1999 rear leaf springs.

[Obotdefense 2012]

Hi all,

I have a 1999 XLT 5.0 that has been in the family for years.
It is now time to pass it on to my son who is going to get his licence soon so I wanted to do some father son work on the truck with him.

For years the ass end of this truck has been looking like it has it's tail between its legs running in retreat of loss.

I picked up new Stanley Springs part # 43-967.
These are supposed to be an OEM fit but as I was matching up the springs to the old ones I noticed that the Originals have a higher stance.

Am I going to go through all this work of installing the new springs just to find that the truck will sit just as low if not lower than before?

Also, are there any suggestions of light mods I can do to this explorer that will make it a cool truck to drive vs a "hand me down" from his mom?

 

[gmanpaint]

Welcome you to the forum sir.

I personally have not seen the Stanley packs your referring to. If your original packs are old & tired they will have less arch than say a new stock pack. A side by side comparison of packs will show the arch difference.

When we go to get lift out of our vehicles using a higher arched leaf pack, comparing them side by side shows just how much higher the eyelets are on them.

So if your new set is not as arched, the chances are they are going to be giving even less height. Unless they are a set that do not flex at all, I can't see these giving you the height your after.

There are many places to get a newer set of leaf packs from. Either a stock height, or a variety of lift sizes.

There is also add a leafs from places like Pro-Comp that have either 1 short leaf, or 2 leafs of different lengths added to the stock leaf packs with a longer center bolt. Most see close to 2" of lift with those alone.

There is also a Mod using a set off a F-150. These tend to give 2-4" of lift depending on their age and duties.

 

[Obotdefense 2012]

Thanks for getting back to me so fast.

Can I AAL after the truck is all back together?

The old springs seem to have the same spring force as the new ones but they are at least 1 1/2" taller than the new ones as well.

I see these explorers always driving around "draggin ass" and I am shocked that Ford as a company has not addressed it, there product looks silly driving around like that.

 

[gmanpaint]

The leaf packs have to be off and dismantled for the add a leafs, cause your ADDing a leaf to it.

People tend to over load these rigs thinking they are pickups. Over time, the weight of the driver, weight from gas tank, combined with daily abuse, they wear out, and need replaced or worked on. This is really no different from other makes and models, you just tend to see it in these rigs because there is so many of them on the road.

 

[BrooklynBay]

Welcome to this forum! I've moved your thread into the shocks, suspensions, and lift kits section.

 

[Obotdefense 2012]

Thank you.

Any ideas on how to wake this 5.0 up a little?

 

[rileyrs]

Torque Monster makes headers for it that many people seem to have great results with.
An intake, and cat back exhaust will always help.
And of course a very good thorough tune up, which if your looking for work to do with your son on the truck would be a great place to start.

 

[Obotdefense 2012]

Any thoughts on a performance chip.

I am installing a K&N filter to free up the breathing, a good tune up and maybe do a cat back bolt on system.

Any cat back systems that I should avoid?

 

[GuardianSport]

Zip tie mod sounds exactly what you need to "wake it up".