'04 Expedition EB upgrade

[PHIL CLACK]

Hi gang!
I'm kinda new to the forum, but I have read some really great advice here so I think I need to get some help from the collective. Please be gentle

I picked up a single owner bone stock 2004 expy with only 80k gentle urban miles and I am loving it. It's an impressive beast in 4x low even with street tires and no lift. But....I wanna play the bolt-on power game to see if I can draw a few more horses out of my engine for towing....and for fun.

Setup:
5.4 2-valve, standard suspension(no air ride), 3.73 gears.
Just had the major service with fresh plugs, belt, all the juices.
Everything is good.

This week I'm adding the following: 3.5/2.5 leveling kit -
Also need a good set of ATs- I loved the BFGs back in the day with my Grand Wagoneer, but that was about 20 years ago and I have been truckless while transiting the "child rearing so you drive a minivan" phase of life.
Looking for recommendations on this as I'd like to keep the highway roar to a minimum. I hear that the KO2s are a bit loud.
Must replace the current 265/70/17, but undecided if I'll go up to 35s....need input from you guys.

Adding K-N 77 Series High-Flow intake

MagnaFlow cat back or just the muffler?

Jet programmer -opinions welcome please

Also adding a Curt concealed front receiver for winch or bike rack, etc.

Shocks are stock and feel like they are still very good, but that "little voice" is saying I should replace them when I add the level kit since I'll be in there anyway.

I look forward to your input -
Will post progress pics this week.

Cheers.

PC

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[ExplorerTom]

You'll probably need to replace shocks depending on how the leveling kit does its thing- they may be too short afterwards.

But I have no clue what the suspension looks like under a 2004.

 

[Judge Mills]

Is the Curt front hitch mount universal, or vehicle specific?

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[PHIL CLACK]

Is the Curt front hitch mount universal, or vehicle specific?

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Spec
https://www.carid.com/curt/class-3-...ng-mpn-31352.html?singleid=1642174&url=805615


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[Judge Mills]

Spec
https://www.carid.com/curt/class-3-...ng-mpn-31352.html?singleid=1642174&url=805615


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I'm impressed! I might have to check that out later on, it'd be good to have a winch to take on and off.

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[2004XLT]

Shocks won't be extended from the lift because 2003+ have struts.

 

[PHIL CLACK]

I'm impressed! I might have to check that out later on, it'd be good to have a winch to take on and off.

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The front receiver arrived today (shipping container has seen better days)
Looks good but I'll have to do some trimming on the bumper below the front license plate.
I have a date with the impact wrench on Wednesday for the level kit and receiver

Magnaflow was installed today.
I was able to get the intake bolted on as well.
Sounds great and the increase in power is noticeable.

Play time is good.

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[PHIL CLACK]

Update-
Curt class 3 Front receiver is on and required zero trimming of the front fascia. The factory tow rings remain in place as well. It sits really low so I'll have to get a hitch with 6" rise. It will be nice added utility for my cargo rack, bike rack, or a winch and being able to push as well as pull.


I'd forgotten how warm 100 degree weather feels when turning wrenches [emoji12]

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[Judge Mills]

Looks good!

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[BRIANGEE]

More....



please...

 

[ExpeditionAndy]

Phil you asked about tires. I went with Firestone Destination A/Ts on both my 05 and on my 17, they have a semi aggressive tread design but the are very quiet on the highway.

I know Ford and Firestone had a falling out years ago but I have not had any problems with them. I don't know how many plys the sidewalls have and if you are going to do serious off-roading these probably aren't the right tires for that kind of activity. For around town, highway, snow and ice, and light off road the are pretty good.

 

[PHIL CLACK]

Phil you asked about tires. I went with Firestone Destination A/Ts on both my 05 and on my 17, they have a semi aggressive tread design but the are very quiet on the highway.

I know Ford and Firestone had a falling out years ago but I have not had any problems with them. I don't know how many plys the sidewalls have and if you are going to do serious off-roading these probably aren't the right tires for that kind of activity. For around town, highway, snow and ice, and light off road the are pretty good.

View attachment 21014 View attachment 21015

Thank you Andy, have you ever done any towing with these?

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[ExpeditionAndy]

Thank you Andy, have you ever done any towing with these?

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I have not towed with them.

Here are the spec's on the the tire

275 55 R20

UTQG 460 A B

Max Load 2,403 lbs.

Max Inflation 44 psi

Tread depth 11/32"

Weight 44 lbs.

Rim Width Range 7.5-9.5"

Measured Rim Width 8.5"

Tread Width 11.2"

Sidewall Height 9.3"

Diameter 31.9"

Revolutions per Mile 653

Country of Origin US

 

[jim midd]

Was the hitch install straightforward? I just got an '03 and want to put a front hitch on that. I was assuming it would sit higher. I put one in my '98 and i assumed it would go in the same spot, but yours seems a lot lower

View media item 6422

 

[PHIL CLACK]

Very straightforward, simple installation.
I was able to thread a needle with a 30' trailer with ease.
Gen 2 sits lower than gen 1 as the pic shows.
I used an adapter with a 6" rise on the receiver to level up with the trailer.
I added a skid plate as well.

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[jim midd]

Very straightforward, simple installation.
I was able to thread a needle with a 30' trailer with ease.
Gen 2 sits lower than gen 1 as the pic shows.
I used an adapter with a 6" rise on the receiver to level up with the trailer.

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Thanks. I get that the Gen 1 sits higher, but your hitch goes in a totally different spot than my Gen 1 front receiver, so it's a LOT lower. The hitch on my '98 was designed ( by curt) to come through the opening in middle of bumper, your Gen 2 version comes completely below bumper. If you look at my picture again , you can see the three tubes in that opening ( center one has a cap on it) What you see below the bumpe, slightly off center is a trailer light harness wired to headlights/turn signals because i have snow plow lights on my cooler rack because it obstructs headlights.

View media item 6422
Looking at your hitch it's in the same spot as my light plug., and because the gen 2 sits lower to begin with it's actually even lower than that.

Here's a picture of my hitch after having 2 additional tubes put on to accommodate my fishing rack set-upView media item 6420

 

[PHIL CLACK]

I used the roadmaster 076 to raise.
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0...master+076&dpPl=1&dpID=31amhpsCUBL&ref=plSrch

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[PHIL CLACK]

Moog? KYB? Rancho?
So many choices!

My bucket has about 110k mikes on our delightfully well paved California roads, now so I'm looking into fresh springs and struts.
I want a good ride but not too stiff for my passengers [emoji12]
Any recommendations?

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[Vancouver Bob]

Looks good, Phil!!

I ended up going with the RT's. They're definitely noiser but I wanted a bit more aggressive tread to go with the offroad/overlander look.

 

[Vancouver Bob]

Moog? KYB? Rancho?
So many choices!

My bucket has about 110k mikes on our delightfully well paved California roads, now so I'm looking into fresh springs and struts.
I want a good ride but not too stiff for my passengers [emoji12]
Any recommendations?

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When I did my leveling kit I decided to do springs and shocks all at the same time while I had everything out. I was pushing 200K miles so figured I was probably overdue on the shocks. Went with the Bilstein 4600s because others talked highly of them. Was wanting something a bit firmer than stock. They seemed a bit soft at first but have firmed up over time. I really like the way they feel now. Handling is great even when she's loaded up.