Leveling a 2014 PPV

[aggmeister2010]

Hello everyone. I posted this in the General forum without much success, maybe yall will have better insight....

I have a 2014 Tahoe PPV that is my Department POV. Basically, I own the truck personally, but I can use it for responding to scenes when I'm not in one of our marked trucks.

Here's the thing. I know the PPV can be ordered either at STOCK height (same as your average LT), or LOWERED/LEVELED. Mine is Stock height. I don't like that - with the PPV's smaller tires, it looks awkward, and it doesn't feel as stable at high speed. My question is -- what do I need to change to lower/level the truck like the rest of the ones in our department? Just the springs? Is the front ride height different between the two, or just the back?

I've seen people use Eibachs here...would that MATCH the leveled PPV height? I don't want anything lower than what comes with the leveled PPVs from the factory, because I still need to be able to mount curbs and such...but I don't like how high the back end is right now.

Thoughts? Thanks in advance for the help!

 

[fiatdale]

I had the Eibach setup for a bit. I was impressed with the ride, but not with their advertised drop. It drops the front about 1.5" and the rear about 2". Might be just what you need, considering the use of the vehicle.

 

[aggmeister2010]

Do you have any pictures of your setup? That may work...

Ideally, I wish I could just fine the part number for factory PPV leveled springs...but I'll be damned if I can find it on the internet, or even a dealer that can identify it.

 

[fiatdale]

Advice - Go on eBay and find a PPV that has the height you're wanting, steal the VIN, call the dealer and give them that VIN and get your part numbers and prices.

I don't have any pics because I only left it like that for about a week, and wanted more drop. So I kept the front springs in, added the Belltech Spindle and swapped out the rear springs for Belltech 4" Drop.

 

[Clean07Burb]

I'm not 100% positive, but I've read from a couple folks on another forum that GM used Pedder's lowering components on the PPV to achieve their lowered ride height. I'm running a McGaughey's 2/3 kit and genuine PPV wheels in the winter and with those wheels my truck appears to be about the same ride height as a PPV.

There's a few other members on here with PPV's. Maybe they have some insight on the matter.

 

[sbubbaklein]

I have pedders ppv springs, shocks, links and bushings on my LS. It sits level with 2/3 drop. This is the suspension that GM used and should be available from your local dealership. Pedders USA is no longer in business. Eibach springs and shocks are available as well as other options.

I also installed rear helper bags for towing.

There is a member on the forum that does a lot of lowering kits, contact him for current parts and availability.

 

[aggmeister2010]

I have pedders ppv springs, shocks, links and bushings on my LS. It sits level with 2/3 drop. This is the suspension that GM used and should be available from your local dealership. Pedders USA is no longer in business. Eibach springs and shocks are available as well as other options.

I also installed rear helper bags for towing.

There is a member on the forum that does a lot of lowering kits, contact him for current parts and availability.

I'm reaching out to Tony about the Bell Tech stuff - apparently that's the "new" Pedders since they've moved out of the US.

My truck is still pretty new, so I'd probably only need this kit:

http://www.tbssowners.com/store/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=87

Perhaps the end links as well, I'm not sure about those.

 

[fiatdale]

That's the one. You'll be happy with that kit, and Tony will take care of you.

 

[Hiram]

As far as I know, the Tahoe PPV only comes one way from the factory and there is no option from GM for different heights. I would assume what you've got is the SSV, which comes in 4WD or someone swapped out the suspension components.

Although the SSV has some of the same features, it is NOT pursuit rated, you should have received this info either when you purchased the vehicle, or from your department. The SSV does have about the same ride height as the LT, while the PPV sits about 1" lower. You should have the PPV/SSV RPO code in your glove compartment.

I've got a 2009 GMC Yukon Denali with the PPV suspension. The electronic shocks were failing and I wanted something more aggressive, so I went with the stock PPV parts. I also get a pretty decent deal on GM parts. It took me a while to figure out how to bypass the compressor and electronic shocks, but that's another story.

The following are GM PPV part numbers. You can compare these to what you've got.

Sway bars: (F) 10369554, (R) 10383662
Shocks/Struts: (F) 20765177, (R) 25871234
Springs: (F) 15132801, (R) 15200994

You'll notice the most improvement with the thicker sway bars at high speeds, however the complete setup works really well together.

The only aftermarket parts I would use would be Hotchkis sways. I haven't used them on the GMT900 but I have used them on the GMT800 and they were much stiffer than stock, no body roll whatsoever. The aftermarket shocks/springs might not give you the desired stiffness at 100+ MPH, which would be a safety issue, and honestly might not hold up to the constant beating a PPV Tahoe goes through daily. This is all just my opinion as should not be considered gospel.

 

[Hiram]

Another thing to consider is if you are trying to go lower than the stock PPV height, the driveshaft angles are going to be off. While it might not be an issue on a Tahoe at normal speeds and daily driving, it could very well cause some type of failure at sustained speeds of say 125-135 MPH. I highly doubt belltech or Eibach has tested their shocks/springs at these speeds on a Tahoe or even tested them at all.