Stage 3 Off-Road

Turning your Ford pickup into something that passes over the most massive trail obstacles with ease or towers over subcompacts at the stop lights generally requires a lift kit of some sort. The good news is that Stage 3 Off-Road has a wide selection of lift kits in different sizes, different suspension setups and for almost any application for all of Ford's full-sized pickups. Now some bad news (sort of): many lift kits will require plenty of other gear in order to make your truck roll out at its optimum efficiency and prevent issues with other truck components. This is especially true for our customers' most common use of lifts: getting larger wheels and tires. It sounds simple, and the actual swap and lift kit install generally are, but larger than stock wheels can also wreak havoc on your engine, transmission and suspension (not to mention the speedometer). Still, the general utility and awesome possibilities for lift kits make them an excellent addition to almost any truck, and we here at Stage 3 Off-Road want to make sure your lift gives you complete satisfaction and lets your truck last a lifetime.

Navigating the world of lifts kits isn't exactly a simple endeavor. There are several different types of lift kits with different accessories, purposes, heights and other goodies, giving you more options than your truck actually needs. The most basic type of lift comes in the form of leveling kits that consist of a set of spacers that are installed in your truck's strut towers to add a few extra inches to the pickup's front end. Leveling kits are a cheap, easy solution to reduce frontal rake for a more even appearance and to get larger tires to fit without having to through the trouble (or huge price tag) of a full suspension lift. Owners of older Super Duty trucks with front leaf springs can contact us about Pro Comp's hanger leveling kits built specifically for 7.3L Powerstrokes. Things start to get really tricky when it comes to more extensive lift systems. Ford used several suspension setups for each truck throughout their various generations, and each requires different components based on their specific designs. Luckily, companies like Pro Comp and Superlift provide full lift packages that include all of the necessary components for increasing your truck's ride height. Base model kits come standard with taller springs and general-purpose shocks that match give your truck the lift it needs. The ES9000 shocks included in some of Pro Comp's lift kits are great for general road use, light towing and other tasks that don't put too much stress on your suspension system. Ford pickups that are going to see serious off-roading action, heavy towing or any other type of use that requires near-constant suspension articulation should upgrade to kits with MX-6 Shocks, or even the ultra-heavy duty lift kits with external reservoirs that keep the shocks cool under intense conditions. Despite the inherent advantages that lift kits bring to your truck in terms of both performance and styling, they can cause issues when towing heavy loads that can damage your rear suspension by compressing your lifted shocks and springs to an unhealthy degree. The most common solution is grabbing a set of airbags with or without an internal compressor. Airbag kits help your suspension by supporting some of the excess weight caused by heavy towing at the price of stiffening up the rear end.

Like we said, the most common use for our lifts is to get larger tires on. We're guessing the larger tires are for monster truck rallies or turning the occasional Prius into mincemeat, but we don't ask questions. F-150s and both the first and second generation Super Dutys need lifts for even the smallest increase in tire size, so if you're planning on grabbing a set of wheels and tires over 32 inches in diameter, be prepared to spend some extra cash on at least a leveling kit, if not a full suspension lift. Third generation Super Dutys generally have enough clearance in their wheel wells to strap on up to roughly 33.5 inch tires with no issues, but many of Stage 3's customers go bigger for a more aggressive stance or off-road applications, and throw on a lift to compensate. While diameter is important, double check the maximum allowable tread width for your truck or be prepared to do some fender well trimming to prevent tire rub.

Larger tires, especially off-road performance tires, can cause two major issues that directly effect the lifespan of your truck and your safety. The most important thing to get immediately squared away is your truck's stability. Big off-road tires cause a ton of vibration when driven on standard roads and freeways. High speeds and these tires' general instability can cause dreaded ''death wobble'' that can at the very least leave your suspension system in utter shambles, if not cause you to lose control of your truck at highway speeds. Going along with their lift kits, Pro Comp manufactures a steering stabilizer kit that eliminates vibration and unwanted wheel movement at high speeds. Each kit includes two ES2000 stabilizers, and their necessary brackets, that are specifically designed to absorb the lateral movement of your front wheels and keep you on the road. The second thing you'll notice with upscaled tires is that your transmission seems to downshift more often than it used to. The reason? Your differential gearing. To put it as simply as possible: larger tires require larger gears. The stock differential gearing is tuned to perfectly keep the engine and transmission within an optimal powerband with factory-sized wheels and tires. When larger tires are thrown into the mix, that balanced is shifted and larger gearing is required for proper driving. The table we have provided in the following image shows the amount of rpms required to maintain a cruising speed of 65 mph at a 1:1 total drive ratio with different gearing. For instance, the factory differential on most Super Duty trucks came with 4.10 gears, which are nearly perfect for keeping stock and slightly larger wheels and tires in their 2500 to 3000 rpm range. However, those same 4.10 gears will make a 37 inch wheel run at 65 mph under 2500 rpm, causing a drop in performance and making your transmission downshift under hard acceleration. Upgrading the differential to 4.89 gears -- gears that are usually reserved for high speed drag racers -- will keep your truck in its optimal power range when using big tires and prevent excessive downshifting that causes premature wear on your transmission.

Most of Stage 3's customers already know this, but we're going to say it anyway: bigger tires will throw off your speedometer. Your truck's computer is specifically set up to calculate speed based off of your factory tire and wheel size. Bigger wheels and tires cause your speedometer to show a lower speed than you're actually going, setting you up for a potential speeding ticket. You could waste a day and go down to your local dealership or shop to have it adjusted, or you can invest in an H&S tuner that can not only adjust basic settings like your speedometer, but also comes with a set of powerful performance tunes that can instantly add up to 100 horsepower to your engine's total output.

If you're planning on lifting your truck and throwing some massive wheel and tire combos on, you now know how to do it right, unlike that guy with groaning transmission or the other guy rolled over in the ditch because of Death Wobble. You did it right, and now you have truck with all of Ford's legendary reliability with a towering lift and tires that can stick tight onto vertical ledges without experiencing all of the drivability and transmission issues of people who don't take their time and do things correctly the first time. After giving your truck the clearance and wheels to tackle the toughest trails, check out our other Ford truck performance parts including Super Duty and F-150 cold air intakes, F-Series lighting accessories and all of our other Ford truck performance parts.