I have a 2008 navigator i would like to lift it 2/2.5.How do i lift the rear without removing the factory air ride? iv seen spacers but not sure about the ride height sensor? and would i be able to put 285-55-r20 on it with stock wheel without cutting anything?


Thanks

 

Hello Kumrow99.

I have a 2007 Ford Expedition Limited 4x4. This is what I did and it worked great. I installed 2" level lift round blocks in the front (1 on each side of course) which raises it more than 2" due to the suspension geometry when inserting the lift blocks. Altogether it raised almost 4" in the front. I was impressed.

I run 275-65-20 so you should be able to run 285-55-20. I did trim some of the mud guards in the front but nothing hit. I trimmed it to allow room for snow chains.

The Rear Air Suspension automatically raised up about 2.5" to compensate for the front being lifted. They do not make lift blocks for the rear air suspension. At first it didn't raise right away, it can take up to 90 minutes to readjust the rear. And like magic, after about an hour of driving the compressor kicked on and raised it right up 2.5". Looks great. The rear is not as high as the front, but good enough to look great.

The 2" lift blocks for the front cost about $100 to $150. You can install yourself or pay about $200. About 4-5 hours of work if doing it yourself.

After raising, get an alignment and you are good to go. Hope that helps.

 

Ok cool ill try that.Where did you buy your leveling blocks at? I was looking at a couple of them but its like $240.

And will it run the rear air suspension more trying to keep it level with the front?

I dont want to cut anything either. I have the power running boards that work to surprising. I want to put nitto terra grappler's on it either 275-55-20 or 285-55-20 depending on price

Thanks again

 

Hi Kumrow99,

My mechanic down the street got them so I am not sure. However, make sure the puck itself is actually 2". Some companies state 3.5" lifts and the puck is really only 1.75" but it does lift it up 3.5" due to the geometry. So make sure you get a true 2" lift puck.

Also I was wrong, my tire size is 275-65-20 BFG All Terrain TA KO2. It is 34" tall. Big tire. So you can always go to Tire Rack and check your size tire against mine to get an idea of it fitting or not. I would not go any wider than the ones I put on as I know you will most likely hit in the front tire on the rear portion when turning.

I have to admit, these tires are one of the best that I have had for the street and off road. Amazing tires. Expensive, but great. Here is the link:

https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires...omCompare1=yes

 

Ok thanks we will see what happens

 

ok so this is what im going to order will it be ok? i think im going with 275-60-20.Will that leving kit fit the navigator?

 

I posted this for you on one of your other threads, but just making sure you get all the info:

Hello again Kumrow99,

Yes, its the same. The link you provided however is one of the companies, Supreme Suspensions, that might not state the true height of the lift puck so make sure you ask the company the true height of the lift puck (2" true height from my research is the max which will provide almost 4" of lift).

For example, Supreme Suspensions 3.5" lift kit on Amazon does not mean the lift kit puck is 3.5". The puck itself is actually only 1.75" tall, but the pucks lift the car a total of 3.5" due to the geometry change. I know this because I saw a post where Supreme Suspensions said that. That is why I told you to make sure the puck is actually 2"

Here is the link to the 3.5" front lift for Ford Trucks, Expeditions, etc where the company explains how the puck itself is only 1.75" but lifts up a total of 3.5". http://www.amazon.com/forum/-/TxLUK5...sin=B00V3YUNBI

Scroll down on Supreme Suspensions product page and ask them which model is their true 2" size puck. They might not have one. It looks like their largest puck is 1.75" for a lift of 3.5". If you are happy with that then get it. Here is their link for Expeditions and Navis which has exactly the same model number as the first link I gave you for the ford trucks:



Call my mechanic at California Tire 805-499-4811. His name is Dean ask him the company that sells the true 2" front lift kit puck size which will give you almost a 4" lift. Or maybe he can sell it to you for about $150 and ship it. Or maybe you will find out that my mechanic calls it a 2" puck but maybe its really only a 1.75" puck. I wouldn't be surprised. Bottom line, is the 1.75" or 2" puck will give you about a 3.5" to 4" lift.

Regarding Tires: That tire should be fine. My tire as mentioned above is BFGOODRICH ALL-TERRAIN T/A KO2 275-65-20 which is 1" taller than your pick and it also works fine (but trimming is needed for snow chains).

I chose that size because its 34" tall and each tire can support about 3700lbs compared to the smaller tire 275-60-20 which supports 3000lbs. I do off road with a lot of weight so I love the 275-65-20 size for many reasons, also because I can pump it up to 60psi for very firm street driving and I can lower it to 17psi for extreme sand driving and it has great side wall support at low psi.

However, that is for my needs. Not sure what needs you have, so your size pick is a great pick too and you should be able to fit snow chains on the tires without trimming the wheel wells or fenders at the 275-60-20 size.

 

Ok I lifted the front 2" but the rear did not come up enough to look right the compressor kicked on as soon as I backed it out of the garage but didn't do anything. Can I drill a hole in the rear a arm and raise the sensor? Or should I just drive around for a little while to see if it will raise.

Thanks

 

Hello Kumrow99,

First off I want to say that it looks great, much better than stock.

Mine raised the rear about 1" more over driving it for a few days, however I am currently researching ways to raise it higher as I want it another 1-2" higher.

This is what I have found out so far for our options:

Ford Mechanics have high end scanners and they can use the scanner to raise it. I looked at purchasing one of those scanners but they cost $1500 so I did not.

One guy on this forum changed the height of the sensors in the back. He did not drill more holes as you would have to drill possibly two more on each side, one for the sensor bolt and one for the bolt clamp which is what the sensor bolt threads into. My guess is he did not want to weaken the arm with two more holes on each side.

Instead he bought some metal lift support clips from end supports and threaded bolts on the metal and used the existing holes. The new clips raised it. I tried contacting him for more details and he never replied back to me.

Here is exactly what the guy said:
He stated this: The trickiest part was finding the right materials to make new ride-height sensor supports for the rear air ride to match the front height of 3". I ordered 4 clips that you would find on the ends of lift supports and a threaded stud for each one. I tow with this rig as well and its a great level ride all the time no matter what.

the link to that quote is: https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/13...or-lifted.html

So, most likely the rear will raise a tad more over time to level out like mine did. However, if you want it higher like I do, then those above options mentioned are the options so far. Currently I am looking into using the original holes and using some type of metal angle brackets to raise it a bit more without the angle brackets rotating. I will update you if I find something good and if it works.

Other guys have also removed the air system completely and installed new springs and shocks like the front. I am guessing that is a good $700 to $1000. The pros is that it will look great. The negatives is that it costs a good penny and with heavy loads it will sink and not be level.

If you come up with any more ideas, or find some good brackets that work, please let me know.

Also, what front lifts did you end up using so other guys know?

 

Thanks i call my local ford dealer and they said theres a way to adjust the height arms but they never heard of a scanner or programmer "go figure"

This is the kit i when with:
I will let you know if i can adjust them i really dont like the stance it has right now. Is your back end that low? Mine really didnt raise at all

Hope i find something or ill be going back to stock

 

Hello,

Yes, they might not tell you about their scan tool because they will not sell it to the public as it can control and change almost everything on the cars electronics. You more or less have to have a mechanic friend with one to do it for you.

My front end is a tad higher than yours so it raised my back end about 1" more than your photo. I went with the slightly larger front end lift that my mechanic sold me, very similar to the 3.5" lift I showed you earlier. The link to that 3.5" lift is here:

So, Ford told you to adjust the height arm of the sensor or the height arm of the sensor bracket that holds it? If so, maybe there is an easy way as I have not yet unbolted and examined the sensor or bracket yet. I looked at it but I wanted to investigate first before I started messing with those sensors which cost a good $500. Let me know if you find anything.

I will call my Ford dealer today to see what they have to say.

 

So do you think because you when higher in the front the back lifted more? and mine is only 2" so the back thinks it doesn't have to compensate the height different

 

That is my guess as my front end is a tad higher than yours so the rear compensated a bit higher than yours. The front end is still higher though compared to the rear but I like the look, however I still want the rear a tad higher because I travel off road at times so I want a little more clearance.

I don't mind the look of the front a tad higher because many off road trucks have the front a tad higher to give more clearance for the more heavily weighted front end when going over rough terrain. I simply want the rear higher to have more clearance from rocks.

Also, one more little trick I did was park the SUV about 2/3rds into my level garage with the rear of the SUV sticking out about 1/3 on the down sloped driveway. After about 45 minutes it raised about 1/2" but that was all. I know it raised 1/2" because I measured the distance from my roof rack to the top of the garage door. I then turned off the Air Suspension after it raised and it never went back down. I know its just a temp fix but that was one little trick until I figure out how to raise the rear. (I also tried only having the SUV 1/2 in the garage and the rear even sloped more, but it didn't work as I believe some leveling system is midway in the SUV so it knew it was not on level ground.

Did Ford give you any more details on how to adjust the rear arm? Were they referring to adjusting the sensor itself, the sensor lower bracket or what?

Also here is a link to an old posting for pre-2007 Expeditions and Navigators on how guys raised the rear. Seemed easier for them to do it. 2007 and newer models have different sensors now.
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...uspension.html

Also for anyone reading and not knowing what the sensor looks like here is a photo:




Passenger side rear air shock sensor. Photo taken from rear of 2007 Expedition.

 

well i got it level i dont know it was the right way lol. I just drilled the holes bigger is moved the bolt and clip up. Im not to worried about the arm failing i dont put heavy loads on it. I tow a 12 foot box trailer with 3 dirtbikes at most.Now I just gotta order the tires

 

It looks great. I like it a lot. Good job.

So I know and others know, how much higher did you move the sensor up? .5" or 1 full inch? And did you only enlarge the holes or did you drill new ones above?

Also, how long did it take for the sensors to level the rear?

And do you have any photos of the new holes you drilled that you can post for me and anyone else?



UPDATE:
New Thread of mine explains exactly how with lots of photos.
Go to:
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...uspension.html