Roush vs Hotchkis
 

In another thread I made some of you suggested I go with the Roush kit over a Hotchkis set up. Now heres the deal, I'm debating either the Hotchkis w/ 4QA-1s or the Roush w/ 4QA-1s
I went to the Roush website, and there kit is listed with 4 of their shocks for $889, and the Hotchkis is $779+shocks....Anyone know how much the Roush is without the Shocks ? I tried to call today but they were busy.

Suspension Kit, 4 X 2, Regular Cab, F150
Item: PN00-3K000-RC
Price: $889.77

http://www.roushparts.com/products/P...000-RC_250.jpg (this is the correct kit right ??? its the only one I saw listed on the site)

I know many of you are using the hotchkis and racing at the strip, but how will the roush kit affect the time I spend at the 1/4 ?? What kind of 60's are you guys getting with this kit ??Will it allow weight transfer ?? I mostly race the truck in the 1/4, but I'd like to be able to attack on/off ramps, and some high speed turns on the local parkways a bit more aggresively instead of having to back off. Will the QA-1s, make it possible to plant at the track ??

Thanks guys.

I have a couple of Lightning friends running QA-1's all around, and when they take off at the track, they take off. Their back bumpers look like they almost touch the ground. Definitely worth their weight in gold. Email me at traximus@excite.com for probably the best deal in town on them. I will hook you up with someone. Just remember to say who you are.

thanks for the offer, but a guy from your area already set me up with a guy that sells them for 119ea. is this the same deal your talking about ?....do you or anyone else have any info on the roush springs and straight track experience with them ?

Also I just noticed that that kit doesnt include any sway bars, and I looked on the entire roush site, and couldnt find any listed for the F150. Does the roush kit provide better handling with stock sway bars or do I have to buy those somewhere else ??

TTT

Roush does not include anti-sways. I would go with Hellwig -- stiffer than a high school boy at a strip bar and half the price of the Hotchkis anti-sways.

O.k..so roush doesnt make their own sways and they leave it up to you to get your own....hmm didnt know that. How bad does ride get after installing this kit ?? Is it like bone jarring ?? I know my friends hotchkis he says ride very nice, almost as smooth as stock.

I hope the Hellwig anti sway bars fit better than the Hothckis bars

If you saw the way my end links line up on my Hotchkis front bar, you would think a school kid designed it.

you could get some Steeda sway bars to go with the Roush.

The Roush kit rides well. It is firm, but not harsh by any means. I love the stance, ride, and handling.

Saying that, the Roush Bilsteins are on my truck. I have no clue how it would ride with other shocks.

You friend is either kidding you or kidding himself. Ride comfort will decrease in direct proportion to the increase in spring rate. Others -- like your friend -- may tell you otherwise, but this position denies physics and common sense. If you could make the truck handle better without killing the ride, don't you think that Roush would have already done so in developing the Lightning for Ford?

The Hotchkis is much stiffer than stock and the Roush is, according to my understanding, stiffer yet. If ride quality is high on your list of priorities, I would leave it stock. Or go with the 1"/2" Ground Force coils/shackle kit, of which the front coils are reportedly not much stiffer than stock.

With the Hotchkis kit front and rear (now running Stan's 1100 lb coils) and QA1's for 12,000 miles, my truck squeaks and rattles like crazy. And the recently added urethane bushings have harshed up the ride even further. It is indeed "bone jarring."

I don't regret the decision, and the truck corners much better and steers much sharper, but go into it with your eyes wide open.

There Ain't No Such Thing As a Free Lunch.

http://www.timskelton.com/lightning/...mages/cs_1.jpg

Mine lined up very well with the stock arms and the Hotchkis coils.

Now with the DJM arms, that's another story altogether . . .

http://www.timskelton.com/lightning/..._installed.jpg

I think I posted this in the other thread (or several other threads), but everyone I talked to (including the local Lightning guru here in the Dallas area) said the Hotchkis would right much, much worse than stock or the Roush setup.

I went with the Roush, stock sway bars, and the Roush Bilstein shocks.

Now mine is an '04, and I can tell you that _stock_ it rode noticeably harsher than my '99 L did and it was lowered with Belltech front springs and rear hangers, and Bilstein shocks. From what I gather the '03-04 ride quality is compromised somewhat with the different rear leaf springs.

That being said, the honest truth is that the truck rides better now with the Roush than the stock L setup. Now this is very subjective, so YMMV. But the stock '04 suspension seemed to bounce and bounce and bounce...after hitting one dip, and we're not talking Cadillac smooth either. The Roush is much tauter, but its just a single bounce and then it's planted again. But the initial "hit" isn't any worse than the stock suspension, and it doesn't last like bad aftertaste (which the stock stuff does). Now is it a bit rougher ride than a stock '99-02 L? Probably so. As Tim said, 99x out of 100 there is "no free lunch". I'm not naive enough to disagree with him. But I don't think it would be a big enough difference on the negative side to keep you from installing it. If your stock suspension has any real miles on it at all, then you will feel like its a great improvement. Worst case is you hit a bump and have one slighly harsher jolt, than 3-4 "bounces" til you are stable again.

The truck handles extremely well, has a great stance to it, and I'm 100% satisfied. I'd install it again in a heartbeat. It took me about 4-5 hours (taking a lunch break) in my garage on jackstands. I am no hardcore road racer like Tim and others here, so I'm sure the truck would do even better with adjustable shocks and sway bars. But I have also heard that aftermarket sway bars will make the ride rougher, and I don't like compromise.

If you go to my website and click on the Lightning pics you can see a good, same day, before and after shot of the ride height.

Here's the direct link: http://www.wa2fst.com/7.html

Hmmmmm. Backhanded compliment?

:devil:

Not backhanded at all. :) As long as I've been modding vehicles, I am just wise enough to agree with you on that.

For me, this modification enhanced the ride of the truck. That's possibly b/c I was used to my '99 which, while it took a hit in the stock ride quality by lowering it with a 2/2 Belltech kit, still rode better lowered than the '04 did stock. I have no reason to believe my stock '04 rode any worse than any other '04 L, so I don't think its an issue with my truck.

A lot of it, and I know you'll agree, has to do with driving habits, what each of can tolerate, etc. It can get very subjective. Adding the Roush suspension didn't compromise anything for me. I went into it expecting it to possibly be worse, but at the same time, I thought the stock L ride sucked compared to what I was used to in my '99.

So, IMHO, this is the needle in the haystack... the 1 out of 100, where lunch isn't "free" (after all, my pocketbook got opened up) per se, but it was a win-win for me.

And perhaps most importantly, local road conditions.

In South Carolina, where I grew up, the roads are generally smooth and wel-maintained. In the Northeast, where they get lots of cold and traffic, the roads can be horrible. Here in SoCal, some of the city streets are barely passable.

Blown5Pnt4 was it Ronnie that hooked you on NLOC? That was me then, with my screen name over there. Just trying to help everyone out.

:rocker:

Unless you're after a full kit, why not shop around for different parts? Try running a combination of Hotchkis, Stan's stuff, QA1s, Hellwig bars, etc.

Actually NC I got the name of the guy from Woody...

Fast Ford thats another option to consider as well thank you for the idea.

I also finnally got ahold of someone at Roush today, and they informed me that the Roush Kit for the L only drops it 1" all the way around...is this true ?? He said that the kit drops the standard f150 2/3, but the Lightning only 1/1....I dunno if I like that.

I don't know about that...here's a pic of my truck with the Roush kit:

http://ayresweb.com/01L/HREwheels/1.jpg

http://www.ayresweb.com/01L/clear_corners/ssbulbs1.jpg

Looks like more than 1" to me. :D

Go look at the weblink I posted about my truck. It's more than 1/1. Granted the '03-04 sits much higher than the others from the factory. But I'd say its a solid 2/2 drop on a Lightning.

Great point. Here in the N. Dallas area, we are blessed with excellent roads.

Cool man, I know Woody, too. I was trying to do a group purchase over there on NLOC. But, it wasn't going to work. The vendors didn't want to come down on their prices to meet that guys prices.
:rocker:

I have my own combination of suspension parts that suits my tastes for a balance of comfort and performance. I have Hotchkis stuff, RUSlow's stuff, and Hellwig stuff on my truck. No Roush or QA1s, but the latter is en route next season.

So who has the best prices on either the Roush or Hothckis kits?

Hey, I want to klnow too
 

Since I am in the market of lowering my L. Roush lowering kit

I just saw somewhere that Tim at Chikenears will be carring both Hotchkis and Roush soon. I would wait till he gets them or go to LFP for hotchkis.

I don't want to hijack the thread, but this is related...I have a combination of parts, Hotchkis leafs and 2" shackles, Belltech 2" coils, Hotchkis anti-sway bars, and QA1's all the way around, and this thing rides like crap. I beats me to death. I found every rattle in my truck with this stuff. I don't totally regret it, but I think it could use a little tweaking.

I've read only once that the Bell-Techs are a no-no, but have only heard that one time. Maybe I'm just too low with a 2/4 drop, but the Roush guys don't seem to be as bad with the same ride height.

I still haven't found the sweet spot in the QA1's if there is one for this set up.

I may have to go ride in a stock Lightning to see
what it's like. (I've been Roush'ed for two years)
Anyhow, I don't think the ride in my truck is harsh

Cliff
:rocker:

PS ... I just got another opinion:

"you're truck beats the crap outta me every time we
have to go somewhere. I know you think it's great,
but it's nothing compared to the ThunderChicken"

Wife of SVT_KY

< GRIN >

So there ya go, if you wanna feel the road take the truck,
if you have hemorrhoids, take the T-Bird !!!!

I went with the Roush kit and couldn't be happier. My L corners like a sports car, and while stiffer, is not too harsh. I also used Beltech shackles onl the leafs to level the truck. Love it.

https://www.f150online.com/galleries...TOKEN=76603142

Is the roush kit the only suspension mod you have done? That thing looks low-I like it. I ask because I have an 04 and will have to fight the same leaf spring battle.

Hopefully you don't have to fight the pinion angle battle.:(

It sure does, but it looks REALLY good :cool:

Steve