DOGMAN
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- August 2, 1999
- Messages
- 439
- Reaction score
- 0
- City, State
- Mission, KS
- Year, Model & Trim Level
- 91 XLT
AK94Ford,
You've definitely come to the right place. On this site there are many knowledgeable people that can help you, mainly because they've been there themselves.
First of all, why did you arrive at a 4" lift? What size tire are you planning to run? Are you just going for the look of a lifted Explorer or are you going to use it seriously off-road? It helps to know what's in your mind to be able to steer you correctly.
Lifting any vehicle does raise the center of gravity. Does that make it undrivable? Hardly, it's just different, as most on this site can attest to. The vehicle will tend to lean more when cornering but not so bad as to be unsafe, unless you drive recklessly. I put on many highway and city miles with my 91 Explorer XLT and have no problem. The ride will definitely be rougher than stock, but not objectionable.
I have a 5.5" Superlift with extended radius arms and Superunner steering, Rancho RS9000 shocks, and soon to be 33x12.50-15 Mud-Terrain tires. This is a fairly popular set-up that is used by many on this site. Superlift does a pretty good job and 5.5" of lift allows you to run 33x12.50's without any additional lift.
As far as Skyjacker goes, I was steered away from that company by a number of knowledgeable and experienced off-road people. They all claimed that if anything went wrong with your kit or installation, Skyjacker was very hard to deal with and wouldn't stand behind their product. A few months back I remember someone on this site speak of the MAJOR problems that he had in dealing with Skyjacker when many of the parts in his 4" kit didn't fit right. I really felt sorry for the guy.
You should go with extended brake lines with a lift of 4" or more. Most lift manufacturers will sell you those as an option.
Since you are interested in lifting your vehicle, I would imagine you're thinking about using larger tires. If you are, you need to consider the proper gearing for the particular size of tire that you plan to run. If you don't change the gears when you go with a larger tire, your performance will suffer. Changing gears is not something for the novice to do, it requires experience and talent to be done right. My gear swap cost me $400 for parts and $450 for labor.
Do you plan on doing the installation yourself or have a 4x4 shop do it?
Also, after my 5.5" install, I found that my rear driveshaft was too short and had one custom made. That cost $250. Not everyone has that problem but it is something everyone should look into.
Hope this helps you some. I'm sure others will post their ideas to help you. One more word of advice. Don't rush your decision on height and brand. Research it as much as you can. This will save you the headache of having to redo something-for example, going with a 4" kit when 2 months down the line you really want a 5.5" kit to run 33x12.50's. Remember, patience is a virtue.
Good luck!
DOGMAN
You've definitely come to the right place. On this site there are many knowledgeable people that can help you, mainly because they've been there themselves.
First of all, why did you arrive at a 4" lift? What size tire are you planning to run? Are you just going for the look of a lifted Explorer or are you going to use it seriously off-road? It helps to know what's in your mind to be able to steer you correctly.
Lifting any vehicle does raise the center of gravity. Does that make it undrivable? Hardly, it's just different, as most on this site can attest to. The vehicle will tend to lean more when cornering but not so bad as to be unsafe, unless you drive recklessly. I put on many highway and city miles with my 91 Explorer XLT and have no problem. The ride will definitely be rougher than stock, but not objectionable.
I have a 5.5" Superlift with extended radius arms and Superunner steering, Rancho RS9000 shocks, and soon to be 33x12.50-15 Mud-Terrain tires. This is a fairly popular set-up that is used by many on this site. Superlift does a pretty good job and 5.5" of lift allows you to run 33x12.50's without any additional lift.
As far as Skyjacker goes, I was steered away from that company by a number of knowledgeable and experienced off-road people. They all claimed that if anything went wrong with your kit or installation, Skyjacker was very hard to deal with and wouldn't stand behind their product. A few months back I remember someone on this site speak of the MAJOR problems that he had in dealing with Skyjacker when many of the parts in his 4" kit didn't fit right. I really felt sorry for the guy.
You should go with extended brake lines with a lift of 4" or more. Most lift manufacturers will sell you those as an option.
Since you are interested in lifting your vehicle, I would imagine you're thinking about using larger tires. If you are, you need to consider the proper gearing for the particular size of tire that you plan to run. If you don't change the gears when you go with a larger tire, your performance will suffer. Changing gears is not something for the novice to do, it requires experience and talent to be done right. My gear swap cost me $400 for parts and $450 for labor.
Do you plan on doing the installation yourself or have a 4x4 shop do it?
Also, after my 5.5" install, I found that my rear driveshaft was too short and had one custom made. That cost $250. Not everyone has that problem but it is something everyone should look into.
Hope this helps you some. I'm sure others will post their ideas to help you. One more word of advice. Don't rush your decision on height and brand. Research it as much as you can. This will save you the headache of having to redo something-for example, going with a 4" kit when 2 months down the line you really want a 5.5" kit to run 33x12.50's. Remember, patience is a virtue.
Good luck!
DOGMAN