body droped

[00exploder]

i was wondering if anyone here has preformed a body drop on a 98-00 explorer and if they had any tips or places to get the parts to do it. pic of you body drop would be cool to see.

 

[XplorerKid]

theres been a couple threads lately asking this........

and the answer is NO no one on here has preformed one......

there have been plenty of Pictures posted of other ones tho

PEACE

also u can search and prolly find some of the pics that have been pposted.... i rememebr one of them was an orange one

 

[ShadowA2J]

Not the site to find a body drop, maybe a body lift(if it even exists). This site is mostly offroaders with its fair share of streeters.

 

[Hartman]

Are you bagged yet? I'm assuming you are, since you want a body drop.

Body drops are not something that you can get a kit for, especially on an Explorer. Everything needs to be fabricated. If you want to stock floor body drop it, you will need to make new, smaller frame rails for the body so it can go lower. You need to make tunnels in your floor for the driveline.

Of course I'm just skimming the surface. I don't know what your plans are, so I can't really give you more advice.

 

[kingsleysurf]

like hartman was saying, basically you have to reweld everything on your car to where it used to fit like this:

_\

would now fit like this

-\

something like that...

 

[Hartman]

Well not really. You just have to make new framerails and reweld your body mounts. That's putting it very simply though.

 

[kingsleysurf]

well, what i meant was... its not exactly the simplest of tasks if you have never done it before or helped do it

 

[Hartman]

Correct, it's a LARGE and very laborious task. It's not one of those things where you can get step by step instructions on how to do it either, you just have to sort of dive into it and make adjustments where you see fit. Bodydropping an Explorer is especially foreign because not very many people have done it.

 

[PunkChild]

body dropping or channeling is an assload of work. I body dropped a ranger while I was at wyotech. Basicly you have to cut the floor of your car around the outside of your frame rails and drop the whole body down 2-3 inches then weld in supports to hold it. What you end up with is less headroom and funny looking floors. Unless your car is for show I wouldn't suggest doing it. it's not very fun to ride around in a car where you have to tilt your head to the side or ride around like a thug all layed back in the seat.

 

[PunkChild]

BTW there are no body drop kits. You just need a welder, a lot of flat stock, and a plasma cutter or sawzall.

 

[Hartman]

You can do a stock floor body drop where you won't have to loose headroom or cut your floor. You just make smaller framerails underneath the cab to drop the body.

 

[rokke17]

Hartman you sure seem to be a big fan of those stock floor body drops, may I ask why you like them over the more traditional style?

 

[Hartman]

Stock floor body drops have obvious advantages. For one, you don't have to raise your floor, which means you don't loose headroom and your floor won't look rediculous. You will, however, have to build humps in the middle of the floor for the driveline. I've heard that the stock floor method is not all that more diffcult than a traditional body drop.

 

[PunkChild]

That is another way, but smaller frame rails also equal a weak frame. They tend to break in half or bend.

 

[rokke17]

Originally posted by PunkChild
That is another way, but smaller frame rails also equal a weak frame. They tend to break in half or bend.

Yeah thats my thoughts. If you are gonna chop your frame in half lengthwise, you had better be damn sure you can box it up and still retain strength. Ford puts millions of $ into designing the frames how they are for good reason. Cutting the floor out and welding it in lower on the frame doesnt affect the truck as much as cuttin up the frame IMO.

Bottom line, there are benefits to both, but either way its alot of work.

 

[Hartman]

If you use 2x3 stock it is actually stronger than the stock c-channel frame because it is fully boxed and the metal is thicker than the stock metal frame. If you are a good welder you can pull it off safely, it's done all the time.

Now, body drops are usually not something done on a daily driver, although they could be.

 

[PunkChild]

boxing the frame will make it stronger. The only thing is the height of the frame is what gives it resistance to flex and twist. If you are going to do it, do it right. I don't know about you guys but a frame is one thing to modifly the right way. Like those mini-notches at suicidedoors.com. Those things are a hunk of crap. Who in their right mind would do a bolt on notch? Why is it called a mini-notch anyway?

 

[Hartman]

Those bolt on notches are fine. I've never heard of anyone breaking a frame in any way with a bolt-on notch. The only time I've heard of a notch breaking was when it was poorly welded.

Mini c:

Monster c:

I'm not going to get in an argument about what is safe and what is not. I know for a fact that body drops and notches are completely safe IF done right.

 

[rokke17]

I vote for a full tube frame. Stronger, lighter, good deal.

 

[james t]

i ran a bolt on mini-C on a 90 big block chevy truck with 450hp. never had a single issue. the truck eventually was rearended hard enough to total it out, and there was no frame damage whatsoever near the notch. as much as i beat on that thing, and as much as the old lady in the DeVille beat on it, i would say it held up very well.