Step-by-step Suspension

Installing a 63-87 C10 GSI Air-ride Frontend Kit

SO, YOU BOUGHT AN OLD C10 AND YOU JUST DON’T LOVE THE STANCE? Let me guess— you want it “hammered on the ground, but still enjoyable to drive.” Confidence and driveability in your air suspension are what you need. If you’re looking to put air ride on a classic ’63-’87 C10 but want to make sure you are satisfied after all the time and money spent to get there, consider this GSI Machine and Fabrication C10 frontend suspension kit. A true bolt-in, bagged suspension system with superior geometry specifically designed for a stock C10 chassis with air bags, this kit accepts large-diameter wheels and tires up to 31 inches tall. This kit narrows the track width, making wheel options greater, and brings the crossmember and lower control arm pivots up out of the way so your frame rails lay flat on the ground when aired out. This system also upgrades the steering to a power rack-and-pinion unit and utilizes disc brake spindles, which are all supplied by GSI when you order the complete kit.

In this article we will show you step-by-step how simple it is to achieve all of the above in a few hours’ worth of work.

We grabbed a longbed ’64 stock chassis, stripped it down to its bare bones and had it sandblasted by Matador Powder Coating in Mesa, Arizona. When we got the frame back, we brought it to our fab shop and set it on the frame table. This install can be done without the use of specialty tools. You will need a press for the ball joints and bushings, but otherwise a floor jack, sockets, ratchets, wrenches, a couple of jack stands and a drill will get it done.

With all the parts and hardware setup and ready to go, we will follow the supplied instructions and take you through a step-by-step install. Let’s go!!