lbstone
Full Access Member
I spent this past Friday and Saturday lowering my RC and wanted to share my overall thoughts on the X-Metal Kit and the entire process. I did this at my buddies shop with a lift which made the entire process go pretty easily. I also read through all the threads in the DIY section and got some good hints and tips. I think I'll post up my overall install in the DIY section as mine seemed to differ slightly then others. By that I mean I was able to do a few things that made the front install go a bit quicker!
Overall thoughts on the kit and the ride; Gary's kit is well put together. I do believe the installation instructions had a step that I didn't have the parts for and that made no sense to me. The instructions call for installing shims in the rear tranny mounts. The kit didn't have shims nor do I see any reason to shim the tranny. I believe this is a step for the QC's and thought the instruction might be the wrong bet but there was no mention of the axle flip required with the QC's! Beats me and this doesn't take away from the fact that this is a fantastic kit thats worth every penny!! I only had a chance to drive the truck the night I finished the install because I woke up the next morning to a light dusting of snow and put the truck away for the winter
My first impression was "WOW"!! The truck looks much better and appears to be the way it should look from the factory. The drop is perfect and at first glance from an untrained eye will not immediatly be able to tell it's been lowered. The truck looks just right and has more of an agressive stance to go with the more aggressive body lines of the truck!! The visual difference is worth the time and effort alone but in addition to the much improved look is a ride thats also improved! This was especially surprising to my buddy who I took for a ride in the truck. He lowered his WRX STI some years ago and complained of a harsh ride after lowering it. The truck on the other hand now has a better spring rate and dosn't "crash" so hard over bumps and pavement imperfections. So far I haven't noticed any bump steer issues or side effects from the sway bars angle being off. I knew the truck was getting put away after the install so I figured I'd let it sit for the winter while the front springs settled a bit before I purchase the JMB end links and install them and get an alignment. I attached a few before and after pictures for your enjoyment. In case you cant tell, in all the after pictures, the truck has snow on it! I will also post a link of the thread to the DIY article once I post it up. It will be short and sweet with some hints and tips to supplement other installs and Gary's supplied instructions. The total drop was 2.25" in the rear and 1.50" in the front by means of measuring the wheel gap.
Overall thoughts on the kit and the ride; Gary's kit is well put together. I do believe the installation instructions had a step that I didn't have the parts for and that made no sense to me. The instructions call for installing shims in the rear tranny mounts. The kit didn't have shims nor do I see any reason to shim the tranny. I believe this is a step for the QC's and thought the instruction might be the wrong bet but there was no mention of the axle flip required with the QC's! Beats me and this doesn't take away from the fact that this is a fantastic kit thats worth every penny!! I only had a chance to drive the truck the night I finished the install because I woke up the next morning to a light dusting of snow and put the truck away for the winter
My first impression was "WOW"!! The truck looks much better and appears to be the way it should look from the factory. The drop is perfect and at first glance from an untrained eye will not immediatly be able to tell it's been lowered. The truck looks just right and has more of an agressive stance to go with the more aggressive body lines of the truck!! The visual difference is worth the time and effort alone but in addition to the much improved look is a ride thats also improved! This was especially surprising to my buddy who I took for a ride in the truck. He lowered his WRX STI some years ago and complained of a harsh ride after lowering it. The truck on the other hand now has a better spring rate and dosn't "crash" so hard over bumps and pavement imperfections. So far I haven't noticed any bump steer issues or side effects from the sway bars angle being off. I knew the truck was getting put away after the install so I figured I'd let it sit for the winter while the front springs settled a bit before I purchase the JMB end links and install them and get an alignment. I attached a few before and after pictures for your enjoyment. In case you cant tell, in all the after pictures, the truck has snow on it! I will also post a link of the thread to the DIY article once I post it up. It will be short and sweet with some hints and tips to supplement other installs and Gary's supplied instructions. The total drop was 2.25" in the rear and 1.50" in the front by means of measuring the wheel gap.
