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I had the 5100 Bilsteins front and rear on this '13 F150 I had. Very pleased with them and when I need shocks on my Expedition I'll probably go with them on it. Had the fronts set at 1-1/2 inches and rears weren't adjustable but I did gain about 1/4 inch anyway. Had 275x60x20 Toyo AT's in this picture from 10 yrs ago.
That looks amazing! How much lift do you get from the Bilstein 5100’s? Is it a better option than Readylift 3/2 in terms of suspension/ ride performance? I understand the RL 3/2 may stress the upper control arm range of motion, etc…….trying to figure out what the best way to get a minor lift/level for some 33” or 34” tires on my OEM 20” wheels.
Tire size doesn't care about wheel size for the most part. Some vehicles like mine came stock with 285/45 R22 which are 32.1" tires. Popping up to 33" inch tires doesn't require anything at all. Lifts will level it out and make it look better or allow even bigger tires, but you don't need to figure anything out for 33's as many members have put them on with no issues.
I’m not sure what the measurements were at stock height but after the bilstein struts from floor to top center of wheel well at the front is 38” and rear is 38-3/8”. I was stuck between the ready lift and bilsteins, it seemed more people on this forum were unhappy with the ready lift and the rep at a local shop said they’ve had very good reviews with the bilsteins. Overall I’m very happy, they aren’t as floaty as the stock struts. I can turn full lock with 275/60/20 tires with no rubbing.
Oooh, looking forward to a full review of these. I'm running the ATP II's and like the look of those. Need to do some research, I wonder if they are more road worthy hence the name, even though they look a little more aggressive than the ATP II.
How is the ride? Do you ever have need to tow anything off-road - wondering how my off-road trailer will perform with the Bilsteins
The ride I personally like better than stock. It’s firm but doesn’t feel like it’s floating around but still soaks up large bumps. I don’t tow anything off-road. It does ride fine off road. We don’t go out an do beat on it but cruise around logging roads. I wouldn’t hesitate to tow off-road with it.
Guessing you're all stock currently? You probably saw my previous post, but my wife was ready to trade our Expy after 35k miles of dealing with the rough ride of E/LTs, and living down a half mile of muddy dirt road we had more justification for such tires than most mall crawlers. I've driven trucks with AT tires all my life so I knew a bit what we were getting, and we loved the look of the Toyo MTs, and they weren't that bad when new as far as noise and ride, but after we swapped them out it was like damn, we've been missing this nice ride for the last 3 years? I'm sure it'd be a good deal worse on R22s vs our R20s. Also, don't discount the power/mpg loss of spinning 15-20lbs heavier tires.
Did the ride quality change with the General Grabber ATXs? I just purchased an identical 2024 version of your Expy and I would like to upgrade the tires to the ATXs without losing too much of the fantastic factory ride!
How’s it drive compared to factory?
Not a kit. This is a Baja Designs S8 30” bar, fits behind the grill perfectly. The shop I used simply fabricated some brackets; nothing fancy, but they function well.
