How Much Does a Lift Kit Cost?
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Some people do not like regular cars and can go to any extent to upgrade and customize theirs. SUVs and trucks are the most commonly customized vehicles because of their body design and off-roading capabilities. One of the ways off-roaders customize their toys is by installing a lift kit. How much does a lift kit cost?
Lift kits are damn expensive, which is why most people would rather prefer a leveling kit. The average cost of installing a lift kit ranges from $1,000 to $4,000, depending on many factors.
Lift kits are more comprehensive, and that’s one of the reasons they are pricey to install.
Table of Contents
What Does a Lift Kit Do?
A lift kit does what the name implies - it “lifts” your vehicle a few inches higher in addition to the original suspension level that already exists.
This kit is mostly bought by off-roaders who need all the possible ground clearance for their touring or racing needs. Installing a lift kit may void the OEM warranty for your vehicle’s suspension system.
There are different reasons why people install lift kits; it could be for fanciness, off-roading, or using bigger tires. Lift kits come in various sizes, designs, and build patterns – you have to choose the best fit for your car. Lift kits can push your truck/SUV an additional six inches up.
You can buy lift kits from different automobile parts stores, online and offline, and have them installed by yourself or an expert.
However, before you attempt doing this job yourself, you must have had experience dealing with automobile suspension systems, so you don’t mess things up and pay higher to have an expert fix your mess.
How Much Does a Lift Kit Cost?
The cost is dependent on many factors, such as your type of car, the size of the lift kit needed, the level of clearance needed, and your location.
Based on these factors, a lift kit costs an average of $1,100 to $2,000 for parts only. Of course, some kits are above $3,000 for the parts only. Parts included in lift kits are:
- Suspension components
- Leveling kits
- Body lift kits
Well, it doesn’t stop after you have bought the kit. The installation cost is also high. It can take up to 10 hours, or even more, to install a lift kit and realign the wheels. Now, depending on the hourly rate of the workshop you went to get the service done, you could be paying up to $1,000 for labor.
Summing it up, it’s obvious that installing a lift kit may set you back $3,000 to $5,000, which is quite a huge sum.
If you’d be doing it yourself, the total cost would be around $3,000, and you’ve got to be careful not to mess with your car’s suspension system. The high cost of lift kits is the key mover of leveling kits.
Implications of Installing a Lift Kit
Well, you shouldn’t install a lift kit on your truck or SUV because everyone around you just did that. You should seek to know the implications first.
Yes, lift kits can make your vehicle look really sturdy, heavy-duty, and fancier, but they can void the OEM warranty, restrict the type of loads you can carry on your vehicle, and may also force you to change your driving pattern.
Now, that’s beginning to sound interesting, right? Vehicles (mostly trucks) are designed to have a lower front end and slightly raised rear side. This is because the trunk is always at the rear, and there are chances you could carry heavy items with the vehicle.
So, when you load the trunk with heavy cargo, the weight of the cargo would press down the rear side of the car, making it leveled with the front end. This way, the car can drive smoothly.
But when you introduce a lift kit to raise the car, the car gets leveled out in most cases, which means the front and rear sides would be on the same level.
While this may sound cool, it will affect the amount of load you should carry with the truck or SUV. Once a car has been lifted or leveled out, it is expected that the vehicle is not used to carry heavy loads – because when you do, the load would press down the rear side, making the car unbalanced, and that could make driving to be a bit difficult with such a high suspension system.
In a nutshell, the implications of installing a lift kit on your truck or SUV are highlighted hereunder:
- You won’t have to load the vehicle heavily any longer.
- You’d spend more on alignment and tire changes/rotation.
- The OEM warranty on your car could get voided.
