8,124 miles and my pitman and idler arm are junk... No drag racing, very limited offroading, and no lift. I should have never sold my SFA Chevy! :banghead:

I'd bet a dozen donuts your torsion bars are cranked...

I'll throw in a cup of coffee too. Thats the reason I went with RCD, keeps the steering geometry the same.

SFA it and :grd: . Nothing like a good ol' strait axle.:exactly:

Thats the exact reason that I am doing it!

03 GMC 2500HD CC/SB D-Max
Magnaflow "Cool Duals"
Juice w/ A2
Soon to have a SFA!!!

If you had 37,000 miles, I'd say get pissed. As it is, take it in and get the parts replaced under your warranty. Just make sure and put the t-bars down first.

MaxPayne.....you seem to like donuts lately. Krispy Kreme or Dunkin? :lol:

Krispy Kreme-:t Dunkin:drool:

As a true donut aficionado, I feel I am qualified to say what the best kind of donut is:

























































Free!:lol:

They wear out on stock height trucks too. A fresh set of joints with the Cognito braces will tighten it back up and keep it there quite well.

As a true donut aficionado, I feel I am qualified to say what the best kind of donut is:


Free!:lol:

I would have to agree, but I just can't bring myself to dive in the dumpster after them. :muahaha:

Ben just wishes he was the popular guy at the nudist colony..
You know, the guy that can carry two pots of coffee and a dozen donuts ):h

I sense a slight amount of anger in your statement :) I will have to get my steering shaft replaced for the second time this makes # 3 when I get it replaced . 15,500 miles

:exactly: !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

03' GMC CC/SB
Magnaflow "Cool Duals"
Juice w/A2
SFA........July

stock ifs is really not that great swap it out for a straight axle

I'd love to, but I'm having a hard time figuring out which bank to rob in order to finance the swap. Also, it pisses me off that I should have to even consider cutting up a brand new $40,000 truck in order to make it reliable. My t-bars are cranked, but only a couple turns (not maxed out). I'm really considering trading this POS in on a new Yukon for the wife and buying myself another mid-'80's Chevy that I'll never have to worry about another pitman or idler arm again. I hate Fords, but at least they have REAL suspension...

I know some people have had bad luck with these ifs trucks, but I have had a bunch of them personally and in our fleet. we have had very little trouble with them. I put one ball joint in at 65000 on my personal truck. ( torsion bars almost maxed out ). and that is about it. Hope you have better luck in the future.

I wonder how many pitman and idler arms you can replace for the price of a SFA install?

I wonder how many pitman and idler arms you can replace for the price of a SFA install?
:iamwithst :funnypost Sort of...:cool:

It's not totaly a price thing.It's about having the best and the toughest.And you can't beat a D60 for a front end. Those who do it won't have to worry about tie rod sleeves or a center link.That's a $550 savings. If you don't beat on it it's probably not worth it but to me it is,if I can ever convince myself to torch my $40k truck :rolleyes: .I should just go do it and :grd: .

I'd love to, but I'm having a hard time figuring out which bank to rob in order to finance the swap. Also, it pisses me off that I should have to even consider cutting up a brand new $40,000 truck in order to make it reliable. My t-bars are cranked, but only a couple turns (not maxed out). I'm really considering trading this POS in on a new Yukon for the wife and buying myself another mid-'80's Chevy that I'll never have to worry about another pitman or idler arm again. I hate Fords, but at least they have REAL suspension...

You're killing me here. :duh:You f'ed with the suspension geometry by tweaking the torsion bars, it breaks, then you bit*ch about it. Why don't you use the truck as it was intended, lift it correctly, or buy a Ford. You made your brand new truck unreliable, not GM. Live with it.:shootself

Yeah I wish I had a mid 80's chevy with a solid front axle and 150 hp that you could barely pull the knob of your johnson off with. But I guess I'll settle for my peice of crap 01 duramax with IFS. Piece of junk anyway! Ha Ha.

are you stupid? if you hate ifs so much why did you buy a truck that has used ifs for years.

So there's something to b*tch about. Drama Queens :lol:









:joke:

Easy killers

no im just tired of hearing people complain. i hate ifs, well then dont buy a chevy. i keep getting codes, well you live in CA take you egr bloker out, my tires are wearing bad, well turn down your torsion bars. my tranny died, well take the edge off 5/5, my stereo dosent work, well its couse you screwed up the wireing harness trying to install the lux amp. i mean come on guys. give me a break.

You're forgetting my absolute favorite:

"How can I get my turbo to whistle like a Ford? That's soooooo coooool!!"

You're forgetting my absolute favorite:

"How can I get my turbo to whistle like a Ford? That's soooooo coooool!!"

OMG buy a ford i like that one to

How about the fact that he's gonna trade the POS in for a Yukon for his wife that has prety much the same exact front suspension that the POS does!:ro)

No doubt you guys have a point,but let us that want SFA discuss it among ourselves.Leave your openions out of it. We are simply saying that a GM truck with a SFA would be the very best thing possible when it comes to a truck.I know none of you understand and that's fine but don't clutter a SFA thread with "I love my IFS BS"

i love sfa. its alot stronger and i put one in my 96 chevy. im just saying dont complain about paying 40gs for a truck that has ifs and act like its a surprise you ended up eith it.

Well, the title says IFS sucks, the door is open, guess the IFS folks can have their say as well. If you want to talk about SFA only, then start another thread.

I like the comfort of IFS. I am fortunate that I have a '87 K5 Blazer with SFA that I can off-road with. Wouldn't want SFA in a rig I drive all the time. If I did I would buy a truck that came with it stock.

Well, the title says IFS sucks, the door is open, guess the IFS folks can have their say as well. If you want to talk about SFA only, then start another thread.

I like the comfort of IFS. I am fortunate that I have a '87 K5 Blazer with SFA that I can off-road with. Wouldn't want SFA in a rig I drive all the time. If I did I would buy a truck that came with it stock.

Hear, Hear! SS396! Good post!:exactly:

:agreed: Hear, Hear! SS396! Good post!:exactly:

X3

Yeah I wish I had a mid 80's chevy with a solid front axle and 150 hp that you could barely pull the knob of your johnson off with. But I guess I'll settle for my peice of crap 01 duramax with IFS. Piece of junk anyway! Ha Ha.

I was joking there ladies, I wouldn't own a mid 80's solid front axle piece of crap. At least not for a daily driver.

dls64chev, I know you were, and agree.

My 87 K5 is a backup and something you don't worry about out in the sticks. The ride is horrible with a 4" lift.

Wow, I hadn't realized this had become a bash-on-the-author thread! But since it has, let's clear things up. First off, if ANY of the "Big 3" could produce a pickup with a SFA, a reliable turbo diesel engine, that looked halfway good, and could remotely hold a resale value for a few years, I would gladly buy one. Had I bought a SFA Ford, and the engine took a crap after 8,100 miles, I think I would be entitled to ***** about it. Just like I'm entitled to ***** about my IFS junking out after 8,100 miles. Did I crank the torsion bars? Yes, but only about half of what I COULD have cranked them. Also, if the front suspension can't handle the bars being cranked, then why are the STOCK components DESIGNED so that they CAN be cranked that high??? I don't care if the ride of SFA is somewhat stiff... I didn't buy an HD truck expecting it to ride like a Cadillac. My truck does not have a lift kit on it, I don't have 35" tires on it, I don't drag race with it, I don't pull super heavy loads with it, and I run an Edge EZ on level 1. Am I really asking THAT much out of a $40,000 "Heavy Duty" truck??? Absolutely not! I think anyone here would feel the same way if they were in the situation that I am in...

SS396- Maybe your '87 K5 isn't the "Cadillac" that your '01 Dmax is, but even with that 4" lift I'll bet you'll have less trouble with the suspension.

dog walker- What my wife uses her vehicle for and what I use my vehicle for are 2 different things. But I guess I should thank you for making my point exactly: Why does GM use the same suspension design on the HD's as they use on the Yukons???

dls64chev- My '89 SFA w/tbi454 made a respectful 230hp & 385tq (before I added any performance mods). The ONLY reason I went to the Dmax was for better fuel mileage. Yes the early and mid-'80s Chevys are not horsepower monsters, but that's not the reason I bought a Dmax. I was looking for decent power, decent mileage, and reliability. We can sit here and crunch horsepower numbers all day, but if you can't drive the truck because the front suspension is junk, then who cares how much power is under the hood anyways?

duramaxdavid- I never said I was "surprised I ended up with IFS". What I am surprised about is that the components crapped out with so few miles on them. I could understand if my truck had 60-80k+ miles on it, or if I had big tires, or I was beating on my truck, but that's not the case here. I had a '95 Chevy that I had replace the pitman/idler arm on. But it had about 130k miles on it when that happened, not 8,100 miles!

lilwes, don't take it personal, not everyone thinks the IFS is crap. Did you look at Dodge, they have a pretty good engine ):h not sure what else.

No problems with the suspension on the '87, just my kidneys.:rolleyes:

No problems with the '03 suspension either, but it's not lifted or cranked because I pull a Fifth Wheel trailer. This rig is used 95% of the time, the older I get the more comfort I want.

If you want a SFA, go for it. It's a personal choice. I am sure if GM wanted that market they would provide the option.

Even if the truck was abused (it was not) it should get more than 8100 miles without damage- torsion bars cranked up or not. My truck is a 4x4 and off roading puts a lot of punishment on the front end components and this does not wear things out in 8100 miles. Many people have their torsion bars cranked (myself included) and I would be upset if the components wore out with low miles - after all this is an expensive, supposedly "heavy duty" truck. JMHO:banghead:

some parts are just defective. if he gets new parts he might get a million mile sout of it.

I don't think there's ANYTHING wrong with IFS. I've never had ANY problems with either of my trucks with IFS (97 Chevy 2500 and current HD), and when the tierod end brok on my 97 causing an accident, had I had a SFA, the damage would have been MUCH greater. My car has four wheel independant suspension, and all I've had to replace on it is front balljoints.

And I traded my '97 in with something like 70k, and I have just about 50k on my HD.

I don't think there's ANYTHING wrong with IFS. I've never had ANY problems with either of my trucks with IFS (97 Chevy 2500 and current HD), and when the tierod end brok on my 97 causing an accident, had I had a SFA, the damage would have been MUCH greater. My car has four wheel independant suspension, and all I've had to replace on it is front balljoints.

And I traded my '97 in with something like 70k, and I have just about 50k on my HD.

why would have the damage been much greater and if it was a SA it might have not broke at all ever think about that

why would have the damage been much greater and if it was a SA it might have not broke at all ever think about that

That's a BIG maybe. All other things being equal (IE Tie rod ends), had it been a SFA, I suspect the damage would have been greater because it probably would have damaged the ENTIRE axle, maybe more than just the axle, instead of just pulling apart the passenger side of the IFS. Below is a pic of the damage.

http://picam.modularmn12.us:81/pictures/truck/truck2.jpg

Cougar is right I got hit in my company F-450 at ~35mph. The whole front end needed fixed: axel, springs, steering box, and ect.