what up!

first off lemme appologize ahead of time if this thread isnt in the right place but im kinda new to the whole "forum" thing. this is the first time i have ever used one. i just purchased a 97 explorer sport. basically stock with a moonroof an the controll trac 4wd. i have been lookin over the site for the last few day reading alot of great an helpful posts about the options i have for my truck. i wanna "get it up" a few inches an i keep hearing about the "PA853" lift kit. i'm not worried about doing the install myself but i have a few concerns in regards to the process.

1. everyone keeps tellin me to watch out for the brake lines
a.) do i have to buy different ones?
2. what about the steering linkage
b.) will the kit come with what i need to make it work right?
3. i read on here that the bumper wont mount up right
c.) whats the easiest way to overcome this?

i guess im just concerned that due tot he limited budget that i have to work with i dont wanna commit to the 3'' body lift if im going to have to spend a bunch of money on other components to make it work right. any and all advice would be greatly appreciated in this matter!!!! thanks guys (an gals) an sorry again if this isnt in the right place

Welcome to the forum. There is plenty of info here, so you should stick around. If you are looking to do a lift, why did you choose body lift over suspension lift? A suspension lift (2") would be cheaper, and easier to do. So, if you are worried about that, you could just do the suspension lift instead, by doing a TT (torsion twist) and shackles.

really

i was always under the impression that i needed a few hundred to do a suspension lift. i know im not supposed to go any more that 2" on the TT. something about it would stress the cv joints.

That's true, but I am just throwing out the idea that you can get 2" for >$170, all that you need to pay for is the shackles and an alignment. Plus then you wouldn't need to worry about the steering linkages, brakes, and such.

yeah

i see whatu mean tho... that seems a bit more practicle to start with... then i can do the bl later. i dont want a monster truck. i jut want a clean classy lookin truck with some lift to it. ya know?

I've always thought suspension lifts are better looking and more functional than a body lift, because they actually give more ground clearance, and the frame is still hidden by the body

if u get a chance hop on AIM sometime. id like to "pick ur brain" for a few
my sn is OZpounder457

Charlie said:

I've always thought suspension lifts are better looking and more functional than a body lift, because they actually give more ground clearance, and the frame is still hidden by the body

Click to expand...

Charlie, your axles actually determine ground clearance.
Bigger tires give you more ground clearance, because the bigger the tire, the higher the axle will be from the ground.
Your axles are the lowest thing on your truck.
You can pick up the body 12 " but with the same tires as before, you haven't gained anything. It's only after you put the bigger tires on, that you have more clearance. So a body lift or a suspension lift isn't going to make any differance until you add the bigger tires.
Let me clue you in to something about suspension kits for 95+ Explorers.
With the exception of the RCD lift kit, The Superlift and the Trailmaster lifts WON'T do any more for you than a body lift. Why?
Because the lowest thing on the front of your truck is the cross member for the lower A-arms. The very next thing is the torsion bars.
When you use the 4" suspension kit from either Superlift or Trailmaster, you have a new A-arm crossmember that is dropped down by 4" and the torsion bars are also dropped down 4", so you haven't gained anything other than moving the axles down so you can put bigger tires on. You want to spend a couple of thousand on a suspension kit just to get the same results that a body lift kit will do for 200 dollars? So you have a gap between the frame and the body. Big Deal!
The money that you save on the suspension kit can get you the lockers that you really need for 4wheeling, or a gear change to get your MPG back.
Hind sight is always 20/20, and if I had to do it all over again, I WOULD NOT have bought the suspension kit.

I went wheeling with Gjarrett in Moab. My truck, 2" body lift + 4" suspenson kit, running 33's. Gerald' truck 3" body lift, running 33's. We both had rear lockers.
I DID NOT DO ANY BETTER THAN HE DID!

We then both did the Rubicon.
He added a front locker and 35's.
Me, no change.
I got strapped over 4 times to his 1. I don't believe that it was the tire size, that made the difference, so much as the front locker.

My opinion is that you can spend your money on better things than a suspension lift kit.

Listen to Ray, he knows what he's talking about (not that you don't Charlie .

No matter what question you ask on this forum, the answer will always depend on what you want to do with your truck. Oz, I know you said you just want to make the truck look better by being a little higher, which is fine, who doesn't want to make their Explorer look a little different/better. So, IMO go ahead and do the TT/shackles lift or he body lift ... or both. There are plenty of how-to's on here for either lift.

In my case, I plan to do the TT/shackles and get some 31's to satisfy me for the time being. Then, a few years down the road when I get a different daily driver (I don't want to beat on this thing too hard until then), I'm planning to commit my Ex to be a trail rig. Therefore, I'm going to save up my money for an SAS, lockers, new gears, etc. This is always subject to change of course.

Great advice from Ray. I've never heard any argument that strong for the body lift instead of the suspension lift.

Good info.

ray just had a used BL he wants to sell you :

Does anyone know where i can get a 4in suspension lift for a 97 explorer all i can find is body lifts for this model. Will a ranger lift match up ?

Joseph46 said:

Does anyone know where i can get a 4in suspension lift for a 97 explorer all i can find is body lifts for this model. Will a ranger lift match up ?

Click to expand...

Superlift around $2000

Dixon Brothers Racing around $5000

Yea I would recommend searching for explorer superlift under google you will get a couple online stores, the online stores sell for less than what Superlift themselves do.