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Need Help With Accessories

3K views 11 replies 10 participants last post by  TexasTechRaider 
#1 · (Edited)
Need Help With Modifications

Hey all,

I recently purchased my 2008 GMC Sierra 1500 Extended Cab 4dr 2wd last week and I want to start making it my truck.

This is my first vehicle and I am going for the lifted/off road look and I honestly don't know what to look for.

So, I would appreciate ANY recommendations, feedback, tips, tricks, etc. Here's what I need help in:

Lift Kit/tires/etc.
-6" or 7.5" lift kit? (Brand? Special kits? Leveling Kits? Suspension? What is this is hear about Blocks in the Rear? Do I need Blocks?)
-What size tires for the above lift kit?

Headlights

I want HID's w/Angel Eyes ring and possibly blacked out but do I need an entire headlight kit? Or can I just get the bulbs? Recommendations for Headlights?

Tail lights
I want blacked out tail lights but not all the way blacked out. Holes for the lights and black around i guess?

Exhaust
FlowMaster or Mangaflow? I want Dual exhaust for sure. Any Recommendations?

Sound
I want some nice quality sound and not the "over the top trunk rattling bass." I find that annoying. I would like some bass but not too much. Any recommendations on what I would need exactly for this? Because I have absolutely no clue regarding sound lol.
-Amp?
-Subwoofer?
-Speakers?

Custom Air Intake
What does it do? And if it is suggested, any recommendations?

Performance chips
What do they do?

Well, that's about it! Thanks in advance guys and I'll post pics of my truck soon!
 
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#2 ·
Well first off Welcome... Ok lets see Lifts I have not done in a while so I will let someone else chime in on those.. I do like Fabtec..

Lights Front Anzo the brightest Halo's and for tails IPCW..

For sound I always liked the midbass and even sound of JL Audio or Focal..Amps JL Audio, Head unit.. Kenwood Higher end..
 
#3 ·
CAI:
Personal preference as far as what brand to go with. Both my trucks have off brand eBay CAI and both have given good results. The purpose of the CAI is to allow more, cooler air into the engine, increasing performance and fuel mileage.

Exhaust:
Again, personal preference is the ruler. Most people say Flowmaster is the way to go. I like flowmaster too, but I'm not one to say its the best just because I like them. The best thing to do is to get on youtube and listen to videos of other trucks like yours with different exhausts to see what you like.

HIDs:
Mine are some eBay knockoffs. Most people like DDMtuning and other sites like that. Get a quality kit, my ballast are giving me some trouble firing, but still working good.

Sound:
I have all Kenwood door speakers and tweeters. I have a Pioneer dvd player. I had a Kenwood head unit, but wanted a dvd player, so I put the Kenwood in my wife's car. But go with name brand stuff, last thing you want is to have to listen to a busted speaker of sub.

The other stuff I'll leave to guys with more experience in those areas.
 
#4 ·
Welcome to the club. For lift kits, BDS, CST, Rancho and Skyjacker all have good quality, well engineered kits that are 6" high. I like Ranchos NBS kits. ajarman and mfleetwood on this site have the Rancho and they are pleased with the kits and there trucks look great. Tires, I'm a BFGoodrich fan. Wheels, theres a million out there and most are good quality.
 
#5 ·
I have the IPCW chrome/clear tail lights and have to say I am on my second set, they seem to have a gap along the side where somehow in the molding process they never get the perimeter sealed 100%. So while driving in heavy rain the water runs along the suv and into the light assembly.
the replacement set is the same so I called APW where I got them from & they said I coudl nto return the 2nd set. So I added some clear silicone in the gap to stop the water from entering, so far so good.
but this is not what you would expect for paying almost $200 for an item
 
#6 ·
My 2 cents.

CAI: All brands are pretty much the same. The only difference is -/+ 2 hps maybe and ease of maintenance.

Exhaust: I've got a Flowmaster. Cab noise can get annoying. It's loud and beefy but I wish I had a Magnaflow. They are tuned better and give off better exhaust notes. I also feel that Magnaflow is much better quality.

HIDs: Krytonbulbs.com FTW!

Sound: If you're not looking for over the top bass. I recommend running a 500 watt monoblock amp to a 10" sub. That's what I got and it's more than enough bass. And swap the rear speakers also.
 
#7 ·
BDS, Fabtech, CST, FTS, etc. The only lift I would stay away from completely is Rough Country and I don't care for Procomp either. IMO CAIs aren't worth the money. From what I understand, aftermarket CAIs don't provide much benefit until up in the 5000 rpm range. Besides, the factory air intakes on these trucks flow pretty good. I have flowmaster on my truck and I'm not impressed. From some of the research I've done I've found that many "claim" that flowmasters reduce too much back pressure and cause a decrease in low end torque. This may or may not be true. With the lift/tires/wheels you will need a tune. Custom is the way to go, such as EFI Live/Blackbear, etc. There is not currently a handheld programmer out there that will allow you to remove the torque management on our trucks, and the TQM is what seriously impedes driveability and performance.
 
#8 ·
for the lifts i would look into bds, cst, Fabtech, FTS, they are all top quality lift kits with the full drop diff i would stay away from rouch country like blackedout said unless your looking for a cheap lift then its right up your ally i guess. For the taillights not real sure what you are looking for you can always get some vht shade and tint them your self but i always been a fan on the go recon blacked out ones my self. i would recommend the magnaflow exhaust i have a true dual on my 2001 2500 hd and just loves it. like blacked out said cold air there aint much there bud i would recommend the airaidjr kit that gives u a drop in filter and remove the stock tube that would be your best bang for your buck there im personally running the banks ram air but i got a hell of a deal on it since my buddy owns a shop. im running spencershids and i just love them i recommend them to anyone who is looking i paid about 420 canadian for high lows and fogs but imo its all worth it for the costumer services and quality i just blew my ballast a couple weeks ago and all i had to do was take a picture of the ballast and he sent me in a new one.you can go with a handheld im running the hypertech for now and it works ok but im going to be soon upgrading to a blackbear and i would recommend if your going to get a custom tune done get all your parts on before your order it cause he will have the tune work with everything you got added to your truck.
 
#9 ·
Thanks for all the info guys!

I think I'm going with the following:
For lift/wheels: BDS 4" lift, 33-35" tires (BFG Duratracts/Nitto Grapplers) and I'm not sure which wheels/rims yet (definately black chrome though).
For Headlights: Anzo USA smoked projectors and I recently installed Notto 10k lows. :happy:
For Tail lights: Full Recon (tails & 3rd).
For exhaust: Magnaflow but unsure on specifications.
And as for Sound, CAI and Performance chips, I don't think I'm going to be getting any of this anytime soon. I'll work on the Exterior first.
Painting truck Electric Shock Blue w/ Black out everything else.

It's going to be about a year and a half project, but it'll look sweet when I'm finished :glasses:.
 
#11 ·
I love the look and always wanted to have a lifted truck. And a 2wd is what I got and is all I have to lift.

So, I'm going to try to do it regardless of 2wd or 4wd. I think on street it doesn't really matter anyways since no one is going to know whether it's 2wd or 4wd except for me.
 
#12 ·
I love the look and always wanted to have a lifted truck. And a 2wd is what I got and is all I have to lift.

So, I'm going to try to do it regardless of 2wd or 4wd. I think on street it doesn't really matter anyways since no one is going to know whether it's 2wd or 4wd except for me.
lol, I have an 09 Silverado 2WD that I want to lift as well.. I also love the look! Looks mean
 
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