Purchase Regret- what to do?

Hi all- new here and first truck (‘21 F150 crew, 3.5L) bought new. 30k on the after market wheels, tires, shocks.

Here’s the scenario: I put on Venumrex “20’s, KO2 295-60-R20’s, Falcon shocks/level kit a few thousand miles post purchase.

Use case: nearly 100% road/highway.

Issues: stiffer ride than I’d like, less torque than factory set up, some repairs I’ve had to do because of set up but less an issue.

The ride is notably more planted- I like that. But when I’m driving on country roads, hit potholes it feels like I’m breaking the truck.

Feel free to laugh- the front struts require grease which I’ve been doing but not before I realized they need it often. I’d been getting a rubbing/squeaking noise until I called the company and learned of my idiocy. They said I might be OK and they haven’t been an issue as far as I know.

So a belabored way of asking- is there anything I can do now to lighten the suspension without a complete overhaul? Are there lesser things I can do to improve it even if marginally?

Thoughts were-
1) new suspension but if so which?
2) replace front struts from the damage but not sure that’d affect ride quality
3) Smaller tires and thicker wheels
4) More narrow tires but same R20

Any advice is appreciated. I’ve got little perspective.

End of day if best course is just deal with it. That’s fine too.

PS- also curious what folks would do if they were to do this from scratch.

Welcome to RME!

I ran the Falcon shocks on our '15 F150 over a handful of years. Those shocks are definitely performance and off-road oriented. The valving in them is fairly aggressive, especially when compared to stock.

I was running 17" wheels with 285/75/17's and had more sidewall than your truck has with 20's, so that's not helping your situation.

If you're not using your truck off-road at all and you're really unhappy with the ride, I would recommend swapping the shocks out for Bilsteins and selling your lightly used Falcons.

Depending on how often you tow with your truck it would be a good idea to let air out of your tires. Most truck tires are not meant to be ran at full pressure unless you are at full load on them. For example, I generally run my F250 tires at about 50 PSI in the front and 40 PSI in the back and I still don't even have full contact with the tread. Full load they are supposed to be at 80 PSI
Doing this really takes the edge off the road bumps and pot holes.

What’s your tire pressure set at?

Tire PSI is the first thing I thought of too.

Truck Newbie said:

PS- also curious what folks would do if they were to do this from scratch.

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Honestly, for your use case, probably wouldn't have modded it. Ford knows that most of those F150s are going to be pavement oriented and so they build them optimized for that.

Welcome to RME!
I have a 2017 F-150 SuperCrew long bed that frequently sees dirt roads around Green River and the San Rafael Swell where I live. The truck is leveled with 285/75/17s and factory shocks. The factory shocks have always performed well for me but upgrading to a set of Bilsteins has always been the plan. The time for that is fast approaching. I’ll piggyback off of previous comments and say a less aggressive shock and a tire with more sidewall will likely benefit you. Reducing tire pressure also helps.

Kevin B. said:

Honestly, for your use case, probably wouldn't have modded it. Ford knows that most of those F150s are going to be pavement oriented and so they build them optimized for that.

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This is what I was going to say. F-150's are good trucks out of the box for 90% of the use cases people buy them for. And as with all vehicles, drive if for awhile before you modify it so you have an idea of what works for your use and what could be changed.

Since the vehicle is already modified, I'll echo what others have said. Return to stock or go with Bilstein shocks, and ditch the low pro 20's for 17's and more sidewall.

My '12 F150 Screw has 20" wheels from factory and I believe only a 55 ratio sidewall.
I don't feel that it is too jarring, but any good size pothole will be jarring regardless.

I am on stock shocks still (150k so about time to swap) and only run around 35-40psi in my tires.

I agree with starting at the psi in the tires...if that doesn't work well enough then look at the suspension. Bilstein would be a great switch and the Falcons could be sold to recoup some $$

Also a vote for tire pressure when on dirt.
Takes my f350 from a tooth rattling monster to a rally truck going from 70psi to 20psi.

Johnny Quest said:

What’s your tire pressure set at?

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46 lbs. thoughts?

Johnny Quest said:

What’s your tire pressure set at?

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46. Which is what’s recommended from the tire manufacturer

I'd try 32 - 35 PSI, 46 is pretty high and meant for maximum load capacity, hauling or towing.

I ran the falcons on my 2016 f150. I kept blowing them out, so I switched to the bilstein 5100 kit. They both feel about the same on road, but the falcons were a touch more stable and planted off road (when they had fluid in them). Maybe a touch less bounce in the falcons on big highway bumps.

I think ultimately I prefer the falcons, but for the price and the hassle of having to get one or two rebuilt every year, it's not worth it. I have a full set in my garage I need to have rebuilt so I can sell them.

I also rarely tow so I run the raptor spec bfg 315/70r17 ko3 tires that are load c. They are the best price tire, I like the size (metric 35), they ride nice at 35 psi etc.

A couple other things I've found... A good alignment really impacts how the truck rides off road. Also, a little bit of weight in the back does too. A full tank, 100# of camping gear, and a fresh alignment and you can really push that truck on high speed dirt.

Truck Newbie said:

46 lbs. thoughts?

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That’s gonna be high for off-road use. What’s the load range?

Try dropping them 5lbs at a time; I bet you’ll be happy around 25-30psi.

Try a chalk test too.