Bilstein 5100 Adjustment Heights

[mkdunne]

Hi everyone! I’ve seen a few posts on here regarding the Bilstein 5100 adjustable shocks but I was wondering if anyone had further clarity regarding the ring height settings and how much lift is actually applied at the different heights for a RWD ranger. Also the comfort/stiffness for the different settings?
I’ve only seen a couple people mention a 1.2”setting

Any help would be greatly appreciated thank you

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[veloci1]

i just installed mine in my FX4 about 2 weeks ago. i used the highest setting which translated into 2.5 inches lift in the front. ride is perfect just the way i expected it. firm, but, not stiff. great for the front. the rear are not adjustable, but, they provide a huge improvement compared to the stock ones.

 

[mkdunne]

i just installed mine in my FX4 about 2 weeks ago. i used the highest setting which translated into 2.5 inches lift in the front. ride is perfect just the way i expected it. firm, but, not stiff. great for the front. the rear are not adjustable, but, they provide a huge improvement compared to the stock ones.

thanks for the response. Glad to hear it’s firmer but not stiff. I was worried if I put it one notch from the max or At max that it would be back breaking

 

[TXFX2]

thanks for the response. Glad to hear it’s firmer but not stiff. I was worried if I put it one notch from the max or At max that it would be back breaking

I did the same, definitely not too stiff. All of my passengers are happy to have the upgrade!

 

[mkdunne]

I did the same, definitely not too stiff. All of my passengers are happy to have the upgrade!

Awesome that seals the deal for me then. I’ll probably set it one below max and get more lift from tires. Thanks!

 

[Richard Conley]

i just installed mine in my FX4 about 2 weeks ago. i used the highest setting which translated into 2.5 inches lift in the front. ride is perfect just the way i expected it. firm, but, not stiff. great for the front. the rear are not adjustable, but, they provide a huge improvement compared to the stock ones.

So even reading the trailing post I'm not still clear in terms of what is considered stiff/firm. I would say the stock ride feels most every crack but I'm not sure it that is "stiffness". The ride characteristic most noticeable to me is left to right and the opposite which is really only noticeable a slower speeds like coming into my driveway. I'd like it to corner better (I don't go off road) and I like the idea of getting rid of the "rake" and making front level with the back. I'm looking for an excuse to get these...I haven't done any upgrades since the tune. So I can't really understand the description of the ride differences/improvements.

 

[P. A. Schilke]

So even reading the trailing post I'm not still clear in terms of what is considered stiff/firm. I would say the stock ride feels most every crack but I'm not sure it that is "stiffness". The ride characteristic most noticeable to me is left to right and the opposite which is really only noticeable a slower speeds like coming into my driveway. I'd like it to corner better (I don't go off road) and I like the idea of getting rid of the "rake" and making front level with the back. I'm looking for an excuse to get these...I haven't done any upgrades since the tune. So I can't really understand the description of the ride differences/improvements.

HI Rich,

There are many engineering terms for what is a catch all...called Ride Quality. One of the most confusers is impact harshness. Best I can describe is a very noticeable/felt/audible thump when you it a crack in a road. Some vehicles ride very softly like my Nautilus but are extremely lousy for impact harshness if the tire pressures are not set correctly. When set properly as in my case the impact harshness is marginal...Lincoln NVH engineers get only a C+. For the money I paid, I expected better. However the Nautilus is overall an excellent vehicle...call me picky...yep...my job at Ford was to be picky. Sad that there those at Ford of the new generation that are not picky...Sigh...
Suspension tuning is a very delicate development between ride/handling and NVH... It takes time and the former CEO Hackett tried to compress this timing and I am of the opinion that certain attributes deteriorate in the acceptance of compressed timing....Hopefully Farley will bring back excelling on every attribute.

Best,
Phil Schilke
Ranger Vehicle Engineering
Ford Motor Co. Retired

 

[Patriotpower]

I just finished mine. I went with 4th setting. 1.8”. I would highly suggest having a shop swap the springs. My wife helped me decide how high to set the front. I had her sit on the tailgate and measured to level. You don’t want your truck sagging In the rear with your girl on the tailgate. Just sayin.

 

[slowmachine]

HI Rich,

There are many engineering terms for what is a catch all...called Ride Quality. One of the most confusers is impact harshness. Best I can describe is a very noticeable/felt/audible thump when you it a crack in a road. Some vehicles ride very softly like my Nautilus but are extremely lousy for impact harshness if the tire pressures are not set correctly. When set properly as in my case the impact harshness is marginal...Lincoln NVH engineers get only a C+. For the money I paid, I expected better. However the Nautilus is overall an excellent vehicle...call me picky...yep...my job at Ford was to be picky. Sad that there those at Ford of the new generation that are not picky...Sigh...
Suspension tuning is a very delicate development between ride/handling and NVH... It takes time and the former CEO Hackett tried to compress this timing and I am of the opinion that certain attributes deteriorate in the acceptance of compressed timing....Hopefully Farley will bring back excelling on every attribute.

Best,
Phil Schilke
Ranger Vehicle Engineering
Ford Motor Co. Retired

They just don't make them like they used to

 

[Richard Conley]

I just finished mine. I went with 4th setting. 1.8”. I would highly suggest having a shop swap the springs. My wife helped me decide how high to set the front. I had her sit on the tailgate and measured to level. You don’t want your truck sagging In the rear with your girl on the tailgate. Just sayin.

So I'm looking at lots of threads and can't seem to find the exact info I'm looking for. I want to level front to back and only will put on front shocks first. Looking at the clip settings I'm wondering if it isn't the one that "lifts" the front 1.8" that I want?

 

[Patriotpower]

So I'm looking at lots of threads and can't seem to find the exact info I'm looking for. I want to level front to back and only will put on front shocks first. Looking at the clip settings I'm wondering if it isn't the one that "lifts" the front 1.8" that I want?

If you want the truck level without a load, take it to the 5th setting.

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