Decided a few months back that I didn't want another payment for a newer truck, especially since I just bought a 2011 Flex Limited for the wife. So.. in order to love my truck again, I needed a few updates. Maybe in a couple years, I can finally get my Ecoboost Screw.

First up... truck had 98K miles on the stock shocks / Struts. I wanted a leveling kit of some sort and was about to pull the trigger on the Bilstein 5100 when I discovered the Rancho 9000 Quicklft loaded struts with matching 9000XL shocks for the rear. What sold me was the adjustability of the this line of shocks /struts. 2" advertised lift in the front, which was exact. Plus, they already came loaded with the springs, fully assembled and ready to install. This cut out having to rent a compressor or going to a shop and paying for the switch over. I had Summit Racing price match them to a site I found on this board ($509.00), then took advantage of the $100.00 rebate from Rancho. Total cost $409.00 for the loaded shocks/ Struts.

Second.. I knew I wanted new wheels, but like most people, funds were a little prohibitive. I ended up just waiting for a deal to come along and found these 18" x 9" XD Addicts on craigslist for $400.00. The seller said they came off of an 06 F150, so I knew the lug pattern was correct. I was also lucky to find them with the 5.71" backspacing which was perfect for a leveled truck.

Last.. I had sold myself on buying the General Grabber AT2 in 275/70/18 (33.2" diameter), because of the good reviews and aggressive looking tread pattern. But, I could not find them anywhere. They were on National backorder and the only place that had a set was Tirerack, but they wanted $250.00 for shipping from the east coast... No thanks. I waited a month to try and find a set, but finally just gave up and looked for a different tire. Thankfully, I went to my local tire shop to look at the Goodyear Duratrac's, but was talked out of them by the sales guy. Even though they were more expensive, he told me they would not wear that well and are more of an M/T tire. Since most of my driving is highway, that would probably be a bad choice. That's when he turned me on to the Cooper Discoverer S/T MAXX, which was a new tire for 2011. They have a very aggressive look, but are still highway friendly and should have pretty good tread life. I paid $1040.00 out the door mounted and balanced for these tires in 275/70/18 (33.3"). I think I made the right decision.

At least for now, I love my truck again!!!

 

Wow, that looks great. Those wheels go great on the black truck.

 

Nice!

 

i want your wheels lol

 

Looks great! How do the Rancho QLs ride compared to stock?

 

Looks great!

 

Have you done anything like blocks in the back? The 9000xl aren't lifting shocks are they?

 

They are fully adjustable with 9 different settings. So u can go softer than stock and get a real rolling feel or super stiff. I adjusted fronts to the number 6 setting and the rears to 5. They feel smoother than my almost 100k stock shocks / struts.

 

only the front struts lift the truck to level it out. The rears are the stock length.

 

Excellent. How easy is adjustment? And the adjustment does not sacrifice leveling height? No matter what it stays at a full 2" lift?

Just want to get some facts down before putting in an order

 

Very nicely done...it looks great and I am sure is a definite improvement in ride over stock. Glad also to hear that you got the Flex...how do you like it so far?!? We are thinking about trading our 100k Tahoe for one. It still a good ride but I really want a new rig!

Again, great job!

 

THe truck stays at 2" level no matter what setting the fronts are on.
It's as easy as crawling on your back under the front and turning a **** with your fingers. OR, get the "My Ride" system installed and you can do it on the fly form the cab with a wireless remote!!

Killer04Fx4: The Truck matches the user name now.....NICE!

 

Lookin nice, goin through the same delima myself. Started shoppin for an 11 ecoboost fx4 then decided to finally pull the trigger on wheels and tires + edge programmer. Couldnt jusify trading a truck in that only has 75k on it even if it as an 04. Guess its like a midlife truck crisis.

 

You need to test drive the Flex. I was kinda on the fence over the looks of the Flex, but it finally grew on me. Once we test drove one, we were sold. It has so much room inside (7 passenger seating) and the interior is very well laid out and practical. Plus, this Flex gets so many compliments at the gas station, supermarket, ect... Oh yeah.. we also got it with the max tow package, which allows it to tow 6500 pounds!!

 

Thanks for all the compliments guys... When I bought this truck, I washed it at least once a week. That lasted for a couple years. Then slowly it went from my favorite vehicle, to just another truck. I really started neglecting the basic stuff on the truck, since I was barely driving it anymore. This past year, I actually went 4 months without washing it, which was way too long. I had almost forgotten what color it was. Now with new level kit and wheels I'm falling back in love with my truck. I've washed it 3 times this month and have even clayed, DA polished it and put some wax. Next up.. Probably use Showtime trim dye on all the black plastic trim pieces.