Truck mods?

[Paddy]

I've got a truck (sort of).  It's a 2003 Ford Ranger 4.0 4x4 manual trans with a tow package and limited slip diff. Everything is bone stock right now, but I'm thinking it needs bigger tires, a big brush guard up front, and maybe a Flowmaster exhaust.

I know, I know.  If I had my way it would be an F350 V10 diesel dually 4x4. But SWMBO won't allow a diesel on the property, so I've got what I've got.

What modifications have you made to your truck?  And what's a good bolt on brush guard?

[cfabe]

I think I remember you asking this back on THR a while back, but here's my input anyway...

Bigger tires - If you really want to do offroading get a jeep. Your ranger is IFS and will never be a good offroad truck. If you want to be able to get through rough areas better, slightly larger tires, partidularly more agressive tires will help, but they really hurt road manners, which is how you probably use the truck 99% of the time.

Flowmaster, cold air intake, computer "chips", vortex/tornado things, etc. All not worth it. The truck is not going to be fast, all these bolt ons get you at best a marginal power increase that's probably not even notciable in a double blind test. Besides, how much percent of your driving time do you have the throttle at WOT?

Brush guard is mostly a cosmetic thing. I would reccomend getting a good strong one though. A guy at work had one on his toyota, spun out on the freeway and bumped into the guardrail. and it bent the brushguard side bar into his quarter panel and dented it pretty bad. Without the guard on there he probably just would have scuffed up the bumper.

If you haven't guessed by now, I'm generaly not a fan of doing mods to your daily driver. I do have project cars, but they're purpose built vehicles. Like the twin-turbo smallblock driven 82 trans am race car. Like I said before, if you want to go offroading, get an old jeep, they are the best.

[garyk/nm]

can opener... meet can o'worms. You are about to open a very expensive can indeed!
Bigger tires? Don't forget the lift kit. And new wider wheels. And longer shocks. Oh, and if you are going for the brushguard, don't forget the offroad lights.
Go to the bank and withdraw $3000; that should get you started,but don't be surprised when that runs out before you are done.
Check out www.explorerforum.com  (they also have a ranger section) for an idea on how carried away you can get.  I have an Explorer and am (so far) up to $2500 in this same type of upgrade, and I haven't done the lift yet! Seriously cuts into the gun budget. You may think that you can afford this, but SWMBO may have other ideas.
Been there, done that, got the @$$chewing.

Oh, yeah; don't forget to re-gear both differentials to offset the effect of the larger tires. Another grand. Cha-ching!

Have fun!

[Schuey2002]

>>"Your ranger is IFS and will never be a good offroad truck."<<

Try and tell that to the editors of Four Wheeler Magazine.

They took this stock (IFS) 2004 Lexus GX470 and transformed it into a kicka$$ offroad rig. They lifted it 3 inches, bolted on larger MT's mounted on beadlocked Alcoas, slapped on a bull bar, trimmed the fenders and body work, and then walked over the Rubicon Trail with ease.

[Paddy]

heh, I hadn't considered the 'slippery slope' of never ending mods, but now that you mention it, this could get expensive unless I'm able to control and limit it.

Thankfully, the Ranger is not my daily driver, with gas at $2.79/gal and  a 100+ mile per day round trip commute.  The Ranger can get 20+ mpg, but only if I keep it under 3500 rpm which is not possible on the freeway (well, maybe possible, but too much trouble).  The daily driver is a Toyota Echo (40mpg).

I don't do any serious offroading or rockcrawling; the truck is a weekender used mostly for chores around the property, so the mods and add-ons would be largely cosmetic and for grins and giggles.
           
Your feedback and experience is appreciated.

[mtnbkr]

big brush guard up front

Don't.  

Cfabe already covered it, but I want to add, for the price of a brushguard, you can almost pay for a true offroad bumper like an ARB or TJM.  Those will take impacts and shrug them off.  The guy at a 4x4 shop in the area showed me an ARB that had survived a highspeed impact with a deer.  All he had to do is repair one of the welds on the "grillguard" portion.

As for IFS not being good offroad, nonsense.  I take my IFS 4Runner to places like this frequently: http://www.4x4icon.com/offroad/070503_state_line/index.htm

Here's my 4Runner (silver one) on that same trail, just an easier section of it: http://image06.webshots.com/6/5/64/22/81956422PpWqgJ_fs.jpg

Yes, I have an evil brushguard, but it was on the truck when I bought it.  I would've put the $500 purchase price towards a TJM T15 (It's about $700 now).  The 4Runner behind me has a TJM T17 I think.  It's about the same price as the silly Manik brushguard on my truck.  A better choice IMO than any brushguard...

True, a solid axle would work better, but an IFS will go where you want to go as long as YOU are capable.  No amount of technology will save the inexperienced driver (gee, where have we heard THAT before...).

IMO, the best mods would be slightly larger and more capable tires, followed by good lighting (front and rear).  You don't need a lightbar filled with KC Hilighters, just a couple up front and 1-2 in the rear (for those times you have to back up in rough terrain at night).  

Chris

[Tallpine]

Buy an ATV and load it in the bed for off road driving

[Ukraine Train]

I don't think IFS is THAT bad, you won't be doing any crazy rock crawling with it but it's fine for mild stuff and mud. Good all terrain tires alone will go a long way in improving off road performance, even if they're stock size. You already have a posi rear so that's a plus.

[grampster]

Riley,

Get a shovel and take a few wacks at the sides and the hood.  Spend a little extra time around the box.  Make sure the tailgate gets some good strokes in order to dent the leading edge.  Better yet, park alongside a smallish tree and cut down.  Let it fall on the tailgate.
Take off the rear bumper and replace with a 2 X 12, preferably wolmanized.  do the same to the front bumper...no maybe a 4 X 12 on the front.  Go buy some recap snow tires and put on all 4 wheels.  Paint the wheels dull black or the the color or the truck.
For about $150.00 you now have a truck that is fit to serve the premises and galumph through the woods with.   It will fit right in and you will receive admiration from all.  If you want to spend a little more, buy a few cans of camo spray paint as an upgrade to the paint job. heh.

[Paddy]

mtnbkr- thanks for the ARB and TJM recommendation. I'd never heard of them before, but they look like what I'm after.  Just have to do some research on installation to see if they will be compatible with the existing tow hooks.  I like the idea that they're 'winch ready' if/when I add one.

Tallpine:

Buy an ATV and load it in the bed for off road driving

Now there's a plan.  Why didn't I think of that?

grampster:  Put down that shovel and step away from my truck!

[mtnbkr]

Just have to do some research on installation to see if they will be compatible with the existing tow hooks.

IIRC, they both have mounts for shackles, which should be more secure than tow hooks.  If not, I'm sure you could drill holes to mount your tow hooks.  These things are tougher than your truck.

Chris

[bratch]

Might ckeck out a tuned PCM.  PCMforless.com is supposed to be top line and more reasonably priced.  According to the GM guys they are getting some nice power and economy increases.

I am currently debating if I want to do it myself.

[Paddy]

The truck has 22k on it so it's still under warranty.  A chip would be out for the time being.   Under warranty, Ford has already replaced a seal in the transfer case and the leaking fuel pump in the gas tank.  Don't know what else might go south in the next 14k miles.

For 'performance', I understand that the right chip plus a good cold air intake and exhaust system designed for the vehicle will help.  This is a 4200 lb vehicle with a 4.0 liter engine and I have no intention of racing it, so existing performance is fine.  Plus, it's a 'California emissions' compliant so who knows what other crap is choking it.

Everybody seems to like the BFG AT tires, but they are pricey.  Any AT tire recommendations?  Right now it's wearing P245 75/R16 tires.  How much bigger can I go?

[garyk/nm]

One of the side benefits of the "performance" intake and exhaust setups is freer breathing for the engine. Remember, an internal combustion engine is nothing more than a pump, moving gasses thru the system. Anything that makes the pump more efficient is a good thing. Read this as improved fuel economy.  You don't have to go all out on the upgrades; just replacing your air filter with a K&N or Airhog replacement panel ans "swiss-cheesing" the air box will be an improvement. Ditto on the exhaust. Any freer flowing muffler will be an improvement.

As far as tires go, the number of differing opinions you recieve will equal the number of respondents. I run Big O Bigfoot XT (mud terrain) in a 31x10.50-15 on the Explorer. Much more agressive tread that AT's. Works out well in sandy conditions as well as mud. The BFG MT's are comparable, and are actually at the lower end of the price scale for such tires. Mine (the Big Os)were $160/each.

There is a maximum tire size thread on the explorerforum I mentioned earlier, should help you with tire selection.

And here is another link for you, as if you don't have enough to consider already;
http://www.jamesduff.com

[mtnbkr]

Riley, for tires, I like Bridgestone's Dueler AT tire.  They're less expensive than BFGs, have good life, and have taken me anywhere I'd want to take my 4Runner.  I'm within 10k miles (50k so far though) of needing new tires and am either going to get them again or Yokohama's Geolander.  

Chris

[Schuey2002]

FWIW, my two favorite All Terrain tires are the Toyo Open Country A/T >>

.. and the BF Goodrich All Terrain T/A >>

[Paddy]

Here's a Ranger with big wheels -35's

http://www.geocities.com/j_nagle_69/index.html

[Smoke]

If you add bigger tires don't forget to regear the axles.  If you don't you can prety well forget trying to ever pass anyone.

Regearing the axles is not a shadetree job and will cost you some money but will do more than any performance bolt-ons you might consider.

Smoke

[Paddy]

Good point.  The truck is geared 4:10 now, which should be good up to about a 33" wheel, I think.

[Schuey2002]

^^

Check out this neat little gear ratio calculator >> http://www.4crawler.com/4x4/4LoCalc.shtml

[Smoke]

The truck is geared 4:10 now, which should be good up to about a 33" wheel, I think.

That depends.  IF the truck is geared with 4:10s now and you're  running a 30" tire you will need to go a lot lower geared to turn 33's.  Besides the diameter issue there is also an unsprung weight issue.  I suspect if you swap on 33's you will not be happy with performance.

Use the calculator Schuey linked.  Probably be in the 4:88 range.  Maybe even 5.13.

The idea is to get your engine rpm back to where you started before adding bigger tires.

Good luck.

Smoke

[Paddy]

OK. This is getting a little complicated.  The tires on the truck are 245 75 R16.  I thought that was 29.5" but according to Schuey's calculator it's 30.468.  If went up one size, to 265 75 R16, that would be 31.65", and the calculator calls for a 4.259 gear ratio.

So what would happen if I put on the 31.65" tires but didn't change the gear ratio?  It's a 5 speed manual. Would each gear be 'taller', or 'shorter' as I shift? What else would happen?

BTW, thanks for that link Schuey.

[cfabe]

Putting larger tires on will cause the effective gear ratio to go down numerically. You'll be turning less RPMS at a certian speed. You can calculate it pretty easily but my brain is too fried right now to figure it out. Use circumference instead of diameter, though, I remember that much.

[Schuey2002]

So what would happen if I put on the 31.65" tires but didn't change the gear ratio?

In Layman's terms..

a) You'll lose a little low-end torque off the line,
b) You'll be using 5th gear less,
c) Your truck will not self-destruct by swapping tires that are 2 sizes larger than stock. Hehehe.

Hopefully someone will come along and give you a better explanation.

[garyk/nm]

As Schuey2002 said, you will feel a loss of power due to the effective gear ratio change.  I have difficulty maintaining 75mph on even small hills and on larger ones, must downshift to 4th. Your speedometer and odometer will also read on the low side.  The economic effect of all of this is reduced fuel economy.
Dang, wish I had 4.10s! I'm trying to get by on 3.27s.  Good for gas mileage, sucks for torque.