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I just completed the Suncore (SC) shock conversion on my 2003 EB. First wheel (front) took me about 2 hours. The SC shock is longer then stock and you really have to muscle the bottom in to get it lined up so the bolt goes in. 80% of the time was spent just trying to get the bottom of the shock in. I used a heavy hammer and pry bar to get it there and then pounded in the bolt. The bolt is 30mm (both sides) btw. I was using air tools which made that part of the job way easier. Conversion of the rear is easier by far then the front. Total job was about 4 hours. My EB was surprisingly clean underneath. Nothing at all like the Youtube videos where the cars are falling apart with rust. It looked new in fact with no corrosion at all. I guess it helps that the car is garaged all the time including at work since new.
The old shocks actually look pretty good. No dry rot on the bags that I can see at all. In fact, I'm wondering if my leakage problem was the lines and not the shocks. They old ones have 100k miles on them but I hate to junk them they look great.
Ride is almost the same as stock. Can't really notice much of a difference. Seems like the air-ride system is overkill and adds unnecessary complexity and expense in these vehicles.
I got my kit off ebay for $450 shipped so I can't complain about that. I expect it to last for the remainder of the Expedition's life.
Oh and I'll be replacing the front right totally worn out on the edge tire today with the spare in hopes that the conversion fixed the tire issues. We have ruined 3 tires so far with the front right and I am not looking to ruin a 4th. If the spare shows no signs of wear for around a month we'll pop for 2 new front tires.
Oh and one more thing, reuse the 3 stock shock tower bolts. The ones included in the kit are shorter and hard to get a good bite with your 15mm wrench. I used a ratcheting box-wrench I can't imagine using anything else.
I don't know how to get the message center message about the air ride system being turned off to go away permanently. I think I can just turn it back on since the ride height will no longer vary it should never call for air. But the solenoid is also disconnected so I am not sure if I will get a message from that.
The old shocks actually look pretty good. No dry rot on the bags that I can see at all. In fact, I'm wondering if my leakage problem was the lines and not the shocks. They old ones have 100k miles on them but I hate to junk them they look great.
Ride is almost the same as stock. Can't really notice much of a difference. Seems like the air-ride system is overkill and adds unnecessary complexity and expense in these vehicles.
I got my kit off ebay for $450 shipped so I can't complain about that. I expect it to last for the remainder of the Expedition's life.
Oh and I'll be replacing the front right totally worn out on the edge tire today with the spare in hopes that the conversion fixed the tire issues. We have ruined 3 tires so far with the front right and I am not looking to ruin a 4th. If the spare shows no signs of wear for around a month we'll pop for 2 new front tires.
Oh and one more thing, reuse the 3 stock shock tower bolts. The ones included in the kit are shorter and hard to get a good bite with your 15mm wrench. I used a ratcheting box-wrench I can't imagine using anything else.
I don't know how to get the message center message about the air ride system being turned off to go away permanently. I think I can just turn it back on since the ride height will no longer vary it should never call for air. But the solenoid is also disconnected so I am not sure if I will get a message from that.
