Benefits to adding 1" body lift with a 2.5" susp

[Reds71]

I see a lot of folks adding a 1" body lift with their 2.5" suspension, any specific advantage? Or disadvantage?

Restoring a '71 that will be primarily a Sunday cruiser and the WH 2.5" System 3 with Bilstein seems to be the favorite after reading a few threads here.

 

[Timmy390]

The real advantage is the fact the original bushings are pancaked from age so in my case my bronco was setting 1/2 lower than it should have been. I added the 1 inch BL because it helped get the 33's under fenders better and to me, it has a better stance with the 1 BL. Not to mention I didn't want to NOT do the BL and go stock only to want a 1 inch BL later have spend more money.

True there are some gaps around stock bumpers when doing a BL but I run home made bumpers so it looks fine to me.

Tim

 

[m_m70]

Went this direction fit 33’s and give me a little more room for future tranny upgrades. The 1” body lift doesn’t leave too much gap (for me) and with the 2.5” SL gets me at a reasonable height for what I use my rig for.
Also, the 2.5” SL doesn’t change the steering geometry as much so not fighting those gremlins.

 

[Timmy390]

give me a little more room for future tranny upgrades.

I should have mentioned that.......Yup going to make my M5ODR2 swap easier

Tim

 

[fishinman78]

Its nice just to add some extra clearance. Sometimes having that extra 1" can make all the difference when working on your Bronco.

 

[camomog]

Air cleaner clearance, trans clearance, extra tire clearance, and it does not make much of a change in handling.

 

[blubuckaroo]

In addition to making things easier to work on, the extra space reduces the heat transferred from the drivetrain to the body. When I added the lift, it made a world of difference in the A/C's performance.