Ranger Suggestion

[hr223shooter07]

Hello, I used to be a jeep guy, I had a CJ-8, and a Cherokee. My friend had a 94 Ranger SuperCab with the offroad package and I loved that truck. I have decided that a Ranger is going to be my next vehicle. I live in Michigan and am willing to spend up to 5,500 on a Ranger.

I have narrowed down what I wanted to this...

Must be the 5 speed, I don't want the auto
Must have manual T-case
Preferably locking hubs, not a big deal
Standard Cab
Short Box
4x4 for sure
Has to be at least a 93 and up, I don't like the square style.

Now this is the dillema, I like the suspension style on the 97 and older for the front, and it seems much cheaper to lift. This is going to be my daily driver and I am not going to put larger than 31" tires on it. How much lift would I need to fit those tires, also what motor should I get? I want one that lasts a while, and what years do you recommend? Thank-you for any advice!

 

[metalmacguyver]

There are alot of questions to be answered.

For 31s, I dont think you need it but you can just crank the torsion bars on the 98+ years and AAL in the back.

Good luck finding a manual Tcase in any 90s or later ranger. My parts truck was probably exactly what you wanted. To bad it was wrecked.

FYI, the 93-97 rangers are 3rd generation.

The lift kits are cheaper on 3rd gen and more expensive on 4th gen as you noticed.

As far as what motor you should get, The 3.0 is a very reliable motor but its not as powerful as the 4.0. The 2.3 and 2.5 are very rarely found in 4x4 rangers so its unlikely that you will find one even if you want one.

The 5 speed over the auto is a good choice as the M5OD-R1 is the best transmission available for RBVs.

Most all 3rd gen rangers came with auto hubs. They suck. Some trucks did have manual hubs. They are the same as the aftermarket hubs that are made by Warn because Warn made them for Ford. The only difference is that they say 4x4 on the knob instead of Warn.

Since you do want to do some offroading, I recommend 3rd gen because of the strength of the front axle. While its not really an issue with the tire size that you plan on running, it will take more abuse than the IFS of 98+ years.

Did my ramblings help you?

 

[skinner]

hey bud. The 93-97 in my opinion are best to offroad, but i like the looks of the 98-99 much better. IIRC, 31s will probably fit stock or with just very small lift. I saw a 92 with 30" or so no lift and it drove fine. I'd probably get a 2 inch body or suspension lift(suspension recommended) for looks if nothing else. The 3.0 is anemic. I love the 4.0 OHVs they used. I had a 94 4.0 that had 210000 orig miles on engine and tranny and still ran strong(thats the mazda m5od, much better than mitsu tranny). My 4.0 2wd 5 spd got 24 mpg on the open road...cant beat that.

 

[4x4junkie]

31x10.50s fit on a '93 & later Ranger 100% stock (some have even squeezed 32x11.50s under 'em too). 33x12.50s will fit with a 3-4" lift.

With shortbed std cab 4x4s, the 4cyl engines are not very rare (although it's not found at all in any 4x4 after '97). Those trucks on the whole are somewhat rare animals though, the vast majority seem to be long-wheelbase Supercabs.

All 3 engines available on the Gen-3s have excellent reliability, although some seem to swear the 3.0L has a slight edge.
My '94 4.0L hasn't given me one lick of trouble (well, except for a couple sensors that got fouled up from using one of those reuseable oil-type air filters )

 

[hr223shooter07]

Alright, keep the advice coming everyone! Thank-you guys for all of the advice, its nice to see a forum board where everyone is friendly. I love the look of the newer rangers, the 97 and newer, but I was told that the older front suspension on the 3rd generations was very strong for an ifs type truck, especially the 35 front. I really like the flareside beds, if that is the correct name, but I don't remember see one passing me at any time in the 3rd gen., did they make those or is it a wild dream? Also with the 4th gen, can I use the warn lockout conversion? On my buddies 94 we changed the auto hubs to the warn lockouts...would the 4th gen ifs hold up to 31's? I pretty much baby everything, never broke anything on my jeeps on the trail that is...knock on wood....but thanks for all the advice everyone!

 

[98ranger4x4]

yes you can get a 3rd gen stepsided and the 98+ will hold up to 31s no problem and they fit with no lift, 4th gens also use a dana 35 front axle. i would reccomend a 93-97 thought if you want to wheel with it, the ifs on 98+ rangers kinda sucks if you do serious offroading but if you dont do any real serious stuff it works fine(rides better onroad though).also 98-01s were equipped with vacuum hubs which dont work very well, but if you look in the tech library there is an article on how to permanently lock them and after 01 they were equipped with live axles (IIRC)

 

[pillen140]

i love my 3rd gen, the 3.o in it sucks though, very reliable, just slower than crap, i would get a 4.0 if i could turn back time.... with 31's, they will fit stock, but i would put 2 inch coil spacers in, levels it off, and looks 100xs better, you will have to allign it though, and get new adjust bushings for the top ball joints. if you are only going to put 31's, a 3 inch body lift looks good on a short box, std cab, on ext cab it looks smaller for some reason. 3rd gens are easier to find in a junk yard too, that comes in handy.

 

[pillen140]

i would make sure your 3rd gen would have a dana 35, not a 28, some of em had. the 4th generation dana 35 is a lot weaker than the traction beam 3rd gen's. and i can agree with 984x4 that there are stepside(style side) i think they call it now, for the 3rd gen. the manual hubs i think are now avail for the 4th gen, but are expensive as hell.. you can make them perminatly locked pretty easy, i think there is a tech article about it.... doesnt cost anything

 

[Buckeye Ranger]

Hello, I used to be a jeep guy, I had a CJ-8, and a Cherokee. My friend had a 94 Ranger SuperCab with the offroad package and I loved that truck. I have decided that a Ranger is going to be my next vehicle. I live in Michigan and am willing to spend up to 5,500 on a Ranger.

I have narrowed down what I wanted to this...

Must be the 5 speed, I don't want the auto
Must have manual T-case
Preferably locking hubs, not a big deal
Standard Cab
Short Box
4x4 for sure
Has to be at least a 93 and up, I don't like the square style.

Now this is the dillema, I like the suspension style on the 97 and older for the front, and it seems much cheaper to lift. This is going to be my daily driver and I am not going to put larger than 31" tires on it. How much lift would I need to fit those tires, also what motor should I get? I want one that lasts a while, and what years do you recommend? Thank-you for any advice!

So basically you want my truck HAHA. Its a 95 4x4, standard cab, manual, 4cyl. (great reliable engine never had a problem), 3"body lift, 2" leveling coils (which I need to take a picture of how it sits now), manual hubs, manual t-case... Here are some pictures.

 

[pillen140]

duals on a four! classic! i do love the look though!

 

[Buckeye Ranger]

Lol yea duals on a 4. Ran it straight back from the cat it doesnt sound "too bad" HAHA but hey I like let'n people know im come'n HAHA its purty loud

 

[pillen140]

are those from LMC truck? look good.

 

[Buckeye Ranger]

Is what from LMC?

 

[pillen140]

the duals? probly not if you dont know what im asking. LOL.

 

[Buckeye Ranger]

Nope. Bought 2 10 foot exhaust pipes and hangers that was the only expense for the duals. I had access to a pipe bender and the tips my dad actually made with scrap from his maintenance dept. from his job they are 3" round stainless steel tips gotta love it lol him and a buddy made them at work for me ha