2000 Ford Explorer V8 - left Rear Fender - Photo 8546155

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The area around the rear door and quarter-panel stands in the way both in terms of wheel opening and body width. FiberwerX has a solution for this situation. A fiberglass rear quarter-panel features a more generous wheel opening for longer travel and larger tires and adds width to properly envelop the bigger rolling stock.

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0610or 01 z+2000 ford explorer v8+rear angle

Adjusting caster and camber with the stock eccentric bolts can be a hassle, so Blitzkrieg nixed them altogether in favor of rod ends; the alignment is now adjusted via the threaded shanks of the rod ends. We're also impressed with the Blitzkrieg gusset kit that ties the factory upper control arm tabs with the vertical face of the factory frame.

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If you opt to go the SUV route, it's a bit trickier to build a proper long-travel prerunner compared to building a pickup.

The area around the rear door and quarter-panel stands in the way both in terms of wheel opening and body width. FiberwerX has a solution for this situation. A fiberglass rear quarter-panel features a more generous wheel opening for longer travel and larger tires and adds width to properly envelop the bigger rolling stock.

The quarter-panels blend seamlessly with the rest of the body lines thanks to a rear door panel complete with a door handle extender.

Blitzkrieg Motorsports was responsible for this front end's transformation. The '00 Explorer shares its front end with the Ranger Edge and the Explorer Sport Trac, so the long-travel artistry seen here will apply to those vehicles as well. Blitzkrieg's Nate Hanson tossed nearly all of the stock parts from Travis's front end and built a pair of custom spindles to complement the boxed lower control arms and matching tubular uppers.

The stock hubs and brake calipers were called back into action, but now the calipers squeeze an oversized pair of rotors. To steer things straight, a pair of extended tie rods was crafted using 4130 chrome-moly tubing and FK rod ends.

The tie rods bolt to the stock steering rack via a pair of machined stainless steel clevises. The Dirt Alliance Explorer relies on King coilovers and bumpstops to damp the front end and a pair of Pyrotect limit straps to gently control top-out when the Explorer's nose leaves the ground. The Blitzkrieg front end is 5.5 inches wider per side and nets 16-plus inches of travel.

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Cut through the floor for long-travel shocks? Not this time. With some metallic trickery, Blitzkrieg was able to leave the Explorer's floor intact and mount a pair of King 2.5 bypass shocks that allow 14 inches of rear travel.

Executing the shock mounts cleanly wasn't a haphazard exercise; it took brainstorming, measuring, more brainstorming, and more measuring.

At the other end of the brainstorming, measuring, and fabricating, a cantilever shock mounting system was created. The subframe-mounted cantilever system has proper clearance; the shocks and cantilevers are free to move without contacting the axle, body, or springs. The cantilevers also feature proper geometry that allows the shock valving to work as it was intended to. Final benefits to this design are ample ground clearance and a big-time stealth factor. Very cool.

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Peer past the King dampers and the Blitzkrieg metalwork and you'll find a pair of Torque Monster headers bolted to the 5.0. These smog-legal pipes awaken the Ford small-block to the tune of 20 additional ponies and up to 40 lb-ft of added torque. The V8 is a good match for the chassis; it had no problem moving the Explorer through the deep whoops of Ocotillo Wells at high velocity.

Free-flowing headers don't help much if there's restrictive plumbing downstream. A Gibson muffler flows freely, is durable, and sounds great.

When the sun sets on a moonless desert night, you won't go anywhere fast without good lighting. This trio of Hellas wasn't needed for our brightly lit, daytime photo shoot, but they pierce the darkness effectively when the moon rises. A Blitzkrieg skidplate/bumper combo gives the Hellas a home and leads the way into the rough.

<b>R.I.P.</b><br>More fortune and misfortune came together again on a rainy night in freeway traffic. Unfortunately, the Explorer was totaled in what was a spectacular rollover, although the suspension parts took the tumble quite well.

Fortunately, Travis came through the accident with only cuts, scrapes, and rattled nerves. As much as we dig our trucks, in the end they can be replaced. A human life can't. In case you're wondering, the next DA flagship is now under construction. We heard something about a Chevy Tahoe...

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