

If you have some vehicle knowhow, a leveling kit is relatively easy to install for yourself.

The Cons

There are few downsides to installing a leveling kit if your vehicle needs it. You just need to be aware of local regulations and be smart about choosing the right kit for your Silverado.

Some Kits to Consider

Does your Silverado need a little boost to get it back in balance? Consider the following highly rated leveling kits:

ReadyLIFT Leveling Kits:You custom order these for your vehicle, so there is no guessing about if it will work for your specific Silverado. All the hardware you need for self-installation is included.
Kits from Icon Leveling Dynamics:These are coilover kits that enhance the suspension and give you an adjustable ride.

Lowering Kits

What do Lowering Kits do?

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Simply put, lowering kits bring your truck’s frame closer to the ground.

The Pros

Many people choose to lower their trucks simply because of the appearance it gives. It’s fairly unusual to see a lowered truck, so it is certainly a way to catch attention. It’s particularly rare to see a truck as large as a Silverado lowered to the ground, but if that is your style, why not go for it?

Lowering your truck will bring its center of gravity closer to the ground, improving your handling and making it easier to take tight corners on city streets.

The Cons

If you plan to use your Silverado for work, a lowering kit is probably not the best option for you. Your suspension won’t be as effective, resulting in a rougher ride. If you put anything heavy in the truck bed, it may scrape on the ground.

Furthermore, you’ll have to use smaller tires, which many regard as a stylistic mistake. Speaking of the way your truck looks, having it closer to the ground will increase the amount of mud and other road gunk splattered on it.

Choosing a Lowering Kit

There are a few different categories of lowering kits you might consider:

Coil Springs:These can lower your truck up to 2 inches. Choose high-quality steel so the springs are less likely to start sagging over time.
Drop Spindles:These will lower your ride by 2 or 3 inches, and it will have minimum effect on the suspension.
Air Bags:These often replace factory coil springs in trucks. They can provide anything from a moderate drop to an extreme, kissing-the-ground drop.
Hydraulics:Hydraulics are expensive to install, and they negatively affect towing and cargo weight capacity. Still, they’re popular among lowriders.

So How Do You Decide?

The kit that is right for your Silverado depends heavily on what you want to use your truck for. All three types of kits can provide an interesting change to your truck’s appearance. However, lowering kits tend to be the least practical if you use your truck for more than just looking good. Lift and leveling kits both provide benefits for your truck’s performance.

You also want to think about the area in which you live. If you spend most of your time in an urban environment, you may be able to get away with a lowering kit. However, a lift kit is the better option if you like to go camping or if the roads in your area are on the rougher side.

Choosing a kit for your Silverado is a big decision, and there are many factors to consider. Make a list of what you want from your truck, and use that list as the foundation for choosing how you customize your beautiful ride.