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6 INCH TRAILMASTER LIFT ON A 97 Z71

SO you want to lift your IFS 4WD.. Grab a seat and read ahead..This is how you do it...

Tools probably needed:
Torque Wrench
Full set of box/open wrenches
DOT brake fluid
Loctite
Torch
Lithium/marine grease
Ball joint forks
Sawzall
Very small clamps
Air hammer
Grinder
Additional full socket sets
Punch set
Rust-inhibiting paint
Pry bars/tire irons
Full Impact Socket Set
2 pair 6ton+ jackstands
18 volt drill set
¾ drive breaker bar
Concrete blocks for jackstands
New stabilizer bar links
Cheater pipes
2 2.5ton + floorjacks
125+psi compressor
Bench vise
Ball joint press (autozone rent)
Sledge hammer

-Basically, you want as many sets of tools as possible… Ideally enough that two people can use air tools simultaneously, etc.
-Do not be surprised if the rear brake hose is not long enough. If you still did not listen to me about getting a new one, you will probably need it AND/OR may be able to bend or replace a section of the hardline that runs from the frame to the rear axle.
-Measure the distance from outer tie rod to outer tie rod (knuckle to knuckle) to make sure you do not toe in/out differently than before.
-Thoroughly grease all old/new bushings you come in contact with. Also hit all grease zerks.
-Do not get your exhaust rerouted to clear the driveshaft until after your lift is completed.
-Do not forget to retorque all bolts around 500 miles after the truck is on the road again.
- Loctite as many bolts as you can during the retorque done before you put the truck on the road.
-Attached are some general pictures to help give the idea for any possible questions.

Stock IFS teardown:
- Lift the vehicle and support it as best you can, I would use at least 4 points of contact from 2 pair of 6 ton or larger jackstands. If necessary, use SOLID concrete with these stands. My 6” Superlift/38.5 setup required the 25-30” of reach from the stands/jacks.
- Disconnect the front brake hoses at the brake caliper and use the very small clamps to seal the lines and prevent any brake fluid leakage. These will stay clamped until you are ready to install the new brake lines.
- Unload the torsion bars with the Ball Joint Press. MARK the torsion bars both Driver/Passenger and each end front/rear. I used the Autozone rental and inserted one of my punches for my air hammer inside the BJ Press, which fit pretty well inside the dimple on the torsion bar keys. If you decide to run Ford Keys or heavier bars, I STRONGLY recommend using either 2 presses, or the BJ press + a Craftsman 7 ton? Gear puller. To load with that much tension, I used the dimples closest to the center of the truck, which required less force to load the bars, and used the other dimple to hold the keys at their preset while I reinstalled the blocks that go on the crossmember and preload the keys.
- Disconnect the front shocks at one or both points
- Disconnect the tie rods from the stock centerlink. I would barely put the nut holding the tie rods on as a base to hit with my sledge hammer, preventing me from having to use a Fork and bust the seals. Also, remove the centerlink itself.
- Support the entire dual a arm/cv/knuckle assembly
- Remove the cv joint bolts at the differential
- Remove the stabilizer bar links. I went to Autozone and matched up some Energy Suspension? ones for $10-15. I recommend doing the same as the stock bolts used are a pain to reinstall from being so long.
- Remove the stabilizer bar.
- You can then remove the UCA/LCA bolts and remove this entire assembly whole, which is heavy and awkward. You can also disconnect each piece of this assembly- which takes more time, but is much easier to handle.
- Remove the front driveshaft
- Cut the stock IFS differential mounts that need to be removed with a torch if possible. A grinder/sawzall can be used but is very difficult. This must be done before the differential can be removed.
- Support and remove the differential from the truck. Do not forget to disconnect the wiring connected to it.
- You will probably also have to remove the stock bumpstops under the UCA’s to make room for the new UCA drop brackets. I’d use a torch for this and grind down the surface smooth.
- You MAY have to grind some of the exterior ribbing on the differential to clear. This had to be done on mine, but has less differential drop.
- Remove the stock TBar crossmember if you have not already.
- Remove the factory “knock-outs” in the stock UCA mounts.

IFS Lift Installation
- The order of steps may be different than the directions, but should not be a large problem.
- Remove the idler arm assembly(passenger side) and install the idler arm bracket if the kit has one.
- Install the new drop centerlink for your tie rods.
- Install stabilizer bar drop bracketry or whatever method to reinstall the stabilizer bar
- Install the UCA/LCA drop bracketry. Make sure you ground down the stock bumpstop welds enough so that the UCA brackets sit properly on the frame.
- Install the new differential mounts to the differential
- Install the differential/mount assembly to the truck
- Reinstall the UCA/LCA/CV joint/Knuckle assembly. Do not completely tighten the UCA cam bolts that adjust your caster/camber. You will need to adjust this once you reinstall your tires/wheels.
- Install the new front shocks
- Reconnect the tie rods to the knuckle/drop centerlink
- Install the new brake hoses, making sure your reservoir stays full.
- Install the strut bars/kicker braces that run from the subframe to the stock crossmembers
- Install the Tbar drop bracketry, making sure the crossmember does not lean front/back.
- Reinstall the Tbar crossmember itself
- Reinstall your front tires/wheels and align for caster/camber/toe
- Jack up the uca/lca/etc assemblies to where you think your ride height will be (if you wanted to crank your lift past 6.5) for the alignment you do.
- Reload the torsion bars, keeping in mind the warnings at the top of directions.

Rear lift installation.
- This is based on you using a 5.5” block/AAL
- With the front end complete, use those 4 jackstands to keep the rear half of the rig suspended.
- Remove the factory shocks
- Disconnect the stabilizer bar links. If you have to put new ones, be prepared to drop the gas tank. I removed the stabilizer bar and did not reinstall it from this hassle.
- Keep a VERY close eye on the brake hose to make sure it does not bust from too much lift that I warned you about.
- Use those small clamps from the brake hoses to clamp the leafs together when installing the AAL’s.
- Disconnect the stock U bolts and separate the axle from the leaf springs.
- Install the AAL’s to the spring packs as mentioned above.
- Install the blocks and lower the truck back down onto the axle
- Install new U bolts
- Be prepared to grind some of the shock mount so that the new shocks clear.
- Again, keep in mind the factory brake hose. If you listened, install the new brake hose.
- Sit the truck back down and check for driveshaft angle. You may have to shim the axle.
- Bleed the brakes in proper sequence.
- Retorque all bolts that you have touched. Loctite as many as you can for your final retorque.
- Cycle the steering to ensure nothing binds.
- All bolts tightened, brakes bled, and tires installed, lower the truck and test your brake bleeding/alignment.
- Don’t forget to bring your new driveshaft to the exhaust shop when you get the driver’s side exhaust rerouted. Expect ~$30 for this."

Here are just a few pics from the install ...