Rough Country 2.5" Leveling Kit

[ISUACE]

I installed the RC 2.5" lift yesterday. A few observations:

THE INSTRUCTIONS ARE CRAP.

I get it that this is a cheap lift, and you really do get what you pay for... but in my opinion the instructions are downright dangerous. You'll screw up a CV joint, pull the axle completely out of the front diff, or ruin a sway bar link if you try to follow them exactly. Ask me how I know.

I started on the passenger side. That side took 4+ hours, 2 trips to O'Reillys, and a "come bail me out" phone call to my brother. Once we ditched the instructions from RC (and ignored the several YouTube videos that make this look like a piece of cake), we figured out the best and safest way to finish up the passenger side. We used what we learned on the driver side, which took *maybe* 30 minutes.

First off: All the YouTube videos show you can just put a little pressure down on the lower control arm and the coilover will pop right out. Lies! All Lies! My truck is the FX4, and there was no chance in hades that coilover was coming out with the axle still connected to the knuckle.

Even with me jumping up and down on the lower control arm with all my body weight and a helper trying to pull the upper portion of the coilover out... there was just no way. I did manage to pull the axle out of wherever it goes - front diff? Luckily I got it re-seated, but while doing so I managed to pull the sway bar link entirely apart... as in "oh, hello shiny ball end slathered with grease! Where did you come from?" I was able to press the ball joint of the sway bar link back together with a large C-Clamp, and have ordered a new link because the rubber boot was shot. To even get the coilover out of the passenger side I had to go rent a spring compressor. Even with the spring compressor, there was no chance of getting that thing back in once I had the spacer mounted on the top of the coilover.

If your truck is 4x4, remove the axle nut and tap the axle out before you try to bear down on the lower control arm. This job is a piece of cake if you do it that way, and you don't need to try to press out the pins on the bottom of the coilover (I wailed on them with a BFH to the point that my vice needs to be re-mounted to my bench... there's no way those pins were coming out.)

Here are the steps I would recommend, and what worked very smoothly for me on the driver's side:

1) Jack up the truck. Chock rear tires. Support with jack stand.
2) Remove tire.
3) Disconnect brake line mount and abs sensor.
4) Completely remove sway bar link from the knuckle. Don't bother removing sway bar mounts under truck. You don't need to if you disconnect the sway bar link.
5) Disconnect tie rod from knuckle.
6) Disconnect upper control arm from knuckle. Support the knuckle as you do this, so it does not flop over hard.
7) Remove the nuts retaining the bottom of the coilover from the lower coilover studs.
8) Remove the nut on the end of the axle. Re-thread nut most of the way onto the axle, then use a piece of wood and hammer to tap the axle out of the knuckle towards the engine. This was far easier than I expected - 3 taps and it was free.
9) Work the axle completely out of the knuckle, and move the axle end towards the rear of the vehicle so it is out of the way.
10) Remove the 3 nuts securing the top of the coilover. Press down on the lower control arm and the coilover literally falls out.

You'll need a 35mm socket and an impact to remove the axle nuts. I ran to O'Reillys and dropped $10 on said socket, and would have been happy to pay twice that for how easy it made getting those axles out.

I used locktight on all my nuts when I reassembled except for the axle nuts - I do plan to replace the original axle nuts, but they are currently on back order through Ford. I'll check them in a few hundred miles, and again at each oil change until I can get new ones.

I like the look of the truck much better now, and pick it up from the alignment shop today after work. For now I'm leaving it on the stock tires, but I may go one size bigger when it's time for new rubber.

If I were to do it all over again, I'd definitely just find a shop to install the kit... and I'd probably go with a more expensive kit that does not require me to press in the studs like this RC kit did. Oh well, live and learn.

I agree.... all the youtube videos on this are totally BS. You can tell they are edited and there is no way that it just pops right in with the spacer installed on the strut assembly. I also had to get the bearings packed back in on the inner CV boot.

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[scoot]

I installed the RC 2.5" lift yesterday. A few observations:

THE INSTRUCTIONS ARE CRAP.

I get it that this is a cheap lift, and you really do get what you pay for... but in my opinion the instructions are downright dangerous. You'll screw up a CV joint, pull the axle completely out of the front diff, or ruin a sway bar link if you try to follow them exactly. Ask me how I know.

I mostly agree. I had a similar experience installing my Fox coilovers on Saturday. It wasn't too difficult to get the strut out, but on the first one the sway bar popped out of the end link. Also had issue with both CV axles, but was able to work it out.

 

[StezenW]

Having read this entire thread - I am going to take my truck in and let someone else do it.

My hands, arms and back are still recovering from my charge pipe and downpipe install adventure last weekend. At least these nuts are "easily" accessible comparatively speaking.

 

[landiscarrier]

I installed the RC 2.5" lift yesterday. A few observations:

THE INSTRUCTIONS ARE CRAP.

I get it that this is a cheap lift, and you really do get what you pay for... but in my opinion the instructions are downright dangerous. You'll screw up a CV joint, pull the axle completely out of the front diff, or ruin a sway bar link if you try to follow them exactly. Ask me how I know.

I started on the passenger side. That side took 4+ hours, 2 trips to O'Reillys, and a "come bail me out" phone call to my brother. Once we ditched the instructions from RC (and ignored the several YouTube videos that make this look like a piece of cake), we figured out the best and safest way to finish up the passenger side. We used what we learned on the driver side, which took *maybe* 30 minutes.

First off: All the YouTube videos show you can just put a little pressure down on the lower control arm and the coilover will pop right out. Lies! All Lies! My truck is the FX4, and there was no chance in hades that coilover was coming out with the axle still connected to the knuckle.

Even with me jumping up and down on the lower control arm with all my body weight and a helper trying to pull the upper portion of the coilover out... there was just no way. I did manage to pull the axle out of wherever it goes - front diff? Luckily I got it re-seated, but while doing so I managed to pull the sway bar link entirely apart... as in "oh, hello shiny ball end slathered with grease! Where did you come from?" I was able to press the ball joint of the sway bar link back together with a large C-Clamp, and have ordered a new link because the rubber boot was shot. To even get the coilover out of the passenger side I had to go rent a spring compressor. Even with the spring compressor, there was no chance of getting that thing back in once I had the spacer mounted on the top of the coilover.

If your truck is 4x4, remove the axle nut and tap the axle out before you try to bear down on the lower control arm. This job is a piece of cake if you do it that way, and you don't need to try to press out the pins on the bottom of the coilover (I wailed on them with a BFH to the point that my vice needs to be re-mounted to my bench... there's no way those pins were coming out.)

Here are the steps I would recommend, and what worked very smoothly for me on the driver's side:

1) Jack up the truck. Chock rear tires. Support with jack stand.
2) Remove tire.
3) Disconnect brake line mount and abs sensor.
4) Completely remove sway bar link from the knuckle. Don't bother removing sway bar mounts under truck. You don't need to if you disconnect the sway bar link.
5) Disconnect tie rod from knuckle.
6) Disconnect upper control arm from knuckle. Support the knuckle as you do this, so it does not flop over hard.
7) Remove the nuts retaining the bottom of the coilover from the lower coilover studs.
8) Remove the nut on the end of the axle. Re-thread nut most of the way onto the axle, then use a piece of wood and hammer to tap the axle out of the knuckle towards the engine. This was far easier than I expected - 3 taps and it was free.
9) Work the axle completely out of the knuckle, and move the axle end towards the rear of the vehicle so it is out of the way.
10) Remove the 3 nuts securing the top of the coilover. Press down on the lower control arm and the coilover literally falls out.

You'll need a 35mm socket and an impact to remove the axle nuts. I ran to O'Reillys and dropped $10 on said socket, and would have been happy to pay twice that for how easy it made getting those axles out.

I used locktight on all my nuts when I reassembled except for the axle nuts - I do plan to replace the original axle nuts, but they are currently on back order through Ford. I'll check them in a few hundred miles, and again at each oil change until I can get new ones.

I like the look of the truck much better now, and pick it up from the alignment shop today after work. For now I'm leaving it on the stock tires, but I may go one size bigger when it's time for new rubber.

If I were to do it all over again, I'd definitely just find a shop to install the kit... and I'd probably go with a more expensive kit that does not require me to press in the studs like this RC kit did. Oh well, live and learn.

Awesome write up! I am thinking of tackling this job this week! Curious....how difficult was it to get the axle back in the hub? Also, I have the RC kit and I don't have a vice.....so now I'm worried again!

 

[CO2Ranger]

I installed the RC 2.5" lift yesterday. A few observations:

THE INSTRUCTIONS ARE CRAP.

I get it that this is a cheap lift, and you really do get what you pay for... but in my opinion the instructions are downright dangerous. You'll screw up a CV joint, pull the axle completely out of the front diff, or ruin a sway bar link if you try to follow them exactly. Ask me how I know.

I started on the passenger side. That side took 4+ hours, 2 trips to O'Reillys, and a "come bail me out" phone call to my brother. Once we ditched the instructions from RC (and ignored the several YouTube videos that make this look like a piece of cake), we figured out the best and safest way to finish up the passenger side. We used what we learned on the driver side, which took *maybe* 30 minutes.

First off: All the YouTube videos show you can just put a little pressure down on the lower control arm and the coilover will pop right out. Lies! All Lies! My truck is the FX4, and there was no chance in hades that coilover was coming out with the axle still connected to the knuckle.

Even with me jumping up and down on the lower control arm with all my body weight and a helper trying to pull the upper portion of the coilover out... there was just no way. I did manage to pull the axle out of wherever it goes - front diff? Luckily I got it re-seated, but while doing so I managed to pull the sway bar link entirely apart... as in "oh, hello shiny ball end slathered with grease! Where did you come from?" I was able to press the ball joint of the sway bar link back together with a large C-Clamp, and have ordered a new link because the rubber boot was shot. To even get the coilover out of the passenger side I had to go rent a spring compressor. Even with the spring compressor, there was no chance of getting that thing back in once I had the spacer mounted on the top of the coilover.

If your truck is 4x4, remove the axle nut and tap the axle out before you try to bear down on the lower control arm. This job is a piece of cake if you do it that way, and you don't need to try to press out the pins on the bottom of the coilover (I wailed on them with a BFH to the point that my vice needs to be re-mounted to my bench... there's no way those pins were coming out.)

Here are the steps I would recommend, and what worked very smoothly for me on the driver's side:

1) Jack up the truck. Chock rear tires. Support with jack stand.
2) Remove tire.
3) Disconnect brake line mount and abs sensor.
4) Completely remove sway bar link from the knuckle. Don't bother removing sway bar mounts under truck. You don't need to if you disconnect the sway bar link.
5) Disconnect tie rod from knuckle.
6) Disconnect upper control arm from knuckle. Support the knuckle as you do this, so it does not flop over hard.
7) Remove the nuts retaining the bottom of the coilover from the lower coilover studs.
8) Remove the nut on the end of the axle. Re-thread nut most of the way onto the axle, then use a piece of wood and hammer to tap the axle out of the knuckle towards the engine. This was far easier than I expected - 3 taps and it was free.
9) Work the axle completely out of the knuckle, and move the axle end towards the rear of the vehicle so it is out of the way.
10) Remove the 3 nuts securing the top of the coilover. Press down on the lower control arm and the coilover literally falls out.

You'll need a 35mm socket and an impact to remove the axle nuts. I ran to O'Reillys and dropped $10 on said socket, and would have been happy to pay twice that for how easy it made getting those axles out.

I used locktight on all my nuts when I reassembled except for the axle nuts - I do plan to replace the original axle nuts, but they are currently on back order through Ford. I'll check them in a few hundred miles, and again at each oil change until I can get new ones.

I like the look of the truck much better now, and pick it up from the alignment shop today after work. For now I'm leaving it on the stock tires, but I may go one size bigger when it's time for new rubber.

If I were to do it all over again, I'd definitely just find a shop to install the kit... and I'd probably go with a more expensive kit that does not require me to press in the studs like this RC kit did. Oh well, live and learn.

Disclaimer: I know very little about suspension mods. I always wondered why folks didn't just put a spring compressor on the coils to squeeze them together so they'd pull out easier. I could see it not working as well with a spacer and getting them back in, but for just a coilover swap, is there a reason one can't do this?

Asking to learn!

 

[Glocker]

Disclaimer: I know very little about suspension mods. I always wondered why folks didn't just put a spring compressor on the coils to squeeze them together so they'd pull out easier. I could see it not working as well with a spacer and getting them back in, but for just a coilover swap, is there a reason one can't do this?

Asking to learn!

If you compress the coils, the struts is still the height it is. Plus it would be a PITA to get the compressor on the spring while on the truck. It's just a PITA all around.

 

[Glocker]

Awesome write up! I am thinking of tackling this job this week! Curious....how difficult was it to get the axle back in the hub? Also, I have the RC kit and I don't have a vice.....so now I'm worried again!

It wasn't horrible, but it was nerve racking because you don't want to mess anything up. We found that bringing up the lower control arm while bringing the spindle into a more natural upright position made it easier to get aligned and in the correct spot. Don't tear your CV boot or your done for and you'll have to get a new boot on the truck before you can drive it anywhere (CV joint contamination will mess up the CV joint). The driver side took us about 10 minutes of nervous fiddling to get back into place. The passenger side about 5 minutes, of still nervous, fiddling.

Lucky for us, we were putting Eibach struts with their springs for 3.75" of lift on the front. The struts don't have studs pressed in on the lower side; Eibach supplies heavy bolts instead. Not having to push down further on the lower control arm to slip the studs in helped immensely!

 

[landiscarrier]

It wasn't horrible, but it was nerve racking because you don't want to mess anything up. We found that bringing up the lower control arm while bringing the spindle into a more natural upright position made it easier to get aligned and in the correct spot. Don't tear your CV boot or your done for and you'll have to get a new boot on the truck before you can drive it anywhere (CV joint contamination will mess up the CV joint). The driver side took us about 10 minutes of nervous fiddling to get back into place. The passenger side about 5 minutes, of still nervous, fiddling.

Lucky for us, we were putting Eibach struts with their springs for 3.75" of lift on the front. The struts don't have studs pressed in on the lower side; Eibach supplies heavy bolts instead. Not having to push down further on the lower control arm to slip the studs in helped immensely!

The CV Boot ripping and pulling out worries me....that why I was thinking of going the....remove hub bolt and tapping the axle out the back of the hub....then "I'm thinking " I wouldn't have to worry as much about the CV's...

 

[quangdog]

Awesome write up! I am thinking of tackling this job this week! Curious....how difficult was it to get the axle back in the hub? Also, I have the RC kit and I don't have a vice.....so now I'm worried again!

Getting the axle both out of the hub and back into it after install were very, very easy. Have a heavy hammer and a block of wood on hand to provide a few love taps to the end of the axle after you have removed the nut. It won't take much to get it out. Putting it back together is just a matter of lining everything up. It's super easy. Good luck!

 

[landiscarrier]

Getting the axle both out of the hub and back into it after install were very, very easy. Have a heavy hammer and a block of wood on hand to provide a few love taps to the end of the axle after you have removed the nut. It won't take much to get it out. Putting it back together is just a matter of lining everything up. It's super easy. Good luck!

Thanks, I needed the confidence boost! Parts are supposed to be here tomorrow!

 

[landiscarrier]

One more question! Ha!

I also orders a set of Eibach Front and Read Shocks (installed rear today. Easy) my question is.....the Eibach front shocks are adjustable....if I’m installing the shocks with the RC 2.5 leveling kit do I set the shocks at stock level or 2.5 lift? I’m thinking stock since I’m already gaining the 2.5 with the RC leveling kit.

 

[quangdog]

One more question! Ha!

I also orders a set of Eibach Front and Read Shocks (installed rear today. Easy) my question is.....the Eibach front shocks are adjustable....if I’m installing the shocks with the RC 2.5 leveling kit do I set the shocks at stock level or 2.5 lift? I’m thinking stock since I’m already gaining the 2.5 with the RC leveling kit.

Wait - why would you install BOTH the RC leveling kit and the Eibach adjustable shocks? Why not just set the Eibach's at 2.5" of lift and eliminate the RC kit entirely?

 

[Whiskeybilt]

I'm planning this on Monday when I'm off and I'm kind of nervous.

 

[landiscarrier]

Wait - why would you install BOTH the RC leveling kit and the Eibach adjustable shocks? Why not just set the Eibach's at 2.5" of lift and eliminate the RC kit entirely?

Stop making me think! Haha!

Everything I’ve researched on the web (and the web is always right ha) said the Eibachs improve the overall ride quality.

 

[quangdog]

Everything I’ve researched on the web (and the web is always right ha) said the Eibachs improve the overall ride quality.

Yes, they do. But the *ONLY* purpose of the RC lift is to get an extra 2.5" of clearance on the front... which the Eibachs will *also* do. I believe they are sent from the factory already set at that height, in fact. It just seems completely redundant to add the RC lift to the adjustable Eibachs. YMMV of course, and it's your truck to do with as you see fit... but I've got the RC lift on my front factory coilovers right now, and I'm planning to swap that entire thing out for either the adjustable Eibachs or the Fox 2.0 adjustable coilovers.... there's no reason I can think of to have *both* an adjustable coilover and the RC lift at the same time (unless you need more lift than the Eibach's can provide alone, of course).

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