Ask anyone what the best truck out there is, and you’re sure to get a pretty diverse range of responses. We’ve all got our favorite; maybe it’s based on looks, or maybe it’s that one brand has never let you down despite being thrown through the ringer. However, you’re not likely to meet many people with a dislike for the mighty Cummins 6 cylinder diesel engine. When Dodge introduced this sturdy school bus engine to the general public in their aging truck platform, it totally rejuvenated their presence in the full-size truck market. In some parts of our great country, if you ask a man what he drives, he won’t say ‘Dodge’ or ‘Ram’; he’ll just say ‘a Cummins’.

So, what do you do when you have the ultimate power plant, wrapped in a sleek package with all the bells and whistles a modern truck can offer, but you also like to hang out at the beach, drive fast in the dirt from time to time, and haul your side by side in style? Stepping beyond the factory suspension, tires and wheels is a given. Carli Suspension has long been known as the industry benchmark for high performance suspension kits, both on and off the road, so their Pintop 2.5” kit was the logical choice for this build. If you’re not already familiar with Carli, they are known for their ‘no expense spared’ approach to assembling their suspension kits, expertly tuned shocks, and beautiful fabrication work on their parts.

For 2014, Dodge did something radical. First, they changed out their tried and true front 4 link for a simpler radius arm setup, but the big news was a huge change in the rear suspension on the 2500 trucks at the same time. Leaf springs were ditched in favor of a coil sprung 5 link setup, very similar to what is found under the rear of most modern full frame SUV’s, including the Jeep JK. This change ushered in a new standard for heavy duty truck ride quality, and Carli was of course at the head of the class bringing a high-end tuned suspension system to the table. By inverting the shock body, Carli is able to package a 2.5” remote reservoir shock into the factory location; when paired with their multi-rate rear springs and track bar drop bracket, the dynamic ride quality changes completely. You can expect both better compliance with the pavement or dirt below your tires thanks to more wheel travel, but also a more buttery ride quality at the same time. As with most link designs, adding lift and wheel travel means several other components need to be addressed at the same time. A track bar bracket drops the frame side mount is used to flatten the rear track bar and help eliminate the rear end wag native to a 5 link, and extended sway bar links serve to keep bind to a minimum.

To tackle the front suspension package, Carli takes a slightly different approach on the radius arm trucks, versus their systems for the linked trucks. With a linked truck, the suspension is cycling in a slightly different arc than a radius arm, which cycles around a fixed point on the frame. As most of the front end is completely different any way, Carli specs a spring with a linear rate for the front of radius arm trucks to maximize ride quality and total travel, a departure from the progressive springs found on other kits. These Dodges are known to have spring bow issues with longer travel, so radius arm drops are employed to minimize the lower spring perch angle, as well as add caster. Their signature tuned 2.5” King shocks, adjustable track bar and fully fabricated radius arms nicely complete the package. For the finishing touch on this build, Method Race Wheels MR305 NV’s and Toyo Open Country R/T’s were chosen to round out the package and totally transform the trucks appearance. Finally, a low-mount stabilizer was added to keep the larger tires tracking straight and true in all conditions. Having the correct wheel and tire combo to complement your suspension choice is important. Regardless of what your brand preference for trucks or your budget is, we’re ready to help with your build.