Wonder how hard it would be to do THIS for Explorers? RIZE 8" lift for Expedition

[JoeCool6972]

OK, sorry I over reacted. The whole "mall crawler" and "welcome to 2007" comments got it started for me... "what's the point if you're not going to use it?" really pissed me off.
Not everyone has to go mudslinging and rockcrawling and destroy their brand new truck, that's just stupid. I say: "what's the point in destroying my truck when there are PAVED ROADS I can drive on THAT ACTUALLY LEAD SOMEWHERE!" Not everyone who doesn't play off-road has to drive a bone stock truck either. I have owned another show truck as well, a 1994 Nissan lowered 4" in front, and 5" rear on Billet wheels. Sorry if I piss off anyone, but I like the look of a raised show truck... what's wrong with that?

Also... I did not mean EVERYONE was a smartass.

And to the "glorified mini van" comment... tell that to anyone in the military who has driven a HUMVEE, as they are four wheel independant suspension.

 

[briwayjones]

And to the "glorified mini van" comment... tell that to anyone in the military who has driven a HUMVEE, as they are four wheel independant suspension.

Umm, yeah but that the four wheel independent suspension was designed to be extreme off road from the inception. That's it's purpose. The purpose of it on the newer explorers is to give the soccer moms a cushy ride.

 

[IZwack]

Yeah comparing the Explorer's Indep Susp to the H1's is like saying a hang glinder is the same thing as a jet liner. The H1's suspension is first of all a Portal design - something you'll never ever find on a civil vehicle other than the H1 these days.

 

[eXcali]

And to the "glorified mini van" comment... tell that to anyone in the military who has driven a HUMVEE, as they are four wheel independant suspension.

I've driven Army HMMWV (highly mobile multipurpose wheeled vehicle) thru hell and back. Please don't compare them to the Gen 3 explorers as with apples and oranges, they are fruit and grow on trees, but thats where the similarity ends. I've air-dropped HMMWV's, slung load them under chinooks, planted them in 5 feet of mud and driven them thru the streets of Baghdad. Now 3rd gen explorers are not even on the same side of the planet in terms of comparison to them.

All that being said, if you wish to do some digging: Read up on Fords mindset for the 3rd generation explorers. They were designed to target then current mini-van owners in an effort to pull them to the SUV in order to boost sales. Now this isn't saying that a 3rd generation can't be made into an off-road vehicle, I am simply informing you that the reason you don't see kits is the same reason you don't see lift kits for BMWs. The vast majority of it's target base isn't interested in off-roading or "off-road looking" vehicles.

 

[1_v8_merc]

I saw a Ford Excursion once, and this sucker must have had ATLEAST a 3 foot lift or something on it.......
This thing was JACKED SKYHIGH

I was right behind it in my s-10.....i felt like a ####ing Micro-Machine or Hotwheel sitting behind that thing!

And it was Fast as hell too!
I watched it walk some BMW or Mustang GT like it was nothing.....



I've seen a thread on here with a 3RD GEN EXPLORER that had a 9 inch or 12" lift on it or something???? It was setup for rally racing.....

There was also another person on here that saw a very high 3rd Gen going down the road........????

 

[eXcali]

I saw a Ford Excursion once, and this sucker must have had ATLEAST a 3 foot lift or something on it.......
This thing was JACKED SKYHIGH

I was right behind it in my s-10.....i felt like a ####ing Micro-Machine or Hotwheel sitting behind that thing!

And it was Fast as hell too!
I watched it walk some BMW or Mustang GT like it was nothing.....



I've seen a thread on here with a 3RD GEN EXPLORER that had a 9 inch or 12" lift on it or something???? It was setup for rally racing.....

There was also another person on here that saw a very high 3rd Gen going down the road........????

It was a custom mod most likely. I saw an F250 with it's headlights at my head (5'9) but the driver was just a mallcrawler, made me sad for the truck. And the attitude he gave me made me want to report him for glare to local PD as his headlights sat a good foot higher than me while I sat in my explorer.
As well as his bumpers were atleast 3 feet off the ground and only covering the very inside edges of his tires. Had atleast 10 inches of exposed tire tread.

 

[Dannyboy]

I saw an F250 with it's headlights at my head (5'9) ...
As well as his bumpers were atleast 3 feet off the ground

That's about the setup of my F250 I drive every day. 8" lift and 37s will put headlights at about 5 1/2' and bumpers at 3'

I've seen a thread on here with a 3RD GEN EXPLORER that had a 9 inch or 12" lift on it or something???? It was setup for rally racing.....

most racing trucks are set for suspension cycle and low ride height. maybe only 4-6" over stock height but cycling 12"+ of suspension cycling.
real trophy trucks cycle 24" of suspension and sit at ride height just over a stock truck.

 

[JoeCool6972]

Umm, yeah but that the four wheel independent suspension was designed to be extreme off road from the inception. That's it's purpose. The purpose of it on the newer explorers is to give the soccer moms a cushy ride.

WRONG!
The REAL purpose of the four wheel independent suspension is to help handling, as in rollover prevention. :roll:Get some facts before making dumb comments. :thumbdwn:

 

[JoeCool6972]

I've driven Army HMMWV (highly mobile multipurpose wheeled vehicle) thru hell and back. Please don't compare them to the Gen 3 explorers as with apples and oranges, they are fruit and grow on trees, but thats where the similarity ends. I've air-dropped HMMWV's, slung load them under chinooks, planted them in 5 feet of mud and driven them thru the streets of Baghdad. Now 3rd gen explorers are not even on the same side of the planet in terms of comparison to them.

All that being said, if you wish to do some digging: Read up on Fords mindset for the 3rd generation explorers. They were designed to target then current mini-van owners in an effort to pull them to the SUV in order to boost sales. Now this isn't saying that a 3rd generation can't be made into an off-road vehicle, I am simply informing you that the reason you don't see kits is the same reason you don't see lift kits for BMWs. The vast majority of it's target base isn't interested in off-roading or "off-road looking" vehicles.

Try basing your dumb comments on actual facts, or just say nothing at all.. :thumbdwn:

Sorry, but you guys are killing me. Go post in your second and first gen areas where the solid axle rules...
I didn't ask for stupid disrespectful comments, and I won't put up with them either!

 

[IZwack]

WRONG!
The REAL purpose of the four wheel independent suspension is to help handling, as in rollover prevention. :roll:Get some facts before making dumb comments. :thumbdwn:

I think you're misunderstanding briwayjones here. He's saying the H1's indep susp is for extreme conditions where as the Explorer's is not. And briwayjones is right, an indep suspension does give a more cushy ride because one if its highlights is the higher sprung vs. unsprung weight ratio -- that is how the old Cadillacs ran. Even though Cadillacs had a heavy solid rear axle, their combined body/chassis weight was so much, it offset the weight of the rear axle -- which meant the suspension was able to cycle w/o influencing the body/chasiss vertically due to inertia.

 

[briwayjones]

I think you're misunderstanding briwayjones here.

Thanks Senator.

JoeCool
While it does make it harder to roll over the main purpose of Ford making the Explorers and Expeditions IRS was to appeal to the masses. To attract non truck people used to the ride of a car into the truck market to boost their sales, plain and simple.

 

[JoeCool6972]

Ok, I get what you are saying, but comparing my truck or any third gen Explorer to a FREAKING MINIVAN is insulting! Period. It's not like it's a Honduh Ridgeline, which is in fact built directly off a minivan's chassis and is a unibody without a real frame.

 

[Four0Sport]

the ridgeline was co-developed by GM and is loosely based on the trailblazer platform, not a minivan. and also, the Ridgeline won its class in the BAJA series this past fall.

what is wrong with a unibody 4x4? nothing if it is designed for off road ability. the Jeep Cherokee has been unibody since 1984 and look at how many of them are modified. there will only be aftermarket support for a vehicle if the market exists, and so far one large enough doesnt exist for the 3rd gen explorer. which i think answers your original question.

and the fact that the 3rd gen explorers were targeted more for suburban driving than off road ability cant be ignored. every generation of explorer has been designed more and more for 'soccer moms' ever since the first model. heck, you can see the transition starting when they dropped the bronco II for the 91-94 explorers.

and to add.. im replying to this thread to help answer your original post. not to be a smartass.

 

[briwayjones]

Ok, I get what you are saying, but comparing my truck or any third gen Explorer to a FREAKING MINIVAN is insulting! Period. It's not like it's a Honduh Ridgeline, which is in fact built directly off a minivan's chassis and is a unibody without a real frame.

Now you understand why we don't like them and what Ford did to them.

 

[TinwoodyII]

3rd generation explorers

Now you understand why we don't like them and what Ford did to them.

Whether you realize it or not, you have just confirmed a feeling that I have had for some time. If it's not a lifted, big wheeled, muddy 1st generation with an SAS, then it doesn't belong on this site. SO? where do we 3rd gens go for relevant, savvy information about and for our explorers. What about the Rangers, Aerostars, and so forth. And just because it has IRS doesn't make it any less an EXPLORER!!! I have learned a lot from the members. I still want to believe that this is one of the best sites on the web, but now... And I became elite to support this site. Bill W
38N121W

 

[IZwack]

briwayjones doesnt have a "lifted, big wheeled, muddy" Explorer, or a 1st gen, or an Explorer with a SAS. His mods have nothing to do with any of these words and yet, he's a regular contributor on this site

 

[X6StringerX]

Tin, don't let this thread deter you from frequenting the board. I think it's important to understand that when you pose a question that directly pertains to a 3rd gen, you're actually seeking information from someone that either A: owns a third gen or B: has experience working on a 3rd gen. In the case of this board, more of our regular posters own 1st and 2nd gen Explorers and don't have a tremendous amount of experience with 3rd gens. Take a look at many of the thread and you'll still find that a lot of the 1st and 2nd gen guys chime in trying to help because there are just more of us. 3rd gen popularity is growing, but our Explorers have been around for quite a few more years and a lot of our kinks have been worked out. There should be no feeling of snobbery between the lot of us, but if you're working on a Mustang, do you really want a Corvette guy telling you how to fix something that is unique to the Mustang? Of course, this analogy doesn't pertain to a lot of preliminary troubleshooting steps as many of them are the same from vehicle to vehicle, but it might be best that we don't offer bad information. You don't go to a steakhouse and order spaghetti, so I wouldn't hold my breath for solid information about 3rd gens from us 1st and 2nd gen owners. Give it a few more years and the 3rd gen market will become more prominant as people start to modify their vehicles more extensively once their warranties expire.

 

[macknos94]

haha wow you guys are too serious in here. i know my mountaineer doesnt have alot of ground clearance or alot of aftermarket backing but thats why i bought my 2003 mountaineer. i have to work to do anything to mine. i cant open a book and order crap i research(EF.com is the biggest help), make and design my own stuff. 3rd gens have to make it work. about 40 percent of the miles i put on my mounty are off roading. i know its not the best thing for off roading but what i find doesnt work for off roading i upgrade/mod/fix. 1st and 2nd and some 3rd gens need to realize we are all in different containers on the same ship. all our trucks have issues and what do we do to make it better a sas, locker, different gears, lift tires all that stuff.

as for comparing a H1 civilian or a 1098 or 1114 military h1 to a explorer haha thats a joke. Explorer= comfortable, goes over 80, less issues, more getup and go,made for everyday life. 1114= lotsof issues, stiff as hell ride, great off roading but a very high rollover rate, can ford a shiat load of water , made to survive the ruffest terrain, be put thru hell and still get us back safe.

all i have to say is let it go the ex is and ex not a mini van or a station wagon. if we wanted a weekend warrior we woulda bought a 1st or maybe a 2nd gen. but we own 3rd gens that take more work to mod the flipping through a parts cat.

 

[davesexplorer]

this thread =

 

[Elessar65]

If you think this thread is bad, check out some of the stuff on the NASIOC (North American Subaru Impreza Owners Club) forum. I remember a really funny one where some poor guy was asking about swapping parts from an Outback into his STI so he could get more ground clearance. The flaming went on for weeks, lol. Not that its a bad forum or anything, lots of nice people and tons of info. But god help you if you say or do something stupid or want to do something sacrilegious to a Suby like fit bigger tires so you can go offroading with your buddy's jeep, lmao.