1987 Ranger Project.

[Awesom-O]

Hey all. Just thought I’d post my Ranger project. Bought this from my kid who lost interest and went with a Frontier. Looking to make a decent hunting wagon with this, and transform it into a respectable ride that hits a lot of the nostalgia of the era, as well as checks a few boxes of what I want in the ultimate hunting rig. I’ve started with the interior, as I’m changing it from red to black. Then I’ll move to the exterior where years of dents and rust will be repaired. Then it’s getting a mild suspension lift, Winch bumper, and hoping to upgrade to a Dana 35 up front and an 8.8 rear at the same time. I’ve already ordered a pallet of parts from LMC, (just waiting for delivery) and other sources, and the last two weekends have been refurbishing the best parts from this and a donor truck I also have. If there’s interest I’ll post a build thread, but just wanted to say thanks in advance for the help I may be soliciting here from the wealth of knowledge of the members of this forum. Cheers
Ryan

 

[CorbinsRanger]

"my kid who lost interest and went with a Frontier ".....You try to raise them right but sometimes..... All kidding aside, please keep us up to date with the build. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Awesom-O]

Haha. You aren’t wrong. I drive a supercharged coyote powered 67 Mustang Fastback In the summer, and the kid was looking at JDM stuff! Well, now that he’s been properly “cultured” he’s now shopping for a newer Mustang, and now loves the old muscle too.
Then once he seen what I started on the Ranger and heard my build plan, he asked if he could buy it back. I laughed and said, “Nope, but you can help me restore it, and I will teach you to see the potential, but be warned, you WILL be jealous of it.” Lol.

 

[RobbieD]

Welcome! Lot of good plans and potential there. Keep us updated.

 

[Blmpkn]

What's wrong with JDM stuff? A good handful of those riceburners from the early 90s would turn a quicker 0-60 time than a mustang could until 2010 rx7 would do 4.5 seconds back in 93, supra did 4.6 in 94, 300zx 4.9 in 93..



He did make a mistake ditching the ranger for a Nissan though -__- my condolences lol. I've driven a Frontier quite a bit.. I think it's an 05 or an 06. Its uncomfortable, unrefined, doesn't inspire confidence in anything whatsoever, and even with the 6 cyl it's gutless.

Welcome!

 

[Awesom-O]

Nothing wrong with JDM stuff. I actually like them all. Just poking fun. A true enthusiast likes all brands and appreciates the cream each company has to offer. I drove a ‘14 Nissan Frontier for work for the last 9 years, same body style as yours and I actually thought it was a trouble free good ride. Now I have a 2022 Frontier, and although the bells and whistles are way nicer, I think the quality has gone down a tad, or maybe mine was just made on a Friday? Anyways, my joke was that if I couldn’t influence my teenage kid at the time with a 625 HP tire roasting classic Restomod mustang, he was lost! Lol.
He bought the Nissan because of how reliable my work truck was, and this old Ranger was out of his capabilities to restore. He loves the first gen Ranger body style, and can’t wait to see how we transform this shitbox into something decent. Cheers.

 

[Angie]

hi, welcome and cheers from down the road a few miles.... nice looking project!

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

Please do document your build. Were interested and it's great to be able to go back and see what's been done over the years...

 

[Jim Oaks]

Oh damn, there's a Ranger in that photo. I was distracted by that beautiful Ford sign.

 

[RobbieD]

Oh damn, there's a Ranger in that photo. I was distracted by that beautiful Ford sign.

Chuck Norris is gonna be pissed when he finds his grille emblem missing . . .

 

[Awesom-O]

Started the build thread here. Thanks for the comments fellas.

1987 Ranger Project

Hey all. Thanks for the interest in my build. As requested in the intro page, I will document my Ranger project as time progresses. I look forward to all your insight and tips, as this is my first Ranger. My goal is to restore this basket case to its former glory and then some, to be a daily...

www.therangerstation.com