2006 Ranger STX "Street" Project

I guess its about time to post one of these since I have something halfway worth showing again. Ill start with a little history..I have owned a ranger since I was 15 years old(now 27) and have never lost my love for them, something just always brings me back. IMO, its the best small sized truck on the market. When I was 15 I bought a 94 Splash and up until I was about 22, I spent a LOT of money on it. It had a DJM 5/7 drop, 20's, cut-through stereo, the whole nine yards. Unfortunately, this truck was stolen in Tampa and completely stripped. Still miss that truck to this day.

My 94 Splash at Slamfest 2005 - STOLEN


NEW PROJECT -- 2006 Ford Ranger STX 3.0L 5 Spd
CURRENT MODS
Pioneer AVIC F90BT Double DIN w/ GPS, Bluetooth, iPod Control and Back-Up Cam
DJM 3/4 Drop
Roush Front Sway Bar / BroncoII Rear Sway Bar
20x8.5" -- 245/35/20 Hankook Ventus V12 EVO's
20x10" -- 275/40/20 Hankook Ventus V12 EVO's
PowerSlot Slotted Brake Rotors
Hawk Performance Ceramic Brake Pads
Access Vanish Tonneau Cover
XLT Grille/Bumper
Hornblasters Train Horns (200psi)
6000K HIDs(Headlights)
3000K HIDs(Foglights)
LED Tailgate Light Bar

Here she is, 100% Stock 2006 Ford Ranger STX w/ 40k Miles




Stock STX Interior. I love my plastic lined floors!


I hated how the stock STX bumper hung down like 4-5" lower than the rest of the truck. Its a look that some like and I was fortunate that it was pretty well sought after. I traded another Ranger owner straight up for his XLT bumper that was the exact same color, so it was a win win for both of us.

Before.


After.

After switching out my bumper for the XLT, I decided to also change out my grille for the chrome "mini-superduty" style XLT grille. I still like the STX grill(and I kept it for that reason), I just felt that the XLT grille makes the trucks look like its brand new, now even to this day people think my truck is brand new. If I ever go to a dark wheel setup, the STX will go back on.

Before.


After.

Recap

So now we went from this..


To this..


Added 6K HID Headlights / 3K HID Foglights


And a rear LED tailgate strip.

Wow, thats a clean truck. I didnt know they came with the same instrument cluster and seats the fx4 has. It looks much better with that grill and bumper!

suzuki14258 said:

Wow, thats a clean truck. I didnt know they came with the same instrument cluster and seats the fx4 has. It looks much better with that grill and bumper!

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Thanks! Just about to post my "current" pics.

I happened to run across a set of wheels from a customer of mine that were made for a mustang. We worked out a trade for some detail work and Ive had them for about two years brand new in the box, just waiting for tires. My original tires were pretty much brand new and I couldn't afford the tires I wanted to put on them, so they sat in my garage for a couple years. So just about a month ago, I finally got them installed.

FRONT: 20x8.5" -- 245/35/20 Hankook Ventus V12 EVO's
REAR: 20x10" -- 275/40/20 Hankook Ventus V12 EVO's

Sorry, never got around to taking a good picture of the truck clean, so this is the best I have for my next Before/After phase.
Before.

Just this past weekend I installed the DJM 2/3 drop. It actually ended up dropping 2/4'ish, not exactly the look I was going for(bulldog). But I actually like it for now, Im still plan on dropping it another 2-3" front/1" back probably.

Sorry, still dirty pictures, it just keeps raining here in FL!

After DJM 2/3 drop. 124,000 on the odometer!

TheTwanksta said:

Before.

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Still have this grille? Looking to buy one.

Truck looks good!

K.Strong said:

Still have this grille? Looking to buy one.

Truck looks good!

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Thanks, yeah I still have it, but Im not ready to part with it just yet. If I ever decide to go with dark or black wheels, I plan to put it back on.

New Energy Low Profile Bump Stops came in for the front. PN#9.9132R


Just ordered a Roush Sway Bar Kit from HillBank Motorsports. I was going to do the BII, but didnt feel like waiting any longer and you cant beat this kit for the $$. I also picked up the Roush "Signal Mirror" Kit since it was so cheap.

Got the Roush Sway Bars installed yesterday after work. All in all it took me about 3 hours, if you have done it before, could prob get it done in less than two..

I installed the rear sway bar first since I knew it would potentially give me the most trouble after reading about the driver side link/gas tank issue. I just unbolted the two straps holding the tank and pushed the tank over an inch or two while I tightened the nut for the sway bar link. The passenger side was cake, took like two minutes. The front was as easy as taking 6 bolts out, swapping the sway bars and putting the 6 bolts back in!

I used these instructions(http://george-novak.com/swaybars.html) and they helped a lot. The kit did not come with any, I found these while searching before I bought them.




Initial Impressions:

REAR: I installed the rear bar first and took it for a test ride to feel the difference before installing the front bar. I could tell a difference, especially when turning hard, but it was not a drastic change in the overall ride. I definitely recommend putting a rear sway bar on if your truck doesnt have one, but I will be looking for a BII bar still for increased stiffness in the rear.

FRONT: After the rear sway bar was complete, I installed the front. As soon as I sat in my truck, before even moving, I immediately noticed the truck was a lot stiffer. The front bar is where the most noticeable difference was made. I proceeded to take it for a quick test drive and the front suspension felt much tighter and the side-to-side "wobble" when pulling to driveways, etc. is nearly GONE. It also gives a feel that the front spring rate is a little higher, it doesnt bounce up and down nearly as much as it did. With some good shocks(I am still on OEM), the front should be very tight!

With BOTH bars installed, the truck stays very flat, even on a long 70mph sweeper on some backroads! (could push it to 85mph no issue, I was still taking it semi easy since everything was new )

My luck, the day after I install the Roush Sway Bar kit I find a BII Rear Sway Bar an hour away. IMO the front Roush bar made more of a difference than the stock rear sway bar did anyway. Looking forward to seeing the difference between the stock 5/8" Ranger bar and the 1" BroncoII rear sway bar. Going to pick it up this afternoon!

Nice truck man. Love those wheels! If you ever really want another splash thats pretty much done mine will most likely be for sale in a few months hahaha only problem is i'm here in AZ. Keep up the work! good to see some street trucks!

low~n~blue said:

Nice truck man. Love those wheels! If you ever really want another splash thats pretty much done mine will most likely be for sale in a few months hahaha only problem is i'm here in AZ. Keep up the work! good to see some street trucks!

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Thanks! I do miss my splash, but I love my new STX even more! Yours looks really nice though, I like the blue!