ICON VEHICLE DYNAMICS 2.5-INCH LIFT & 4-LINK FOR SUPER DUTY
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In 2018, diesel enthusiasts are primarily interested in adding two things to their trucks: bigger wheels and tires, and more power. Show and go. Looks alone won’t satisfy their needs. It’ll have to back up its aggressive stance with a powerful punch, and vice versa. With the power side of the equation taken care of thanks to a 300-hp Hot Damn tune upload to his 6.4L, Jim Ellenberg decided his ’10 F-250 could use a new look—one that entailed 35-inch tread mounted on 20x10-inch wheels.
To fit the new rolling stock under his immaculate, low-mile Super Duty, Ellenberg knew he would have to lift the truck. In an industry chock-full of reputable lift kit manufacturers, he went with a company that’s known for building high-quality lifts that perform exactly as advertised: Icon Vehicle Dynamics. In particular, one of Icon’s Stage 4 2.5-inch suspension systems would be installed— complete with dual-rate coil springs, matched tuned performance shocks, dual steering stabilizers and an adjustable track bar.
As icing on the cake, as well as a means of making sure the near 600 hp making it to wheels never unsettles the front axle in fourwheel drive, Icon’s front 4-link system was also ordered. With the truck dropped off just south of the small town of Alexander, Illinois, the folks at Flynn’s Shop set to work bolting everything together. To find out why Icon’s products are often considered some of the best in the industry, read on for all the details of this 2.5-inch Stage 4 lift and 4-link system.
DIESEL ENTHUSIASTS ARE PRIMARILY INTERESTED IN ADDING TWO THINGS TO THEIR TRUCKS: BIGGER WHEELS AND TIRES, AND MORE POWER.
With the Super Duty positioned on a two-post lift, sent airborn, and a 1-ton jack placed underneath the differential, the guys at Flynn’s dug into the project by tackling the rear suspension portion of the install first. But before they could go about removing the factory U-bolts (which would be replaced), the truck’s One Up Offroad traction bars had to be disconnected from their corresponding axle mounts.
Icon’s vehicle-specific (VS) 2.0 aluminum series remote reservoir shocks are nitrogen-charged and feature polyurethane bushings, zinc-plated sleeves and forged-steel mounting stems. Premiumgrade 5WT shock oil is also utilized for consistent suspension damping across a wide temperature range. For noise-free operation, each shock makes use of a nitrite rubber top-out bumper as well.
Laid out in front of us, the parts list for the install was extensive—so extensive that every suspension component but the factory rear leaf springs would be replaced. Here you’re looking at the major pieces of two Icon Vehicle Dynamics systems: the Stage 4 version of the company’s 2.5-inch suspension lift and the front 4-link system.
To drop the axle enough to install the 4-inch lift block on the passenger side, the factory Rancho shock had to be unbolted from the axle. And prior to finagling the new 4-inch blocks into place, the guys at Flynn’s cleaned up the leaf spring mounting plates with a wire brush and some compressed air.
The 5/8-inch U-bolts that hold the One Up Offroad front-of-axle traction bar mounts in place were loosened and the mounts themselves were removed. Then the nuts on the factory 5/8-inch leaf spring U-bolts were broken free and the U-bolts were pulled, followed by the factory lift blocks.
To level the truck from front to back, Icon offers 4-inch fabricated lift blocks as an add-on option (at a cost of $251.88) specifically for F-250 models, which leave the factory with 2-inch blocks. Correct-length, 2.0 series piggyback reservoir shocks are also supplied to accommodate the height difference.
With the taller lift blocks in the mix, Icon supplies longer 5/8inch diameter U-bolts, which measure 15 inches in length. The supplied U-bolt nuts would eventually be torqued to 170 ft-lb.