body lift blues

[kanga19]

I have a 86 s-10 4x4 extended cab. looking to put in a 3" body lift. a bunch of companys make kits, each claiming to be the best and to have the most complete kit, my questions are : Which is the best kit for my truck? and what kind of mods are involved with a body lift.
Thanx

[blazen]

first welcome to the site. i'm not sure which is the best but usually a body lift has everything your gonna need. you should check our store.

[bvr775]

get the poly(red) if your going to do a body lift they are supoosed to be the tuffest without introduseing a lot of road vibration into your cab. Brand dosn't matter as much as matiriale. The body blocks sold in the store are some of the best.
the good thing about body lifts is you don't have to cut the fenders, but
be warned bodylifts throw the center of gravity off on a truck really bad, much worse than supension lifts because you woun't encrease you supension articulation any.
3" is good, but I wouldn't recomend going any higher with body lifts because the bolts tend to bend and I've seen the black plastic blocks crack and pop out of the trail. They just wish they had cut out their fenders after that.

[Blazer69]

bsi makes good lifts but i agree with bvr for body lift brand isn't important....suspension yes but for body just need polyurethane

[LayItLowS10]

ask what comes exactly with the kit ... lifting 3" you are going to have to extend the fuel filler neck, make sure it comes with brakeline relocation brackets, steering linkage, tranny linkage, bumper relocation brackets
i've never bodylifted a s-10 but ive done numerous k5's and other trucks and these are some of the things ive come across on those trucks

[Hanr3]

A body lift won't change the center of gravity as much as a suspension lift will. When you install a suspension lift your actually raising everything from the frame up. With a body lift your only raising the body, not the frame, so all of that weight is staying put.

Performance Accessories makes a good kit. I installed TrailMaster kit on my '87 S10-Blazer, although it was for a S10-Pickup. Also a good kit.
When you lift it 3" there are a number of things to watch for, all electrical wires (especially in the engine compartment, under the battery, and gas tank), hoses, and brake lines are some of the more common stuff. I did not have to relocate my brake hoses. The S-series has the brake lines coiled by the master cylinder, and when the body went up the lines unwound. No modification needed. I did have to bend my tranny cooler lines away from my serpentine belt though. I also ran into trouble with 4 body bolts. See link for more info.
A good kit will have a new gas tank filler hose, a steering shaft extension, new bolts & blocks, front bumper relocation brackets, an auto tranny shift linkage extension that needs to be welded on, and decent instructions. You will have to cut your lower radiator fan shroud, or figure a way to drop it down. Plus if this is a 4wdr truck, you will have to relocate the vacuum modulator on the passengers side fender, or under the battery, bracket should be part of the kit. Yours being a '88 you will have to do some trimming around the 4x4 floor shifter so it works properly.
Most companies will also sell gap guard kits to fill the void you just made. I made my gap guards out of old Press Blankets, can be found at your local commercial printer for free.
Here is a link to my 3" body lift install. Please ask if you have any questions.
http://offroadworld.tenmagazines.com/mygallery.ten-id-4266-album-11469

[Hanr3]

I forgot to add some inportant info. If you tow anything off the rear bumper you cannot lift the bumper. The relocation brackets are not designed to hold any weight. You will have to tow with a reciever hitch set-up. Plus if you raise the front bumper, it isn't as solid as it used to be. However you can still use your old tow hooks.