Carli 6" Backcountry 2.0 Radius Arm Suspension System 03-09 Ram 5.9L / 6.7L Cummins

2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009

Introducing the most advanced 6" suspension system available for HD Dodge Rams....PERIOD! Sage Carli has engineered what most others said to be impossible, build a 6" radius, long arm suspension system completely capable of anything you can throw at it off-road, all while maintaining completely superb street manner, GUARANTEED!

The Backcountry 2.0 system is designed for people seeking the best ride on and off-road on a budget; perfect for those that want to have a little dirt-road fun in their 8,500lb truck without losing the on-road ride quality or usability for which the truck was designed. You're no longer limited to the highway while gravel roads become uninteresting as you can drive them at speed with one hand on the wheel. Utilizing Fox 2.0" Remote Reservoir Shocks, Carli developed a shock tune that delivers all around comfort and ride quality designed for on-road, in town, highway, towing/hauling as well as slow to mid speed off road use. The Fox 2.0's boast extruded aluminum construction with a hard anodizing for corrosion resistance, are fully rebuildable and are built with hour-glass bushings in the rod-ends. Fox builds these shocks with their legendary red shock oil that flows well down to -55* F. This system was tuned and rides best with the Full Progressive Leaf Springs.

The Details: The Carli 6" Systems are an entirely different animal than the 3" offerings. There is no entry level; every system is equipped with a custom tuned shock package and Radius Arm Conversion. The longer, flatter links cycle more linear travel and offer a superior ride quality over extending a short arm to work with a 6" front lift. Complete with an axle control shock, Carli radius arms allow the axle to roll as to not bind during articulation; think of it as the strength of a radius arm and articulation capability of a 4-Link. Further, the drop brackets that affix the radius arms to the frame bolt on with no modification to the existing, factory control arm brackets (ensuring the truck can be returned to stock). The arms themselves boast "X" bracing internal to their gusseted, clam-shell structure and are constructed with 3" Currie Johnny Joints and an internally gusseted, 2-piece Crossmember making them both serviceable and nearly indestructible.

Your truck will sit 6" higher in the front with 60% more suspension travel than the factory platform thanks to the taller, lighter rate coil springs. The rear is lifted 4" via your choice of a Progressive Add-A-Pack/2" Billet Block or Full Progressive Leaf Pack. The Progressive Add-A-Pack replaces the factory overload with a 5-Leaf, progressive pack that changes the final rate of the spring pack keeping the rear planted while increasing traction and predictability. This is then paired with a 2" Billet Carli Block to achieve the 4" rear lift height.

The optional Full Progressive Leaf Pack replaces the entire factory leaf spring assembly and eliminates the need for a block to achieve the 4" rear lift height while increasing travel and drastically increasing comfort throughout the entire usable travel stroke at the cost of a 15% payload reduction from a standard 2500. This payload reduction can be supplemented back to factory capacity with the addition of the Long Travel Airbags (with optional spacer for 6" systems) for the best of both worlds; ride quality and payload capacity/load control.

When pairing added travel with the taller ride height, the position of the factory, front sway bar will need to be altered as well. For this, you have two options; Sway bar Drop Bracket + Extended Sway Bar End Links or the Sway Bar Drop Bracket + Replacement Torsion Sway Bar. The End links are equipped with 1/2" FK Rod-Ends and in-house machined 17-4 stainless bodies that are extended over stock to reset the sway bar engagement points. Factory pillow-bushings are re-used to assemble the sway bar to the lengthened link.

Carli's optional Torsion sway bar removes the entire factory sway bar assembly replacing it with a torsion bar supported by fabricated drop brackets and delrin bushings. Fabricated sway bar arms and dual 5/8" FK heim end links round off the package. This is the single best bang for the buck, ride-quality upgrade offered by Carli Suspension (in close competition with the full progressive leaf spring upgrade).

When lifting a straight axle truck, all linkage, brake lines and bump stops need to be addressed. Included are extended stainless brake lines, an adjustable track bar + track bar drop bracket, bump stop drop brackets, drop pitman arm, and recommend the purchase of a carrier bearing drop bracket in the rear for those running a 2-piece driveline.

Wheel and Tire: This system will fit up to a 37" tire on wheels no more than 9" wide with 4.5" of backspacing. The more rubber, the better the small bump compliance will be at proper inflation pressures. The ride will firm up as you go larger in wheel diameter.

IMPORTANT NOTES:

WHEELS Carli Recommends a 17"-18" Wheel, no more than 9" wide with 4.5" of Backspacing on 6" Systems
TIRES: 37", E-Rated Tire Fitment is Recommended. Recommended unloaded Tire Pressure 45F/40R
RECOMMENDED CONFIGURATION: Carli 6" Suspension Systems are Designed and Tested on Vehicles with 17"-18" Wheels with 37", E-Rated Tires. Stock wheels and tires or running a larger wheel diameter will result in a stiffer ride.
FRONT DRIVESHAFT: Front drive shaft MUST be lengthened 2".
REAR DRIVESHAFT: Rear Driveshaft must be checked for 1 piece or 2 piece units. It is recommended that 2 piece Driveshafts order a carrier bearing drop, PN# CS-CARRIERDROP-D. Available from below options.
PITMAN ARM: A drop pitman arm is REQUIRED for 6" suspension kits. Pitman Arm Selection: [2003-2008: CS-PITMAN6-03]; [2009-2013: CS-PITMAN6-09] Available from options.
STEERING LINKAGE: Carli 6" suspension kits MUST run T-style steering linkage. Y-style linkage does not have enough angle of articulation to support the additional lift height and travel.
Radius Arm Insight The lower part of the arm has a full-length internal gusset, shown here creating 4 triangles inside the arm. Above and below are full length external gussets. You can see the top piece clamped to the arm. This is key set with a plate that is connected to the main box. This creates 2 more triangles on top and 2 more on the bottom.

When this was designed, it was laser cut so that the welds will tie every plate together. First the internal X is welded up on a jig and then the box is added with the external gussets.

This system's true engineering feat comes in the form of overcoming articulation bind. The engineering that went into this is where the innovation is truly demonstrated. The engineered radius arms will allow for maximum axle articulation, with one shock at full bump and the other at full droop. No castor change bind.

Sage Carli engineered a solution that offers harmonious axle geometry throughout the entire motion range. Ask anyone who has built radius arms, and they will talk about castor change bind, it's nothing new. The Carli engineering approach is, however, something new in a production bolt-on radius arm system for Dodge Ram HD's.

This project was modeled on a computer using factory chassis parameters to ensure precision before plates even hit a laser table. The answer was +/- 3" of upper arm deflection to accommodate travel and articulation specs that exceed the chassis. This component is finished off in classic Carli style using chromoly tube, a billet stainless steel shaft and hard ball center joints.