We knew it wouldn't be long before the aftermarket embraced the new '09 F-150. With a solid chassis and a world-class interior, it's bound to be a top pick for truck enthusiasts as it has been for years. For this month's Fantastic Four, Industrial Motoring in Anaheim, California, helped us out and let us shoot while they built a blacked-out F-150 to show off RBP's latest offerings. RBP's new 6-inch lift kit will fit 4x4 or 2WD trucks, like this one, and transform a plain-Jane truck into an off-road machine that will draw envious stares on the street or in the dunes. As with all of our Fan 4 stories, this one included RBP's new intake, exhaust kit, and mesh grille. With Toyo M/T tires mounted on RBP wheels, the F-150 went from a run-of-the-mill cruiser, to dominating the freeways and rugged off-road terrain the way only a new custom truck can.
Follow along as Dave Derichsweiler of Industrial Motoring, spends a day underneath the Ford.
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The crew at Industrial Motoring had already began to strip the Ford when we arrived to sho
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The RBP lift kit included the upgrade to coilovers. The base kit uses a spacer for the fac
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The bracket holding the brake line was removed form the factory spindle as well as the tie
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Both upper and lower castle nuts were removed from the ball joints. The front spindel and
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Four bolts held the factory sway bar in position. Once they were out of the way, Dave set
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There was just enough room on top of the spring perch to get the impact gun in position to
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After discarding the factory coilover, Dave removed the two bolts holding the lower contro
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The RBP dropped crossmember took four factory crossmember bolts, plus two other bolts, to
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The new RBP front crossmember also used the lower control arm mounting points securing it
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With the new dropped crossmembers installed, it was time for the lower arms to go back on
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Each end of the coilover needed monoball spacers, here's one going into the top with the n
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The bracket was installed in the factory pocket with the supplied 7/16-inch hardware and t
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Here's a side-by-side shot to show you how the RBP kit obtains six inches of lift.
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Before the new spindle was installed, Dave attached on the brake dust shield.
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Next, Dave bolted the factory hub onto the RBP spindle, lifted the spindle in place, and u
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To keep the brake lines from being too tight at full droop, the RBP kit included a bracket
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Two drop brackets bolted to the frame to lower the sway bar and let us keep the factory en
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A few smacks with a hammer seated the bushing on the compression struts.
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A Compression struts connects the front suspension to the transmission crossmember, streng
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On to the rear, Dave supported the axle with screwjacks and removed the U-bolts.
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After a few turns of the screwjacks dropped the axle housing, billet aluminum blocks were
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Pro Comp shocks were installed using the factory mounts and the rear was nearly done.
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Here's the parking brake drop bracket that keeps the line from being tight at full droop.
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Another drop bracket was included for the bumpstop.
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The last bit of the rear suspension was this solid carrier bearing spacer that corrected t
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Dave was able to remove the factory exhaust in one piece after unbolting it behind the cat
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Much lighter and more compact, the RBP polished muffler and aluminized steel exhaust used
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Dave welded the burly black RBP tip in place to be sure it stays put.
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The final component to go now was the RBP intake. Because it's a pre-production piece, we
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A set of 20x10-inch RBP 94R wheels will continue the nearly blacked-out look, with just a
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Since the F-150's grille shell was already chrome, the polished stainless grille was an ea
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From the Driver Seat
There's no doubt that the RBP lift and wheels, combined with the mean-looking Toyo tires, transformed the look of the once-timid F-150. Also, like virtually every truck manufactured today, the 5.4L V-8 in our F-150 was in sore need of some rumble. There's no excuse to have a big, bold truck that's as quiet as a whisper. We'll show you more on this truck as its transformation continues, so keep an eye out.
Your Questions Answered
Time Spent Working: Approximately 8 Hours
Degree Of Difficulty: Intermediate
(The kit wasn't difficult to install, but without a lift and air tools it would definitely tire you out.)
Tools used:
Air impact wrench, sockets, two-post lift, torque wrench, assorted prybars
Parts Used:
Magnaflow after-cat exhaust 16518 $521.49
RBP black tip 45124-7 $159.00
RBP 3-4 inch adapter 95007 $36.00
RBP 6-inch coilover lift kit $2,690.00
RBP 904R wheels 20x10-inch $1,928.00
RBP cool-air intake 919154 $490.00
RBP RX chrome mesh grille 151568 $1,590.00
Toyo Open Country M/T 37x13.5R20 tires $1,956.00
Total cost: $9,370.49:
(Prices for RBP parts from RBP, exhaust from autoanything.com, and tires from superbuytires.com and does not include installation or tax)