Lift Kits for the 93'

[Waverider]

I am looking to lift my explorer soon and I am not going for a lot of lift. Would I be better of to buy the Rancho or James Duff 2 1/2 lift or put new spring on the truck. 500 to 700 dollars is a lot of money that could easily buy the 5 1/2 or 4 inchs of lift from superlift.

 

[Campbell]

You have options. If you are looking to go really cheap and have some mechanincal inclination to install a lift yourself, then you can order a 2 or 3 inch body lift from http://www.4wheelparts.com these go for under $100.

My thought is that if you are going to start spending money, then you might as well just go silly. check these lifts out Dead Link Removed there is a 10 inch lift in there with a solid axel conversion...nots thats a bad ass explorer.

 

[Waverider]

I thought about the whole body lift thing, but I decided to stay with suspension. Not quite sure what I am going to do. I will have plenty of money in the summer to throw around so I may just get the 2 1/2 suspension. Not really enthusied about putting on another body lift. Can I fit 32's under the 2 1/2 and would it smart to upgrade to lower gears from my 3.27 without a locker?

 

[Campbell]

this is what i think

Some people can squeeze in 31s with no lift...so 32s should not be a problem with 2.5" of lift. All that I can suggest is that your rim off set is great enough to keep the tires from rubbing on the inside (so no stock rims). To answer your question about the gears, it is all about preference. I suggest that you do the lift and tires first and see how you like it. For me (with 33s) my stock 3.73 were not enough. I wanted the lower gearing for wheeling and accelerating and bumped up to a 4.56. For you I would suggest the stock 3.73 upgrade or even 4.10s. I hope this helps.

 

[Waverider]

Wouldn't upgrading to lower gears increase my rpms at 60? Right now it is a little under 2000. with 32's and lower gears would it stay the same or would I be turning higher rpms?

 

[Campbell]

rpms higher

yes, your rpms will get higher. But that is where your power is at, granted that kills your gas milage, but what the hell. I have 33s and 4.56 and I am only turning about 3000 rpms at 75mph. I would suggest going to http://www.4lo.com they have some really good calculators to figure out your rmps and what-not. (by the way you will need to know what the diameter of the stock tire is. Its about 29 inches. I think that you will find that there is not at huge difference in rpms that you would expect. I can still get up into the 90mph range without pushing my v6 too hard. One other advantage to gears is shifting. Some people will find that with bigger tires, their tranny will not shift into over drive because it is way too bogged down. It is not a problem with lower gears and therefore in theory could actually get better highway milage!

 

[kvo]

I know for sure you can fit 32" under the Rancho 2.5" suspension kit, that's what I have with some trimming. Depending on the kind of wheels (offset) you have, you may have to grind out a little bit of the flange on the radius arms so the tires don't rub under full turn and full compression. My offset is 3.5" (AR 63) and I had to grind a little bit. In addition, you'll also have to trim the wheel well and a little bit of body metal behind the tire, it's all trial and error.

I don't think 32" will fit with the standard James Duff 2.5" kit, which uses stock radius arms.

If you're going to run 32s, then definitely upgrade your gears to at least 4.10 and when you upgrade your gears, definitely put in at least a rear locker. If you intend on going wheeling, you'd want to have a locker installed at the time new gears are installed. It saves you the installation cost of the locker.

 

[Campbell]

BTW, I think that you can avoid some of the headache of trimming and grinding if you go with a greater offset. I have 4 3/8 inches of offset and mine barely rub on my sway bar and I had to do a small amount of rolling to the corner of my fender (didn't cut anything).

 

[Waverider]

You gotting any pictures of the 2.5 lift? I have seen the 5.5 and the 4 but have yet to see the 2.5 on an explorer. Plus what tims offer the better offsets? My Explorer's rims have seen better days.

 

[kvo]

Here are two pictures of my truck with the Rancho 2.5".

Clear Creek, CA:

Rosetto:

[Edited by kvo on 11-09-2000 at 08:19 AM]

 

[Waverider]

kvo, thanks but neither website will let me open them. Says forbidden to external hosts or something to that extent. Did your Rancho come with shocks and everything else you needed? I don't think my bilsteins will work with the 2.5.

 

[kvo]

Waverider -

It does not come with shocks so you have your choices of shocks out there. I choose the Rancho RS 9000 because of the adjustability and lifetime warranty.

I'll try to repost the pictures!