Scheduled Steeda Installation

[Zorrosdens]

Hello everyone somewhat new here although I’ve been looking for a little while. I purchased my 25 Explorer ST November 2 and have really enjoyed it. It’s an amazing vehicle overall to drive power feels nice. Playing with sport mode is pretty incredible. I don’t play hard with it though at this time I’m a little older little smarter somewhat and just being careful with the brand new vehicle probably my first one and hopefully maybe my last if I make it last long enough and I do too. I’ve been reading a lot thinking a lot. I’m going ahead and going to do some Steeda product installs and a little bit of a couple others also mainly to improve on what is already great to my knowledge. This is a list the items I plan to have installed at the end of this month over at the Steeda Georgia location. It’s already set up through John there at Steeda… he’s been great to work with plus he’s actually giving me better prices than the discounted prices @ website. I’m not sure how they work that out and how he deals with that but with a combine list of products to be installed, he just worked some magic for a helping benefit. Every little bit helps . Would love to save the money on the installation cost but it’s all OK. I really don’t have a nice heated garage with the concrete floor and it’s just easier for me to go ahead and bring it to them and have them install everything at one time and get it squared away and we will take it and enjoy from there. It’s probably all I’m going to do for the most part… I also have the Steeda Strut Tower Brace. I have the FenFab ECU cover in black with the red backing plate for lettering, that will pretty much cover my bases. Simple basics aesthetics…I don’t plan to get too much into the other situations at this time, but who knows what the future can bring I’m very happy with the vehicle. It is amazing to drive…Power, tight, smooth, and the Ford Blue Cruise I love. Gotta be sure you’re on top of it all the time still not like it’s a problem, but you never know what’s gonna come up while you’re driving. You can’t be too careful these days.

https://fenfabrication.com/shop/explorer-st/fenfabrication-2020-explorer-stvertical-link/

https://www.jxbperformance.com/prod...-aviator-2020-differential-bushing-insert-kit

The other items that will be installed at the same time will be the FenFab Billet Verticle Rear Link and JXB bushings inserts. I understand that there’s a possibility for NVH with the JXB bushings from reading in the forum here, but being as it’s a brand new vehicle we will see. They seem like a good idea And after talking with the owner of the company, I feel fairly confident with trying them also. I know I have read everything here and I’m a touch worried, but not totally. I’ll just see what I get. I think that everything else will feel amazing on it. I will probably have it set up for maximum stiffness everywhere. I would definitely like to have minimum roll if pushed at all. It’s going to be interesting. It’s a bit of a drive from South Carolina near North Carolina down to Voldesta but that’ll be a good test on the way back not like I’m gonna race it or slalom course around cars too much. But it will definitely give me a good idea right from the get-go what I’ve got. Thanks to everyone here and I’ll be watching what else pops up here. Great forum.

 

[enphor]

I just had the steeda subframe bushings installed. A very noticeable improvement you will like it. I also have the steeda diff support, not much to say on that but everything feels great when getting on it. I have the JXB bushing insert and whoosh bolt ready to install. I'm doing all that rear diff stuff for safety in hopes it helps keep the diff from dying as I have seen many accounts here of that happening. I also replaced the stock RDU oil with amsoil 75W-110 in the first 1000 miles.

If you want to go further, an intercooler upgrade and a tune will take you to the next level. Heck even the IC upgrade alone will.

Whereabouts in SC are you, I'm in the Charlotte area.

 

[GearHead_1]

That's a nice list. I'd probably tell you to be happy with your front sway bar as it came from the factory. I believe the only real benefit you will get there is a perceived benefit, dollars spent, gotta be better, right? If you know what I mean. You'll love the rear bar.

You'll probably get some snarky comments on here about Steeda's products. You'll likely hear about the differential brace being no good and paint coming off Steeda's products, so be prepared.

All I can offer is this, I run a bunch of what you have listed, and they've been great in every respect.

 

[UNBROKEN]

Kill the front bar and front and rear end links. They are 100% not needed. This car doesn’t need a front bar…at all. I’m the one that figured out their front and rear end links fit this car…and told them about it. I’ve also had both front and rear break and my second front set of making noise now. I’m going back to stock the next time the front wheels are off. Seriously…you don’t need that shit at all.
I also don’t know why they sold you a dual bolt “upgrade” kit when you only have 1 bolt on your car. I also don’t believe those bolts are needed.
Do the JXB insert, FenFab vertical link, subframe bushing brace kit and rear bar along with springs. I’d add toe arms as well…those things are flexy as hell. Have them do a credit swap for their adjustable toe links for the front bar and all 4 end links.

 

[UNBROKEN]

I just had the steeda subframe bushings installed. A very noticeable improvement you will like it. I also have the steeda diff support, not much to say on that but everything feels great when getting on it. I have the JXB bushing insert and whoosh bolt ready to install. I'm doing all that rear diff stuff for safety in hopes it helps keep the diff from dying as I have seen many accounts here of that happening. I also replaced the stock RDU oil with amsoil 75W-110 in the first 1000 miles.

If you want to go further, an intercooler upgrade and a tune will take you to the next level. Heck even the IC upgrade alone will.

Whereabouts in SC are you, I'm in the Charlotte area.

He can’t tune a 2025 car.

 

[Caster]

I also worked with John @ Steeda a couple of weeks ago to get a lower than currently advertised price on Steeda subfame bushing supports. I received them a couple of days ago. As soon as I can get a day at around 50 degrees or more I am going to install them and a Traxda 1.5" lift at the same time. I'm in Michigan and its been STUPID cold lately.

 

[enphor]

He can’t tune a 2025 car.

My bad. At least its just a matter of time.

edit: till someone at Ford lets it happen. It's stupid easy to crypto-graphically sign code nowadays , car makers allow back doors, leaks, etc to access the vehicle's computers on purpose. They want to avoid the whole "right to repair" movement by not pissing off their most nerdy customers by completely locking everything out. Make it just hard enough to not be too mainstream. Of course all my opinion.

 

[DaHuntah]

He can’t tune a 2025 car.

The 25's can be tuned, just not in the typical way. RaceChips has a product for the '25's. It just plugs in rather than being uploaded. Not as good as say, ZFG or Goosetuned, but better than stock.

 

[UNBROKEN]

The 25's can be tuned, just not in the typical way. RaceChips has a product for the '25's. It just plugs in rather than being uploaded. Not as good as say, ZFG or Goosetuned, but better than stock.

That’s not a tune on any level. It’s a fancy boost fooler. They also do nothing for the transmission and IMO should be avoided just like the JB4. Adding power to the 10R60 without controlling the torque is asking for problems.

 

[Zorrosdens]

So yesterday was install day. Sorry for no response from me here but other than that first response did not see/know about these added up here o. So let me take another day or two to drive feel it out before I solidify my impressions, will do that by on Thursday late or Friday for sure. I appreciate ALL of the response added here. (I DO like the opinions/input from all here) talk soon. One thing the JXB’s according to Steeda installer they did not go in, said they were not large/wide enough to go into voids in the bushings (as in too small in circumference…they just didn’t fit. I took his word/trusted it.

 

[Zorrosdens]

I wanted to make one correction real fast. On the JXB inserts, I just went ahead and ordered the double set up. I did not realize even the probability or possibility that a 2025 would be a SINGLE bolt situation. I assumed it would surely have to be a double so that was what I ordered without knowing ahead of time well enough I think… yeah, I’m a dummy. I am gonna do my evaluation tomorrow, I promise… not like everybody is waiting on it pins and needles but just saying. Overall, I’m pretty happy actually very happy but I’ll get into the details mañana, the main spoiler is the shifting almost is like silk smooth. It might be a bit of an exaggeration but the night and day difference is very pleasurable. I’ll get to all the other details tomorrow the JXB situation I think is my fault, sorry if I raised odd concerns just make sure when you order obviously duh.

 

[Zorrosdens]

Apologies upfront for this being a little long…
OK, so after spending more time well over 100 miles a day and the ride back of course from Georgia on the night of the install day here are my conclusions first initial responses and then how things settled in. I’d like to shout out to Unbroken the experience/knowledge that he has building is pretty amazing. I take everything said seriously, but I didn’t follow every advice simply because I had it done ahead of time and my little picky brain still felt that a complete sway bar set up would be beneficial in the sense of how they built them to go together possibly that’s just my brain and thinking, so here are my conclusions….

Everything was installed, including rear, vertical links from FenFab. It was a long drive back home. First thing I noticed was how much I felt the road and I mean, not necessarily in a good way at the rear, it felt rougher. I was a bit concerned about that. Maybe I had gone too much going stiff all the way, but I knew I needed to spend some time and checking everything out so the main first takeaways are, it was very stiff at the rear and that it handled nicely very nicely. First thing I noticed with that also was how smooth it shifted. I mean, there wasn’t any spongy slop in the mechanics. It was like a smooth silk connection a beautiful feeling. Even getting on the pedal you can hear the gears are changing the transition between them is so smooth. It’s beautiful something else that I noticed on the drive back was during BlueCruise, and I used a lot of it, when I change lanes with it I always disliked the lane change action… the initiation and the finish of the executed lane train was choppy in the beginning and choppy in the end Like an inexperienced driver, not smooth, that has gone away completely the shopping list changing now with blue cruise feels perfectly as if I had done it myself smooth&clean, that rough/jerk feel completely went away. I’m half guessing that that comes from less body sway and maybe the front end stuff with the sway bar I don’t know about the end links, adding exactly… but All the tightness all the way around has definitely smoothed the lane changing with BlueCruise, that is sweet because it aggravated me every time I changed lanes before. I really appreciate that little difference now the most aggravating part, if you wanna say that, is what I felt in the beginning, the roughness… by the time that Thursday came and this was a Monday install, by the time Thursday came having it bother me actually went away. It was as if something worked in or I worked in and I can feel the stiff rear end it’s a little bit like driving a truck full size truck is what it reminded me of more so a heavy duty truck, but it still has smoothness in it but not like it did STOCK. I guess I should expect that seriously with any kind of a tightening of suspension and handling hardware But now I’m completely comfortable driving the car as it is and those things are not forefront in my mind anymore I think things are just settling out. The handling now is tight, very nice. It definitely doesn’t sway like it did easily in a hard turn steering is completely comfortable, but that shifting is beautiful and that’s all I can say. Not a lot of breakdown on the different parts that did what because I had everything put in at one time so I can’t break down….What did what, except I’m sure that the bushing inserts and the stiffening brace has definitely tightened up that smooth shifting, and that’s it. I understand some of these things may not have been really that much help in the situation like this sway bar in front as Unbroken spoke about and end links. Everything was a pretty penny altogether with the installation, but I am even happier driving the car now and that small thing of changing lanes with BlueCruise is now perfect, overall I’m happy. The next thing I think I’m going to add will be an S&B cold air intake. Having a “tighter“ car really does feel different… The Explorer ST stock handled very nicely really no complaints, but now is even better. I like it.

 

[Zorrosdens]

I forgot to add I did a lot of driving without the radio on to see if I could hear any changes in cabin noise or road noise and that kind of thing I’m not really getting any discernible NVH with everything that I have done, the car is tighter, but I’m not getting any sounds that tend to translate as transmission oriented or axles and such I couldn’t hear any new noises that way. The only thing that would be possible to say, possibly tighter set up all the way around maybe just noise through the tires but I don’t believe there’s any change that I can notice everything is normal.