Readylift SST 2"F/1"R Lift Kit Failure

[Roofy O]

I was wanting to know if anyone else who installed this lift had their 4x4 wreck and cv joints break. After i installed this lift back in august last year i acourse added bigger tires (255/70R17 Nitto Terra Grapplers) but stayed with the same stock size of rim but switched to aftermarket ones. As the winter months approached i needed my 4x4 but my tires werent spinning at all; So i took it too my local GM dealership to see if they could find the problem on a hinch that it broken from wear and tear. After they tore apart my Front diff and my TC they came to the conclusion that this lift had wrecked my alot of parts in my 4x4 and later my passenger side CV joint because it was putting everything at a steeper angle but all kits do this is what ive been told but for some reason it destoryed mine at a way more faster alarming rate and i had everything all repaired then and there. They also told me after they repaired it that if i abused the 4x4 just a little that it would break on me just like that. I was astonished and i took it back too the performance shop where i had it installed now hoping it was installed wrong. They took a look at it and it was installed correct bright as day and the owner there gave an educated guess that it may have to due with the pcm and he strongly recommended to get a second opinion from a different GM dealership. I later went to one of the most well known GM shops in western Canada and they went through the whole works from the pcm to putting in different parts from other working envoys and basically playing elminating one part to the next and they came with the very same conclusion as the first dealership. So the final answer is there is a flaw with readylifts design and i have heard this from different people on trailvoy and from THE ROADIE saying it should only be for 2WD vehicles as should they advertise it as. Acourse i was ill minded and i didnt do enough research of what the best lift to buy. I am hoping readylift will give me a refund for all had to go through and pay to find this issue. The next step is take this lift off and replace it with a way more better designed suspension lift.

[Opeth]

Yea... That lift is a pile o shit. Sorry bout your misfortunes but pretty sure that vendor is widely known now as garbage here, don't think anyone runs it.

[v7guy]

Yeah, get a different lift and remove that one as soon as possible

[mikekey]

I can't begin to imagine how much money you spent taking it to two stealerships and having a shop install your lift. It's sad, really. Sorry for your troubles.

[Conner299]

As far as the lift wrecking your truck, I feel that may have happened to you with any lift. From what it sounds like, you already had parts that were on the verge of failure, and the kit just exacerbated the situation. From what I've read, the "outside the strut" spacers are bad to run because of possible breakage and strut failure? Anyone please jump in and correct me if I'm wrong. Your problem sounds like it was a 4wd disco that needed regreased, bearings, etc. Along with CV's that were on their way out as well.

[HARDTRAILZ]

Duct tape it.

[v7guy]

cause if you can't duck it...

[Roofy O]

Thats the thing and yes i am the second owner of this vehicle and the previous ones left it all stock and lady drove it. My 4x4 was working fine and the parts could of have or didnt needed to be replaced. And i dont ever remember a time during the summer when i even needed 4x4. As the passenger side CV i can remember a time in december when i plowed through a bumper high snow drift which immdiately made wheels jerk quick to the right. That could of broke it but why so easily? As of right now i still have it till it get the lift meister 3" suspension lift and putting it on after spring break. But with that readylift it is just making making the 4x4 catch and not have a full reach on everything.

[navigator]

with an inside the strut spacer, the shock limits how much flex you get.
With an outside the strut spacer(like the deadly lift) the the upper ball joint is the limiting factor.
The ball joint being the limiting factor is a dangerous thing.

Each TB is different but I think some of the early adopters figured out that about an inch is all of the outside the strut lift you can safely achieve before you have CV binding at full droop.

[navigator]

...... I am hoping readylift will give me a refund for all had to go through and pay to find this issue. ......

good luck with that but several of the sellers on ebay list them for 4wd as well so maybe they will help you out.

[The Roadie]

...the "outside the strut" spacers are bad to run because of possible breakage and strut failure? ..

Totally. The upper ball joint stud is at risk, especially if the UCAs aren't flipped. Danny, did you flip yours?

with an inside the strut spacer, the shock limits how much flex you get.
With an outside the strut spacer(like the deadly lift) the the upper ball joint is the limiting factor...

Ball joint AND the inner CV joint. Especially bad on the Cardone replacements compared to OEMs. Rotating the tire while the suspension is at full extension shows instantly that the inner CV joint binds up and is fatally stressed. When the CV binds up on the passenger side, it sends excess stress to the bearings in the splined disconnect and then they fail.

I've issued that warning so many times, and tried to convince the Ebay sellers of Readylift and similar knock-off cheap-ass kits that they are criminally negligent, to no avail, that I've just given up.

If a ball joint fails on a trail, you could die. But buyers of these kits obtain a cheaper purchase price and a cheaper install because they're outside the strut. Says a lot about the marketplace that these things get sold at all.

Glad you weren't hurt. Expensive lesson, though.

[Trail X]

If he flipped the UCAs, then all that would limit the downward motion would be the tripod joint. Lift the tires off the ground a few times while rotating, and you'd tear up both the diff and the disconnect pretty fast.

Sorry we weren't there in the first place to stop you from ordering that horrid lift.

[Roofy O]

Hahahaha! I wish you guys were, i should of found offroadtb and trailvoy sooner!

[Conner299]

Trailvoy is OK for reference... but check out GMTNation as well.

[blacksheep]

Is this the same with all the "above the shock" spacers (bds and markmc's stuff)? I was planning to use a .5" spacer on my truck.

[navigator]

Is this the same with all the "above the shock" spacers (bds and markmc's stuff)? I was planning to use a .5" spacer on my truck.

BDS, Rough Country and Mark's new lift replace the upper strut mount and are still considered inside the strut lifts. Mark's old lift re-uses the OEM strut mount and is also an inside the strut lift.

You can use some outside the strut lift like Mark's spacer but you might have to check each application. We don't know what lift you are running so we can't guess if the spacer will work for you.
I run Mark's spacer with my Rough Country lift. I think guys have done the same with the BDS lift and of course with Mark's old kit. I'm unsure if anyone has run any spacer to Mark's new lift.

You should be able loosen your bolts on your upper strut mount and see how much you can loosen them before the CV starts binding at full droop.

[Roofy O]

hey guys just updating you on my situation, i removed the readylift today and installed the lift meister 3" suspension lift and because of the design of it i got my 4x4 back! And the weather im in right now was the perfect time too test out! Now i am working on getting my full refund back from readylift and so far it is looking good!