Junkyard Score! EX Superlift Kit!

[SWIGIN]

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!

This year I am thankful that my brother knows a dude that owns a junkyard and gave him a heads up that he just got in an EX with a lift. Turns out it was the old Superlift with leaf springs! He left us go into his yard and get this lift today even being closed!

It's hard to even find any info on these lifts anymore, I suppose it is a 4'' and not a 5'' like the new Ranger kits. It is 100% complete as far as I can tell. It even has the bump stop and brake line relocator brackets. The rear springs need new center bolts since one broke but the polyurethane spring bushings are in beautiful shape.

Of course the brackets are all rusted and will need blasted and recoated but it should clean up and be fine under my 98!







As you can see in the first pic we left the front all together to save time. I'll work on taking it apart and blasting the parts in my warm garage.

Second pic is the T Bar drop brackets. They didn't put the cover back on them so I'll have to figure out what the deal is with notching them to fit. I was hoping they were on it and done already but they weren't so I just mod mine.

The last pic is all the little things like rear end drop brackets, swaybar end links, ect

 

[410Fortune]

Wicked good score!! Now if the JY owner gets any Torque Monster headers or perhaps a 5.0 Pro Charger, maybe an Atlas t case! have him let you know so you can nab those too!
I have seen all of those at the junk yards, some people get super lucky! Nice find

 

[SWIGIN]

Luckily, my brother helps him at his JY every other weekend so I get a pretty good idea of what's new. I got a pile of brand new factory shackles and gas filler necks with the Ford stickers still on them. My bro just keeps grabbing them, might have to start selling some.

I'm having a hard time finding shocks online for this lift. Seems like Superlift wants nothing to do with it and with the extended bottom mount the fronts use I'm having no luck. I have the slightly longer Rancho shocks on my EX right now made for 1''-2'' with my TT but they will be to short and that's all see on Ranchos site.

If anyone knows of a plus 4'' shock please leave a link to them. I searched on here for hours last night and all the old links I found are now dead.


PS. 410Fortune, If you have seen all those in JY I do call you lucky!

 

[410Fortune]

Ill see what I can find, I know the info is scarce but it is out there. What I normally have to do in this situation is actually put the vehicle together, flex the suspension and actually measure for shocks.....then compare measurements to charts Rancho and Bilstein have posted online

 

[SWIGIN]

I finally came across this on the ranger station.

https://www.therangerstation.com/tech_library/pdf_documents/superlift_shocks-superide.pdf

I would prefer Rancho 5000 shocks so I'm still looking but I can only find the 2'' TT length shocks.

I hate all the photos in shock adds not looking like the ones we need for the front. These stock photos are killing me.

 

[alaskan155]

just look up the shock part number for the 5" rough country kit, its based off the superlift kit.

 

[SWIGIN]

just look up the shock part number for the 5" rough country kit, its based off the superlift kit.

The problem is that will get you Ranger shocks. The fronts will work but the rears do not so it's not that simple.

Besides I finally found an old Superlift shock chart that goes by vehicle and I posted it above. This chart should be a sticky for how hard it is to find info on these shocks.


EDIT..... I looked up those Rough Country Ranger shocks and even the front shocks wont work right. They are 2'' longer when extended and over an inch longer when collapsed.

 

[toypaseo]

Sweet score

I only run across stock Explorers in the yards I go to

 

[gmanpaint]

The Rancho catalog has all the measurements listed. Find the stock rear shock measure, add 4", and browse the catalog until you find the shock that works.

If you go soa with stock leafs, the shocks that say 1-2" of lift, will work great. If you relocate the lower tabs, stock shock length works too.

 

[SWIGIN]

The Rancho catalog has all the measurements listed. Find the stock rear shock measure, add 4", and browse the catalog until you find the shock that works.

If you go soa with stock leafs, the shocks that say 1-2" of lift, will work great. If you relocate the lower tabs, stock shock length works too.

The problem is Rancho don't make a +4 front shock for the EX or Ranger.

Superlift is the only one who make both front and rear +4 as far as a direct bolt on.

 

[SWIGIN]

According to the Superlift shock chart in the link I posted above the correct front shocks are #85331 and the rears are #85151.

Summit racing has both in stock so I ordered them. If you look for them on Superlifts site they don't come up unless you search the part numbers.

 

[gmanpaint]

Ahh, thought you meant you had the fronts figured, just not the rears.

Sounds like you got it handled now.

 

[SWIGIN]

New shocks, end link bushings, spring center bolts and whatever else I ordered is supposed to be delivered today!

 

[SWIGIN]

Any input as far as fitment with wheels like these and 33s?

https://www.4wd.com/p/pro-comp-51-s...clid=ADL-eed8fe56-27d0-4c9a-ad70-5965844573ec

They also have a 4'' back space wheel, I'm unsure what I want.

 

[palavine1951]

Why mess with torsion bars. Go with coil overs. There are two kits out there to upgrade the front suspension on 2nd gen explorers and rangers. Desert Fab and True Travel Dynamics. If you do any offroading this is the hot ticket. A little costly but better ground clearance and performance.

 

[410Fortune]

3.75" is the standard backspacing used on these trucks most of the time
Coilover conversion is the way to go!!

 

[SWIGIN]

Why mess with torsion bars. Go with coil overs. There are two kits out there to upgrade the front suspension on 2nd gen explorers and rangers. Desert Fab and True Travel Dynamics. If you do any offroading this is the hot ticket. A little costly but better ground clearance and performance.

95% of the time this thing is my daily driver, on road.

I drove a 79 Bronco for 18 years before I got the EX and they have radius arm brackets hanging down so I think it will be same old, same old to me.

 

[WormsExplorer]

That is a sweet find. Yeah I am a little slow getting on here LOL. I would love to find a find like this but I will keep plugging away and get my 1.5" Body lift installed then I will be able to get the tires I want. Look forward to seeing this installed on your EX.

 

[SWIGIN]

Thanks to 410Fortune in another thread about tires I am going with these bad boys.

https://www.4wd.com/p/dick-cepek-33...ountry-72530-90000024324/_/R-BGXJ-90000024324

 

[WormsExplorer]

Those look awesome