I know its probably been covered... but I could use a bit of front end and suspension advice

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mikemc422

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It's been a while since I was active on here at all, between work and my other projects my Tahoe hasn't gotten much attention, but now its time for her to get some love! When I bought the truck, the steering and suspension were in good shape especially for 180k miles, autoride worked good, steering was nice and tight, no noises and no complaints! Now, over 3 years later at almost 240k, with a year and a half on dirt roads, she needs a little love. We plan on keeping this truck forever, even with her issues she runs and drives better than our 16 Silverado 2500, but the steering has gotten loose and developed a power steering leak, and the suspension has gone soft and spongy.

We want to do a 2/3 or 3/4 drop. The truck is in need of control arms, tie rods, sway bar links, pitman arm, idler arm steering gear box (leaking and possibly loose), power steering pump (loud and leaking), shocks, etc... being that the front end needs so much work, we're thinking about just taking the truck off the road for a week or so and replacing all the steering and suspension components all the way around in one shot. I've looked at a lot of kits, but I'm not sure what one to get. We don't want the super stiff ride, but a little bit more stiff than OE suspension where it's still a very comfortable smooth ride even on rough roads, just a little more confident through turns and curves.

Any advice on what parts/kits to get would be greatly appreciated! It's a bone stock, all original 02 Tahoe LT with autoride with the 5.3, and we're planning on buying everything over the next 2 months and doing the work in February. My goal is to have all the parts together and get everything installed all at once, I don't want to forget or miss anything and have to wait on parts or go back in and work on the steering or suspension again for a long time.
 

OR VietVet

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I was excited till I see the want of a drop. I like the look but I just did the entire front steering and suspension, including the steering gear and the steering shaft and know much better mine feels. The lowered part is something I am not in tune with, so good luck but will read through this to get info.
 

tc8510

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I can tell you where I started and hopefully it's a good reference point for you.

For steering the red head steering box. For the control arms etc. either OEM or Moog. For lowering kit I went with Belltech (759ND). I switched out the shocks provided with the kit with Bilstein 4600. Added the Spohn panhandle bar. Lastly, I just installed the Hellwig front and rear Swaybars (7701 & 7702).

I hope this works out for you!
 

mattbta

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I can tell you where I started and hopefully it's a good reference point for you.

For steering the red head steering box. For the control arms etc. either OEM or Moog. For lowering kit I went with Belltech (759ND). I switched out the shocks provided with the kit with Bilstein 4600. Added the Spohn panhandle bar. Lastly, I just installed the Hellwig front and rear Swaybars (7701 & 7702).

I hope this works out for you!
My Tahoe is a beggar, too. Begs to go fast, though.
 

OR VietVet

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Well you can always add the Black Bear Tune that will wake it up and get you where you need to go fast!
As a recent winner of a BBP traditional tune, I can attest to how much the tune wakes up the engine and transmission for the minimum of $300 plus shipping. I do not work for them but if I did, it would be easy to sell at least that tune because it does what it says it will do. Completely different animal after the tune.
 

MrMonte

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The Belltech 2" front spindle + 3 rear spring drop is a great setup. Add Hellwig swaybars and you will have a great handling machine. I did this to my 2008 Avalanche & my 2018 Yukon Denali. Both have factory retractable running boards which makes for a cleaner look.
20230104_115919.jpg
2008 Avalanche LR.jpg
 
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DadsToy

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I just finish rebuilding my whole front suspension. I bought a kit that had the whole new A-arms so I didn't have to spend all day beating out the old ball joints. Came with everything, inner outer tie rods, ball joints already installed. Then I used a Crown 2/3 drop kit. Had front drop spindles and rear springs. I needed to replace my wheel hub bearings. So the spindles just made it that much easier. Just drop it enough to make it easier for me to get in/out of the car. Would like to bag it some day to give it a lower rake. The Crown springs are a little too soft for me. I even added Firestone blue helper bags to help with towing a camper. The replacement of the power steering box was the game changer for me. Made a huge improvement. Check out my build thread.
IMG_2554.JPGIMG_2531.JPG
 

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