Swapping monoleaf for 4 door leaf pack worth it?

[Lacky01]

my sport was a money pit right when I got it, but its paid off and now I'm spending money on it cuz I want to!!


I've done the four door leaf swap. I do declare the suspension to be a lot more stiff and harsh, however I can actually load the back up and fill my seats with people and still drive around! I think i'm going to by some adjustable shocks in order to try and take some of the harsh out. ill be buying them one at a time however, I dont have a ton of extra money to spend.



P.S.- do the swap! you'll never get ride quality. you might as well try for ride quantity...

 

[Mark98]

Mark98,
It will be at least a month before I replace my monoleafs. Last week I replaced my windshield. This week I'm replacing my tires (they were bald when I bought the vehicle). In the next couple of weeks I'll replace my leaking single row radiator with a double row. I've only driven my Sport 3 times since its purchase.

Ok please give me some feedback when you do it. I'd appreciate it.

It will be a while til I get the swap done. Next week I am fixing the rust on my rocker panels, after that tires, and after that a nice hidden hitch. Then it will be time to save for leafs.

my sport was a money pit right when I got it, but its paid off and now I'm spending money on it cuz I want to!!

Yea I hear you. My sport is paid off too, that's why I was trying to smooth the ride a little bit!

 

[2000StreetRod]

Springs ordered

Yesterday my new BFG Long Trail Tour tires were mounted. I hoped having tread instead of slicks would improve the ride but was disappointed. I'm still jarred in my seat by every little bump on the road. I suspect the body travel is less than a normal coil spring or multileaf suspended vehicle. A single uniform spring like the monoleaf would be fairly linear and have to be stiffer than a nonlinear multileaf spring.

I ordered the 3plus1 (overoad) multileaf springs from TheSuspensionKing today in an attempt to improve my Sport ride comfort. Future ride improvement possibilities include front seat and shocks replacement.

 

[Mark98]

I suspect the body travel is less than a normal coil spring or multileaf suspended vehicle. A single uniform spring like the monoleaf would be fairly linear and have to be stiffer than a nonlinear multileaf spring.

That's what I thought originally, but everyone here makes me think otherwise!

 

[2000StreetRod]

Today I replaced my left sagging (1.5 inches compared to right) monoleaf spring with a 3+1 (overload) leaf spring from TheSuspensionKing. I now know a good reason that Ford engineers used the monoleaf. Each monoleaf weighs 23 pounds and the associated 4 spacers weigh 6.5 pounds for a total weight of 29.5 pounds compared to the 3+1 that weighs 47.25 pounds. The combined (both springs) weight savings is 35.5 pounds less than the 3+1 multileaf. I suspect that the 4 leaf multileaf weighs almost as much as the 3+1.

I encountered one significant obstacle with the 3+1 springs. The bolt that holds the leaves together came with a nut that was larger than the hole in the shock mounting plate that bolts to the bottom of the spring with the U bolts. I had two options to overcome the obstacle. One was to use the old nut and bolt. The other was to grind the hole in the shock mounting plate larger. I soaked the nut with rust solvent and was lucky to loosen it without breaking by hitting my breaker bar with a 4 pound hand sledge hammer (poor man's impact wrench). I tightened C clamps on each end of the overload spring and then removed the bolt in the new spring. I placed one of the spacers from the monoleaf on top of the new spring main leaf and bolted all together with the bolt and nut from the monoleaf spring.

After reassembling everything I checked my new ride height. It was about 1/4 inch higher than the sagged height. That means that the 3+1 spring without the spacer would have been 3/4 inch lower than stock. I need to add one (possibly two) more spacers to achieve the 1.5 inch drop the Edelbrock IAS shocks are designed for. In order to add 2 more spacers I will need to purchase longer leaf spring U bolts and longer thru the leaf bolts.

 

[wisco]

Do the 4 leaf mount with different shackles?

 

[2000StreetRod]

Do the 4 leaf mount with different shackles?

The original shackles were in good condition and mated to the new springs. The same was true for the spring front mounts. If it wasn't for the large nut on the bottom of the leaf pack the swap would have been easy.

I forgot to mention that it was difficult to compress the IAS gas shocks. I had to place a small scissor jack under the lower bolt mount, raising the jack to compress the shock and then slide it into position on the mounting plate.

 

[wisco]

Thats good to know I ordered shackles for mine because one of them is rusted almost off the truck. I would like to change out the leaf springs eventually but need to get this fixed pronto if you know what I mean. I am not sure how long I will be keeping this Explorer sport my wife wants to get a smaller vehicle than her van and if that happens I will need a bigger truck for our outdoor needs.