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- Joined
- Jan 3, 2009
- Messages
- 1,079
- Reaction score
- 11
- Location
- Salem, OR
- Vehicle Year
- 1986
- Make / Model
- Ford
- Engine Size
- 2.3
- Transmission
- Manual
Here is my 1986 Ranger I bought a couple years ago. It was stock and broken. Had a broken rear axle and the fuel filter was clogged. I realized that the stock Ranger wasn't going to work for me. I began by replacing the rear axle and drove it for a couple months.
Front Axle
It was about time to lift the front and decided to go against TTB and go with a solid axle. I swapped in a full width Dana 44 out of a '77 F-150. I used the coil setup but with 4.5" lift EB coils. I extended the stock Radius arms approximately 12" and used 1.25" Heim joints at the ends for better flex. I built a cross-member to mount the radius arms to. I geared the front axle with 5.13's and a Spartan Locker. I used Chevy 1-ton steering set and tie rod ends on the steering and swapped the steering about the knuckle instead of below. I built the track bar and track bar mounts on the axle and frame itself and used heim joints.
Rear Axle
Since I was done with the front axle I decided to finish the rear. I picked up an 8.8 out of a early 90's F-150 and swapped it in. I moved the leaf spring mounts inward to accommodate the narrow width of the Ranger vs F-150. I also used Chevy 63" leaf springs to lift the truck and I got a cheap set of Belltech 6400 knock-offs to further lift the truck. I geared the axle with a set of 5.13's and a Spartan Locker. I finished the axle off with a 3/8" thick diff cover from RuffStuff.
Engine
The old 2.3 I had in the truck was slow. I needed more power but didn't want a lot of weight. I picked up a whole running TurboCoupe for $500 and swapped the engine in. The truck has a lot more power since the turbo swap and it didn't add very much weight.
Body
I bought a set of 4.5" wide universal Fender flares from Pacer and put them on my truck after cutting fenders. I like how the flares look and they are flexible and wont break. I bought a bumper off of Craigslist and made it fit the truck. I am using a Smittybilt XRC8 winch. I am running 35" Mickey Thompson Baja Claws on 15"x8" Black Cragar wheels.
Here is the truck...
Front Axle
It was about time to lift the front and decided to go against TTB and go with a solid axle. I swapped in a full width Dana 44 out of a '77 F-150. I used the coil setup but with 4.5" lift EB coils. I extended the stock Radius arms approximately 12" and used 1.25" Heim joints at the ends for better flex. I built a cross-member to mount the radius arms to. I geared the front axle with 5.13's and a Spartan Locker. I used Chevy 1-ton steering set and tie rod ends on the steering and swapped the steering about the knuckle instead of below. I built the track bar and track bar mounts on the axle and frame itself and used heim joints.
Rear Axle
Since I was done with the front axle I decided to finish the rear. I picked up an 8.8 out of a early 90's F-150 and swapped it in. I moved the leaf spring mounts inward to accommodate the narrow width of the Ranger vs F-150. I also used Chevy 63" leaf springs to lift the truck and I got a cheap set of Belltech 6400 knock-offs to further lift the truck. I geared the axle with a set of 5.13's and a Spartan Locker. I finished the axle off with a 3/8" thick diff cover from RuffStuff.
Engine
The old 2.3 I had in the truck was slow. I needed more power but didn't want a lot of weight. I picked up a whole running TurboCoupe for $500 and swapped the engine in. The truck has a lot more power since the turbo swap and it didn't add very much weight.
Body
I bought a set of 4.5" wide universal Fender flares from Pacer and put them on my truck after cutting fenders. I like how the flares look and they are flexible and wont break. I bought a bumper off of Craigslist and made it fit the truck. I am using a Smittybilt XRC8 winch. I am running 35" Mickey Thompson Baja Claws on 15"x8" Black Cragar wheels.
Here is the truck...
This is almost what I want to do to my truck! Would this project brake a 17 year olds wallet?
