Here is the stock land yacht....
Here is the stock land yacht. It's big and in no way says custom. The truck has a nice, comfortable ride, so we want that to stay, but we need a little more confidence to put this big thing through some corners.
If you've been wrenching on trucks for any amount of time, you probably know how to lower the standard coil-spring vehicle, pop the ball joint, and replace the coil. Well, what if you happen to drive a truck that has factory struts installed, such as some of the Ford family of SUVs? You can't just remove the spring, but you have to disassemble the strut, and if you've never done this before, it can be tricky at best. Since a strut combines the shock and the spring into one unit, you won't be able to release the tension that is on the spring with just a floor jack and the lower control arm. Some special techniques and tools are needed to get these things apart and together properly, so we took a trip to visit Eibach Springs in Corona, California, to have the crew there show us the ins and outs of a strut install. Eibach makes its truck and SUV lowering kits with progressive coils to retain a smooth ride but also provide flat cornering and increased resistance to rollovers, thanks to the lower center of gravity.
What lowering story would be complete without a wheel and tire swap? The Eibach springs only lower the truck a few inches, so there is no need to shrink the outside diameter (od) of the tire to prevent it from contacting the fenders. We sent the owner on a mission to find a complete tire and wheel package while we were shooting pics of the spring install. He came back with four rollers from Falken and said, "I picked the Falken set up because the 20-inch Spine wheels had the look I wanted and the tires matched the factory od to keep my speedo' calibrated. Also, they are from the same manufacturer, so the parts should complement each other. " We think he made a good choice also, because the chrome finish makes the rims easy to maintain, and from past reviews, the Falken tires work great.
As you can see, this isn't...
As you can see, this isn't a massive drop, but it will improve the handling without sacrificing the ride.
This is what will give us...
This is what will give us that confidence - Eibach's Pro Kit. The springs are constructed out of Hi-Ten spring steel on German CNC coilers to produce a coil that carries a million-mile warranty.
Here is a side by side of...
Here is a side by side of the stock (left) and Eibach (right) springs. You can see that the new spring features tighter windings toward the bottom of the spring. This is what gives it its progressive spring rate and the ability to provide a soft ride, until you push it into a corner.
1.After the truck was secured...
1.After the truck was secured on a lift and the wheels were removed, it was time to take out the strut assembly.
2a.Much like a shock, the...
2a.Much like a shock, the strut is held in place with one large bolt at the bottom and a few smaller fasteners at the top.
2b.
3.After the hardware was removed,...
3.After the hardware was removed, the strut assembly was taken to a bench and all the components were marked with a paint pen. This aided in the reassembly and prevented anything from getting out of whack.
4a.Now the unit was chucked...
4a.Now the unit was chucked into this strut compressor to elevate the spring pressure and allow the tech to remove the retaining nut on the top.
4b.