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I load my 03 Griz up pretty good when I go riding -- which mashes the rear suspension and reduced my ground clearance. I'd like to add a 2 inch lift kit to the rear only but haven't found one. Anybody know of one?
Rear lift kit
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Sailor, The fitter is correct for the rear of the Grizz most people flip the rear hub and it gives you about an additional 2" of ground clearance. Although I have not done it it is easy to do, just remove the upper and lower bolts that hold the hub in place and spin it 180 degrees. Many people have done this without any problems but it will cause your rear axle/CV to be at a steeper angle. Also it will put your CV's much closer to the lower a-arm, actually if you have Gorilla axles you will need to do some sort of modification (grind or flatten) to the lower a-arm because they will rub. If you have a-arm guards that do trap mud and debris in the lower a-arm I would think there is more risk of a stone or stick getting in there and damaging the boot also. As a side note I am going to be drilling a couple of relief holes in my a-arm guards to allow water to come up through and wash / drain some of the mud that collects in that pocket area.
As an alternate there is a company out there "xtreme-products" that makes a lift for both the front and rear of the Grizzly without flipping the hubs. I do not have any information on this but I will be looking into it soon. Have heard of a couple people with it on and no complaints so far but it is not widely used as of now.
Since it does not sound like you are looking for ground clearnace per say you may want to look at replacing the shocks with a good aftermarket one to recover the stock clearance (pricey$$$). There are a couple out there but the only one I can think of now is Progressive. Also what may work for you is just going to High Lifter and buying a set of their Lift Springs (less pricey$).
As an alternate there is a company out there "xtreme-products" that makes a lift for both the front and rear of the Grizzly without flipping the hubs. I do not have any information on this but I will be looking into it soon. Have heard of a couple people with it on and no complaints so far but it is not widely used as of now.
Since it does not sound like you are looking for ground clearnace per say you may want to look at replacing the shocks with a good aftermarket one to recover the stock clearance (pricey$$$). There are a couple out there but the only one I can think of now is Progressive. Also what may work for you is just going to High Lifter and buying a set of their Lift Springs (less pricey$).
I tried the hub flip and ended up with a busted CV. Lucky for me the dealer covered the repair. Definitly go with the Gorrilla Axle if you opt for the hub flip. No hub flip for me. I don't think you gain 2" and the down time for repairs is not worth it. The Gorilla Axles are not cheap.
Dan
Dan
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do a search on Works shocks once. If you have a few extra bucks Works makes a shock for the Grizzly with adjustable rates. Rob has them on his and I think all you have to do is move a lever or something. He did a post awhile back on them and telling how much he liked them. Try the serch once, if you cant find it let me know and maybe I can.
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I ended up getting the Xtreme Products kit. So far I've only installed the rear lift and have not ridden it to give a report. That happens tommorrow!
As I was installing the kit I found that without the shocks in place there is a point where downward movement of the hub is stopped by the axle/CV. That makes sense. Continuing to push down causes tensile stress/strain on the axle/CV--something it is NOT designed to take. In normal use the downward motion is stopped by the fully extended shock--before the axle/CV goes into a tensile stress position.
The Xtreme brackets move the upper attachment of the shock which, in turn, pushes the hub lower. When the wheels are allowed to "free-fall" is the stress taken by the shock or the axle/CV assemble? I couldn't tell for sure--it's close. If it's taken by the shock there is no reason to suspect the axle/CV will fail any sooner than without the lift kit being installed. If the stress is on the axle/CV (the shock doesn't get fully extended) it will fail very quickly because the axle/CV isn't designed to be pulled out to full extension and beyond.
I'm hoping that the folks at Xtreme took this into account and designed their kit such that the fully extended stress is on the shock only. I guess I'll find out!
Sorry for the long post. I hope it all makes sense. I'll give another update after I've ridden it for awhile.
As I was installing the kit I found that without the shocks in place there is a point where downward movement of the hub is stopped by the axle/CV. That makes sense. Continuing to push down causes tensile stress/strain on the axle/CV--something it is NOT designed to take. In normal use the downward motion is stopped by the fully extended shock--before the axle/CV goes into a tensile stress position.
The Xtreme brackets move the upper attachment of the shock which, in turn, pushes the hub lower. When the wheels are allowed to "free-fall" is the stress taken by the shock or the axle/CV assemble? I couldn't tell for sure--it's close. If it's taken by the shock there is no reason to suspect the axle/CV will fail any sooner than without the lift kit being installed. If the stress is on the axle/CV (the shock doesn't get fully extended) it will fail very quickly because the axle/CV isn't designed to be pulled out to full extension and beyond.
I'm hoping that the folks at Xtreme took this into account and designed their kit such that the fully extended stress is on the shock only. I guess I'll find out!
Sorry for the long post. I hope it all makes sense. I'll give another update after I've ridden it for awhile.
Sailor, I have been considering this lift also but have been afraid to take the plunge, partly because I still have until end of 2006 under warranty. Currently my Grizz is in the shop having a new rear axle installed under warranty. I don't mind changing my tires back to a set of 25's before taking it in but removing a lift would be a hassle.
How much additional clearance did the lift give you? I have heard you get 1" out of this lift.
How much additional clearance did the lift give you? I have heard you get 1" out of this lift.
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27 Posts
Dknarnd, I got a full 2 inches added lift without sitting on it. I got closer to 2 1/2 when I sat on it (it sagged 1/2 inch less). As much as I weigh and as much junk as I carry, I figure I'm at the height of a "normal" Grizzly with a "normal" load on it.
I had it on the trails for 100 miles last Saturday. The difference was unbelievable! It greatly reduced the body roll in the corners and eliminated the feeling like it was going to bottom out on the whoop-dee-doos. During the course of 100 miles of fairly hard riding I didn't bottom the rear a single time--something that hasn't happended in as long as I can remember. I've been bottoming the rear ever since I got the machine. No more!
And this with just the rear brackets installed. I hope to do the fronts before my next major ride in two weeks. Keep in mind that my comments about the improved ride are strictly subjective--I don't have any way to quantify the ride difference. But it sure feels better going down the trails!
I took a look at the hub flip option while the Griz was on the trailer and I could easily look at it. I believe that doing the hub flip would put the axles and CV's into tension when the wheel is allowed to drop all the way (like, when you catch air). That's GOTTA be hard on the axles/CV's, as I discussed above. Hopefully, these brackets are designed to take the stress on the shock, not the axle.
That does NOT explain why the axles/CV's are failing when no lift is installed--there must be either a design or fabrication problem. Hopefully, it's been fixed. I've read that the problem was corrected in mid-year 2003 and that machines built after that aren't failing nearly as often. Mine is a late yar 2003 and I haven't had a problem. Knock on wood!
I'll post again when the fronts have been installed and checked out.
I had it on the trails for 100 miles last Saturday. The difference was unbelievable! It greatly reduced the body roll in the corners and eliminated the feeling like it was going to bottom out on the whoop-dee-doos. During the course of 100 miles of fairly hard riding I didn't bottom the rear a single time--something that hasn't happended in as long as I can remember. I've been bottoming the rear ever since I got the machine. No more!
And this with just the rear brackets installed. I hope to do the fronts before my next major ride in two weeks. Keep in mind that my comments about the improved ride are strictly subjective--I don't have any way to quantify the ride difference. But it sure feels better going down the trails!
I took a look at the hub flip option while the Griz was on the trailer and I could easily look at it. I believe that doing the hub flip would put the axles and CV's into tension when the wheel is allowed to drop all the way (like, when you catch air). That's GOTTA be hard on the axles/CV's, as I discussed above. Hopefully, these brackets are designed to take the stress on the shock, not the axle.
That does NOT explain why the axles/CV's are failing when no lift is installed--there must be either a design or fabrication problem. Hopefully, it's been fixed. I've read that the problem was corrected in mid-year 2003 and that machines built after that aren't failing nearly as often. Mine is a late yar 2003 and I haven't had a problem. Knock on wood!
I'll post again when the fronts have been installed and checked out.
i installed this kit last friday night, and it seems to work great. got a full 2" of lift. the suspension is noticiably stiffer, but i like the difference.
i had called and spoke to joe before, because i had allot of questions on how it works. great company to deal with, and great customer service.
check out my pics
michael
i had called and spoke to joe before, because i had allot of questions on how it works. great company to deal with, and great customer service.
check out my pics
michael
Michael, The pics on your profile look great. Seems like mostly a "body" lift. Thus not effecting the geometry too much. The 27" tires probably put the CVs at more of an angle than the lift. Just wondering how you have the shocks set. I would think the higher center of gravity might make the grizz a little more unstable in the turns. It looks awsome and you've got plenty of ground clearance now.
I'm betting when the snow melt begins you'll be finding some deep mud to try this set up out. Good luck & enjoy
Scott
I'm betting when the snow melt begins you'll be finding some deep mud to try this set up out. Good luck & enjoy
Scott
dknarnd, the pics are in my profile pictures. also, i don't think flipping the rear hub is a good solution, i've heard allot of cv joint breaking because of that.
scott, thanks for the good words. believe it or not, after putting the lift kit in, and turning the shocks all the way up. it makes the suspension stiffer. i've only rode it on snow so far, so i can't really say if it is top heavy now, but i will say it still handles real nice, and the front doesn't dive in corners any more.
and it has 14" of ground clearance now, and mud should be fun this summer...
michael
scott, thanks for the good words. believe it or not, after putting the lift kit in, and turning the shocks all the way up. it makes the suspension stiffer. i've only rode it on snow so far, so i can't really say if it is top heavy now, but i will say it still handles real nice, and the front doesn't dive in corners any more.
and it has 14" of ground clearance now, and mud should be fun this summer...
michael
Well installed my Xtreme Products lift today and here are my thoughts so far, without riding it.
Assembly time was 3 hours. You could probably take off 15 minutes because my winch contactor was in the way on the right front and I had to move it a little to fit the brackets. Over all the assembly was not to difficult and the instructions are ok but could be improved. You need a thin 13mm or 1/2" wrench to install the front brackets.
The increase to ground clearance on my machine was 1" after install.
I will get a chance to ride it this weekend and give another report then. For now would I do it again? Probably yes. I was hesitating to install a lift because I was worried about my CV's with an additional two inches of lift and was thinking that it would be nice if I could just lift it an inch. Some people may question it because they can get the same height with a good set of 27" or 28" tires. Myself I like the performance with 26" tires and will be staying with that size, however it would be nice to have a true 26" tire because my Lites only measure up to 25 3/8 inches. I suspect people would have a hard time paying $135 and 3 hours of time for just 1" more clearance. But it doesn't bother me...I just think back to the days that I put more than a $100 down some girls panties in a night, at least I can put my hands on the lift over an over and remember it!
Assembly time was 3 hours. You could probably take off 15 minutes because my winch contactor was in the way on the right front and I had to move it a little to fit the brackets. Over all the assembly was not to difficult and the instructions are ok but could be improved. You need a thin 13mm or 1/2" wrench to install the front brackets.
The increase to ground clearance on my machine was 1" after install.
I will get a chance to ride it this weekend and give another report then. For now would I do it again? Probably yes. I was hesitating to install a lift because I was worried about my CV's with an additional two inches of lift and was thinking that it would be nice if I could just lift it an inch. Some people may question it because they can get the same height with a good set of 27" or 28" tires. Myself I like the performance with 26" tires and will be staying with that size, however it would be nice to have a true 26" tire because my Lites only measure up to 25 3/8 inches. I suspect people would have a hard time paying $135 and 3 hours of time for just 1" more clearance. But it doesn't bother me...I just think back to the days that I put more than a $100 down some girls panties in a night, at least I can put my hands on the lift over an over and remember it!
Since a new post has been made questioning this lift I figured I should post my feeling after riding with it installed for awhile now. Without changing the shok setting any this lift made the ride much stiffer, so much that I even reduced the setting on the rear by one notch. It rides similar to as it did before the lift with the new shok setting now. Actually I will probably do the same in the front and see how I like it although it is not quite as noticeablely stiff in the front as it was in the rear. However I will try it and if I get that sensation of the front diving I will move it back, I like it stiff because it cuts down on nose dive in fast transitions and hopping logs or rocks.
I was loading the machine up with 160lbs of lime on both the front and rear racks and it handled the load much better with the lift then it used to without the lift. Handeling does not seem to be effected in any way that I have noticed. As I said in my previous post I do not see how this will give you 2" of clearance. I measured at the lowest point before and after the install and all the additional clearance I got was 1" both front and rear.
In conclusion I am happy with this lift, it gives you a little more yet does not seem to push the limits of the CV's.
I was loading the machine up with 160lbs of lime on both the front and rear racks and it handled the load much better with the lift then it used to without the lift. Handeling does not seem to be effected in any way that I have noticed. As I said in my previous post I do not see how this will give you 2" of clearance. I measured at the lowest point before and after the install and all the additional clearance I got was 1" both front and rear.
In conclusion I am happy with this lift, it gives you a little more yet does not seem to push the limits of the CV's.
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DKNARD,
Thanks for bumping this post up, it looks like my questions are answered.
Thanks again Noel
Thanks for bumping this post up, it looks like my questions are answered.
Thanks again Noel
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841 Posts
For Starky,
Cheers Noel
Cheers Noel
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No worries Starky,
Cheers Noel
Cheers Noel
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