91-09 Explorer 5" of lift for under 300.00

[albi1cnobi1]

Half a lift?


Hey everyone.

This may sound like a stupid question but here goes any way. I can't afford bigger tires right now and honestly my 4 wheeling is not that aggressive. I have a TT and shackles installed on my 99 Mounty so I only want to go a little higher, maybe 1 to 2 inches. Has any one ever thought of cutting the body spacers in half. Another 1 1/2" would do me just fine. All of the pucks I've seen are molded all the way through, and I have access to precision cutting equipment so thats not an issue. Any comment, ideas, input would be great.

Thanks, Al

 

[fordlover3]

oh yeah sorry i have a 99 Eb 4wd and just a few inches would be fine since you can only go about 1.75 in. with the TT

 

[99ex22]

Yeah I did it with my 99, I cut the 3" pucks down to 1". MORE off road sells 1" pucks for 4.00 each.

 

[albi1cnobi1]

Hey 99ex22,
Thanks for the info on M.O.R.E. offroad. They are nice aluminum pucks, but I'm wondering about the aggravation factor of buying just the pucks. i.e. bumper brackets etc. If I bought the kit and cut them down I could alter the kit brackets as opposed to fabricating new ones. What do you think. I'm open for suggestions.
Thanks, Al

 

[Guard24]

Hey all,
I'm going to shackle and TT my 96 explorer sport, but if 2" isn't enough, and I wanted to add maybe just one-two more inches, is there any way to do it without a kit, or do i have to get a 2" kit and add for four inches.
-Also, does anyone have any pics of a 2" explorer sport (TT and shackles)? I'd love to see what it looks like before the money comes out haha.
Thanks in advance!

Lee

 

[albi1cnobi1]

Hey Guard,

I don't have a sport but I can post pics of my 99 Mounty with TT and shackles if you want to get an idea of the look. Let me know, I'll have to figure it out I haven't posted pics in a post yet. As a side note you wont get a full 2" out of the shackles, and you shouldn't crank the front bars up a full 2" or you are going to severely shorten the life of the CV joints. I would go 1.5" or 1.75" max.

Al

 

[Guard24]

That would be great Al!
And thanks for the advice, makes sense to go a tad lower than two.
and i would appreciate before and after pics, if you have any (for comparison)
but anything at all would help out alot.

i took a jack and put the body up 2 inches today, looked pretty good, although i think that bigger tires would really make the difference

to all:
what did you think of the lift when you did TT/shackles?

 

[albi1cnobi1]

Hey Guard,

No problem. Sorry I didn't get back sooner, working crazy hours. I don't know if I have before pics but I'll take some after pics as soon as I can. I lucked into a brand new set of BFG All-Terrains, stock size. But with the AT's aggressive look they appear bigger. Get those pics up asap.

Al

 

[99ex22]

Hey 99ex22,
Thanks for the info on M.O.R.E. offroad. They are nice aluminum pucks, but I'm wondering about the aggravation factor of buying just the pucks. i.e. bumper brackets etc. If I bought the kit and cut them down I could alter the kit brackets as opposed to fabricating new ones. What do you think. I'm open for suggestions.
Thanks, Al

You don't need brackets or anything for just a 1" body lift. Most everything has enough adjustment to get it up another inch. The only thing I had to do was make the holes in the front of the frame where the bumper mounts a little bigger so I could raise it up.

 

[albi1cnobi1]

Hey 99ex22,

What did you do for body bolts? Is there enough length on the stock bolts?

Thanks, Al

 

[99ex22]

You need two 5 1/2" bolts and nuts for the 2 front mounts (you have to drill the mounts out to 1/2") And for the mounts behind the front seats you need to go to the junk yard and pull the bolts out of a explorer from the very rear of the cargo area (they're longer) all the other bolts will work just fine! You don't need to extend anything either, everything stays in the stock location.

 

[albi1cnobi1]

Hey 99ex22,

Thanks for the info. I think I'll probably go that route.

Al

 

[albi1cnobi1]

Hey 99ex22,

Your ex looks great! I have a question. I have the 5r55e tranny, will that BW 4406 fit behind mine? If so what is involved. ( different drive shafts etc.) Is it a direct bolt in except for the shift linkage? Again your rig looks outstanding, great job.

Al

 

[99ex22]

No it won't work on yours. Also there would be no point in doing it as you already have lo range.

 

[albi1cnobi1]

99ex22,

I was really just looking to switch to a manual shift t-case. But in doing some research I think the BW 1354 will work better for me.

Thanks, Al

 

[choey53]

hey, i was wondering.....i got a 2000 ford explorer xls. can i get away with just buying this kit.....http://www.suspensionconnection.com/cgi-bin/suscon/883.html.........or do i need to get TT and shackles?

 

[section525]

hey, i was wondering.....i got a 2000 ford explorer xls. can i get away with just buying this kit.....http://www.suspensionconnection.com/cgi-bin/suscon/883.html.........or do i need to get TT and shackles?

You can use just that kit.

 

[Shinylion]

Great info man! im a noob, and this really did clear a lot of things up for me so thank you!
Quick question though....i have a 2002 explorer sport manual. will everything you have in your post still apply to me? i have no idea what applies to me, because people tell me to go to the 1995-2001 forum. then when i tell people i have a third gen, they say i can do anything that 2nd gen owners do to lift their explorer...? can you clear up this whole sport thing for me?

 

[gmanpaint]

Your Sport is technically a 2nd gen. Sports til 2003 are the remainder of the 2nd gens, even though they are past the 2001 models.

You have a solid axle in the rear, as the 3rd gens have independent rear suspension, (IRS-(C/V axles, control arms, hubs) and a few other changes in the suspension.

 

[Shinylion]

alright thanks man i really appreciate it. so whatever 2nd gen sport owners use to lift their explorer, i can use the same things?