Mdarius
New Member
- Joined
- Oct 28, 2019
- Messages
- 6
- Reaction score
- 5
- Points
- 3
- Location
- Salt Lake City, UT
- Vehicle Year
- 2000
- Make / Model
- Ford Ranger
- Transmission
- Manual
Hello! I'm a long time Land Cruiser owner, but I'm not a bigot! I just picked up a 2000 Ranger for my son in college and I'm trying to learn about it's very different engineering.
I do a lot of wrenching myself. I'd say I can take stuff apart and put it back together decently, and I usually break something, but in the end it's better than it started.
My buddy in college had a Ranger from the 80's that we beat the tar out of and it went everywhere. We loved that truck. I'm looking forward to my son making some bad decisions of his own in this one. He's learning to wrench, but still doesn't know the basics of knowing there's something wrong before it outright breaks.
This is a 3.0 Manual. The top end was just rebuilt. There's a funny whistle during acceleration (Intake?) and a terrible shake at 70MPH. The blower fan only works on high (I think I found the thread about this one. Thanks to the forum already!) and the AC doesn't blow cold. Otherwise, it seems to be in pretty good condition for a $2,600 vehicle with 156,000 miles.
My kids were raised in Land Cruisers. We put a lot of back country miles on our vehicles and do some prettystupid fun stuff off road. My kids and wife don't know how to drive a vehicle with less than 8 inches of clearance, so a truck is the only option here. (Note the bumper on the Honda Accord that is falling off and bashed in the corner.)
Future plans:
1. Take care of any outstanding mechanical issues and prep it for college life in Logan, UT.
2. Baseline fluids for a fresh start
3. Small, cheap lift. Hopefully fit 33's under it. It currently has 245/75/16 Hercules mild AT's on it. I'm used to under $1,000 for 3.5 inches on the Land Cruisers with just springs and shocks. I'd be happy with about 2" on this one. I've been reading but I'm not sure what I can get without changing the geometry significantly and adding wear to critical components. It sounds like maybe a slight torsion bar twist and 2" drop shackles? I've never twisted a torsion bar before.
4. My approach is to drive it where I want to go. If something doesn't work well, that's my next upgrade. I anticipate skid plates, rock sliders, and lift should just about do it. If it doesn't, he can ride shotgun in my Cruiser.
I'll be lurking around trying to learn about these trucks. I'm particularly interested in learning about the suspension design, maintenance, and repair. Anything else that is "regular" or known maintenance/wear issues that may not be in the owner's manual, etc.
If things go well I may just become a Ranger guy as well as a Land Cruiser guy. So far, so good! I'm looking forward to being a part of the forum.
I do a lot of wrenching myself. I'd say I can take stuff apart and put it back together decently, and I usually break something, but in the end it's better than it started.
My buddy in college had a Ranger from the 80's that we beat the tar out of and it went everywhere. We loved that truck. I'm looking forward to my son making some bad decisions of his own in this one. He's learning to wrench, but still doesn't know the basics of knowing there's something wrong before it outright breaks.
This is a 3.0 Manual. The top end was just rebuilt. There's a funny whistle during acceleration (Intake?) and a terrible shake at 70MPH. The blower fan only works on high (I think I found the thread about this one. Thanks to the forum already!) and the AC doesn't blow cold. Otherwise, it seems to be in pretty good condition for a $2,600 vehicle with 156,000 miles.
My kids were raised in Land Cruisers. We put a lot of back country miles on our vehicles and do some pretty
Future plans:
1. Take care of any outstanding mechanical issues and prep it for college life in Logan, UT.
2. Baseline fluids for a fresh start
3. Small, cheap lift. Hopefully fit 33's under it. It currently has 245/75/16 Hercules mild AT's on it. I'm used to under $1,000 for 3.5 inches on the Land Cruisers with just springs and shocks. I'd be happy with about 2" on this one. I've been reading but I'm not sure what I can get without changing the geometry significantly and adding wear to critical components. It sounds like maybe a slight torsion bar twist and 2" drop shackles? I've never twisted a torsion bar before.
4. My approach is to drive it where I want to go. If something doesn't work well, that's my next upgrade. I anticipate skid plates, rock sliders, and lift should just about do it. If it doesn't, he can ride shotgun in my Cruiser.
I'll be lurking around trying to learn about these trucks. I'm particularly interested in learning about the suspension design, maintenance, and repair. Anything else that is "regular" or known maintenance/wear issues that may not be in the owner's manual, etc.
If things go well I may just become a Ranger guy as well as a Land Cruiser guy. So far, so good! I'm looking forward to being a part of the forum.