Tom’s 2014 XLT 4X4

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ExplorerTom

ExplorerTom

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The truck came with some oddly worn General Grabber AT2. They were about 5 years old. The tires on the front were worn pretty bad but the rears still had decent tread. However, this February has been one of the snowiest Februaries in recorded history for Denver. The Grabbers struggled. The tires were extremely hard- which is why they sucked in the snow.

I had Cooper Discoverer ATPs on my 2000. They were pretty good but I wanted to try the AT3 4S. These have the 3 Peak Mountain Snowflake symbol, which doesn’t make them great tires in the snow, but potentially better than a tire without the symbol.

Even though I upsized the tires on my 2000, I went with new factory sized tires 275/65/18. These aren’t even LT. I don’t plan on taking this thing too far off the road. If a sedan could make it, that’s where I’ll take this thing.

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grdsman

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I knew my shocks were original and noticed some clunks and bumps going over bumps in the road. The right rear seemed especially bad.

I decided to go with a full set of the Bilstein 5100 height adjustable shocks.

Installation was...... involved. It’s mostly just what I call a “nut and bolt” type installation- one where you just need to remove a bunch of nuts and bolts. Of course there is the added fun of the spring compressors, but I’ve swapped plenty of springs before.

The issue came in the rear. Part of the install is to swap over the lower spring seat. I removed the coilover and got the spring off. I started pounding away at the lower seat but it’s not budging. It was pretty dirty and there is some rust on components here and there so I thought maybe it was just rust holding it on. After a closer look, it looked as though the lower seat was welded on. Crap! An even closer look revealed that the shock I pulled out was fatter than the Bilstein slated to go in. Even if I got the seat off, it wouldn’t fit.

I put all my hopes on that mine had some kind of unique suspension and something at the junkyard would work. So off to the junkyard I went. I found a 2010 with the skinny rear shocks. I pulled those out pretty quickly and easily. All I really needed was the lower spring seat, spring and upper mount, but I bought the 2 complete assemblies. For $35 I can’t complain too much.

However, the 2010 springs are thicker in diameter than my 2014 springs- which probably means they also have a higher spring rate.

The rest of the install went fine. The right rear was totally blown and leaking fluid. One of the front had good compression control but had a really quick rebound.

I set all the clips on the Bilsteins to their highest position. I think the 2010 springs caused the rear to set a little high.

Resulting ride is MUCH improved. Feels like a truck- but in a good way. View attachment 34606View attachment 34607View attachment 34608View attachment 34609

Your rears look more like my Nivomat self leveling shocks. Do you have a close-up of the part number on them for comparison? I’m hoping the ‘14 rears that I just ordered on EBay are the standard smaller shocks so I can put my Bilstiens in them.


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ExplorerTom

ExplorerTom

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Your rears look more like my Nivomat self leveling shocks. Do you have a close-up of the part number on them for comparison? I’m hoping the ‘14 rears that I just ordered on EBay are the standard smaller shocks so I can put my Bilstiens in them.


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this part number is only on the spring, nothing on the shock body itself.

From my limited research, I believe the self leveling shocks use a hydraulic pump to level out the back. These looked just like regular shocks (only fatter). No hydraulic lines, no hydraulic fittings.

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ExplorerTom

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07navi

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Huh. I guess I did have the self leveling rear with the Nivomat shocks. And I thought my headlights weren’t aimed properly when leaving my house- but seemed to be better when returning. I didn’t think too much of it.
https://www.brakeandfrontend.com/nivomat-shock-absorbers-self-leveling-monotube-ride-control-units/

But that right rear was totally blown.

I’m happy with the Bilsteins. Glad I made the switch. Plus I got a little lift.
So what do you think about buying the whole unit ready to drop in? Waste of money?
 

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