My father has a 2018 F150 4X4, and I bought him a leveling kid and upgraded tires. Anyhow, it makes a ton of pops and creaking noises when you are turning and over uneven surfaces. Sometimes it's pretty darn loud. Anyhow, he's old and hard of heading. He took it back to where they installed this and the guys shrugged him off. Took it to the dealer and they did the same. I can hear noises pretty clear.

Truck is brand new and ran silent before this install - is there a common mistake the installers make?

Thanks

What kind of lift kit? Was it a legit lift or spacers?

This is the receipt for it, I'm not a truck guru so not sure - hope this answers your question

Looks like the just used spacer blocks on the front. Not sure why there is popping/noise if it was installed correctly?...

Better option to lift the front is Bilstein 5100's. Use adjustable strut cartridges to increase length/get lift. Can get 2.1"+ of luft in front.

I have the 5100's on my 2016 F150. Better ride than stock. Bilsteins for front/rear run around $350 online. Got mine from Stage 3 Motorsports.

Yeah not sure why the noises, I have mine leveled but it's a F250 and zero noises. Brother has same truck as my father and no noises

Did the Bilstien's you put on just level it or did it raise it?

gonemaroon said:

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Did the Bilstien's you put on just level it or did it raise it?

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If I recall you need 2"+ to "level" the front of a 4WD F150.

I set the 5100's to +1.75" over stock. Just put on new tires - Michelin LTX A/T2s - 275 60 20 (33" tall). The 1.75" lift in front gives me room for the 33" tires. Truck still has a small amount of rake set at + 1.75". 2.1" would probably "level" it front to back.

Go to a parking lot and have him drive. You walk alongside to see if you can help pinpoint it. Might have to try and put a tire up in a curb to get the noise. But agree that it shouldn't be doing it. Sounds like something is not tightened down correctly and trying to pop out of place under stress

Cheap spacers installed incorrectly.

One would think a place that installs them all the time would do it properly... I thought all of them are just spacers, is there a brand that you'd replace these with?

gonemaroon said:

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One would think a place that installs them all the time would do it properly... I thought all of them are just spacers, is there a brand that you'd replace these with?

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I just had Discount Tire damage the finish on my stock "chrome" F150 wheels.... You would think they change thousands of tires on stock rims every day and not have an issue.... Sloppy/lazy untrained tire tech. It can happen anywhere.

Take it back and have them check/reinstall the spacer blocks.

I would get rid of the spacers and do the Bilstein 5100's in the front. Cost is about the same.
Front only Bilstein 5100 struts are around $229 - Get you 2.1" of lift instead of using the coil spacer for lift. Just need to have the shop (maybe somewhere else) change out the strut cartridges and set the clips for 2.1" lift.

https://www.stage3motorsports.com/24-248129-2-2015-2016-F150-4WD-Bilstein-5100-Adjustable-Height-Front-Shocks.html

Issues with the spacers.
Spacer kits limit suspension up travel and allow the suspension to over-extend on down travel. Over-extending the front suspension can cause issues with ball joints, front CV / U-joints.

Last dumb question, is the 2.1 lift the same as the level he already has or is the truck going to be even higher? He's old and it's difficult for him to get in and out of it already.

gonemaroon said:

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Last dumb question, is the 2.1 lift the same as the level he already has or is the truck going to be even higher? He's old and it's difficult for him to get in and out of it already.

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That's hard to say.... How thick is the spacer block they installed to "level" the truck? And I assume they didn't install blocks or anything else in the rear to "lift" the back of the truck.

Most of the "leveling" kits/spacer blocks I looked at were between 2.25" and 2.5". I decided to set my 5100's at 1.75". The 5100's have 5 places to set the clips from stock up to 2.1". Truck still has a little "rake" an I can run a 275 60 20 (33") tire with no issues.

gonemaroon said:

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Last dumb question, is the 2.1 lift the same as the level he already has or is the truck going to be even higher? He's old and it's difficult for him to get in and out of it already.

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Buy him some Amp power folding steps.

And naturally there was a bolt lose - fools down at the shop didn't put it back together properly.