Ford went thru the trouble to patent those crappy torsion bar pads that wear out

[96eb96]

not one of their better ideas

http://patentimages.storage.googleapis.com/pdfs/US5685527.pdf

Mine are worn out and you can't even get a replacement.

 

[239]

not one of their better ideas

http://patentimages.storage.googleapis.com/pdfs/US5685527.pdf

Mine are worn out and you can't even get a replacement.

I'm pretty sure mine are gone too. I'm going to try to convert to coil overs eventually. Why Ford decided to go with torsion bars is a mystery to me. The Explorer was marketed as a family suv, so I don't know how torsion bars were chosen over coil overs when it comes to ride quality.

 

[Dave98XLT]

This should be an interesting discussion. Explorers went from twin I-beam to torsion bars to coil overs between Gen 1, 2 & 3. I think the benifits of torsion bars is the compact design. It probably allowed higher ground clearance and easier addition of front CV's and R&P steering, which greatly improved the drivability of the Gen 2 over a solid front axle design. Getting in to Gen 3, the NHTSA made Ford redesign for a lower center of gravity because of rollover problems and coil overs were introduced, and ground clearance was reduced.

 

[Turdle]

Callout Name: 5B328
Part Number Part Description Price Your Price Availability Quantity
5B328

Torsion Bar Load Kit
1.5, Kevlar patch is attached
$65.70

It's part of a new torsion bar key, available from Ford. It is year specific, used I believe on 95 thru some 97 explorers and mountaineers. Later versions use an isolator pad.

 

[Turdle]

1998 up isolator looks different

 

[96eb96]

Callout Name: 5B328
Part Number Part Description Price Your Price Availability Quantity
5B328

Torsion Bar Load Kit
1.5, Kevlar patch is attached
$65.70

It's part of a new torsion bar key, available from Ford. It is year specific, used I believe on 95 thru some 97 explorers and mountaineers. Later versions use an isolator pad.

95-97 (like in the patent) is obsoleted(per searches and conversations with parts departments)

98+ is another story,not sure.

 

[239]

This should be an interesting discussion. Explorers went from twin I-beam to torsion bars to coil overs between Gen 1, 2 & 3. I think the benifits of torsion bars is the compact design. It probably allowed higher ground clearance and easier addition of front CV's and R&P steering, which greatly improved the drivability of the Gen 2 over a solid front axle design. Getting in to Gen 3, the NHTSA made Ford redesign for a lower center of gravity because of rollover problems and coil overs were introduced, and ground clearance was reduced.

There's a lot of people who run coil overs with plenty of clearance for the mentioned systems. The CV axles can even clear coil overs on second gens. Maybe it was to save money? Since they could use the tools for Rangers also. But didn't rangers from around that time have coil overs too?

 

[Turdle]

95-97 isolator is just a rubber-ok, call it kevlar, strip glued to the adjuster key. I think you can make a reasonable alternative without all this overthinking. It isn't going to move much.

 

[koda2000]

I wonder if using the rubber and canvas (?) exhaust hanger material glued with 3M yellow weather stripping adhesive would work? It seems like pretty tough stuff.

 

[96eb96]

This should be an interesting discussion. Explorers went from twin I-beam to torsion bars to coil overs between Gen 1, 2 & 3. I think the benifits of torsion bars is the compact design. It probably allowed higher ground clearance and easier addition of front CV's and R&P steering, which greatly improved the drivability of the Gen 2 over a solid front axle design. Getting in to Gen 3, the NHTSA made Ford redesign for a lower center of gravity because of rollover problems and coil overs were introduced, and ground clearance was reduced.

95 explorers and 2011 rangers and Mazda B trucks share the exact same front suspension if they are 4X4s. Everything interchanges per rockauto, and I got Torsion bars from a late model ranger. The 98+ have an improved torsion key setup as discussed.

RWD Chrysler cars had torsion bar/leaf springs from the 50s to the early 90s. Some interesting reads on that. So did Durangos, and supposedly they are supposed to be good handling rigs