2" max on torsion adj?...Help. | Ford Explorer Forums

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2" max on torsion adj?...Help.

HIguy

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December 19, 2007
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City, State
Hawaii
Year, Model & Trim Level
Sport Trac '05 XLT
Just installed a 3" suspension lift on my '05 ST 4x4...the kit came with torsion keys and add a leaf springs. Am i reading the threads correctly that i should NOT lift the front more than 2"? I did 2 3/4" Ooops! Also is the largest recommended tire size 275/70/16?
 



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For the torsion twist, the bars will be able to lift the truck way over the 2 inches depending on how long your bolts are. But once you hit 2 inches you start putting huge amounts of stress on your CVs because of the angle they are at and stuff starts breaking very early.
 






Where did you find this kit at, got a link?
 






is this on a 4x4? or 2wd?
 


















If I had to guess, it's a kit from AIM.
 













Never saw that before, looks like a Procomp add-a-leaf and torsion keys. Those keys do essentially the same thing as a torsion twist. Nevertheless, the amount if lift you can get is dependent on two important factors: your balljoint/CV angles and your alignment. You don't want to put the balljoint or CV angles at too extreme of an angle and you don't want to go too high to where the truck is not alignable.
 






Thanks Hartman. Yeah my mechanic friend said the same thing about alignment issues, although he did not know about the CV joint stress. I went back to him and we backed the front end down to about 2" (cross my fingers). The ride was quite stiff at 2 3/4" (i guess is to expected). Now the ride is much smoother. Makes me wonder if i should have splurged for the 4" superlift LOL!

So any ideas/specs on how large i can go with tires?

thanks.
 






Thanks Hartman. Yeah my mechanic friend said the same thing about alignment issues, although he did not know about the CV joint stress. I went back to him and we backed the front end down to about 2" (cross my fingers). The ride was quite stiff at 2 3/4" (i guess is to expected). Now the ride is much smoother. Makes me wonder if i should have splurged for the 4" superlift LOL!

So any ideas/specs on how large i can go with tires?

thanks.

Well, my personal belief is that the Superlift kit is overpriced for the amount of lift you get. As much as I dislike body lifts, it's just too cheap to do a 2" torsion twist and a 2" body lift and get the same amount of "lift" as the Superlift.

Now that you backed it down to 2", you should be able to get the alignment pretty close to spec. Be sure to get the camber adjusters for the upper control arms so that the alignment can be done as best as possible. Don't let the alignment shop install them, they will rape you on price.

The size of tire you can run is dependent on the offset of your rim. For example, I run 32x11.5s with 2" of lift and stock rims, but if I were to run rims with a higher offset, I would have rubbing issues. You should be able to run 32s even with aftermarket rims if you are willing to do some minor trimming. However, every truck is a little different.
 






It was stiff at 2 3/4" because you probably didn't have any down travel left in the suspension. The stiffness you felt was largely because the suspension was topped out. The other part is because you added a bunch of preload to the torsion bars.
 






I can't believe how much they sell that kit for. You can adjust the torsion bars for free and buy 1.5" lift shackles for about $60, that only take 5 minutes to install.
 






I can't believe how much they sell that kit for. You can adjust the torsion bars for free and buy 1.5" lift shackles for about $60, that only take 5 minutes to install.

Not to mention that shackles will ride better than an AAL, but that's either here nor there.
 






Dang! live and learn...should've joined this forum before i did my shopping. Oh well, thanks for the insight. Much appreciated.
 






Dang! live and learn...should've joined this forum before i did my shopping. Oh well, thanks for the insight. Much appreciated.

It's not really that big of a deal. Just pick some appropriate shocks.
 






i have a 01 sport trac 2wd i just took my front end up about a 1/2 a inch with the tt and run a 265/70/17 which is a 32 with aftermarket rims that have a -12 offset and i dont rub at all and it looks pretty good i bought 1.5" shackles for 75 but dont even think i am going to use them. truck is level. it seemd everyone raises there fron a lot more to level it makes me wonder if the owner before already cranked on it ?
 






Nah, it sits a little nose low but nothing extreme. Most people crank them up quite a bit because they installed shackles in the rear I think.
 






How bad is the stress on a twist?

i have shackles for my 05 adrenaline but was told not
to use the torsion twist that it will cause too much stress on
the torsion bars?
but from what i read everyone seems to use the 2 inch twist
method, will this eventually break the bars or wear out other
parts?
thanks
 



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i have shackles for my 05 adrenaline but was told not
to use the torsion twist that it will cause too much stress on
the torsion bars?
but from what i read everyone seems to use the 2 inch twist
method, will this eventually break the bars or wear out other
parts?
thanks

It will ride more rough. A full 2" will leave very little down travel (or droop) in the front suspension, so the shocks will top out (extend all the way) very easily, causing the harsh ride. It will also put the CV joints at a higher angle, causing a bit more wear on them.
It would take a lot to break the bars, but it's possible. Increasing the pre-load to lift the front simply means that the torsion bar will twist much more when the front compresses all the way to the bump stop. That means more fatigue, the torsion bars will sag sooner, and it could (potentionally) break them if it twists more than it is designed to.
Still, a lot of people do it without major problems. I would not crank them for more than 1" of lift, personally. I measured how much downtravel my front end had from stock position, it was just over 2.5". If I raised the front 2", my front end would top out every time I drove over a drain almost.
I think that a lot of people measure 2" of lift from cranking, possibly after the front end has already settled a bit with mileage.
My suggestion is to measure the wheel-to-wheelwell height on both front wheels on level ground, write the numbers down. Place a hydraulic jack under the front subframe and raise the truck until the tires are both off the ground, and re-measure each wheel-to-wheelwell height. You can decide for yourself how much down travel is "enough" and tighten the bars until you're satisfied.
Do the adjustment with the weight off of the truck. Count how many turns you make on each side, lower the truck, and bounce it so it settles. Measure and repeat until you're satisfied.
Don't forget to check the alignment when you're done.
What shackles do you have? The warrior shackles will lift 1.5", for reference.
 






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