Labor cost for Clayton 2.5 install

[Scottz]

Where are you located?

Littleton, CO

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[Jchap1987]

I paid 2600$ total for lift labor, alignment and a regear

 

[Dogbane22]

That's what the Golden dealer quoted me for the Mopar. I may just go with it, maybe add an adjustable front track bar. Do you have an aftermarket bumper and winch? When I added mine, it resulted in about 2.5" of rake. I want to reduce my rake as well as lift it.

Mopar won’t fix the rake.

I have factory steel bumpers and started with 1.25” of rake measured on body. Added a bumper hoop, winch plate, winch, and tri fold bed cover, rake increased to 1.75”. Mopar lift added almost exactly 2” on all four corners.

I tow and wanted to keep the rake, with a 3k trailer and truck just at max GVWR I’m seeing 1.375” of sag and it’s just about level.

 

[Minty JL]

In May 2019 when I bought my JLUR, the dealer wanted $1500 in labor to install the Mopar kit.....I laughed at them and installed it at the shop I was working at

 

[Freems]

Helped a friend put on a 3” lift last weekend. What a huge PIA! Whatever they’re charging you it isn’t enough. torquing the control arms alone is a major physical workout, let alone doing it on the garage floor. If you do this yourself, make sure you have a monster impact available. The control arms fasteners are pretty much fused on by off-road use. Good luck.

 

[jayinyourway]

My local shop rate (in NY) is $245/h for what it’s worth. $200-300/h seems about right if they know what they’re doing. I wish I had the knowledge/tools/time to do it myself but time spent working on the car meant less time out playing with it.

let us all know what you decide!

 

[Bbannongmu]

Labor sounds a bit high to me but not outrageous. I’ve done basic lifts in 4 hours but usually they take way longer. My brother has a truck and trailer shop and we did my Rusty’s advanced lift at his shop on a lift and it took us about 8 hours. That’s 16 labor hours. We had to cut a couple bolts ( PA rust belt) and drill a couple of holes. We did a tape measure alignment but then I paid $150 for an alignment at another shop. He was toying with the idea of getting into the lif/offroad business but he decided against it since if this was on a day he was open, he’d have to overcharge because it tied up his lift for so long and he could’ve made much more on diesel truck oil changes and other service items.

 

[*J*]

Sounds pretty accurate, I paid around $1400 for mine with alignment through a friends shop.

 

[Jeeps4Me]

I bought the Clayton 2.5 overlanding kit with the falkon shocks and Currie steering. My son and I did it over a weekend on my 2020 diesel Rubi and it was a PITA. I would pay someone to do it if I had to do it again as we didn’t have a lift, just floor jack and stands. I’m 65 so crawling around under the jeep is a long day. You’ll also need to very large wrenches to set the jam nuts on the control arms and amazingly the aren’t the same size, doh! If you are younger and still flexible then it won’t be as tough on you physically. A lift would have made it much easier. There are some bolts that are challenging to get to, especially with any kind of torque wrench and I’m not a fan of the cut to fit sway bar links. Seems lazy of Clayton. But once on and aligned I’m happy with the system. Just returned from three weeks in Utah and Colorado and had no issues and a much improved ride and experience over the stock suspension.

 

[In3briatedPanda]

i was quoted 800-1000 for the metalcloak true dual 3.5" lift. i found this price very fair. I think your quote is excessive, but it could be my area is just cheaper.

I work for a dealer so i do my alignments for free.

i did it in my garage in about 8-10 hours with hand tools and a few electric impacts. had a friend help me center the axle and a few others things. If i was at the shop with air tools, probably 4-5 hours I would have been done.

worst part for me was torquing the LCA'S to 180ft lbs or whatever it was.

 

[yoda13]

My labor rate here is $100 an hour if you buy the parts at the shop, and $150 an hour if you supply your own parts.

 

[Sweetums]

Helped a friend put on a 3” lift last weekend. What a huge PIA! Whatever they’re charging you it isn’t enough. torquing the control arms alone is a major physical workout, let alone doing it on the garage floor. If you do this yourself, make sure you have a monster impact available. The control arms fasteners are pretty much fused on by off-road use. Good luck.

Huh, I didn't have that experience, but I also went right for the big Ugga Dugga. Torquing the larger nuts wasn't too bad with a big wrench and the right body position. I jammed my feet into the chassis or against the tires and did a sideways deadlift until I heard the click.

Oh, there's a lot of fasters, OP, so grab yourself a paint pen so you can mark the ones you've torqued. Make sure to do a final inspection to make sure they are all to spec. I like to draw a line from the bolt and nut to whatever its fastening so I can see visually if it's backing out.

 

[Silverator]

Labor quote seems about right. I think the 5 hours seems a bit low on the labor. I'd also look at their service and warranty aspect. Lifts are tricky and can need tweaking. My Clayton overland 2.5" cost a pretty penny and was worth it.

 

[Scottz]

Thanks for the input everyone. I have some deciding to do. I can suck it up and go with the install for a total of $5k or so, get the dealer to install the Mopar along with track bars and leveling pucks for around $3k, or I guess I could also look into coil based levelling kits for the front end. I'm still waiting to hear from 2 other shops to see what they charge.

 

[Lukasz]

That does sound high. $1700 for 5 hours comes out to $340 an hr.
My 3.5" Metalcloak GameChanger labor install was 11hrs and cost $1320.

It's not 5 hours of labor. Your driveshaft replacement will take at least a hour of labor.
Add six hours for the lift install and you're at 7 hours. Then add $200-$300 for an alignment.

Ask the shop to break it down to this level off detail. $1,700-$2,000 is a normal price.
I've been quoted over $2k for a lift install, so I decided to do it myself in my garage instead.

I then paid a local shop to do a post-install inspection and an alignment. They charged me $300.
I recommend you do the same. You'll feel much more confident fixing sh*t on the side of the trail when things go wrong.

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