Just an FYI for anyone who has these on their mind. I installed mine yesterday afternoon. Another easy install. I've had mine sitting in the garage for several weeks now, rather intimidated about putting them on. Simple, almost as easy as putting on the new bump stops.

Jacked up the truck, enough to get both front wheels off the ground. Removed front wheels. Backed up the jacks with jackstands (just in case) and removed one upper arm bolt at a time. Removed stock camber (non adjustable) adjustment plate at each end of the bolt. Teeny bit of wiggling to get the adjustable cam bolt into the arm, then tightened it into place.

One thing to note. I knew that I needed my adjusters set to the full "out" (+3 degrees) position, so there was no reason to be concerned that any of them might not be correctly set. I couldn't stand seeing my truck with that "weak in the knees" sagging look at the front end. Pics in a week or so.

Sacto

 

I'll be doing this same technique shortly. Picking up the cam bolts and washers today. They seem inexpensive at the dealer.

 

They really are a simple (very) installation. Not sure why I waited so long to put them in.

 

Ok, I got the cam adjusters and washers (38$ from dealer). However, I noticed the lack of reference marks on the cam adjusters and mount. What process to follow? Should I put a long level on the tire sidewall and adjust the cam until zero bubble and then do visual with truck off the jack?

98 F150 4x4 Offroad

 

Sacto,
I recently installed the Hotchkis coils and leafs and I didn't think the ride was that bad. Pretty good in my opinion. Did you install the shorter bump stops that came with the kit? If not, then that could have been part of your problem. Also, shocks make a big difference. Stock ones definitly won't work, nor will the Lightning Bilsteins. I used the Edelbrock IAS shocks. Pretty good ride IMO.

 

Yeah, it could have been the shocks. The leafs were not even close to touching so the bumpstops were not an issue. The more I try to diagnose this problem, the more I lean toward it being a tire/wheel issue, combined with whatever the innate problem is.

I am still not thrilled with the ride quality I have. The Hotchkis leafs only exaggerated what was probably already an issue. I've recently let some air out of my tires to soften things up and I can't wait until these wear down so I can get some softer sidewall rubber.

It almost shook hard with the Hotchkis installed. Pamela Anderson was with me that day and her implants almost burst! Now I am exaggerating. I am glad they are good for you.

 

Have you considered installing shock mount extenders on the rear. This could help.

 

I'd like to try those. I once thought that I had a place for them, down in Southern California, but they wanted to ONLY sell me a crazy big kit for somewhere between $200-300. Naw, wasn't worth that kind of money.

You have them? Where do they mount? How much?

 

So-Cal Speed Shop $58 plush shipping. Be sure to look at you lower shock mounts to see if they look different or if they're exactly the same.

http://64.49.232.205/product.asp?3=278

 

Too funny, they are the ones that wouldn't sell me the extenders separately. They wanted to only sell me the back half of the kit.

 

I just left them a message, we'll see what they say this time.

 

I would definitely look closer at the tire/wheel thing. Over the years I have rotated them quite a few times, sometimes swapping frt to back (fairly new tires) and actully found an arrangement that canceled out the vibe/wobble/hopping/harsh ride. I went thru everything, shocks, u-joints, exhaust dampners, checked driveshaft angle, wheel bearings, slip yoke, wheels balance 3 times, new tires, etc...

On each wheel I added reference marks so that if I ever need to rotate or if someone else rotates them I have a way of putting them back on with minimal harshness. Sounds crazy, but the truth.

 

So-Cal returned sent me a message, $60 bucks for the shock extenders, but I'll probably pass on that idea. I've already put new shocks on the truck, correct for the dropped 4" in the rear.

Another reason that I am confident that it is likely a tire/wheel related matter is due to the corrected balancing I had done to the rear tires when this problem first arose. Both of the rear tires were out of balance, one was "WAY" out of balance.

I've not yet had the fronts re-balanced and I should, since whoever did the rear incorrectly also did the front originally. Last night I put my chopped SVT coils back in and took out the Eibachs, and this helped too.

The front-back balance is now better. The Eibachs are VERY comfy and good, but less firm than stock truck coils. With the factory leafs out back, it was soft in the front and stiff out back. Just did not feel right.

All is well though, learning as I go. I'll probably get the front end re-aligned again soon, and the front tires re-balanced. I'll keep you posted!

 

How much is cut off the SVT coils? Are they HD or L coils?

 

I removed 1 coil on the Lightning SVT set I purchased, and I LOVE the way the truck rides and handles with them on. Still feels like a truck, aggressive...but I wanted it a bit lower. Looks right too. Better than the Eibachs which brought it down lower than I wanted. I'd put the Eibachs on an Expedition, but probably not on an F150 ever again.