4x4Wire's TrailTalk Forums: Lifting a kia sportage? Look here first! Also tire size recommendations.

I had some problems with the 3" body lift that was installed by the previous owner of my Sporty. So I decided to scrap those lift blocks and fabricate my own. It turned out to be fairly easy to do. I thought the "how to" might help out others interested in doing a body lift.

Note - I only needed 6 blocks because I'm modding the front end so I can install a winch bumper (click here for bumper thread). The same info is posted there. But I doubt people will look at a bumper-thread while researching body lifts...

Here are the 6 blocks. They are black acetal plastic (generic form of Delrin). You could also use HDPE or UHMW. They are all machinable using the methods shown. I have included one of the lift blocks that came with my Sporty, for reference.

After marking the center of each block (both ends), I used a 2.5" hole saw to cut a groove in the top-side of each block. The groove was cut to about 1/4" deep. I used the groove to define the edge of the recess to be cut in the top of the block - to receive the base of the body bushing.

I used the hole from the center-bit of the hole saw as a starter/reference-hole for drilling the bolt hole (using a 7/8" spade bit). I would have liked to have drilled the hole a bit smaller. But 3/4" was the next-smaller bit in my box, which was a just a little too tight for the extension bolts that were used with the original lift. And I had to reuse them...

Next step - cut the recess. I did this using a $10 trim router I found at an auto parts store. A 3/8" carbide-tipped double-flute straight bit was used to cut the recess at 3/16" depth. I probably should have used a 1/4" bit because the cheap trim router didn't have a lot of horse power... Oh yeah, it only cost $10...

The last step was to taper the base so it would fit in the recess of the body mount. That was easy to do using the router armed with a carbide-tipped 45-degree chamfer bit. I set the depth-of-cut just deep enough so the base of the block would fully-seat in the recess. I did this step with my router table. But a trim router would do the job well.

Installation was relatively-easy. I used my floor jack with a stack of 2x4s screwed together for a lift-block to lift the body from the side. If the lift-block is long (3-4 ft), it will allow you to lift the body without bending the undercarriage. And that seemed to be much easier than lifting the body from the front and rear, as I've seen described in other body-lift "how to's". Here are some pics of the blocks installed...

I must say that I'm very happy with the fit - it's tight. And the black acetal looks much better than the white HDPE. I did add a "donut" of non-slip material (shelf liner) between each block and the body mount (acetal is also a self-lubricating plastic). Oh yeah, after machining, the final lift was reduced to 2-5/8". Hope this helps...

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1997 Sportage 4x4, auto-trans, Warn manual hubs, 3.5" UPYOURKIA lift w/TJ 105AA rear springs, 2-5/8" custom body lift, 31x10.50 Adventuro MTs... and SmittyBilt SRC front and XRC rear bumpers with swing-out tire mount - and an OBX LSD front diff!!!





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