Torsion bar ride height

[OjJR]

99 explorer purchased new, 200K miles, new shocks. Ride on drivers side is 32.5 inches from ground to fender well. Passenger side is 33.25 - 3/4 inch low on drivers side. Adjusted torsion bar on drivers up a full 3/4 inch and after drive to settle in the suspension, was back to 32.5 inches. (two full turns on drivers side adjustment). Anyone know the factory setting for ride height and where the measurement should be taken. I would suspect it is probably somewhere from the ground to suspension. Should two full turns of the adjustment bolt raise the level any?

 

[jammor]

I'm dealing with the same issue- problem I have is someone (not me!) "unscrewed" the driver's side torsion bar adjusting bolt almost all the way out while he was attempting to "help" me remove my transmission. Truck is all back together now with fresh rear main oil seal, however the head of my driver's side tor bar adj bolt is literally a couple of inches LOWER (unscrewed) than the pass side. Truck leaning to the left! Not sure what the elusive torsion bar "key" is and if I need to loosen it??? Or do I just crank that tor bar adj nut, driver's side clockwise a few turns. I was/am concerned I could hurt the transmission (new rubber mount installed) if I tighten torsion bar adj bolt with transmission bolted in tight to it's mount, adjoining brackets, etc. I guess it sounds silly but I've never done anything like this....Am I overthinking it? Seems crazy one would have to loosen trans mounts to adjust torsion bar. Its just that bolt is so hard to turn!
So here is the question...to raise driver's side up do I just tighten the tor bar adj bolt until sides are even or do I need to loosen remove other nuts/bolts.....thanks! 1996 expl xlt 2wd

 

[jammor]

Sorry for the long post-- I figured it out by searching other threads- I'll do that in the future instead of posting redundant questions.
Problem now is I put new tires on two months ago....about 1,500 miles ago..
Now I have to decide if I want to rotate the tires side to side and go another 1,500 miles before adjusting the torsion bar to even the likely odd wear pattern I bet I created (I hear they increase exponentially across the life of the tire, especially if you start out with a horrible alignment) or go ahead and adjust it.
Jeez--- I'm supposed to get an alignment when I do this....I may be buying new tires prematurely.

Just a note to all---I ordered my set of four tires from amazon prime and I only spent $75 per tire. Had local tire guy put them on but my cheap ass didn't get the wheels aligned. At the time I didn't know what a torsion bar was or that by changing the tension I changed the alignment....

I think I'm gonna go ahead and set the ride height even now and take it in for lifetime alignment. If I've doomed the tires so be it. Comments/suggestions welcomed!

 

[swshawaii]

Drivers side "Ranger Lean" is a very common issue that is widely discussed on EF. As you've probably read, it's normally caused by the fuel tank, driver, battery, etc., left side weight imbalance that gradually weakens the left leaf spring and torsion bar. IIRC, Ford's considers +/- 1/2" to 3/4" side-to-side differences within spec. Any time front ride height is tweaked with the torsion bar adjuster bolts, camber and toe changes. If your alignment tech isn't too far away, I'd drive the vehicle as is since they will likely adjust the front ride height to align anyway. Also, the shop will likely need camber kits or eccentric washers to properly align.

 

[J_C]

What does your rear look like? On mine the left rear sagged more than any others and was raising the front right up higher than the front left. If you have a rear side to side difference more than 1/2" or rear lower than front (with no load) I would have corrected that before touching the front.

 

[96eb96]

Front ride height is not a simple measurement. I believe it is something like this:

It is measured by taking the height to the center of the control arm bolt - height of the lower ball joint stud (both to the ground). There is variation depending on the type of Explorer(Sport, ARC ride, etc). The rear is measured to the inner wheel arch.

 

[pjtoledo]

I'll elaborate on that some,,,
factory front ride height is not measured from the ground, rather it is measured by the angle of the lower control arms. there is a line that goes thru the center of the control arm bolts, another line is formed between the lower ball joints, the difference between those 2 lines establishes the ride height, and balance side to side. I forget the distance, it should be in the manuals someplace. then, like a home thermostat, tune to suit your needs.
don't turn the adjuster bolts with tension on the keys. too much tension and you may break the bolts. use a tool to put pressure on the keys, then adjust the bolts.
tire size is what determines the distance from the lower ball joint to ground, that's why the ride height uses the control arm angles, which puts things like shocks/ball joints/control arms at mid-travel.

 

[Spuddy]

Okay. The write up from the manual is posted below:

Ride Height

1. Drive the vehicle onto a drive-on lift.
2. Jounce the vehicle's front and rear suspension to normalize the vehicle static ride height.
3. Measure the distance between the center line of the front suspension lower arm bushing bolt and the lift. Record the measurement.
4. Measure the distance between the front wheel spindle (lowest point) and the lift. Record the measurement.
5. Determine ride height.

• Subtract measurement 1 from measurement 2. This is the ride height.

6. NOTE: The torsion bar adjusting bolt is coated with adhesive that wears off after disassembly. If the torsion bar system is ever disassembled or the torsion bar adjusting bolt is ever removed, use a new torsion bar adjusting bolt when re-assembling.​

Adjust the torsion bars (height) as necessary by tightening or loosening the torsion bar adjusting bolt.​

• Tighten the torsion bar adjusting bolt to increase the torque or raise the height.
• Loosen the torsion bar adjusting bolt to decrease the torque or lower the height.

Ride Height - All Vehicles

Front - new vehicles with less than 500 miles
113 mm +/- 11 mm (4.4 in. +/- 0.4 in.)
Front - original parts
101 mm +/- 11 mm (4.0 in. +/- 0.4 in.)
Front - replacement parts
113 mm +/- 11 mm (4.4 in. +/- 0.1 in.)

Rear - 4 door vehicles
128-149 mm
(5-5.8 in.)
Rear - 2 door vehicles
110-123 mm
(4.3-4.8 in.)

Vehicle Lean (Side-to-Side Height Differences)

Front wheel opening:
maximum 16 mm (0.6 in.)

Rear wheel opening:
maximum 20 mm (0.78 in.)