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SH(2009-2013) Forester with 2" Anderson Design & Fabrication Lift Kit


machine1
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Lifted 2"

 
After much waiting and research I decided to lift the Forester a full 2". I ran into the lift kit one day when an Anderson Design & Fabrication picture with a lifted SH Forester was tagged on our off-road group Instagram. I decided to look further into it and contacted him on Facebook. http://https://www.facebook.com/ADNFAB?fref=ts
 
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Before and After

 
17330900264_522cf7c574_b.jpgDSC_0045 by Vinay Sisoukraj, on Flickr
 
17765846080_075f1f0a0e_b.jpgDSC_0048 by Vinay Sisoukraj, on Flickr
 
17950366712_f2752726f2_b.jpgDSC_0047 by Vinay Sisoukraj, on Flickr
 
16792433549_5cb1143842_b.jpgDSC_0203 by Vinay Sisoukraj, on Flickr
 
16792433709_6fefe86c6c_b.jpgDSC_0202 by Vinay Sisoukraj, on Flickr
 
The kit was $500 shipped(Please contact him for current price through his Facebook page or email-PM me for his email) and comes with four strut spacers, subframe spacers, and all hardware. 
 
In the next post I will post pictures of some of the install.
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I will outline a guide for installing the kit, this is not a step-by-step only pointers and minute details.  

 

I would recommend having a friend around to help, especially when working on the rear subframe spacers. I did the rear subframe at the shop using a jack designed to remove entire subframe assemblies with the engine/transmission attached, so I was able to do it by myself. Doing the install at home I would recommend 4 jackstands and a heavy duty jack. 

 

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The spacers after sitting on my garage floor for a few weeks


 

I would recommend painting them as soon as you get them in to prevent any surface corrosion, or store them in a dry place unlike what I did.

 

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I marked the material before installation (D for driver side, arrow noting front of the car)


 

Instead of painting my spacers, I decided to go one better and get them powdercoated black. 

 

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Fresh from powdercoating


 

REAR INSTALL

 

I started with the rear first because I knew it would be harder than the front. Here some notes:

 

*When popping out the covers to access the upper rear strut bolts, pop them out from the bottom of the covers instead of the top

 

*Unhook the parking brake cables from the control arms and reinstall them when you're done

 

*If you have HID's, cut the tape holding the wires together for the rear level sensor so that it can extend

 

*Pop out the clips for the wiring for the ABS sensors from the subframe but make sure not to break them, you will need to clip them back in after the install

 

*The front hangers for the mufflers (towards the front of vehicle) will have to be removed to allow clearance between the exhaust pipe and the subframe

 

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Exhaust clearance


 

The picture looks bad but it doesn't make contact. I will have to retake this picture later. 

 

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Rear Strut with strut spacer installed


 

The hardware for the spacers are standard thread, so please don't try to use the nuts for the OEM struts on the threads for the spacers. 

 

REAR BRAKE LINES

 

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Brake line extension bracket and hardware


 

The kit includes extension brackets for the rear brake lines because at full extension the brake lines will be stretched, make sure to unbolt the brake lines from the calipers before dropping the subframe. 

 

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Right rear wheel brake line


 

You will have to remove the ABS sensors and route the wire under the brake lines so that they don't rub against each other. 

 

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Bracket installed


 

The front of the vehicle is to the right, install the brackets as shown with them leaning towards the control arm. 

 

REAR CLEARANCE

 

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In the air


 

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On the ground


 

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Rear strut and subframe spacers installed


 

FRONT

 

The fronts are very straightforward, take the struts out, install spacers, re-install. Make sure to mark the upper bolt, it is a cam bolt and if you install it differently than when you took it out your alignment will change. 

 

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Front strut spacer


 

When people say that 2" is the max, I do tend to believe that. Everything is stretched to its limit at full extension. 

 

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Front suspension at full extension


 

Since the rear subframe is lowered 2" along with the struts, you do have a little wiggle room to go higher than 2" in the rear. The driveshaft angles are the same as stock in the rear. 

 

ALIGNMENT

 

The ADF kit is designed with compensation for alignment. 

 

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This is what the initial readings for the alignment were before any adjustments were made. I only corrected toe on the front just a little bit. The rear camber is most likely from me bumping around the trails and tweaking something, it is not factory adjustable but I think there are shims to correct it. I did not mess with the rear camber or toe.

 

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MORE PICTURES

 

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If you are wondering how it rides, I can tell you that it rides the same as it did before the lift. I will let you know that my Forester does not have sway bars front and rear (Off-road baby!) so if you ask me how it handles I will say like a truck. 

 

My tires are Cooper Discoverer AT3's in 235/60R17, 28.3 inches in diameter. Stock tires are 26.7 so it's a little bit larger and provides 0.8" of extra lift. 

 

I've had the lift since the end of March and am very happy with it. Soon I will be able to test it out at our local OHV park, stay tuned for more pictures.

 

Future: ruler measurements at front skid and rear diff

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  • 4 weeks later...

That looks sharp.  It must be a bit scary with all that power and your new lean during corners.   Have you thought about a way for a quick disconnect for the sway bars?

 

Thanks!

 

I've gotten used to the handling ever since I went up on tire size and then it was a gradual step when the sway bars came off. 

 

I removed the front sway bar because my endlinks started to clunk. Also, they look like they'll get in the way when off-roading without them connected to anything. I could probably do a quick disconnect for the rear bar, it is still there but just zip tied to the subframe. 

 

Seeing how much flex I can get:

 

18785570128_be3fee2e62_h.jpgIMG_0371 by Vinay Sisoukraj, on Flickr

 

18785537690_375a33fd8f_h.jpgIMG_0373 by Vinay Sisoukraj, on Flickr

Edited by machine1
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  • 1 month later...

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