2016 Suspension Question

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zac langston

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Hello Randy Mac,
I received everything I ordered about a week and a half ago. We went camping that weekend so I didn't get the stuff installed. This last weekend I pulled the expedition in and tore it all down. Only to discover that the caps I purchased for the spring/shot strut assembly were not the right ones. (DAMNIT!!) I tried to make the "stock" ones work that were on the car, but it wasn't happening. Putting all that back together was a real treat! I don't have a coil spring compressing tool, so I went at it with a standard shop press. Not the safest way to do it, but it worked. (I will be borrowing a coil spring compressing tool next time...)
So, I had to order the correct ones and am waiting for them to ship. For some reason they are EXTREMELY hard to come by. There was only 1 showing in the Ford warehouse and a few at several different dealerships across the United States.
I am waiting for them to e-mail me and tell me the parts are on back order...

Hope that doesn't happen, but who knows.

I fully intend on getting back on here and sharing my results.
 

17limited

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How do you identify if your vehicle has the factory load leveling setup?

I ask because mine has a small what I assume to be air pump behind a grille in back drivers side of cargo area
 
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99WhiteC5Coupe

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How do you identify if your vehicle has the factory load leveling setup?

I ask because mine has a small what I assume to be air pump behind a grille in back drivers side of cargo area


I have a 2015 Ford Expedition Limited 4x4.

Read your vehicle owner’s manual - the item behind the grill in the rear, left side, is a the fuel cut-off switch.
 

34Ford

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I have a '08 king ranch with LL shocks and I can hear the compressor run somewhere in front of the firewall.
Now my '17 has the stupid CCD suspension.
 
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zac langston

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Hey RandyMac,
I FINALLY got the suspension installed this weekend. I was correct about the parts I was waiting for from Tasca.com. They did in fact back order the parts and I had to find them elsewhere. That was a pain. I have to change my opinion about Tasca.com. I waited and waited and waited for them. We attempted to call them several times. When I finally got through, the guy I talked to told me the parts were not available and had not been available for some time. He was curious as to why THEY hadn't told me that. (Very frustrating.) My local dealership ended up ordering them from a dealership in California. I had to wait forever for them. I also was not able to come up with the correct washer for the top cap, so I ended up making my own.

My initial opinion of what I have done is discouraging. I gained about 3/4" in ride height, but other than that, there is little difference in the suspension and the ride of the vehicle. I did take the vehicle out in the back forty and hit several bumps to try and get the car to bounce. When I got back in the garage on level ground I measured it again. I had gained about another 1/4"-1/2". For a total of about 19-1/8". I let the car sit for a while and came back to measure it again about an hour later. It had dropped back down to the initial ride height. So, bouncing the car down the back forty road did adjust the ride height a little.

Here is the most discouraging part. When my wife got home, I had her hold the tape measure while I jumped up and down on the bumper. I wanted to test my understanding of how the Nivomat shock worked. And I wanted to test the theory that they build resistance as the internal accumulator builds and stores pressure. With no weight on the car, the new receiver hitch height measures 18-3/4". I weigh about 220lbs. I was able to bounce the car down to about 16". I bounced and bounced and bounced and bounced. No change. I bounced until I couldn't anymore. No change. I was at 16" on the bottom end and about 18-3/4" on the top end.

I thought the bottom end number would climb as the suspension "built resistance" in the accumulator. I am no Ford engineer, or a tech guy; and I know my test is simple. But it seems like it should have worked. I saw no change. Which sucks. I have nearly $1,000.00 into this and it appears to have made no difference.

I have not towed with the vehicle yet. We are planning a camping trip over the upcoming holiday weekend. That will be the first opportunity I have to get a load on the vehicle. I am going to follow the owners manual instructions and hook the car up, then go drive it for a few miles and then hook up my weight distribution hitch. Hopefully the new suspension will take the road bounce out. But I will not know that until I try it.

As of right now, I would not recommend anyone do what I have done. It appears to have yielded me no change and has caused nothing but a bunch of aggravation and stress. I cannot express how frustrated I am with the lack of knowledge out there in the industry. Particularly the Ford people. I spoke to NUMEROUS individuals about this and no one knows a dang thing.

The only thing I can say as a warning to everyone else it to make sure and double check what you are buying. I made a HUGE mistake. I fully and whole heartedly believe the true air leveling suspension is the way to go with these vehicles. The 08' we upgraded from handles my camper WAAAAAAY better than the 16' we upgraded to. However, the old 5.4 motor in the 08' is nothing in comparison to the new eco-boost motor. No comparison.
 

Dr0idattack

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Man that’s a tough expensive learning experience.

I don’t know about Nivomats; but Bilsteins plus E-class tires plus the E4 12000 WDH for my 2013 made my towing and ride experience way better than when I started stock. I considered looking into air leveling, but sort steered away based on my research (and didn’t want a compressor).
 

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