Do y'all's trucks ride rough?

[bobbywalter]

Rough


well...that depends

 

[sgtsandman]

If you have the stock suspension, the ride shouldn't be rough. Being that the truck is sitting on the bump stops, that would definitely do it.

If your truck was upgraded to #1 torsion bars and 1750# leaf springs like mine has been, it's gonna ride rough.

 

[superj]

It seems stock but what should I look for to tell?

 

[sgtsandman]

You will need to look at the codes on the sticker on the door jam. There is information on how to read the codes in the tech library. For the torsion bars, there will be a code stamped on the end that pokes through the lower control arm to compare with. My guess is your OEM torsion bar would be a B

For the leaf springs, 1200# is 3 leafs and the overload plate (3/1) - most common that I've seen, 1100# is 2 leafs and the overload plate (2/1), and 1750# is 4 leafs and the over load plate (4/1). So, count the plates.

Torsion Bar Code / Part # Identification - The Ranger Station

(Vehicle Certification label on drivers door) Ford Ranger spring codes are listed as a 2-part code. The first part identifies the front spring/torsion bar code. The second part identifies the rear spring code. Front Torsion Bar Codes (RH = Passenger … Continued

www.therangerstation.com

 

[19Walt93]

I bet that's a blast though. I know the 302/c6 in my wrangler was way more fun than the stroked 4.5 i6, ha ha ha. And those v8s sound wayyyyy better.


I still call corpus a one horse town because I grew up in socal. Corpus is actually a fairly large city, over 300k. It's actually the 8th largest in Texas but was poorly planned and poorly managed.

Your "fairly large city" has about 1/3 the population of my state.
My truck does ride pretty stiff, I installed the stiffest springs I could find all the way around.

 

[gaz]

My truck rides rough when empty, it is designed to ride well when LOADED.

The BII is just a slice of heaven no matter.

 

[PetroleumJunkie412]

If your truck was upgraded to #1 torsion bars and 1750# leaf springs like mine has been, it's gonna ride rough.

Squats.

 

[scotts90ranger]

My '90 rides best with some weight in the bed and going as fast as the terrain allows... the upper edge of that speed seems the smoothest , that involves some pucker moments though...

I think you're on the right track though, I have a couple V8 Explorers with that suspension and it rides fine, but they have 1000lb of junk on top of the heaviest stock Ranger... Someone lowered my Limited explorer at one point so I added some ride height and I think it did ride better...

I don't think the alignment is as crucial unless something is bent or broken... In my driving career with a bunch of different vehicles I've had 2 alignments done, one was included with tires on my '94 Geo Tracker and they said it was fine, I set the toe with a tape measure and camber isn't adjustable, there's over 55k miles on the 50k mile tires that are on it right now... I know not fair with a 2400lb rig though... The other alignment was paid for on the '98 Explorer, same tape measure toe adjustment, it was within spec too and the tires are wearing great... The tires aren't wearing great on the '90 Ranger but it's alignment wanders all over the place being driven like it is... I am NOT saying a good alignment is a bad idea, but knowledge of the suspension and a calibrated eyeball will get you a LONG way

 

[sgtsandman]

Squats.

I solved it with 31" tires. It's not so rough now and I knew what I was getting into. So, no complaints. I just want to make sure others who want to do it know what they are getting into before hand. Stock 29" tires with #1 bars and 1750# springs is getting into chassis suspension territory. Though, I imagine they will still have a rougher ride unloaded than my truck does.

 

[superj]

You will need to look at the codes on the sticker on the door jam. There is information on how to read the codes in the tech library. For the torsion bars, there will be a code stamped on the end that pokes through the lower control arm to compare with. My guess is your OEM torsion bar would be a B

For the leaf springs, 1200# is 3 leafs and the overload plate (3/1) - most common that I've seen, 1100# is 2 leafs and the overload plate (2/1), and 1750# is 4 leafs and the over load plate (4/1). So, count the plates.

Torsion Bar Code / Part # Identification - The Ranger Station

(Vehicle Certification label on drivers door) Ford Ranger spring codes are listed as a 2-part code. The first part identifies the front spring/torsion bar code. The second part identifies the rear spring code. Front Torsion Bar Codes (RH = Passenger … Continued

www.therangerstation.com

i will have to look. i know the back has some fat deal in the stack that sticks towards the inside that seems to be an arm for the bump stop to hit. and of course, the thick short bottom leaf was the overload but i didn't count the leaves. i suppose i should have known to count them since manufacturers do usually have soft ride and heavier depending on the model.

Your "fairly large city" has about 1/3 the population of my state.
My truck does ride pretty stiff, I installed the stiffest springs I could find all the way around.

this city has just reached the size of the city i came from in socal in 92. i guess i still think of it as the small country town we moved to back then

 

[sgtsandman]

i will have to look. i know the back has some fat deal in the stack that sticks towards the inside that seams to be an arm for the bump stop to hit. and of course, the thick short bottom leaf was the overload but i didn't count the leaves. i suppose i should have known to count them since manufacturers do usually have soft ride and heavier depending on the model.

The block with the arm sticking to the side is a lift block and yes, the arm is for the bump stop. The 4X4 and Edge models come with the lift blocks. There may be a trim level or two other than those two that came with the blocks. Being that yours is a 2004, the block is about 2" tall if it's the factory block. Don't take that number as gospel, just a general "calibrated" eyeball gauge size.

 

[superj]

Mine has the soft front bars and mid level rear springs. And getting that pic of the back springs answered another thing I kept forgetting to check... Rear sway bar? So yes in that too

 

[superj]

Yes, and two inches in that lift block

 

[superj]

drove the truck into work today and it definitely rides better. the front is still pretty low though so if i cannot get anyone to help out with holding the strings for measuring the ride height properly, i will see if i can get some tape to hold lines in place to measure.

i am going to put the front to the higher side of whats allowable so its not got so much rake. its either that or take those lift blocks with the arms out of the back

 

[19Walt93]

The undercarriage of an 04 Ranger driven in NH wouldn't have looked that clean by the spring of 05. Are those rear spring blocks factory? I don't remember seeing them under a Ranger before but I wasn't specifically looking for them either. My 04 and 11 Supercab 4x4's didn't have them.