Body Lift concerns

[CodePoet]

Hey all. I just got my first X and well I love it but unfortunatly the girl who owned it before me deffinitly didn't give give a rats ass about it's offroad ability, it's got a set of hidious street tires, crap shocks ect. So i've been giving serious consideration to giving it a mild '2-'3 inch lift. I've been looking a lift coils, and complete kits. Unfortunatly as a cash strapped college boy, i've found the idea of a body lift appealing. I know that it's not near as good as a suspension lift but i'm not going to be using it as a hard-core offroad machine. Question is how much daylight is going to show through, and will this be ugly as hell? Also it's got a manual tranny, will any major problem arise doing this? I'm kinda unsure of what to do. Thanks to all who (hopefully) reply

-JT

 

[Crankcase]

What size tires are you looking to run? The Explorer will more than likely fit 31's at stock height. On a body lift you have to get a shifter extension. There is lots on this in other threads, simply use the search button here

 

[CodePoet]

I'm planning on running 31's I was thining I wanted a lift since under heavier flex I'm affraid it'll rub. If the rubbing won't be that bad or inside the wheel well i'm sure I could just open the wheel well up alittle. Think that would be a better idea?

-jt

 

[yob_yeknom]

If you're only planning on running 31's, coil spacers for the front and longer shackles for the rear will produce a couple inches of lift. Much cheaper and a lot easier to install. Use the search function and you'll come up with a lot of info on it.

Hint: do not confuse it with the torsion twist (TT) lift. Your model Explorer does not have torsion bars.

 

[CodePoet]

shocks

I like that solution much more than a body lift. What about shocks though? right now it's bone stock. It's got Monroe Gas-Magnum Plus shocks all the way around. I've read a few posts saying that for just 2"s Monroe's would still work. I'll probably want to upgrade to Rancho's but since i'm on a budget just wondering if these will work. I appologize for all the question, i'm pretty new to this type of vehicle modfication. Thanks for all the help guys.

-JT

 

[yob_yeknom]

Up front, I'm not sure since I've never worked with a TTB front end. I'm sure searching should bring up an answer for you though.

As for the rear, it's up to you. You'd get more wheel travel with 2" longer shocks. OME (Old Man Emu) makes rear shocks for a 2" lift, along with a couple more companies. It's not mandatory though, as many members are running stock length shocks with that setup.