{"id":4855,"date":"2014-04-17T08:00:22","date_gmt":"2014-04-17T15:00:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/?p=4855"},"modified":"2016-11-30T12:03:49","modified_gmt":"2016-11-30T20:03:49","slug":"rough-country-lift-kit-installation-on-racingjunk-com-2014-chevy-silverado","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/rough-country-lift-kit-installation-on-racingjunk-com-2014-chevy-silverado\/","title":{"rendered":"Rough Country Lift-Kit Installation on RacingJunk.com 2014 Chevy Silverado"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"crawfords<\/a><\/p>\n

For help installing our 3.5\u201d Rough Country Suspension Systems<\/a> lift kit on the RacingJunk.com & AED Performance 2014 Chevrolet Silverado <\/a>giveaway truck we chose to work with our good friends at Crawford\u2019s Service in Pittsfield, MA.<\/p>\n

In business since 1938, Crawford\u2019s has been known for decades as the place to go for reliable and fair service and repairs. \u00a0While still maintaining that reputation, in the last few years Crawford\u2019s has begun to build some killer rides and has become one of the premier locations in Western Massachusetts to bring your muscle car, hot rod, or custom. \u00a0In fact, Crawford\u2019s is the area\u2019s only licensed air-cooled VW-style dune buggy dealer and is now well-known here as THE place to bring your dream ride.<\/p>\n

\"crawfords<\/a><\/p>\n

For car guys like myself, opening boxes of new parts is like Christmas morning, no matter what time of year it is.<\/p>\n

We chose a 3.5\u201d suspension lift kit from Rough Country because it\u2019s all inclusive batch of parts makes for an easy DIY install, maintains factory-ride comfort, and won\u2019t break your wallet. \u00a0Speaking as a guy who has put a lift in practically every 4×4 I\u2019ve ever owned, it was nice to work with a kit that didn\u2019t leave me chasing parts all over town.<\/p>\n

\"Rough<\/a>
Rough Country Lift Kit<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"First,<\/a>
First, make sure you have all the correct parts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Vinnie,<\/a>
Vinnie, Crawford’s master mechanic, begins the install.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Mark<\/a>
Mark stock locations on everything as we took the suspension apart, thus making it much easier to line everything up upon re-assembly and hopefully not have an alignment too far off from factory. (Always get an alignment after installing a lift kit.)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Laid out on the bench, you can see that the kit comes with new tubular upper control arms (with Moog ball joints), nitrogen charged shocks, fabricated rear blocks, front strut spacers, \u00a0diff drop spacers, a heavy-duty skid plate to cover the dropped front differential, and all the necessary hardware. \u00a0Check out our kit here: http:\/\/www.roughcountry.com\/gm-suspension-lift-kit-275-8.html<\/a><\/p>\n

Crawford\u2019s was founded as a small shop, and after 75 years in business that model hasn\u2019t changed. \u00a0Current Crawford\u2019s staff includes owner Andrew Newton, resident mechanic\/genius Vinny, and assorted family members that volunteer their time at the shop (I think they come for the free pizza).<\/p>\n

\"Vinny<\/a>
Vinny demonstrates proper use of safety eye wear while using the cutting wheel to clearance the factory front cross-member for the dropped diff.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The diff spacers take only a few minutes to install, while the cross-member modification has to be very precise. \u201cMeasure twice, cut once\u201d, as my grandfather used to say.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

While a competent back-yard mechanic should be able to install the lift kit without much issue, we highly (HIGHLY) recommend taking the front strut assembly to a shop that has a spring compressor for this part of the process. The strut needs to be spun 180 degrees inside the spring so that the lower strut pin lines up properly with the lower control arm after the spacers are installed. \u00a0As the springs are under tremendous pressure \u00a0they can cause serious injury if not handled properly. \u00a0Safety first kids!<\/p>\n

\"vinny<\/a><\/p>\n

Front spacer assembly is a very straightforward bolt-on process using included hardware, but yet again Vinny won\u2019t let us use the power tools!<\/p>\n