• Written by Jay Ryan

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I get it. You’re nervous and excited at the same time. A little scared even. You’ve never done this before and don’t really know what to expect. I’m sure you have some questions too. Will it hurt? What if I don’t like it? How will I explain this to my mother? Will she ever look at me the same? 

What we are talking about here of course is modifying your vehicle. Specifically trucks, Jeeps and SUV’s. Some folks may be surprised to hear that a majority of our customers are first timers when it comes to modifying their vehicles. They have always wanted to but just never pulled the trigger for one reason or another. Maybe someone they know relayed a bad experience and that put them off on the idea. Perhaps a lowered Ram 1500 2wd ran over their cat once and from then on it was a no go for aftermarket customization. Well worry not dear reader, for I am here to take you by the hand and carelessly whisper what this experience feels like. Let your shoulders relax, make yourself a drink and put on some slow jams. I’ll take it from here. 

Let’s talk about my first time to help break the ice. I was a lot like you and drove completely stock vehicles for the majority of my driving life. This was mostly due to my vehicles being old busted ass cars that no amount of modification could help. They were grandma cars, we’re talking Toyota Avalon with a column shifter. It was, as the kids say, ratchet. So once I finally grew up and got my hands on Chevy Silverado I felt I had the proper platform to make some mods. Truck yeah! It was a moment that I had waited my whole life for. Would the experience live up to the way I pictured it in my mind? Would I embarrass myself? What would life be like on the other side of this endeavor? There are days in your life where a monumental change occurs and you can never go back to who you were before. For me that was the day I put all-terrain tires on my truck. I truly felt like a man after that. I felt bigger, stronger, more capable. There was a sense that I could really handle myself. I pulled out of the parking lot and plowed as deep as I could into the biggest puddle on the road. It was so wet. And it was way deeper than I expected. But a threshold had been crossed that day my friends. There was no turning back for me for I had seen the other side and it was, in a word, glorious. 

So I would say that the most common first time setup we see is for someone to get a leveling kit and either larger tires on stock wheels or aftermarket wheels and tires. You can’t go wrong either way but it’s all about the desired end result. With a leveling kit you can’t get a massively huge tire compared to the stock size mostly because two objects can’t occupy the same space at the same time. Science. Furthermore, a typical leveling kit install is minimally invasive in terms of modifications. The driveline and steering isn’t modified beyond what the stock suspension can handle. Unless you go with a giant ass spacer off of Amazon that will destroy your ball joints. There’s a reason that your big manufacturers don’t make kits that harm your front end. They max everything out beyond what factory geometry can handle and end up costing the end user a ton in repairs and most likely new tires because a vehicle can’t be properly aligned when its suspension is maxed out. And it rides like shit. So, general rule of thumb, stay away from 3” leveling kits unless they also include the necessary components to correct driveline/suspension/steering etc. angles. $30 kits off of Amazon won’t do this. But I digress. 

The next step up the ladder would be a full on suspension lift kit. Ask your old lady and she will verify that the jump from 2” to 6” is nothing to laugh at. A complete lift kit from a reputable manufacturer (i.e. Readylift Suspension) will come with everything needed to bring your stock geometry back to where it needs to be. You’ll have correct driveline angles that won’t put your suspension in a bind and wear your parts out prematurely. Nobody likes premature deterioration. You want long and satisfying life from your front end parts. With the installation of a lift kit you will be able to run a larger wheel and tire setup. You will be able to enter the wonderful wide world of negative offset. This will provide your vehicle with a wider stance that can touch both sides of the road if you so desire. It’s worth mentioning that once larger wheels and tires are installed on a vehicle, by their very nature of being heavy as shit they can cause stock steering components to wear faster than they would if they only had teeny, tiny, embarrassingly small stock wheels and tires. It’s the nature of the beast. And nobody likes small stock. 

Typically after folks have a lift kit installed they continue further down the rabbit hole to the accompanying accessories. We’re talking steps, bumpers, lighting, winches, whips, chains, different kinds of lubrication. All the stuff that goes along with exploring all the different sensations you inevitably seek once this becomes a regular thing. Ya see, you don’t want it to become stale. You want to scratch that weird itch and do something freaky, like coilovers or engine swaps. You are always seeking ways to perform better, to have your parts last longer, to show off in front of people, to go deeper into all of the puddles that are out there. That’s what this is all about, being adventurous. 

So, this is just a breifish run down of what to expect if you’re new to the aftermarket vehicle accessory game. It’s different for everyone and everyone has different tastes. One thing is for sure, come see us at Off-Road King and we will make sure you start out on the right path. We will help you blossom and flower into the freaky modified vehicle owner you’ve always wanted to be. And get your mind out of the gutter, this whole thing has been about trucks and stuff. K love you bye.