One of the cool things about the 2004-'08 Ford F-150 is that it doesn't take much suspension lift to fit 35-inch tires. In the case of Rough Country Suspension Systems' 2 1/2-inch leveling lift kit, it doesn't take much cash either. In today's economy, that's a good thing.
We recently traveled to Rough Country in Dyersburg, Tennessee, to install this kit under an '06 F-150 FX4. The kit lifts the front suspension via a pair of molded nylon spacers. These spacers are strong, easy to install, and they're formed to fit the strut hat, giving the appearance of a continuing strut. The kit includes all required hardware, and has an MSRP of only $99.95.
Here you can see the contents...
Here you can see the contents of the kit we installed. It came with molded front spacers, rear blocks, shocks, U-bolts, and hardware.
We also installed one of Rough Country's optional rear suspension kits to compliment the front. The kit we bolted in lifts the rear suspension by one inch and includes Rough Country's Performance 2.2-series shock absorbers, steel blocks, and U-bolts. It adds $150 to the MSRP of the leveling kit for a total of $249.95. Rough Country also offers a kit that utilizes their Nitro shocks, as opposed to the Performance 2.2 series shocks, and it has an MSRP of $199.
The struts have to be removed...
The struts have to be removed from the vehicle to install the spacers. First, the ball joints are disassembled from the upper control arms (shown). After that, the steering linkage is disconnected from the knuckle and then the sway bars are disconnected.
The installation of all the components was quick and painless and allowed fitment of the ever-popular 35s. In addition, the price is right, allowing us to be penny-wise and trail-crazy. Here are the basics of the lift components and how they all went together.
By The Numbers
A leveling kit has more benefits than just aesthetics. Whether you choose to fit larger tires or not, the improvements in ground clearance and approach angle will definitely improve your rig's capabilities off-highway. Here are some measurements taken from our test vehicle. Note that if you install the rear lift, as we did, the front overall lift will be decreased slightly.
Stock height with 32.1x11.0-18 tires
Front valance to ground (in): 13
Rear bumper to ground (in): 21 3/4
*Approach angle (deg): 33
Leveling kit with stock tires
Front valance to ground (in): 15
Rear bumper to ground (in): 22 3/4
*Approach angle (deg): 38
Leveling kit with 35x12.50-18 tires
Front valance to ground (in): 16 1/2
Rear bumper to ground (in): 24 1/4
*Approach angle (deg): 41
*(measured from passenger-side tire to outer edge of lower valance)
 Next up, the lower strut bolts...  Next up, the lower strut bolts that hold the struts to the lower control arms are removed (shown), and then the nuts on the upper strut towers are removed. |  At this point, the strut assembly...  At this point, the strut assembly can be removed from the truck. |  Installing the spacers is...  Installing the spacers is as easy as feeding three 2-inch bolts into each spacer from the bottom. There are hex counter-bores integrated into the spacers for each bolt, and this helps to ensure that each bolt is in the exact location they need to be for reassembly. |
 The spacers are then installed...  The spacers are then installed on the strut with the stock hardware. |  Reassembly of the front suspension...  Reassembly of the front suspension is a reverse of the disassembly. The previously mentioned hex counter-bores in the spacers allow tightening of the six new 3/8-inch flanged lock nuts on the upper strut towers without having to use a wrench on the bolt heads. |  Rough Country says the kit...  Rough Country says the kit was developed using 35x12.50-18 tires on stock wheels. Since we were running 35s on aftermarket wheels with a different offset, we had to do some very minor trimming to the front flares (shown) and the air dam to eliminate tire contact. |