Dodge Ram 2500 4x4 Dream Lift Kit Install - Making A Dodge Dream Kit

Replacing the control arms is relatively simple save for one minor issue. The exhaust on the diesel engine passes right over the head of this bolt that holds the upper right control arm to the frame. Clearly, the factory installed the suspension prior to the drivetrain. We didn't have to remove the exhaust completely but we did have to loosen all of the mounts and pull it back about six inches so this bolt could be removed.

Installed, the DT Pro Fab arms look really nice. Since they are powder-coated black they should stay looking good for a long time. It took us about four hours to complete the installation of these arms in our garage using common hand tools.

Daystar makes a variety of products that can help with lifting and preparing your vehicle for the dirt. On the left are the 2-inch spacers we are adding on top of the Lorenz coils. Center are the longer bumpstops needed to keep the shocks from bottoming out upon full suspension compression. The small bumpstops on the right are an interesting product that slip over your shock shaft and act as a bump stop at full compression. They are made up of a special EVS foam that absorbs energy without much rebound to smooth out the big hits.

Here you can see the 2-inch Daystar spacer installed on top of the coil spring. Installing these is relatively simple but will require you to remove the shocks and springs. Above the spacer is the shock tower from the Lorenz kit that allows us to mount 2.5 Sway-A-Way reservoir shocks.

The longer Daystar bumpstops simply slip into the stock bumpstop mount. This picture was taken after some testing and you can see where the bumpstop contacted the pad on the axle. The bumpstops are longer than the stock versions. While we did lose some compression travel in the suspension we found that the new setup gained three inches in droop so our net travel was slightly increased.

This is the Daystar EVS foam shock bump stop installed on our Sway Away shock shaft. The red bumpstop was already on the shaft so we put it on top of the Daystar bumpstop. We like these since they act as a safety when severe impacts are encountered. With as much as our truck weighs, this will help minimize the forces placed on the suspension during rough use.

Tuff Country makes these trick adjustable sway bar links. The stock links will actually limit your suspension travel due to binding of the rubber bushings. The Heim joints also offer a much more solid connection resulting in more precise control.

This is what the suspension looked like before we started. While the suspension system looked a bit tired and dirty, it still had many high-end parts that we wanted to retain. The springs were rusting due to the chemicals used to de-ice the roads in Colorado, and the shocks showed the years of road grime. They both still worked perfectly but left a bit to be desired in aesthetics.

The new suspension actually droops far enough to make the brake line length an issue. At this time we were measuring for the proper length limit straps. Limit straps are definitely important if you plan on going air-born like we occasionally do. You certainly don't want your brake lines or other components supporting the weight of the axle.

After everything was complete and an alignment was done we headed out to do some testing.....

.....To our satisfaction, it felt solid right from the beginning. The larger tires and slight increase in ride height was hardly noticeable on the street.....

......Steering precision was improved and no vibrations ever occurred. Off-road, the added rubber and smoother suspension movement really shined.....

...... Even some airtime was thrown at the truck and never once did the truck feel like it was beyond its limits.