Can I get answers concerning the “GREEN KEYS”?

ChevyHDGert · June 30, 2003

I’ve got a 2500HD with my torsion bars almost maxed out and I added a 2” lift block to the rear. I added the block cuz I noticed that my rear end was starting to sag after hauling large loads but since adding the block, my truck is still not level after almost maxing out the t-bars.

I’m very interested in adding these ½ ton green keys. But I have some questions on what difference they will make.

Will they make my ride a little better since I won’t have to crank up the bars as much to obtain more lift?

Will they lengthen the life of my suspension parts since I won’t have to crank up the bars as much?

Will I be able to get more than 2” of lift?

Will I need longer shocks? (I currently feel my stock shocks top out at major bumps)

Will the new keys add lift without having to crank them since they are indexed differently?

03GMC2500HD · June 30, 2003

I installed them on mine a couple months ago and I'll try to answer your questions. As far as ride, with just the bars cranked up like you have now you will have a very harsh ride. With the keys, I have it lifted 2" and the ride is as good if not better than stock. I found that if I went over 2" the ride went away and the truck became very bouncy and unstable. No good! Backed it back to 2" and it was great. So I feel that 2" would be max for you.

I have noticed no problems with needing longer shocks although if you were doing some serious off roading I don't know. Same for saving wear on you susp parts. There are people who have had them on for 30K-40K miles with no problems. If I though they would harm the parts, I wouldn't have installed them.

The keys are indexed different allowing the suspension to be lifted when cranked to the stock position. I figured for less than $50 and 30 min of work it was worth trying and I am very pleased with the results.

n8huntsman · June 30, 2003

I have intstalled the keys as well. The keys, as far as geometry goes, is exactly like cranking the torsion bars. When you tighten the key, what your basically doing is rotating the torsion bar which in turn rotates the lower a-arm. It doesnt cause a torque in the bar so it does not change your spring rate. The different feel comes from the angle of your a-arms. When you put the new keys in, it does the exact same thing. Simply rotates the torsion bar. However, the reclocked position alows you to go a bit farther. But, if you do go farther your upper- arms will be at a severe angle, causing allignment problems, and it will be a bit stiffer but not too bad. Definately not better though. You will hit your bump stops causing a bouncy ride, your shocks will bottom out, and most importantly (alot of people dont realize this) your tie rod ends will be in a bind. The joints where they connect to the center link only allow maybe 15 degrees of freedom. If you lift it then take the tie rod off from the spindle, youll see that it no longer fits. Most people dont notice this since they never have to take the tie rod end off. But with this binding problem the joint will where out quickly and and you could snap your tie rod and loose control. What I did was build a droped center link, cut off my old bump stops and got longer shocks. But it was a lot of work. Your stock keys will allow you to go about 1.5". You may be able to squezze an extra .5" out of the new keys without any extra mods. But is it worth .5"? I wouldnt think so. I recommend just tightening up your current keys all the way. Check out my pics on the center link drop at www.cardomain.com/id/n8scstm1

n8huntsman · June 30, 2003

Also I should mention fabtech spindles. If you want a few inches of lift, id say thats the way to go. Its a 3 inch lift for something like $600. There easy to install and you can use your stock rims.

03GMC2500HD · June 30, 2003

n8scstm, I agree with you about the severe angles and hitting the bump stop but this is when you have really cranked on the new keys trying to get the 3" some of these people advertise they can get. This is what causes the bouncy ride and puts your shocks in jeopordy of bottoming. If you don't over do it and only go about 2" the ride is fine and there seems to be plenty of shock travel but the ride definatly doesn't compare to just cranking the bars up for 1.5". That would be about 8 turns and darn near max out the stock keys to the cross member. The ride is very harsh this way to say the least. The green keys provided me with 2" of lift and a smooth ride which was more than I expected before installng them.

n8huntsman · July 1, 2003

03GMC2500HD, I may be wrong but I doubt it. You are correct about going 2 inches. Your shocks would be fine and so would your tie rod ends. But what I dont understand is why you say the ride is any better with the 2 inch keys than it is with the torsion bars cranked up an inch and a half. How does the spring rate change? What do you attribute this to? The way I see it is, it doesnt matter how you twist the bar, your still gonna have the same spring rate. Maxing the key out simply means the bolt wont go in any farther, that has nothing to do with the ride. Changing the keys simply gives a little more "head start" on the cranking of the bar so that you can go farther. Does anybody else out there have an opinion on this?

wandell · July 1, 2003

I agree with you. Whether you crank up the stock keys or replace them you are still doing the same thing. You are just increasing the preload on the torsion bars. The different keys just allow you to put more preload on the torsion bars than the stock keys do. If you increase your ride height 2 inches it is going to ride the same whether you do it with the stock adjusters or aftermarket keys because the amout of preload on the torsion bars is the same. As for shock length, you are not increasing the amount of suspension travel you have so you don't need to replace the stock shocks.

03GMC2500HD · July 1, 2003

I totally agree with the thought process on the keys just allowing the bars to be cranked more. This is exactly what I expected when I was installing them. I fully expected the ride to be as harsh as all get out but I was way wrong. It IS good and I am the pickiest person around especially with a brand new truck! The ride from just cranking the bars vs. the keys isn't even comparable! I'll bet my truck keys on that!

I won't even try to explain why they work because I am not a GM suspension expert, or a metalurgist and I'm not sure why they work but they do for almost everyone who has tried them. I have the same common sense you guys do about these I just think we are using too much of it, because I was thinking the same thing you guys were until I actually tried them!

n8huntsman · July 1, 2003

Sorry I just cant let it go, unexplained. Im an engineer so my mind wont let me. If it is true that the ride is better can someone explain this to me. So that the thought of it wont consume me. I have these keys too. I have them cranked 4 inches and they still ride smooth. However I never drove it with the old ones cranked up so I cant compare. I had to do alot of mods to get the full 4 inches, but it worked. Check outMy Webpage to see how I did it.