Do not put a spacer or coil "lift kit" on a Raptor the way you would a Wrangler. The truck already has more suspension travel than most lifted rigs. What you actually want is enough front height to clear 37s without ruining the geometry — and for most owners that's a preload adjustment plus upper control arms, not a lift.
The Raptor leaves the factory as a long-travel desert truck. Gen 1 (2010–2014) runs Fox 2.5 internal-bypass shocks with roughly 11–12 inches of travel; Gen 2 (2017–2020) steps up to Fox 3.0 bypass with Live Valve on later trucks; Gen 3 (2021+) replaces the rear leaf pack entirely with a five-link coil setup and pushes rear travel past 14 inches. Bolting a traditional suspension lift onto any of these works against the engineering — it raises the center of gravity, steepens CV and driveshaft angles, and on the IFS front end it pulls the suspension out of its designed operating window. The factory ride and high-speed composure are the whole point of the truck. Protect them.
So when a Raptor owner says "lift," what they almost always need is tire clearance. From the factory the Gen 1 and Gen 2 wear 35s; Gen 3 ships on 35s with a factory 37 package on the higher trims. Stepping up to 37s on a truck that didn't come with them is the most common reason to raise the front, and the honest answer is that you need surprisingly little height — typically 1.5 to 2 inches up front to keep the tire off the fender liner at full stuff and full lock.
The cheapest legitimate path is front coilover preload. The factory Fox front coilovers have a threaded preload collar; winding it up raises the front of the truck by compressing the spring slightly more. On most trucks you can pull 1 to 1.5 inches this way for the cost of an alignment afterward. The tradeoff is real and worth stating plainly: adding preload stiffens the initial ride and reduces available up-travel, so don't chase more than about an inch this way or you'll trade the Raptor's signature plushness for height you didn't need.
Past that, the right hardware is a leveling spacer kit (RPG, AccuTune, and SVC all sell front spacers in the $250–400 range) paired with aftermarket upper control arms. The factory UCAs run out of clearance and ball-joint articulation once you raise the front, so quality uniball arms — Camburg is the reference, around $850 — restore proper geometry, add caster back for on-center steering feel, and stop the ball joint from binding at the top of its range. For a truck that mostly sees highway and moderate trail on 37s, preload plus UCAs is the complete answer.
The full long-travel (LT) kit is a different category entirely. SVC Offroad, Foutz, Camburg, and RPG build kits that widen the front track by several inches, relocate or replace the lower arms, and add three or more inches of wheel travel. These are $6,000–15,000 installed, often require trimming or welding, and are aimed at owners running the truck hard in open desert. An LT kit is a genuine capability upgrade — and overkill for anyone whose hardest use is a fire road.
For a preload-and-UCA leveling job:
1. Support the truck on jack stands at the frame and let the front suspension hang. Confirm the coilovers are unloaded before touching the preload collar.
2. Measure current ride height at a fixed reference (center of hub to fender lip) on both sides and write it down.
3. Loosen the preload collar lock ring and wind the adjuster up evenly on both sides — count the threads so left and right match exactly. Uneven preload gives you a truck that sits crooked.
4. Install the upper control arms: remove the factory UCA (ball-joint nut at the knuckle, two pivot bolts at the frame), transfer or set the new uniball arm, and torque to the manufacturer's spec.
5. Re-load the suspension, roll the truck, and re-measure ride height. Confirm you hit your target and that both sides match within about 1/8 inch.
6. Get a full alignment. Raising the front changes caster and camber, and a Raptor that's out of caster wanders at speed — non-negotiable on a truck built to be driven fast.
For a full LT kit, follow the manufacturer's manual; these are multi-day fabrication-adjacent installs and outside the scope of a leveling write-up.
The biggest mistake is treating the Raptor like a body-on-frame solid-axle truck and stacking spacers to chase 3 or 4 inches. You'll get CV plunge, accelerated boot and joint wear, a harsh ride, and you'll have spent money making the truck worse. If you find yourself wanting that much height, what you actually want is a long-travel kit, not a lift.
Second: don't skip the UCAs once you go past about an inch of front height. Running the factory arms raised puts the ball joint near the end of its travel, which wears it out fast and can bind at full droop. The arms are the difference between "raised correctly" and "raised until something breaks."
Third, the alignment is not optional and not a place to save money. Caster is what keeps the truck planted at 70 mph on a dirt road, and it's the first thing you lose when you raise the nose.
A preload-only level is effectively free plus a $120–150 alignment. A spacer-plus-UCA leveling package lands around $1,100–1,400 in parts (RPG/AccuTune/SVC spacer ~$300, Camburg UCAs ~$850) plus alignment, and a weekend in the garage. A full long-travel kit is $6,500 (SVC +3.5") to $9,500+ (Foutz) in parts before professional installation, which most owners pay for.
Before you spend anything, confirm your generation — Gen 1, Gen 2, and Gen 3 front ends are different and parts are not interchangeable. If your only goal is fitting 37s, read the [Raptor tire fitment guide](/db/?v=raptor) first; you may find the clearance you need with preload alone. And if your real complaint is ride quality rather than height, the [shock service and upgrade path](/db/?v=raptor) is the better place to put the money.
| Part | Vendor | Est. price |
|---|---|---|
| Preload collar / spring spacer adjustment (factory Fox coilovers) | factory hardware / SVC / RPG | ~$0 |
| AccuTune / RPG front leveling preload spacer kit | RPG Offroad / AccuTune | ~$300 |
| Camburg upper control arms (uniball, +caster correction) | Camburg Engineering | ~$850 |
| SVC Offroad +3.5" long-travel kit (Gen 2/3) | SVC Offroad | ~$6500 |
| Foutz Motorsports long-travel kit | Foutz Motorsports | ~$9500 |
Written and maintained by an AZ wheeler and driveway wrencher. Always cross-reference your factory service manual — modifications affect vehicle safety and warranty. Work at your own risk.