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Readylift 2” Level & UCA Issue

dearchristopher

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I recently bought the 66-1921 Readylift kit with the tophat spacer and UCA, and wanted to make the forum aware of a potentially serious issue with the kit.

So far, i have had zero issues with the control arms. no squeaks, and a very smooth install. i’m incredibly happy with my choice to replace UCA and add a level. my truck is a 2020 lonestar 4x4 ORP, so i wanted to replace the UCA with something that could handle the extra travel at the ball joint.

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the packaging of the kit was also superb. I felt like i was getting my ~$500 worth.

My issue with the kit lies in the spacer. The studs on my strut were around 1/4” higher than the level itself. We did not notice until we had finished the driver side and moved onto the passenger side. This means that the weight of the truck was being lifted by the height of the studs on the strut, *not* by the strut spacer. I had to trim the strut studs down in order to set the spacer against the strut tower.

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As far as I am concerned, all who have installed this kit need to make certain that this is not happening to their truck. I did email Readylift, and they do not seem overly concerned here. They plan to update their instructions (no mention of trimming the studs) and basically sent me on my way with a “thanks, a few others have mentioned this”. I understand that this is the nature of upgrading vehicles, and sometimes things need to be massaged in order to fit. I would only caution those of you who have used this kit, to double check that your truck is not affected.

I’m not totally sure what sort of failure this could cause, other than damage to the strut towers or damage to the studs of the strut. We tried to play the what-if game on the strut, and most we could tell is that it will bend the studs or bust the stud out of the collar on the strut.

Disclaimer: the best way to know if your truck is being lifted off the studs of the strut is to take it apart and check both the spacer height and the strut tower for imprints. Acknowledge that you might need another alignment if you do this. You might also be able to push a zip tie or other stiff but forgiving piece of material into the area to determine if there’s a gap between the tower and the spacer. The only way to be certain is to take your truck apart to inspect.

I’m hoping no one else really has this issue, but i couldn’t stand the idea of not letting the folks on the forum know.


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ksn240

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What year is your truck? I have seen a few people post this now. I had this kit on my 2019 and the studs did not stick out past the spacer. I wonder if on some of the newer trucks they started using slightly longer studs on the top hat and that is why we are seeing it now. This same kit was also used on 4th gen Rams for quite some time without issue. Something changed.
 

yaksushi

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Yikes that can't be good. I'm surprised the companies laissez faire attitude towards the defect.
 

dearchristopher

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What year is your truck? I have seen a few people post this now. I had this kit on my 2019 and the studs did not stick out past the spacer. I wonder if on some of the newer trucks they started using slightly longer studs on the top hat and that is why we are seeing it now. This same kit was also used on 4th gen Rams for quite some time without issue. Something changed.

2020 truck, with ORP. I let the customer service manager know my truck was ORP just in case that was a common thread. He didn’t really seem interested in pursuing that

Yikes that can't be good. I'm surprised the companies laissez faire attitude towards the defect.

tell me about it. i believe they’re USA based, and i wasn’t expecting such a lackluster reply. i’m not exactly *trashing* them here, just disappointed in the reply. the kit is good quality, but this ordeal was a surprise.


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silverWS6

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Checked mine this morning after reading this. I tried the "zip tie trick" and it seems that mine is sitting on the spacer as opposed to the studs.

Not to derail the thread but I seem to be having an issue with the lower control arm hitting the knuckle. I'm almost certain this began happening after the Readylift install as I didn't notice it when I was installing the Readylift level.

I haven't heard it hitting and I think its only happening at full lock. I do exit and enter my driveway at full lock and of course there is minimum "flexing" when entering my driveway.

Anybody else care to take a peek under their trucks and look for the same?
 

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wiendog

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I have the same issue I asked my technician friend at Ram and he said it was ok it only hits at full lock.
 

dearchristopher

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i’ll check to see if mine hits. i don’t go full lock often so i hadn’t noticed this. glad to hear you’re not sitting on studs for lift!


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Txy

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I have a 19 and my studs don't stick out like that and I have the wolf 1.5" spacer which is slightly shorter than RL. Picture courtesy of Tony the truck guy on YouTube. I also checked the driver side before installing and the studs were slightly shorter (almost flush) with the top of the wolf spacer. I only checked 1 side when installing so I checked the otherside just now. No gap.

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As for checking the gap, you can just stick your finger up in there to see if you can feel a gap.
 

ksn240

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I’m betting for some reason late model year 2020s and 2021s the studs changed up. Haven’t seen anybody with a 2019 or early 2020 with this issue.
 
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dearchristopher

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I’m betting for some reason late model year 2020s and 2021s the studs changed up. Haven’t seen anybody with a 2019 or early 2020 with this issue.

possibly. readylift didn’t seem to know why, and wasn’t concerned with figuring out why.


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