Some info on CV angles with a 2" level lift.

mnm99 · April 19, 2017

I figured I'd play around today and see how many degrees a 2" level lift make my 2017 GMC. Attached are pictures stock and 5* after a 2 inch lift. Just throwing it out there for the looking...

The first is 5* , 2 inch lift. Second is stock.

slee3247 · April 20, 2017

All I know is I have a 4" front drop and the angles are fine, no binding....just opposite of the way they go with a lift

mnm99 · April 20, 2017

All I know is I have a 4" front drop and the angles are fine, no binding....just opposite of the way they go with a lift

Yea, just posting some specs with true degree angles.

GRN69CHV · April 20, 2017

Issue isn't the angles of the CV or ball joints at static height, problem occurs at full extension. Full extension is limited by shock extension, this has been discussed here before. That's the big problem with adding spacers , you effectively make the shock longer allowing the suspension to extend further, depending on the amount of lift, putting strain on the ball joints as they approach bind at full extension. Just driving around on good paved roads the suspension will probably never see full extension and everything will be fine. Off-roading is another story. Not sure where you live, but here in PA the exception for over the road driving would be those couple times a year when we get hit with some decent snowfall and have to drive through some snow drifts, very easy to have a suspension go to full travel. I started to look into it and didn't get real far, what's needed on a lifted truck with stock control arms is an upper bump stop to limit extension to factory limits. All things being equal, best front end lift for stock control arms are the Bilstein shocks.

mnm99 · April 21, 2017

Issue isn't the angles of the CV or ball joints at static height, problem occurs at full extension. Full extension is limited by shock extension, this has been discussed here before. That's the big problem with adding spacers , you effectively make the shock longer allowing the suspension to extend further, depending on the amount of lift, putting strain on the ball joints as they approach bind at full extension. Just driving around on good paved roads the suspension will probably never see full extension and everything will be fine. Off-roading is another story. Not sure where you live, but here in PA the exception for over the road driving would be those couple times a year when we get hit with some decent snowfall and have to drive through some snow drifts, very easy to have a suspension go to full travel. I started to look into it and didn't get real far, what's needed on a lifted truck with stock control arms is an upper bump stop to limit extension to factory limits. All things being equal, best front end lift for stock control arms are the Bilstein shocks.

I'm still confused how shocks will over extend when the stock suspension HAS bump stops. It could never go past them...

GRN69CHV · April 21, 2017

I'm still confused how shocks will over extend when the stock suspension HAS bump stops. It could never go past them...

I'd have to revisit this, don't have time to search it at the moment. IIRC, mine didn't have a rubber bump stop top limit extension, others that posted didn't have it either. I don't know if the rubber stop is particular to a package or not. There were pics posted on the site while back that showed it the same as mine, just the metal stop, at full extension, upper control arm wasn't hitting that stop. I thought the same thing and just assumed the stop limited extension regardless, but was proved wrong once looked into it. Intrigued now, will probably crawl under the truck again and have a look.