Why "Lower" or "raise" your Maverick?

[Deleted member 5597]

Please help me understand why you would "lower" or "raise" your Maverick?

Is it something the younger owners do?
Do you enter in car shows?
Does lowering affect the ride quality?
Is it for the "coolness factor"?

I'm just a few weeks shy of 65, and have owned many family and business vehicles over the course of my lifetime. I never considered raising nor lowering any of them. My hybrid Lariat Mav is the only vehicle I ever spent money on accessories on because I plan on keeping it for the long haul, but raising nor lowering never crossed my mind.

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[NotARealTruck]

Well basically there's two kinds of people:

Those whose wives wouldn't let them buy a sports car, so they have to lower their crossover.
Those whose wives wouldn't let them buy a real truck so they raise their crossover.

 

[Chewy]

I had a ‘93 Explorer that I put a 4” suspension lift and 33” tires. Did some light off-roading while deer hunting. Then I had a “95 F150 super cab that I also put a 4” suspension lift on. In 2000 I had a regular cab F150 that I leveled the rear. Now I’m old and I think the Maverick is perfect the way it is.

 

[mfergel]

I am 58. I have lowered several of my vehicles. I do this because I like the improvement on handling.......plus it looks the way it should have from the factory.

 

[Vettereddie]

I am 58. I have lowered several of my vehicles. I do this because I like the improvement on handling.......plus it looks the way it should have from the factory.

Can't speak to lifts but I lowered to reduce the (what I consider) excessive gap between the wheel and the fender. I'm not sure exactly when this trend started with trucks but on a FWD hybrid with only 2k towing the extra suspension travel isn't needed and the gap makes it look like a roller skate.

If I had the 4x4 with All Terrain tires I'd probably do a leveling kit to get rid of the hunched stance, factory rear is a full inch higher than the front and only putting so much weight in the back of a 4 1/2 foot bed.

 

[Lane]

Those whose wives wouldn't let them...

In a day when each person has their own vehicle, that makes me sad. She can do hers, I'll do mine, thank you.

Mine's lowered because it's no longer the 1800s and roads are now paved, and I'm also not going to be launching it airborne, so this huge useless wheel gap just looks terrible.

Mine is lowered. Some of the side effects of that which people don't often think about - a lower center of gravity dramatically reduces the risk of rollover in an emergency maneuver or in an accident. I've read some say that mileage also improves when you have less airflow under the vehicle. I went with a Silvers coilover suspension not only to change ride height, but to have the adjustability to be able to set the ride softness/firmness to my tastes. You can see that install here in my build thread.

Does lowering affect the ride quality?

Yes, it does. And there is a trade-off. I wanted my Mav to drive, handle, and feel like a smaller, more nimble vehicle. I made the ride firmer, and while you feel bumps a bit more, it also enhances the feeling of control. It handles better and feels more sporty to drive. I do drive my Mav even when I'm not doing trucky things with it, and it sure is nice to have it feel like less of a truck during those times.


I don't know why modern trucks keep getting taller and taller. I guess it looks "rugged" and that's the most important thing to some. But here's my biggest gripe with that.

I grew up on a farm and back then, the standard ride height all the pickup trucks was reasonable, unlike today. It needed to be. Anyone that did work with one expected to do so as easily as possible. And that meant being able to reach into the bed over the side, step up on the tailgate with ease, or get in/out of it dozens of times each day. Skip forward to today.... the need to do this is dumb:

I would not buy a truck that's sky-high like this where its usefulness is sacrificed by its "ruggedness". I don't understand why people choose to.

Is it for the "coolness factor"?

Absolutely. How can this not look cool?

And even better yet , it now passes my truck ease-of-use test. I can load a full 5-gallon gas jug into the bed over its side without having to open the gate.

 

[Frenchy]

I am going to be 75 years old in a few weeks,. I do not want to have to crawl down in my car or to have to crawl out. I presently drive a dodge minivan, that I love. One of the reason I love it it is because it i high off the ground so it is easy to get in and out. in addition this give me better visibility around when I drive. I wanted to raise my soon coming maverick but because of the cv joints issues I might not do it. I probably just install the tallest tires in can install without rubbing.

 

[710-oil-614]

I would like a little more ground clearance on the hybrid but it’s probably not worth it without the advanced RDU and PTU.

So I’m happy for it just how it is I guess.

 

[MoHillbilly]

I did a 1” level on mine to, well, level it. Not running around nose down like a Hyundai Santa Fe now.

 

[Clarkdonbran]

Just like smoking, it looks cool!

 

[LSchicago]

Nothing to do with age or wives. It is personal preference. I lowered My F150, because I didn't like the factory ride height. I left the Maverick stock because I thought the ride height was good.

 

[Gray Goose]

Please help me understand why you would "lower" or "raise" your Maverick?

Is it something the younger owners do?
Do you enter in car shows?
Does lowering affect the ride quality?
Is it for the "coolness factor"?

I'm just a few weeks shy of 65, and have owned many family and business vehicles over the course of my lifetime. I never considered raising nor lowering any of them. My hybrid Lariat Mav is the only vehicle I ever spent money on accessories on because I plan on keeping it for the long haul, but raising nor lowering never crossed my mind.

Some instances are practical reasons, but in many cases it is preference and pop culture influence.
The 70's introduced "Bigfoot" and the lifting craze took off.
Lowriders date back to the 1940's but really took off in pop culture with street racer movies starting around 2000.

Personally I like the balanced stance of the stock Maverick. It handles city cloverleafs nicely. At the same time it can also handle light off-roading.

 

[Eggflipper]

Not necessarily my cup of tea, but, you be you and I’ll be me. All personal choice. Your vehicle, you do with it what you wish. One of the wonderful things about living in this country of ours. Those of us in the states.

 

[Tim d]

Please help me understand why you would "lower" or "raise" your Maverick?

Is it something the younger owners do?
Do you enter in car shows?
Does lowering affect the ride quality?
Is it for the "coolness factor"?

I'm just a few weeks shy of 65, and have owned many family and business vehicles over the course of my lifetime. I never considered raising nor lowering any of them. My hybrid Lariat Mav is the only vehicle I ever spent money on accessories on because I plan on keeping it for the long haul, but raising nor lowering never crossed my mind.

I'm also 65. We used to " jack up" the rear ends of our cars with airshocks. Mostly just to look " cool" but sometimes functional if larger tires and wheels were put on.as I've gotten older I've gotten wiser in some aspects,and also couldn't care less about impressing others,so I don't deviate from stock. Doing so can negatively ride and accelerate drivetrain and suspension wear. Why pay a ton of money to do that? I had a buddy back in the day that lifted his Toyota truck and put on bigger wheels and tires.he couldn't even use 4th gear because the truck would run out of power and bog down.he killed his gas mileage also and couldent go over 60 mph but looked " cool" I guess . bottom line is the owner has the right to do whatever they want to their vehicle and spend their money. Even if it's not wise.

 

[Bob The Builder]

Please help me understand why you would "lower" or "raise" your Maverick?

Is it something the younger owners do?
Do you enter in car shows?
Does lowering affect the ride quality?
Is it for the "coolness factor"?

I'm just a few weeks shy of 65, and have owned many family and business vehicles over the course of my lifetime. I never considered raising nor lowering any of them. My hybrid Lariat Mav is the only vehicle I ever spent money on accessories on because I plan on keeping it for the long haul, but raising nor lowering never crossed my mind.

We're too old.

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