Project GMC Canyon: Introduction and Icon Stage V Suspension

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The rear shock install is much like the front. Just a little bit of grinding to the shock tabs to accommodate the larger shock design of the Icon 2.5 series shocks.

In order to install the rear shocks, you will need to do a little bit of grinding on the upper shock mounting tabs. The Icon 2.5 series shock bodies have a very robust shock body design, and this means it needs extra clearance. We used a sanding drum and an angle grinder to add a radiused relief to the right side upper shock mounting tab. This gave us just the right amount of room to fit the shock in place and provide clearance for the shock cap through the entire range of motion. We applied some paint after grinding the tab.

The left rear shock is a little bit tricky to remove, thanks to the DEF tank. We had to lower the DEF tank by loosening the straps and mounting bolts. When we lowered the tank, we could remove the upper shock mounting bolt and remove the shock to grind down the inside of the shock mounting tab.

The left rear shock requires slightly more work than the right shock, also thanks to the DEF tank. The upper shock mounting bolt cannot be removed all the way with the DEF tank in place, so we lowered the tank enough to allow the bolt to be removed. The spare tire had to be extracted before we could lower the DEF tank.

Once the shock is removed, the inner tab will need to be ground down slightly to clear the beefy Icon 2.5 series shock cap. Just like the other side, we used a sanding drum and an angle grinder and sealed it all up with a coat of black paint after we were done.

Here you can see the inner shock tab grinded down. The amount of material that needs to be removed is minimal and is only to clearance the larger shock cap of the Icon 2.5 series shocks.

With both rear shocks now installed, we needed to get this thing on the ground with the new wheels and tires.