Small lift for the newbie.

[Godsent]

Ok, ok, I understand that the search tool is needed here, but I've been on this site religiously for the past 4 days and can't find exactly what I need. The closest I have gotten was the torsion twist forum and this quote "Your 91 uses coil springs, not torsion bars. To level yours out, you'll need lift coils or coil spring spacers."
I would figure my 94 would be the same thing. Now to the part where I just can't find any information on.
-Lift coils? These are bigger (longer) coils to extend the suspension?
-Coil spring spacers? These are the rubber inserts used to reduce the spring from contracting? I've read some bad things about the spacers on here, so is there any other alternitive?

"Suspension Helpers" Something I've heard of at school, just a rubber block on your leafs, are they worth it?

If nothing here aplies, I am looking for something small and cheap to start out with, that I (with almost no knowledge) can install myself. I do nothing more than run thru ruts friends leave for me at this time, so the demand on the lift wont be as high as what you all put yours through.

I just need something small to start with, to gain some beginner knowledge. Any help would be apretiated.

Again sorry about the redundant topic, but after a few days of searching, I decided just to post.

Edit.
This is it '94 Explorer
As of now I plan on buying a Grille Guard, I think I have one picked out but some suggestions there would be good too (installation dificulty, usefulness, looks, fog lamps and the such).

 

[CodePoet]

Ok first...ditch the idea of those spring spacer things that go inside the coil. They are absolute junk. Get a set of f150 coil spacers. These are actaully the lower spring seat from a mid 90's 2wd f150, the give you 1 and 5/8ths" lift. For the rear...helper springs don't give you lift. You need an add a leaf of a set of lift shackles. For more info search "F150 spacers" and "add a leaf" or "warrior shackles". Currently i have the f150 spacer/aal lift...i'm ditching it soon for my sas though hehe

For a 1st gen that's the cheapest lift there is. you will need an alignemtn but since your not lifting it over 2"s you don't need drop brackets. If you got coils for anything over 2"s you would not be able to align it without new drop brackets.

that was a quicky answer...if you need more help let me know

 

[Godsent]

Thanks for the responce. I knew there was hope!

As for the "warrior shackles" - These?
As for the f150 Coil Spring Spacers - These?
Before I start buy'n I want to make sure I got the right stuff.

 

[CodePoet]

similar on both. Warrior Shackles are a brand of shackle that's very good. F150 spacers are metal, i don't trust poly it'd eventuyally have to break down, then you'd have to replace them.

 

[dman726749]

you want warrior part number war-153, as for the coil seats your best bet is to go to a dealer and see if tehy can get them for you or a junk yard to get them......good to see more indiana people on here

 

[Godsent]

Well if you recomend them well then I'm game.
Curse waiting, I want to do it now!
Grr.

To tell you the truth I don't know where Greenwood is but I'm just south of Gary.

Well I was peekin around and fell upon this thread, would the 3" body lift listed work with the above items?
war-153

Guess I'll need to set aside some cash for tires now too...

 

[Godsent]

With the shackles and the coil seats, will I have to do a lot of other modifications (brake lines and the such), or should it all just bolt back up and go?
Would it be more wise to do this or buy a body lift of some kind? They seem to be about the same price.
Lift in question
One set of Warrior Shackles - Price: $80.95
F150 Coil Spring Spacers - Price: $74.95
Total= $155.90 plus S/H
(or is there something else I will need to do/pay for afterwards?)

3" Body
lift3" Body lift - Price: $98.95
Total= $98.95 plus S/H

Would they both work together? Would I have to replace anything else? (I would figure 4 5/8th inch lift there would be substantial things to be replaced)

I'm still terribly confused, please forgive me for being such a retard...

 

[CodePoet]

What i was reffering to as f150 spacers ARE NOT "spacers". They are the lower spring seat from a mid 90's f150 2wd. They are factory components not daystar. I got mine for 20 bucks at the pull a part yard. I also don't think those are "warrior" shackles...you can get them abit cheaper at www.desertrat.com i beleive. You WILL need an alignment afterwards. The shop that does the alignment will most likely have to put a new camber adjuster in.

You can you the body lift with the suspension lift, substantial things will not have to be replaced. If you were doing all suspension then you would need to get more parts . Do your reasearch on here, get the part numbers and the kit will come with pretty much everything you need.

What size tire are you wanting to run? You may also want to think about re-gearing if your thinking 33" or bigger

 

[RangerX]

The BEST advice for you is to slow down and not buy anything for a while. Just read, read, and read some more, until you have an understanding of what these parts do, and don't do.
Then, you can make educated decisions. Trust me, I was right where you are once.

 

[Godsent]

All this will move real slow, much like I do, due to the budget and wanting to dive into this myself with almost no knowledge of cars at all.
The site says manufacturer is Warrior, but if I can get 'em cheaper I'm there.
$59.99 at this site
I'll look into the F150 seats. I can't find them as a replacement part anywhere on the net, so I'll look into a pick and pull nearby.

I got the body lift numbers from someone on here, but they didn't list anything else they needed for it, but I'm sure there's something that had to be done afterwards.

I plan on running whatever I can fit under it and with my budget. Shooting around 31s but I really have no idea.

I want to make sure I don't get in over my head when I start this, is all. This will have to be a one to two day project at best, because this is my only long term driver.

RangerX:
To tell you the truth thats all I have been doing for the past few days (aside from getting my explorer stuck in mud...) I have been trying to learn, but with absolutely no past knowledge its hard to jump into something like this. Hell about all I can do is change my tires and a few fluids...

 

[RangerX]

Yeah, I saw that yu've been reading for four days, that puts you way ahead of every other newbie!

 

[ExporeRanger]

i've got a coil spring spacer..2 in..and a procomp add a leaf for the rear combined with teh warrior shackles..this lift..is about 2-3 in rear, and 1.5-2 in the front..

coil spring spacer is a polyurethane piece that slides into the coil and bolts up with all the stock components if you hav a 4x4..they were bout 35 bux on ebay..(no exntension of anything)

the add a leaf is a lotmore work, if you've got he parts, impact guns, grinders, the know how in general, a hydraulic jack or 2..some jackstands, and a buddy go ahead..it took me about a weekend to yank everythings, sand and paint it all, replace all teh bushings in the rear, and bolt everything back up.. the rear lift was a procomp add a leaf off of summit racing online store..bout 35 bux too..and the shackle lift was the warrior war-153..only 55..iono wut this $80 dollar crap it about..off summit i also got me some polyurethance bushings..i suggest you do this bcause chances are your bushings willbe shot anyway..and since your under ther..its a good idea to replace em..make the ride a lot better n last forever..actually improves look and work-on-ability too lol

did not need any extensions on anything for the rear lift either..however..anythign bigger then 2-3in in the front or the rear of the first gen. ex liek yours n mine..will probably need a few extensions..like brake line, def e-brake line, and maybe a drop pitman arm for the steering..beyon that im not so sure exactyl..but those are usually the first to need exntensions..even with the minimal lift i hav you will need an alighment, and will prbably need some camber bushings or "shims'..that will all be done at a alignment shop..
so in summary

front lift:
polyurethane coil spacer $30-35 ebay (mako mfg.) or anywher

rear lift:
procomp add a leaf (summitracing.com) $35
warrior extended shackle (warrior products) $55

I STRONGLY SUGGEST::
rear lift:
get 2.5 in grade 8 machine hardware (hex head bolt and nut 3/8 size) to use instead of the bolts procomp provides, ther flat head heads and weak and way too long (couple bucks at hardware store)

all new bushings for leafs and even the shackles (bout $35 on summitracing.com

ALSO: the coil sapcer is the cheap way to go..but its my understanding that the rough country and skyjacker 2 in lift coils for the front (replace existing coils) are a rather cheap way to achieve the same hieight or a lil more legitimately and safely..plus itll look better..and it still should not require any kind of extenders..

ther is an awesome step by step qwrite up on installations of the coil spacers on here and of the add a leafs on here for your exact expo..so thats my opinion lol..

 

[Lt.Jim]

You can get the f150 coil seats for about $35.00 shipped from rockauto.com

Here are the part numbers:
F2TZ5A307A Ford Coil Spring spacer
F2TZ5A307B Ford Coil Spring spacer

There is a write up on therangerstation.com on how to install them. I'll see if I can find the link.

EDIT: Here is the link for the f150 coil seat install. It is shown on a ranger but it is the same setup as your ex.
http://www.therangerstation.com/tech_library/factoryspacer.htm

 

[Mattmancustoms]

http://www.therangerstation.com/tech_library/factoryspacer.htm

That shows a good picture of the spacers for the front and it also gives you part numbers so that you can go to ford and get them new. The other thing would be to follow the directions on the website to put them on as the ranger front end is about the same as the explorer's front end.

With the coil spacers and the shackles you should be able to fit a 31x10.5x15 tire under there.