Looking for a good lift. 6" in front and 4" in back

[Praetorian46]

Hi I’m looking for a good lift kit for my 1996 Ford Explorer XLT 5.0 Liter V8 AWD. What I want is, 6" in the Front and 4" in the back. I'd like suspensions lifts but I also want to have 15"X10" Rims with 33" tires; with as minimal Fender Trimming as possible. (So from what I read I think I may need a bit of a body lift to keep from rubbing) A few concerns I have is I've talked to quite a few people about putting that large of a lift on and about half of them said it will roll very easy. All of these people are not mechanics and have never owned an Explorer but with about 5 out of 10 saying that, it has become a concern. The only lift I found that will come close is the "Superlift Master Kit K494" which is about $1800 just for parts. But is that the only cost that I will have? (Besides labor of course.) Will there be any other parts I will need to purchase? I was considering using the "Superlift Master Kit K494" and a 2" body lift in the front to achieve the height I want. (If you can do a body lift in just the front??? I'm very new to all of this. please bear with me.) That is about all I am asking. If you need more information from me so you can give me a better answer feel free to ask.

Please don't just tell me to use the "Search". I have looked and for what I have seen this question hasn't been addressed on the 1996/1997 models. And from what I understand the 1996/1997 models are a little different when I comes to lifts and such. I really appreciate any feed back I can get. Thank you for your time.

 

[section525]

95/96/97 models are the same as 98-01s. So any lift that will work on 98-01 will work on 95-97.

So you have:

4" Superlift
4" Trailmaster

The superlift is the better kit. Along with doing the 4" suspension you can do a 2" torsion twist to gain another 2" in the front. That way you don't have to worry about a body lift.

 

[Praetorian46]

Thank You for the response section525 I really appreciate it. Is there any cons to doing a "torsion twist" lift? Is it going to weaken anything or shorten the life of a part? Just so that I know what I am getting myself into. Also (about 5min ago) a friend said I can go down to a local spring shop and they can get the extra 2 inches out of the springs. I don't know if that's a good idea or not... So I thought I would throw it out there and get your guys advice on it. Thanks again!

 

[section525]

A torsion twist (TT) is placing more tension on the torsion bars resulting in a slight lift but with a stiffer ride. Going too high using this method will place the front CVs and an undesireable angle leading to premature failure. Keeping it to around 2" of lift seems to be the safe way to go.

Here is a little more info on it:
http://www.explorer4x4.com/torsionbars.html

As far as the rear, you can use the Superlift lift springs for about 4" or you can do a spring over axle conversion (SOA) giving you about 5.5" of lift which will match the front a whole lot better.
http://www.explorer4x4.com/faq.htm#springover

Re-arching your springs for 2" isn't really going to help you out much.

 

[410Fortune]

I clear 33" tires with a 3" body lift and no suspension lift.
I do not see the need for 6" of suspension up front to clear 33x12.50

Also please dont forget to aim your headlights if you go 6" up front and 4" in the back.


A spring over axle in the back wil go well with 4-5" of front suspension.

You also have the RCD suspension and the Dixon brothers long travel suspension in addition to the Traildisaster and Stupidlift kits

 

[Praetorian46]

Ok well I think I want 6" in the front because I don't like the way any truck looks with the front lower or even level with the back. I figure an extra 2" would make it look real nice.

But like section525 said...

As far as the rear, you can use the Superlift lift springs for about 4" or you can do a spring over axle conversion (SOA) giving you about 5.5" of lift which will match the front a whole lot better.

And like 410Fortune said...

I clear 33" tires with a 3" body lift and no suspension lift.
I do not see the need for 6" of suspension up front to clear 33x12.50

So maybe the 2" difference is a little much. Should I just do the 4" and 4" and see how it looks? Then make my decision on how far to raise the front with a TT lift. That way I can get it to look exactly the way I want it. (Does that sound reasonable or does the TT have to be done before the lift is put on?) What do you think is the best way to go? I want it to look Big and Beefy but I don't want it to look out of proportion. So if anyone has any advice on the size of the lift then let me know.

I am also curious about this SOA you two are talking about. I don't quite understand how it works. What are the trade offs for doing the SOA rather than the Superlift? Is it a price thing, does it do a better job as far as reliability goes, or was it just to bring the back up higher than the Superlift would have? Well, I really appreciate you guys being so patient with me. Thanks again!

 

[section525]

Here is a good quick read about SOAs:

http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?p=942036

 

[Praetorian46]

I clear 33" tires with a 3" body lift and no suspension lift.
I do not see the need for 6" of suspension up front to clear 33x12.50

Does a suspension lift do the same as a body lift when it comes to fitting larger tires on a vehicle?

I also would like to know...

So maybe the 2" difference is a little much. Should I just do the 4" and 4" and see how it looks? Then make my decision on how far to raise the front with a TT lift. That way I can get it to look exactly the way I want it. (Does that sound reasonable or does the TT have to be done before the lift is put on?) What do you think is the best way to go? I want it to look Big and Beefy but I don't want it to look out of proportion. So if anyone has any advice on the size of the lift then let me know.

And one More thing...

A few concerns I have is I've talked to quite a few people about putting that large of a lift on and about half of them said it will roll very easy. All of these people are not mechanics and have never owned an Explorer but with about 5 out of 10 saying that, it has become a concern.

Is that true or false???

Thank you guys so much for your help! You've been great!

 

[LBarr2002]

Any time you raise the center of gravity of a vehicle you increase the chances that it could roll over. I have 5" total lift on a first gen explorer (which if we listened to the media you'd think leaning up against it the wrong way will flip it). Mine has never felt "tippy" in normal driving or even emergency swerves, but I don't go do donuts for no reason either. You just have to keep it in the back of your mind that you're not driving a stock vehicle. If you don't drive like its a sports car, you'll never have a problem.

You also have to consider that going to a wider wheel/tire package widens the stance of the vehicle, making it more stable.

 

[410Fortune]

I believe in function over looks.
It sounds like you are doing this for looks?
what about handling?
Do you plan to re gear for the 33" tires?

Now with that said my explorer is done for looks, for now...but if i had the $$$ it would not be.

So it depends on what you want to get out of it.
If your goal is 33" tires and you want to back a bit lower then the front then I personally would get a 2 or 3" body lift and do a torsion bar twist up front up to 2" and in the back shackles and /or some new springs.

If you max out the torsion bars the ride will be harsh. If you run add a leafs the ride will be harsh

The wheels & brand of tires you run will also have alot to do with how easily you clear 33" tires.



When it comes to the drop bracket lifts they are really similar to a body lift, meaning that they do not improve the ride or add performance, they just simply lower the stock suspension from the frame.
Cranking the torsion bars in addition to the drop bracket kit may get you the height you want without the body lift but it can make for a really rough ride, maxed out torsion bars are not for everyone, the ride can be harsh.


Now with a middle of the road kit like the RCD it removes the torsion bars and adds a coilover spring and shock. This kit also uses drop brackets to get lift for bigger tires, but the ride is improved.

now the ultimate kit available for the 4wd IFS currently is the Dixon bros kit, this is a custom long travel kit designed to give a nice ride, good handling, a bit of lift (I believe 4") no more torsion bars, and can take serious off road abuse all day long

So you get what you pay for based on what you want to get out of the truck

My personal opinion is maxing out the torsion bars is too rigid for me, I would prefer to go the Dixon route for the ride quality, coolness factor, and lift, but mostly because torsion bars ride kinda like crap when compared to coil sprung a arm IFS's
Then if you are going to spend $3500+ on your front suspension you gotta consider having a custom kit made, just because Dixon hit the market with a long travel bolt on kit doesnt mean other shops arent making them from scratch, or people are not making them by themselves

So there is alot to think about.....and its all been covered, and pretty much every truck is different.

We didnt even talk about solid axles, spending huge amounts of $$$ on re-gearing, etc....

 

[boominXplorer]

I have not seen anyone with a superlift with their tortion bars cranked up 2" EVER get a correct alignment. I have the RCD coilover kit and SOA in the rear. Personally I think it rides better than factory. Another thing you need to research is if you are going to go with the superlift you need to grind off the existing tortion bar mounts on the 95-97 models and do some modification I beleive.

 

[Praetorian46]

I'm looking to spend about $2500 for the lift. Another $1500 on rims and tires. And About another $1000 on misc. things that I don't know about like 410Fortune mentioned something about regearing for 33" tires. I know that the speedometer and Odometer will have to be reconfigured. The lights will have to be adjusted. I know I can probably do some of that by myself, but I'm sure there are a few things that I will have to take it to a shop to get done. I am trying to learn as much as possible before I start shelling out money.

My goal for my truck is (?I'm not sure I can do all of this?):
--------------------------------------------------------
Headers
Dual Exhaust
Cold Air Intake
Lift 6" F / 4" B
15X10 Rims
33X12.5 Tires
Clifford RSX 3.5 Alarm / Remote Start
Pioneer HD Navigation system
Speakers / Amps / Subs
And any other cool thing that might come up...
I priced it all out to do it all at once and it's almost $15,000. I'm hoping to get it all finished in 4/5 years.
So I’m going to do a little bit at a time, and see how far I get.

 

[410Fortune]

well with teh V8 and AWD you can get away with 33's and your stock gears which SHOULD be 3.73 ratio, but it would still be optimum to install 4.10 or even 4.56 (4.10 more likely for daily driver)

I vote small torsion twist with a 3" body lift for your needs it should be just fine and spend some $$$ on good rear leaf springs instead of add a leafs, then some good shocks and you will be in a great shape without spending a ton of $$$ on a drop bracket lift kit you likey dont need

 

[MountaineerGreen]

My goal for my truck is (?I'm not sure I can do all of this?):
--------------------------------------------------------
Headers
Dual Exhaust
Cold Air Intake
Lift 6" F / 4" B
15X10 Rims
33X12.5 Tires
Clifford RSX 3.5 Alarm / Remote Start
Pioneer HD Navigation system
Speakers / Amps / Subs
And any other cool thing that might come up...
I priced it all out to do it all at once and it's almost $15,000. I'm hoping to get it all finished in 4/5 years.
So I’m going to do a little bit at a time, and see how far I get.

You should add a BW4406 conversion to this if you plan to do any off roading

 

[churd69]

Just curious

just to make sure i am reading this thread correctly, you would like to lift the front 6" and the back 4" to make to rear sit 2 inches lower then the front? Why do you want to do that? Just curious, must people want the front to be even or slightly lower then the back.

-Rich

 

[Igoteyedeas]

I think he's goin for that pre-runner look by having the front sit a bit higher.

 

[kevo1123]

Just a quick question, the RCD lift is for the ranger right? Do any other ranger lift kits fit on explorers? I have heard yes and no, anyone sure? I am thinking about getting an explorer, and I want about 6 inches of lift, so I was wondering.

 

[Blee1099]

The RCD lift will fit the Explorer, the PA853/883 body lift will fit, so will the PA793 for the 2" for the 91-94 Explorer, 4" trailmaster or 4" Superlift, another option is to do a SAS Seriously though, if your on a budget, I'd suggest going with the body lift over the suspension or RCD. Its the best bang for the buck and quite honestly I think it performs better.

 

[kevo1123]

Now when people talk about the torsion twist, is that only on the 4x4's? I think that i saw a few people with 2 wheel drive saying they had a torsion twist which confused me. Do the 2 wheel drive explorers have torsion bars? I am a little confused. Thanks

 

[explorermatt001]

yes, the two wheel drive 2nd gen explorers also have the torsion bar set up. ALSO, the torsion twist after the superlift will require longer bolts. because of the drop diff and 4 inch steering knuckles the torsions will be maxed out before you can get additional lift (providing stiffness but no lift after the 4inch kit) The superlift drops the suspension in order to acheive the lift, so cranking the torsion bars will not gain any lift.