OffroadInstruction Guide

C.W.I.'s Condensed Instruction Guide
We have installed a floor jack under the center of the differential and jacked it up until the tires are about 6” off the floor and installed heavy duty jack stands under the frame in front of the front spring hangers. We let the truck down onto the jack stands and remove the rear tires. Before we begin to remove the factory suspension, we have blocked the front tires and put the truck in neutral with the emergency brake off.
Begin by removing the nut from the emergency brake cable mechanism located under the driver’s door and pulling the threaded adjuster rod out of the mechanism.
Remove the clip off the cable body so we can pull the cable out of the cross-member.
Remove the 3 mounting tabs securing the emergency brake cable to the chassis and work the emergency brake cable out of the frame work. The emergency brake cable is now only mounted to the rear axle assembly.
Remove the drive line from the pinion yoke and set the drive line on the ground.
Remove the brake line from the proportioning valve and pull it out of the frame work, laying it on the top of the axle tube.
Remove both shocks.
Remove the proportioning valve actuator from the mount on the axle tube.
Unplug the ABS wires that run from the frame down to the rear axle.
Now we take the weight off the springs by going up slightly on the floor jack until we can remove the bolts that go through the spring hanger on either side of the truck at the front of the spring.
Now remove the nuts, washers, and the strap that holds the shackle together. We are going to save these parts so we can use them to install our IRS.
Remove the shackle from the frame and the rear eye of the leaf spring, saving the shackle and the bushings that got through the frame.
I had some help stabilizing the suspension as I lowered it from the mounts and pushed it forward to clear the exhaust. I then lowered it to the floor and pulled it from under the truck.
This is how the C.W.I. suspension will appear after being unwrapped. It’s completely assembled short of the shocks and the radius rods.

We lift the suspension up and set it on a floor jack so we can get it into the correct position to install the shocks.
We install the shocks and the radius rods with the hardware provided.


C.W.I. independent suspension fully assembled and ready for installation.
Simply wheel the independent suspension under the truck and jack it into position.
Now that it is in place install the original front two bolts through the mounts on the frame where the leaf springs used to go.
Install the shackles through the frame and the new cross-member and install the straps, washers and the nuts. All the original mounting bolts are tightened up to 65 ft. lbs.

We’re installing the front mount on the radius rod and attaching it to the frame. It locates on factory holes through the frame so there is no welding or cutting.

The provided brake line installs to the proportioning valve and goes to a block mounted on the top of the cross-member that feeds the disc brake calipers.
We are using the factory proportioning valve actuator to control the rear braking power. The actuator rod now mounts to an adjustable stud on the top of the cross-member. This works great and is easy to adjust.
The entire suspension system and cross-member has been isolated at every mounting point with rubber or urethane bushings we also install a bump stop that mounts to a stock hole on the bottom of the frame rail between the new cross-member and the stock frame.
The drive line bolts to our adapter and requires no modification.
Bleed the rear brakes and install the rear wheels, torque to 75 ft. lbs.
This complete C.W.I. independent suspension conversion has taken less than 4 hours, requires no chassis modification, and included all necessary mounting hardware.

I had made an appointment at our local tire dealer to get an alignment and they were quite surprised when they got this truck on their lift. The alignment went great considering that everything adjusts quite easily. 1 hour in the alignment shop to do the front and rear suspension.