[markboris]

I have always used Bilstein shocks on all my cars (mustangs and F-150's). The B6 is their sport shock. Very firm. It is a high pressure gas shock and it's a monotube so while they are very high quality they are also very expensive. I looked and looked for a shock made for the escape when I bought mine 6 months ago and no one really makes an upgraded shock for this car yet. However pretty much most the manufactures make shocks for a Kuga so I was happy to find out that my favorite Bilstein shock (B6) was made for it. I had to order them from Europe to get them as Bilstein US would not sell them to me. I replaced the rears and were identical to the stock shock as far as fit. The front struts however were not. While they would fit in the suspension, the spring was slightly different because the bottom of the spring in the Escape ends up small while the one for the Kuga ends up larger. I was not planning on buying springs but had to in order to instal the struts. I ended up buying the Eibach Pro-kit springs because that is what the person I talked to over in England told be is what people buy especially with these B6's. Let me tell you, this car handles better than almost any car I have owned and I have had quite a few. It's not a sports car but it's the best SUV I've ever driven. I have to give a warning though, it is no longer a floaty soft ride. It is not harsh but it's firm and with these Michelin pilot sport A/S 3's pretty amazing. Only thing I want to do now is upgrade the front and rear sway bars. Somewhere on this forum I read someone doing this. I am not big on checking these posts or going in my computer a lot but I just started replying to a few threads and it's kind of fun seeing what other people do and sharing my experiences.

 

[K-Dub]

Why did you go with the B6 and not the B8? Their website calls for the B8 for lowered vehicles. Seems like the shock would be out of its optimum damping range with lowering springs.

Would you mind sharing the associated part numbers and overseas source?


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[markboris]

I went with the B6 because they don't make a B8 for the Kuga and lowering the car only 1.5 inches does not seem to affect the way the shock works. It still has plenty of travel and the car never bottoms out or anything. I have used B6's before on slightly lowered cars ('04 Focus) and not had any issues. The left front strut part # 35-156512, right front strut part # 35-156529 and the rear shocks part # 24-156530.

I have purchased these from two different sources over in England because I not only put this set up on my car but also a friends Escape. When I went to buy the second set, the first source was out of stock so used another source. Here are both sources but remember, these are very expensive shocks and then the shipping over here is expensive too. But when you really want something, you get it. Suspension Direct http://bilstein.suspensiondirect.co.uk, sells the front struts for $219.35 US each and the rears for $180.95 each. Spring-Loaded Car Suspension Parts Specialists, www.spring-loaded.co.uk.! sells the front struts for $249.58 and the rear shocks for $205.84. Obviously Suspension Direct is cheaper but you need to email both places to see what the shipping charges will be. Spring-Loaded has both the Eibach springs and the H&R springs that you need to get (or any Kuga springs you like) so that you can make it work with the strut to install on the Escape. Again they are expensive. They want $331.47 for the H&R springs and $341.97 for the Eibach's. It is possible to look all over Europe and maybe get better deals. I just preferred dealing with places that email back promptly and both places did. I had the best and fastest service from Spring-Loaded. I did all of this 5 months ago so if you want more detailed info, I will have to dig deeper in my records. I did look to see what Spring Loaded charged me for shipping all four shocks and it was $126 US.

Now for one more bit of info, I actually bought a third set and was trying to see if I could some how adapt them to a 2007 Focus because there are not Bilstein B6 shocks made for this year (2006-2011). I was able to adapt the rear shocks perfectly but modifying the top of the shock collar to fit in the Focus rear upper shock mount but the fronts will not work at all no matter how I was going to try. So, I have a front set of these Bilstein B6's and a modified set of the rears (which should still work) for the Kuga. I have decided not to mess around with them anymore and I don't want any money for them since I messed around with the rears but the fronts are perfect still in the box. I was thinking of listing these on the classified section of this forum. I have just started posting here as you can see this is like only my 5th post or something. I would be more than happy to ship them out to anyone that wants them however you would have to buy Kuga springs and you will get a much firmer ride (but handles great). I live in the Santa Cruz mountains in Nor Cal and all I drive is twisty mountain roads all day and I put between 30-35K miles on my cars each year so I like a car that handles.

 

[Tracey Walker]

Saw an FE yesterday with what appeared to be tires that were about 1" wider that stock on stock looking 18" 2014 Titanium wheels. That one mod made the car really look super. Anyone try slightly wider tires on stock wheels? Admittedly, I'm looking for a more aggressive look and maybe a tad bit softer (quieter) ride. As I'm in San Diego, the snow thing isn't a concern. I was going to ask the guy what he was running, but of course he shot off the stop light like a rocket ship.
Oh yea...he had a 2014 Titanium with a metallic / chrome 2.0 badge under the EcoBoost badge. Any idea where one might pick up one of those? I'm assuming it was installed with double stick tape. Looked factory. Dealerships say not offered.
Trace--

 

[Spider Pig]

I've seen those plastic 2.0 badges on eBay. They come with preinstalled 3M tape.

As far as going wider, you can go up a size in width and you won't rub on the fenders. Especially if your car is at OEM ride height. If it's lowered, you should still be fine.

 

[leadmic]

Oh yea...he had a 2014 Titanium with a metallic / chrome 2.0 badge under the EcoBoost badge. Any idea where one might pick up one of those? I'm assuming it was installed with double stick tape. Looked factory. Dealerships say not offered.
Trace--

Try EBay item number: 200828411190
Mark

 

[Tracey Walker]

Try EBay item number: 200828411190
Mark

The manufacture says it's not compatible with the 2014 /13 FE. Wonder why. Maybe curved surfaces.
Thanks Trace--

 

[leadmic]

The manufacture says it's not compatible with the 2014 /13 FE. Wonder why. Maybe curved surfaces.
Thanks Trace--

Trace its a 2.0L badge that has two way tape on the back of it and will stick where ever you put it. This is not a factory badge because the escape never came with a 2.0L badge maybe that's why they say it's not compatible.
Mark

 

[murcod]

...However pretty much most the manufactures make shocks for a Kuga so I was happy to find out that my favorite Bilstein shock (B6) was made for it. I had to order them from Europe to get them as Bilstein US would not sell them to me. I replaced the rears and were identical to the stock shock as far as fit. The front struts however were not. While they would fit in the suspension, the spring was slightly different because the bottom of the spring in the Escape ends up small while the one for the Kuga ends up larger. I was not planning on buying springs but had to in order to instal the struts. I ended up buying the Eibach Pro-kit springs because that is what the person I talked to over in England told be is what people buy especially with these B6's...

I went with the B6 because they don't make a B8 for the Kuga and lowering the car only 1.5 inches does not seem to affect the way the shock works. It still has plenty of travel and the car never bottoms out or anything. I have used B6's before on slightly lowered cars ('04 Focus) and not had any issues. The left front strut part # 35-156512, right front strut part # 35-156529 and the rear shocks part # 24-156530.

I think the reason the Escape springs didn't fit is because those B6's are to suit the earlier shape TE Kuga . Their online catalogue is here: Online Catalogue . There doesn't appear to be an "off the shelf" option for the struts or shocks in the current shape TF Kuga/ Escape apart from the B4 (basically an OEM spec replacement.) It's interesting that the spring change enabled B6 strut fitment on the TF.

On a positive note the fact the rear B6 shock bolts straight in a good find . Were the extended and compressed lengths close to the Ford OE shock? (I ask because Bilstein actually list different parts numbers in the B4 rear shock for TE vs TF Kuga, so there is a some sort of difference. Perhaps only in the valving, but it would be interesting to see them both side by side.)

 

[Radescape]

I Run 20x8.5

I Run 20x 8.5 with 245 40 20 tire, I Love rhem

 

[murcod]

View attachment 44602

I Run 20x 8.5 with 245 40 20 tire, I Love rhem

Do you know what offset the rims are and do you have any pictures showing how they sit relative to the guards?

 

[Radescape]

I Take some pics

Do you know what offset the rims are and do you have any pictures showing how they sit relative to the guards?

I will get you some in a bit Thinking its a 30 offset not sure will find out for sure

 

[murcod]

I will get you some in a bit Thinking its a 30 offset not sure will find out for sure

If that's correct it's a pretty big offset change from stock (which is 52mm on a 8" rim).

I've got some 19x8.5" rims on order which are 45mm offset, so I'm interested to see what your 20" look like. I'll be running the stock 235/45 tyres, but am thinking of 245/45 or even 255/40 when they need replacing.

 

[Claudio Garnelli]

I have 245/40/20 Size 8.5Jx20 ET40 Irmscher Antara Black with Achlles ATR2 sport tyres. Very happy with the way they sit on the car. No rubbing whatsoever and have been told 255 width will be ok aside from the speedo being >5% out.

Have also just purchased a steel 17" wheel and fitted 225/50 tyre to use as spare wheel that fits in to the wheel well in the boot. It is 0.4" taller than the 155/70/17 spare saver tyre, coincidentally my 20" wheel is also 0.4" taller than the stock 235/50/18. So my spare will fit in the boot and also be a legal spare.

 

[netflixer]

Unless you have a specific need or desire to go with larger, 20" wheels, why not save some money and stick with the factory 19x8" wheels and just go with a wider tire? The OEM 19x8" wheel come with 235/45 tires, with a 235mm width. You can fit up to a 255mm width tire on them and keep the sidewall ratio close as others have mentioned.

I went with the Michelin Pilot Sport AS/3+ at 245/45 on the OEM 19" wheels and they have been outstanding so far. They are no louder than the factory Continentals, no harsher, much more responsive, provide a great amount of traction, improve braking, and are very smooth running tires. Yes, they only have a 45K mile warranty and need rotating every 5K miles, but the handling improvement with these tires is amazing over the stock Continentels. The Michelins at 245 vs. the 235 stock have given me approximately .4" extra width on each tire so nearly 1" total extra tire width. I don't see a need to go to a wider 8.5" wheel when they will fit the same tire sizes.

Unless you are going strictly for looks with either a larger wheel or wider stance, I don't see a need with going to a larger, wider, and potentially heavier wheel when the factory wheel can be fitted with upgraded and wider tires that will far outperform the OE tires. Adding wider wheels may also require suspension modification as this will change your geometry.

Not trying to dissuade you, but rather I am curious as to why you are looking at wider wheels while using the same tire sizes that can fit on the OEM wheel?

 

[murcod]

Unless you have a specific need or desire to go with larger, 20" wheels, why not save some money and stick with the factory 19x8" wheels and just go with a wider tire? The OEM 19x8" wheel come with 235/45 tires, with a 235mm width. You can fit up to a 255mm width tire on them and keep the sidewall ratio close as others have mentioned.

I went with the Michelin Pilot Sport AS/3+ at 245/45 on the OEM 19" wheels and they have been outstanding so far. They are no louder than the factory Continentals, no harsher, much more responsive, provide a great amount of traction, improve braking, and are very smooth running tires. Yes, they only have a 45K mile warranty and need rotating every 5K miles, but the handling improvement with these tires is amazing over the stock Continentels. The Michelins at 245 vs. the 235 stock have given me approximately .4" extra width on each tire so nearly 1" total extra tire width. I don't see a need to go to a wider 8.5" wheel when they will fit the same tire sizes.

Unless you are going strictly for looks with either a larger wheel or wider stance, I don't see a need with going to a larger, wider, and potentially heavier wheel when the factory wheel can be fitted with upgraded and wider tires that will far outperform the OE tires. Adding wider wheels may also require suspension modification as this will change your geometry.

Not trying to dissuade you, but rather I am curious as to why you are looking at wider wheels while using the same tire sizes that can fit on the OEM wheel?

Fitting a 255/40R19 to a 19x 8" rim isn't recommended. (I'm aware people have done it on here.... but that doesn't make it right.) Your 245/45R19 is the maximum width recommended for an 8" rim width.

I've ordered a lightweight 19x8.5" rim, so it should be lighter than the OEM 19x8" - how much lighter I'm not sure on yet. I know my near new Continental and OEM 19x8" rim weigh in at 23kg. The offset of the new rim is also 7mm less (ET 45 vs 52mm), so the track will be 14mm wider. Style wise, I can't say I'm a big fan of the OEM rims.

I'm sticking with the 235/45R19 Continental ContiSport Contact 5 as they're a decent tyre that get plenty of really good reviews. When they wear out I'll be looking at changing to either 245/45 or 255/40- hence the wider 8.5" rim choice. I'm in Australia, I don't have to worry about snow or ice during Winter so I always go for "Maximum Performance Summer" tyres at a minimum. The Michelin AS/3 is an "All Season" tyre and suits you, but wouldn't suit my needs.

Edit:
PS: I notice your Michelins are a 98 load rating- is that correct for the Escape? My Kuga has 99 load rating tyres and I thought that was the minimum?

 

[Thenorm]

Edit:
PS: I notice your Michelins are a 98 load rating- is that correct for the Escape? My Kuga has 99 load rating tyres and I thought that was the minimum?

your current tyre load rating is not the end all be all.

check the tire sticker on the inside of the door jamb (I'm assuming Aussie cars have the same as N.American)
example below

 

[Radescape]

a pic more coming

If that's correct it's a pretty big offset change from stock (which is 52mm on a 8" rim).

I've got some 19x8.5" rims on order which are 45mm offset, so I'm interested to see what your 20" look like. I'll be running the stock 235/45 tyres, but am thinking of 245/45 or even 255/40 when they need replacing.

not sure on ofset
hears a pic

 

[Radescape]

more pics

I will get you some in a bit Thinking its a 30 offset not sure will find out for sure

Hope this helps

 

[murcod]

Radescape, that looks good. You definitely wouldn't want any further negative offset.

Thenorm, yes we have a sticker- I'll have a look next time I drive mine. Searching through the owner's manual revealed nothing.