I've got two X's and am going to do the V-B spring swap on one for starters.

I searched and found the part numbers that Stewart posted. What are the "tapered blocks" that he mentioned.

Also, do the new springs come with bushings, and should I replace them with Polyurethane anyway?

Thanks

 

Bump, I doing this in the next week or two also...would be nice to have as much info as possible.......anyone, Stewart perhaps?

 

Here is a quote of Steward's parts list. I think he put those blocks on the back since the X will be lower in the back without them, compared to the orginal "rake", after you put the V's on the front.

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Well, I finally finished the spring upgrades and Bilstein shocks all the way around.

For all those interested, here is what I added to the Ex:

Front V code springs: Part #2C3Z-5310-HA
Rear B code springs: Part #3C3Z-5560-CB
Left side 3.5" tapered block: Part #F81Z-5598-FA
Right side 3.5" tapered block Part #F81Z-5598-GA

...and the Bilstein part numbers if you use the above springs:
Front: BE5-2818 (OEM length for the F250 4x4)
Rear: BE5-6209 (OEM length for the Excursion 4x4)

And I topped it off with a Hellwig rear anti-sway bar.

When I talked with Shane at Bilstein. He recommended using the shocks for the F250 4x4 on the front of my Ex, but to stay with the Bilsteins for the 4x4 Excursion on the rear.

Shane said the fronts can use the extra length the F250 shock gives because the front V code springs raise the Ex about an inch an a half, but the Excursion Bilsteins for the rear are long and have a lot of travel. He said you could put a 3" lift on the Ex and still use the stock Bilstein for the rears.

I reused the front U-bolts, but had to obtain some OEM F250 U-bolts for the rear because of the bigger block I added. I don't have those part numbers because I didn't order them from Ford, but rather, obtained them from a 4x4 shop. They were take-offs they had lying around.

The Ex has a slight lift to it now. Very noticeable over the stock 4x4 height. I like it.

The install was pretty straightforward and anyone who has any wrenching skills should be able to handle this modification.

All I have left now is to replace the steering stabilizer.

As for the results on the road, the handling is much improved and the wander has been eliminated.

The Bilsteins give excellent road feedback and coupled with the spring upgrade and Hellwig bar, you now can anticipate how your Excursion will handle and respond on dips and bumps in the road.

I should have done this a long time ago...

Stewart
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Hope that helps.

 

In case you want a blow by blow on how to, here is how I did it...
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Metric tools are most helpful. I used 1 floor jack, 2 hydraulic jacks, 2 jack stands and various blocks of wood. I can't stress safety enough. The X is a beast that I did not want on top of me and since I worked alone I wanted to make sure that I stayed in one piece.
For the front, remove the front bumper. There are only 6 bolts. 2 bolts next to each tow hock and 1 on the brace that holds the outer edges of the bumper to the frame. It is virtually impossible to remove the front spring bolts with the bumper in place. Before you lift the bumper away, just move it forward an inch or 2 or 3 so you can undo the block heater cord attached to the bumper and also remove the the cable that feeds the fog lights if you have them. Then detach the three plastic buttons that hold the rubber apron to the bottom of the bumper. Took me more time to figure out the front bumper without destroying wires and rubber aprons than it did for me to do the passenger side spring.

Now when the bumper is removed the front spring bolts are there for all to see and easy to get too. But first, remove the bottom A/C radiator supports or you'll never get that bolt out. This is easy and is only an 8mm bolt. Jack up the X and remove the left front wheel. Now you can pull the bolt that holds the spring in the frame without obstruction. The nut on this bolt appears to have been lock-tite from the factory so this is why I used a torch to heat the nut up. No matter how much pressure I applied to remove this nut, it would not give. After I heated it, it came off easy.

To do the driver side front, I removed the sway bar to give me more room to drop the axle on one side so I could slip the V code spring in place which has more arch than the X spring and disconnected the front drive line at the differential so I could remove the rear spring bolt. I used a torch to heat the rear spring bolt's nut as well since this is a most awkward position to be in to exert human torque.

Next, remove top shock mount nut, remove the U-bolts. I had the left front side of the X jacked up, also using jack stands, and I had the floor jack under the differential so that there was no pressure or tension on the springs. I could lower the axle and slip out the old and in with the new easily. After I positioned the spring in the front, I put in the front bolt. Next I jacked up the axle so that the spring was in position and resting on the axle. I had to use a come along to pull the axle slightly forward to get the spring to "seat" on the axle (had to do this on all 4 springs). Next I installed the U-bolts so it was snug but not torqued. Then I installed the rear spring bolt. I then jacked up the axle to put pressure on the spring and then torqued down the U-bolts (torqued to 99 lb/ft as per psdwanabe. He also goes into the "hows" of this job nicely) . I then re-attached the front drive line and put the wheel back on.

My '02 was made in March of '02 where they used the hard bump stop for the front axles. In May of '02 and on they changed that to a softer and more pliable bump stop. I changed mine out to the newer style while I was at it.

Now I did the passenger side with is much the same. After I had finished the passenger side and had both front wheels in place and had the X resting fully on the new springs, I then tightened and torqued the front and rear spring mounting bolts (203 lb/ft and 185 lb/ft respectively). I used high strength lock-tite on front and rear spring bolts. I re-attached the sway bar and re-attached the bumper (don't forget bottom the A/C mounts!).

The rears were a piece of cake compared to the fronts. I jacked up the rear at the hitch and put jack stands on each corner and jacked up the axle on the passenger side to remove the wheel. I loosened the 3 A/C line brackets so the lines would not be in the way when I remove the front spring bolt. On the rear, I removed the bolt that attaches the spring shackle to the frame and removed the shackle from the old spring after I had removed the spring from the X. I took the old X spring pack apart so I could get the anti wrap leave and one of the 0.125 inch shims. I cut the anti wrap leaf so I could use it as a spacer on the F code pack alone with the shim. I reused the old X spring bolt in the F code spring pack since it is just a little longer. I got this from towrig who did this very thing to his F codes and it did indeed yield 1.5 inches of lift. I next re-installed the modified F code springs on the right rear and torqued down the U-bolts (185 lb/ft) and re-fastened the A/C line brackets. Next I did the same thing to the left rear. When finished I put the X back on the ground so the full weight was on the springs. Next I torqued down the spring bolts both left and right including the shackle bolt (185 lb/ft).
The whole job took me about 8 hours working by myself.

...and then...test drive. WOW boy does she corner now.

B codes...my understanding is that with B codes, the height is like stock height and softer than the F code. F code yields 0.75 inch without modification so I modified it to achieve 1.5 inches lift. The reason for doing this is that after you install the V code, the front is now approx 1.5 inch higher and so raising the rear by 1.5 inch will keep the X at the same pitch as it was stock. I think housedad did the B code mod as did Last_Ex_2005 .

I modified the F-code further...I used the 3rd leaf from bottom not counting the anti wrap leaf of the original X spring pack. With a slight trim job it fit perfectly with the Fcode spring pack. This allowed me to remove the old shim made from the original spring pack and gave me the lift I needed with a little more spring travel.

V code (2C3Z-5310-HA, AKA 3C34-5310-ADA) and modified F code (6C34-5560-F aka 5C32-5560-FA) springs.

Success with your mods and enjoy! Its been about a year since I did mine and I couldn't be happier. I can't get over how much I enjoy driving the beast.

 

I have these very blocks for sale in the classifieds section if youre interested.

https://www.ford-trucks.com/classifi...ct/19754/cat/5

 

Sorry, I've been internetless for two weeks. I just got back online last night with a new cable modem.

With the slight raise in the rear, using tapered blocks (angled forward), instead of square blocks will help keep the pinion angle correct, helping to stop any driveline vibrations that might occur (very, very slight chance) with the resultant lift when compared to stock.

Years ago when I researched this approach to solving the Excursion wander, I do believe it was originally done to prevent a chance of vibrations occurring, not because they did occur.

Stewart

 

Good morning Gents,

I have a 2005 V10 Limited with 150K soft miles on it. Ive noticed the front end is starting to bounce like hell. Ive got Bilsteens and an F-350 Sway bar installed. Im probably due to replace the shocks as Ive got about 50K miles on the current set.

What are the part codes for the 2 Wheel Drive for the springs, and should I replace the bushings with Poly?

 

If you're willing to hold those until May I'll snag em when I get into town. Been wanting to pick the *** end up just a hair more.

 

[QUOTE=Krazee Matt;14289619]If you're willing to hold those until May I'll snag em when I get into town. Been wanting to pick the *** end up just a hair more.[/QUOTE

It may be worth a try but this thread is 6 years old.

 

Beat me to it.

This thread was created a couple years after I had done my spring swap, and years before I became a mod. Talk about a blast from the past, LOL!

Stewart

 

Wow I didn't even notice that, I just saw it pop up at the top of the list. Oops, lol.

 

The Bilsteins are warranted for life. If they are bad, just get them replaced at a store that sells them.