1999 Ford Ranger Solid Axle Swap

[Josh40601]

3 months?!! Its taken me 7 and look at my build thread and see where mines at....

 

[bozone802]

well i just went and played around in the backyard a little bit to see what i am working with here. what i decided was that i need either some 8" ranger lift springs or some 8 or 9" jeep lift springs. cause the bronco 4" lift springs WAY too stiff, the front doesnt even know what flex means yet. heres what im looking at:
skyjacker 8" 83-97 Ranger 2wd/4x4 SoftRide Front Coils
http://www.topguncustomz.com/Store/Gen2ProdDisplay.php?iview=182977416
or
skyjacker 8" 97-06 Jeep TJ SoftRide Front Coils
http://www.topguncustomz.com/Store/Gen2ProdDisplay.php?iview=182980816

i just have to figure out which would flex more/better and of course i have to figure out if i can get some mounting buckets for them and if i can rig them onto my 44.

anyone have any suggestions on this?

also i am going to have to put in about 2" lift blocks under my leaf springs so i can get more flex, but i might even have to move my shock mounts a little lower on my axle.

and on top of all of this my driver side front axle seal is leaking again which means that i need at least one new inner axle because there is a groove in it which allows oil to leak out under a perfectly good brand new seal.

nothing crazy, just some 10min 2WD fun!

 

[Andres629]

Looking good, wish I'd have had my Ranger back in Saskatchewan, the police there wouldn't have given it a glance either, but got a VI notice here. Lame.

Get your lights figured out yet?

 

[bozone802]

nope not yet...havent tried that hard yet though...ive been lazy since i started driving it

 

[Josh40601]

cough... TJ springs cough.....

I hate to say it, but check out Rubicon express TJ front coils. NASTY flex and a great ride. Pricey, but well worth the extra cheese

 

[bozone802]

(didnt want to clutter up your forum with my crap) so... i thought that must be the case with the lights, but i dont remember pulling a ground wire when i took it off and i just went and looked under it to see if i missed something and i couldnt find a ground wire to attach to anything. do you think there might be a ground i should connect in the wiring harness that connected to the abs computer? or maybe a ground in the wiring harness that connected to the old diff? thats the only thing i can think of right now, please let me know if you have anymore ideas.

and thanks for the tip on the coils, i think i might go with the ones you suggested, but i still got a bunch of stuff to knock off the list first....

 

[bozone802]

but got a VI notice here. Lame.

do you have flares on yours now then? how does it look? i mostly didnt want them cause i thought they might look dumb, and probably just break off.

 

[bozone802]

well my truck can officially function as a truck now... it can tow! just hooked me up a hitch receiver!!!

 

[Andres629]

No flares on my truck now, got a full "Box 2' government safety... essentially go through everything from ball joints to TRE's e-brake, windshield, suspension... so it'll be off the road for a little. When the time comes though, I'll just screw some conveyor belt to the fender to cover the tires. Won't break, that's for sure.

 

[bozone802]

took the ranger to the mountains for the first time since the swap today. still rockn 2WD it did ok. i like how the rear works, but the front straight up sucks, its way too stiff. im leaking brake fluid everywhere cause i think one of my flares is not up to par so i have to re do that one. i am also leaking oil out of front and rear diffs. i think i am leaking in the rear cause i put the yoke on too tight and it probably ****ed up the seal, im gonna loosten it and see what happens. as for the front, i think it is just coming out of where the vent hose is supposed to be so i guess i just have to put a hose on it and see what happens.
my brakes squeak all the time and there is still an unknown noise coming from the front which i think has to do with my brakes because it stops when i apply the brake.
so all in all everything i built seems to be running fine, its just the damn brakes

 

[bozone802]

and i towed today after installing the hitch receiver yesterday and the trailer didnt fall off so id say it was a success! now i need a drop hitch...the list just gets longer...

 

[wohlf 16]

Does your speedometer work? I dont even know where to begin on mine. Ive swapped the rear and the t-case. Mine ran off the rear and I figure yours did too. Just wonderin. By the way lookin good.

 

[bozone802]

havent yet but my best guess and where i will start is to look into getting a speed sensor off an older ranger to install on my tranny. older rangers had their speed sensors on the tranny so i thought maybe i could too, but i dont know for sure yet

 

[Josh40601]

im gonna loosten it and see what happens.

hey brother, 9" rears have a "crush washer" type seal, so once you go too tight, the only way to fix it is to replace it. I did the same thing the first time i put mine together.

 

[bozone802]

sweet thanks, i went to the off road shop today to ask them about it and thats what they said. i was worried i was gonna have to take the 3rd member apart so now im pretty relieved.