Eibach Pro-Truck lift kit for 2021’s

[jstulbaum]

Update…..

Turns out the directions that came in the 21 icon stage 2 package indicating max thread adjustment was incorrect which explained why I couldn’t clear the 35s with the painted bumper. Directions indicated the max shown threads should not go over 2” resulting in the max lift (2.75”). Turns out after contacting icon those directions were incorrect. The max recommended shown threads are 2.5” resulting in a 2.75% lift. I asked about what size lift do I have at a 2” shown thread setting. He mentioned I should be at around 2 1/8” of lift with that setting. Ultimately I sold the 35s, currently trying to sell the 285/70r17s. And purchased the 285/75r17s and couldn’t be happier. I may look at moving up my coilover shown threads to get somewhere closer to a 2.5” lift since my coilovers have had enough time to settle in now. Here are some shots.

Sponsored

 

[jstulbaum]

 

[Matt_Bonilla08]

Thanks for the reply. So, based on what I've read, I'm inferring that even though the Gen14 trucks have slightly different front strut mounting locations the valving can stay the same and the suspension travel is similar enough but only the spring preload amount doesn't equate from Gen13 to Gen14? The preset/grooved clip locations on the adjustable struts from the Gen13s won't work because the highest clip position (most preload) results in too much lift for the Gen14, does that sound right? The coilovers, with threaded spring preload perches, work because of the infinite adjustment?

To adapt the Gen13 stuff to the Gen14 trucks, the Ford Performance and Roush coilover sets (which both have Fox logos on them) instructions say to lower the threaded preload ring 5/8" (reduce preload) for Gen14 applications:

Bolt-On OEM Swap. ROUSH has designed the F-150 FOX 2.0 Suspension Kit to be a straightforward swap from the stock suspension. Full, detailed instructions are provided. No drilling, cutting or welding is required. 2021+ Model Year trucks will require the Lower Spring Perch to be adjusted 5/8 of an inch down the strut shaft (towards the lower control arm) for proper suspension travel and improved ride.

I wonder if this is purely to slightly reduce the lift to ease UCA angle. Eibach cycled the suspension to confirm that the whole front suspension/tire/wheel won't be hanging off the strut wrong at full droop, so what else would there be to consider? I'm no suspension expert or design engineer. Just trying to wrap my head around the intention and pros/cons of the retrofit instructions above and how that could (or doesn't) apply when installing my Eibach coilovers...

Also, Matt, out of the box, how many inches of lift should I get? Did you guys calculate how many turns of the preload ring it takes to increase/reduce the lift per inch or anything? Thanks!!

EDIT: By the way, Eibach tech support emailed me their instructions for the kit I bought earlier today. No mention of adjusting the preload for 21+ applications. No mention of preset lift amount or perch adjustment lift rate.

Lots of great questions. Yes, the Gen14 trucks have slightly different strut mounting. Our clip groove adjustable shock will be lowering the bottom groove as well as limiting droop slightly because that spring has a bigger body and touches the upper control arm using the previous shock. The top groove is actually staying pretty close to the previous design(only changing a couple mm. The top clip is for using the stock spring and the reason for this being close to the previous is because the motion ratio is slightly different.

When we cycle the suspension we are primarily looking at a few things. Making sure ball joints do not max out at any point, making sure the spring is not contacting the control arms or anything else, and making sure the axles do not bind.

Our 4wd Coilover comes preset at the highest thread in order to get a "level" look and we couldn't add any more adjustment due to the spring block height. The heights vary slightly obviously depending on your motor and package. On a 2021 4wd 3.5L with the Coilover set out of the box we got ~3" of lift With this amount of lift the front fenders measured approximately 10mm higher than the rear but the pinch welds in the front were 4mm lower than the rear. I also shared a photo on the previous post discussing these so you can see what that looks like. Based on these numbers and how the truck looked we we're very comfortable listing this kit for the 2021s.

As far as making adjustments goes each full turn should get you about 1/8th inch of height.

 

[pavementends]

Lots of great questions. Yes, the Gen14 trucks have slightly different strut mounting. Our clip groove adjustable shock will be lowering the bottom groove as well as limiting droop slightly because that spring has a bigger body and touches the upper control arm using the previous shock. The top groove is actually staying pretty close to the previous design(only changing a couple mm. The top clip is for using the stock spring and the reason for this being close to the previous is because the motion ratio is slightly different.

When we cycle the suspension we are primarily looking at a few things. Making sure ball joints do not max out at any point, making sure the spring is not contacting the control arms or anything else, and making sure the axles do not bind.

Our 4wd Coilover comes preset at the highest thread in order to get a "level" look and we couldn't add any more adjustment due to the spring block height. The heights vary slightly obviously depending on your motor and package. On a 2021 4wd 3.5L with the Coilover set out of the box we got ~3" of lift With this amount of lift the front fenders measured approximately 10mm higher than the rear but the pinch welds in the front were 4mm lower than the rear. I also shared a photo on the previous post discussing these so you can see what that looks like. Based on these numbers and how the truck looked we we're very comfortable listing this kit for the 2021s.

As far as making adjustments goes each full turn should get you about 1/8th inch of height.

Awesome, thanks so much for your time, expertise, and explanations, Matt. I've been going back and forth via email with your Tech Support who recommends I lower the perch (reduce preload) from the out of the box setting 1/2" on the threads since I'm targeting a 2" lift/level in the front. Sound right?

For everyone else: Interesting how Eibach has determined the Gen 13s work on 14s, but their competitors are, for apparently well over a YEAR now, dedicating R&D and design money to creating new product numbers for our trucks. The exceptions would be their 2WD coilovers and standalone height adjustable front struts (w C-clips).

The Eibach 2.0 coilovers, which after more research and gauging my remaining patience than I'd like to admit, I've decided I'm going to try. They're not going to be a redesigned part like Bilstein and Fox, but who knows, maybe those companies are really just taking FOREVER to make a few very minor valving changes or are changing some materials or other relatively minor changes that won't be major or perceivable (for most of us) upgrades from the Gen13 stuff retrofitted onto our Gen14 trucks. Pure speculation. Unless someone here works for Fox or Bilstein or can corner someone like Matt here to explain why they're investing in the R&D and design and retooling to make Gen14-specific parts. I realize Bilstein and Fox are supposed to release their stuff in the next couple of months (that rumor has persisted since... Mar 2021?), but based on my interactions with Eibach, reading lots of reviews, and, yeah, I'm out of patience, I'll be trying their coilovers on my new truck. I'll report back. Hope this stuff has been helpful for others.

 

[Matt_Bonilla08]

Awesome, thanks so much for your time, expertise, and explanations, Matt. I've been going back and forth via email with your Tech Support who recommends I lower the perch (reduce preload) from the out of the box setting 1/2" on the threads since I'm targeting a 2" lift/level in the front. Sound right?

For everyone else: Interesting how Eibach has determined the Gen 13s work on 14s, but their competitors are, for apparently well over a YEAR now, dedicating R&D and design money to creating new product numbers for our trucks. The exceptions would be their 2WD coilovers and standalone height adjustable front struts (w C-clips).

The Eibach 2.0 coilovers, which after more research and gauging my remaining patience than I'd like to admit, I've decided I'm going to try. They're not going to be a redesigned part like Bilstein and Fox, but who knows, maybe those companies are really just taking FOREVER to make a few very minor valving changes or are changing some materials or other relatively minor changes that won't be major or perceivable (for most of us) upgrades from the Gen13 stuff retrofitted onto our Gen14 trucks. Pure speculation. Unless someone here works for Fox or Bilstein or can corner someone like Matt here to explain why they're investing in the R&D and design and retooling to make Gen14-specific parts. I realize Bilstein and Fox are supposed to release their stuff in the next couple of months (that rumor has persisted since... Mar 2021?), but based on my interactions with Eibach, reading lots of reviews, and, yeah, I'm out of patience, I'll be trying their coilovers on my new truck. I'll report back. Hope this stuff has been helpful for others.

No problem! 1/2" should get you pretty close you may need to go down a hair more but once installed on the truck it's far easier to go down than if you need to go back up.

Again I can't speak for other companies but 1 out of 4 of our applications for the 13 Gen worked out which really isn't much. I think we are lucky it was for the 4wd application since that's what most are looking for. If their shocks we're slightly longer to begin with that could have made all the difference and unfortunately for everyone lead times are very long for everything.

I also want to update everyone that the 5.0L we have been testing the last couple days is looking good. We got about 3" of lift on that motor as well with the coilover and I just test drove the truck and it feels great.

 

[Cliff-01]

No problem! 1/2" should get you pretty close you may need to go down a hair more but once installed on the truck it's far easier to go down than if you need to go back up.

Again I can't speak for other companies but 1 out of 4 of our applications for the 13 Gen worked out which really isn't much. I think we are lucky it was for the 4wd application since that's what most are looking for. If their shocks we're slightly longer to begin with that could have made all the difference and unfortunately for everyone lead times are very long for everything.

I also want to update everyone that the 5.0L we have been testing the last couple days is looking good. We got about 3" of lift on that motor as well with the coilover and I just test drove the truck and it feels great.

.

Matt,

Any eta on a F150 Tremor specific system?

Thank you.

 

[catskills837]

I


I have the 5.0 with max tow. Had my dealer install the eibach struts only. They used the top spring perch, I thought I was going to get 2” of lift but got 2 3/4”. I went with it. It has been several months now and about 3k miles. Ride and handling great. It settled in at about 2 1/2” no problems so far.

post a pic!!!

 

[Geo]

A lot of post on suspension and steering, for Eibach.

 

[Geo]

One topic that keeps me wondering is. I have never (to my knowledge) seen any after market strut, shock , or coil over reference if you have a Max Tow package or a Off Road package. I would think there would be a different GVW or p/n, per Ford over a non option package.

 

[Matt_Bonilla08]

.

Matt,

Any eta on a F150 Tremor specific system?

Thank you.

No ETA right now. We have not seen a tremor as of yet. But when we are able to get one in that is local then we will test fit our existing product and go from there if we need to make something new.

 

[Matt_Bonilla08]

One topic that keeps me wondering is. I have never (to my knowledge) seen any after market strut, shock , or coil over reference if you have a Max Tow package or a Off Road package. I would think there would be a different GVW or p/n, per Ford over a non option package.

Max Tow does have different leaf springs obviously and comes about an inch higher in the rear than the standard models. The individual parts will all have different part numbers if they are max tow specific.

 

[Geo]

I was referring to front coil springs.

 

[Matt_Bonilla08]

I was referring to front coil springs.

Got it. We didn't see any difference in the front on the max tow truck but OEs also tend to have a specific part number for everything and most are such a minor difference it doesn't really make a difference to us

 

[pavementends]

Alright got this kit installed today...

Asked installers to reduce preset preload 1/2" to target a 2-2.25" level in the front. Final front lift was exactly 2". Yes, I wanted to leave some rake because I like the way it looks and I'll be towing fairly often so it'll be fairly level when towing. My truck from factory for whatever reason came with A LOT of rake, a little more than others I think and the installers agreed. To get the truck perfectly level would have taken at least 3" lift and I didn't want to stress the UCAs and CV axles that much. Anyway...

One install tech happens to own a Gen13 F-150 with Bilstein 6112s and after he test drove my truck said he really liked my setup. He commented that the Eibach build quality is at least as good as Bilstein and in his opinion the collar/perch threads and adjuster are better quality. Reminded me that Eibach makes the spring for the Fox coilovers too. He said the same thing as most reviews I've read: the Bilsteins, in general, are stiffer at the beginning of the stroke. The Eibachs are firm, but are more supple higher in the stroke (95% of around town driving). The example he used was "in my truck driving over manhole covers is pretty harsh, in yours was really smooth". When you ride dirt bikes you invent a bunch of terms and explanations (helps a lot to use both hands like some sort of shadow puppeteer) for describing suspension adjustments, so let me know if you guys need more detail.

Otherwise, I put ~75 miles on it today, a little around town, about 50 miles on the freeway, and about 12 miles on an easy dirt road. As I had hoped, all of the floaty old Cadillac feeling from factory that IMO never felt planted or confident is gone. The ride is firmer for sure, but not harsh/stiff at all. I haven't hooned it in the desert yet, so no experience in high speed stuff, but on the dirt road with washboard sections I was very happy. I'm really happy with it so far actually.

It's just what I wanted: more planted, firmer, still truck-like, but comfortable and composed. The body roll around tight corners is definitely reduced too. Shop wants me back in for alignment check in a month, and if the front coilovers settle more than 1/4" I'll have them add a bit more preload (which you can do on the truck with Eibachs!) to get back to 2-2.25" of front level. So far so good, I'll try to remember to report back after some more miles in the backcounty this spring/summer.

Adjusting headlights down tonight.

Next up: add a subwoofer, remove the front air splitter, add Tremor or aftermarket skid plates, maybe yank the running boards. Then "done". Yeah right. In hindsight, not sure how much $ I saved vs just buying a Tremor to get where I'm at. Maybe next truck...

 

[F_ast]

Following this, and have been following adjustable ride height topics for some time. Like most you you guys, tires of waiting.

I'm really liking what the Eibachs have to offer. Just installed a set of 20x9 0 offset with 285-60-20s and they rub too. Rub on crash bar full lock left, forward and reverse, lower front valance and on mud flap tabs.

Been waiting on Bilsteins to come out, but going to order the eibach since I just found some in stock locally. Hoping to just run the Pro-truck with stock springs. So to reiterate, to get 2" of lift, they should be set to 1.6" clip height (gen13 kit on Gen 14 truck)?

Sponsored