5th shock?

[SoNic67]

I did replace mine and helped a lot with cornering stability. The fact the corkey didn't "feel a thing" doesn't mean that Ford engineers put that there for nothing. It means just that he does not care how his truck swings the rear in curves...
That shock has nothing to do with movement "up and down" because is mounted almost horizontally.
It keeps the body thighter to the axle in turns, because the leafs have the tendency to twist sligtly and let the body sway left-right.
Monroe SC2958:

 

[drdoom]

I did replace mine and helped a lot with cornering stability.
That shock has nothing to do with movement "up and down" because is mounted almost horizontally.
It keeps the body thighter to the axle in turns, because the leafs have the tendency to twist sligtly and let the body sway left-right.

I concur with the VA boy.

 

[Joe Dirt]

I also had replaced mine and noticed less lean and better stability... Usually when they are removed and left off, not much difference is noticed since the one coming off is junk anyhow, with little to no absorption, so going from virtually nothing to nothing isn't noticeable...

 

[Turdle]

Yeah, you'll notice if you remove a "working" 5th shock.

 

[SoNic67]

I think that even my wife noticed the difference (sometimes she needs to use the Explorer).
After I did replace the 5th shock, she went from "I hate how it feels in turns!" (every time she was driving it) to... silent.

 

[1996BLKBauer]

My 96' EB has that shock. It's toast literary falling apart. may be my rewr view mirror shaking problem.

 

[bobflood]

My 96' EB has that shock. It's toast literary falling apart. may be my rewr view mirror shaking problem.

Pretty easy and inexpensive to replace - Monroe SC2958; $27.79 from Amazon in August 2010.

 

[1996BLKBauer]

Pretty easy and inexpensive to replace - Monroe SC2958; $27.79 from Amazon in August 2010.

Thanks, I will keep that in mind when I do new shocks in the rear in the spring. it looks* like a simple thing to do.



*Looks is a term used loosely because I live in the mid west where we salt the roads and have bad winters, in all reality it will most likely take 3 times longer to do then normal.

 

[bobflood]

Thanks, I will keep that in mind when I do new shocks in the rear in the spring. it looks* like a simple thing to do.

*Looks is a term used loosely because I live in the mid west where we salt the roads and have bad winters, in all reality it will most likely take 3 times longer to do then normal.

Yes - I feel for y'all! Mine has spent it's life here in Georgia; there is almost no rust and suspension work is typically very easy. I don't think it took me 15 minutes to replace mine - including jacking up the vehicle.

 

[drdoom]

Hit it ahead of time with some penetrating oil. Our 1/2" impact wrench was a big help on this, very quick job. Remove the right rear wheel, and there it is. Bam.

 

[corkey]

okay, sure, i didn't feel anything after i took mine off, but,,,,,

and this is big an can be why,,

my Explorer is lifted 4 inches with Superlift springs and than i put on lift shackles too,and way better shocks than stock, maybe that could be contributing factors as the Superlift springs are considerably stiffer than a stock spring is,

mind you i still have my rear sway bar attached, although i have no front sway bar , but have no problems up there as the Fox coil-overs do not allow a lot of lean in the front


also as stated by Turdle, you will not notice a difference if you take off the 5th shock as it was not doing anything anyways which could have been as it was the same one the Ex came with in 96 and my truck had over 170,000 miles on it when i took it off,,

Yes it will help or Ford wouldn't have put it there,,
countless dollars in research , like i said in an earlier post,,

 

[rabbit91]

came on my '00 limited, probably going to take it off and throw it away too
from what ive read, it significantly limits flex

GO CANUCKS GO

 

[Przybysz]

Old thread i know... But this is sick!!!! Cant believe I have an EXTRA SHOCK!?!?!


Buying a monroe replacement soon! Is monroe the most bang for the buck on the stabilizer shock? 30 bucks is pretty cheap!

 

[Texan01]

Well as far as ive read, 96-99 have it. The sports do not have have. Im not sure about the SportTrac or mountaineers tho. I would imagine that the matching year Mountaineers would have them since the frame and drivetrain is the same

My '95 has the 5th shock, and after 308,000 miles, its never ever been replaced or unbolted to check to see if its any good..(i seriously doubt its doing any good now)

 

[ponkotsu]

Well, the Explorer has the same suspension geometry as about a billion other vehicles that don't have the 5th shock. So I doubt it is "necessary". I have to think the benefit is very subtle. The amount of compression/extension on the shock is extremely small except in severe cornering situations.

 

[obie]

And that's probably why they put it on there. Remember, the ex was marketed towards a group of people who had, for the most part, no business driving a truck. Seeing the way people drive these things like sports cars, Ford probably put it there because its easier than trying to teach people to drive it correctly.

 

[koda2000]

the way i look at it is that if Ford didn't think it was necessary, they would'nt have stuck it on there and just made the truck $20 less expensive.

 

[masospaghetti]

Can't say I noticed a difference when I replaced mine (but I didn't really know what it did) but it's pretty cool to have a 5th shock

 

[deweyville65]

Well, mine has been in the shed for over a year now, and I haven't wrecked mine yet because of rear end sway. When I removed it, because of clunking in the rear over bumps, it was just as strong as a new one. The only advantage I could see from having it on was if the spring eye bushings were worn out and someone were to drive it like a sports car on mountain roads. I've owned a Hell of a lot of vehicles, and None of them had a "fifth" shock.

 

[96eb96]

It probably gives you a small window of safety if you do make some stupid sudden maneuver. Sports do not have this shock, and I've read a while back that they have twice the rollover rate of the 4dr. That could also be due to the wheelbase, again, this is IIHS statistics, take it with a grain of salt.

I did try driving without it to test and I noticed a bit more rear end side to side float, nothing crazy though. Could be a placebo effect too. The one I removed had plenty of resistance (but was rotted away), so I can't say the Monroe unit made a big difference (I do think it is stiffer, however). I would not suggest removing it under any circumstance, you never know when it could save your rear.