Swapping out the rear shocks on a 2009 to 2014 F150 is easy. So easy that this is bound to be the shortest install guide in Stage 3's history. Nevertheless, it's our sworn duty to provide our customers with an even more handy reference for getting their performance F150 suspension hardware up and running on their very own trucks. So, here's our install of ICON's 2.0 Aluminum Body Rear Shocks on our 2012 F150 FX4 5.0L Project Truck. These shocks came packaged with the ICON Stage 2 Suspension system that we threw on our truck, and are a great upgrade over the factory shocks and have less fade better response, and the ability to handle a few inches of extra rear lift that made them a perfect companion for our ReadyLift 3" Rear Lift Blocks that we had already installed.
First off, we headed down to Extreme Performance down in Goodyear for the use of their lift and the helpful hands of JD. To begin the install, you'll need to jack up your truck or get it on a lift, and then support the rear axle with either a jack, or in our case, adjustable axle stands. Lift the axle until there's little to no tension in the leaf springs or stock shock.
After the axle is squared away and the tension removed, you can remove the upper bolt hold the shock to the frame and the lower bolt holding the shock to the axle. After pulling these bolts, the shock should easily drop right out of your truck.
While ICON's shock looks small in this little comparison, the stock shock is buried underneath all that cladding and is much smaller that ICON's shocks.
Now that the factory shock is removed, all you need to do is put ICON's shock right in its place. We recommend starting by bolting in the upper mount first so that you can maneuver the axle into proper position with your floor jack or axle stands.
After the upper mount is secure, bolt the shock to the lower axle mount and tighten to the proper torque specs.
Double check all your bolts, and you're finished up. Our new ICON shocks look great. This guide is good for practically any shock, outside of shocks with remote reservoirs.
