I hate the new Ranger

[fastpakr]

CBXer, I think you missed that he was talking about -styling-, not about spec sheet. I'm with him regarding the 97-03 trucks. Nothing against them as trucks, but the appearance was awful IMO.

 

[sgtsandman]

Yep. I was talking about the styling, not what is under the hood.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

You mean like the Lightning? Girliefied? Farkin LOL! Us Lightning drivers consider them the ultimate F-150. The epitome of the F-150 truck. Girliefied. With a supercharged V-8? THe pink one below, maybe? That was a custom vinyl wrap job. Still looks killer to me though. The top one is mine. Magnum Powers supercharger, EGR delete, two cats deleted, hi-flow cats for the other two, running 14 pounds boost (stock is 8).

Yup, hate the new Ranger. Couldn't give me one.

I actually prefer the cleaner lines of the 97-03's over anything that followed. Bigger and bolder than anyone has bigger and bolded before is getting old really fast. IMO

Kinda why I like the new Ranger, it looks sleek and clean

 

[cbxer55]

CBXer, I think you missed that he was talking about -styling-, not about spec sheet. I'm with him regarding the 97-03 trucks. Nothing against them as trucks, but the appearance was awful IMO.

Once again, you go to LightningRodder.com, you'll find a whole bunch of guys who think the styling of the Lightning is the cat's meow. I don't like boxy looking trucks, FUGLY.

But that's cool Everyone has their likes and dislikes. Me, I love the curvaceous round lines of the flare side bed F-150's. But I also like my 98 Ranger. I still think the latter Rangers were the best looking. You couldn't give me a new one in trade for my 98. No thanks.

 

[cbxer55]

Most Lightning's nowadays, it isn't just under the hood. The one with the red Mag-Hytec differential cover is mine. Also have a red 16 quart transmission pan, replacing the stock 8 quart pan. Mostly all running either Mickey Thompson or Nitto drag radials to get the darn things to hook. LOL!!

 

[cbxer55]

No more off topic posts. Sorry. Ya got me started calling my truck girliefied. Bwahahaha!!!!

 

[Bird76Mojo]

That Mag Hytec diff cover probably isn't doing you any favors as far as proper oiling of your gears. Banks Performance did an in-depth study on this exact subject. Sure, the increased fluid capacity is nice, and it seems like the thing to do, but the internal design of nearly all aftermarket diff covers causes oiling issues to the gears as well as major oil foaming issues, which is even worse for the gears.. Many of the aftermarket diff covers also get the oil levels wrong when compared to the factory oil levels..

 

[sgtsandman]

That Mag Hytec diff cover probably isn't doing you any favors as far as proper oiling of your gears. Banks Performance did an in-depth study on this exact subject. Sure, the increased fluid capacity is nice, and it seems like the thing to do, but the internal design of nearly all aftermarket diff covers causes oiling issues to the gears as well as major oil foaming issues, which is even worse for the gears.. Many of the aftermarket diff covers also get the oil levels wrong when compared to the factory oil levels..

I was disappointed that they didn’t add in the ARB cover and some of the others that seem to keep the same profile of the OEM cover. They do have a point but I think they could have gone a bit further as well.

 

[Bird76Mojo]

I was disappointed that they didn’t add in the ARB cover and some of the others that seem to keep the same profile of the OEM cover. They do have a point but I think they could have gone a bit further as well.

Yes, they definitely could have took that study a lot further, but as Gale stated in the videos, if they included every single cover on the market, they'd never finish the study. I was impressed they went as far as they did, and it confirmed some suspicions that I always had about aftermarket covers.

 

[racsan]

and I always thought more oil was a good thing, I still have my summit cover, kept it when I retired my ‘93. that was one reason I wanted a 8.8 for my truck I have now but I wanted 4.10s, the only 8.8 rangers were 3.55s, and I started with a 7.5 geared at 3.45 Found (2) 7.5s with 4.10s so I went with the lowest milage axle, a 98. Have to have a “build sheet” in glove box, so I dont forget what the component parts are.

 

[cbxer55]

The Mag-Hytec has a dipstick that allows you to obtain the proper filling. There is a plug in the back that tells you when you hit four quarts. Then the stick itself has a low/high area. The low is five quarts, the high six. That's where mine is at, six quarts of FORD synthetic 75/140 gear lubricant.

Drove it with a TA cover for many many years. It's the third picture above. Same truck, two different covers. Never had any problems with the TA cover installed, nearly eight years. The TA holds three quarts versus the stock two.

 

[8thTon]

I may have seen one but I wouldn't have noticed - from the pictures it's about as generic and bland as possible. Then again its the tail end of an old design cycle so it won't be around long.

I liked the rounded '97 F150's, they had a simple retro look. They didn't have that ridiculous oversized, over chromed front ends of the newer trucks that makes it look you have feelings of inadequacy.

 

[sgtsandman]

and I always thought more oil was a good thing, I still have my summit cover, kept it when I retired my ‘93. that was one reason I wanted a 8.8 for my truck I have now but I wanted 4.10s, the only 8.8 rangers were 3.55s, and I started with a 7.5 geared at 3.45 Found (2) 7.5s with 4.10s so I went with the lowest milage axle, a 98. Have to have a “build sheet” in glove box, so I dont forget what the component parts are.

The more oil isn't the problem. It's the interior profile of the cover and how it affects the flow of the gear oil that is the issue. It's better if you check out the Youtube videos that Bird76Mojo referred too. They go into a lot of detail on the hows and whys on everything and I don't want to misquote them. Basically, the gear oil is being over worked and the proper flow pattern is disrupted. They put a lot of work into making sure you could see exactly what they were talking about.

 

[cbxer55]

Well, I'm not going to bother with that. The Mag-Hytec has been on my truck going on two years now. Not a hint of trouble. There was a guy on LR who used to road race a Lightning. Tim Skelton. Still has a really nice website, even though he passed a year or so ago. I reference it all the time when deciding what to do, or not do, on my Lightning. He used a Mag-Hytec for that racing application. Never had a whiff of trouble with it either. WIth the exception that you have to do some mods to the sway bar or it will hit the top of the cover.

 

[Bird76Mojo]

Yep, too much oil is also a bad thing if the level is too high in the diff. It aerates the oil making it FAR less effective at actually lubricating because you're sending millions of tiny air bubbles between the gears instead of pure oil. The oil being rammed against a flat cover after being slung from the ring gear is also a bad thing. Works the oil too hard and actually creates more heat than a factory diff cover.

In the videos sgtsandman mentions, they actually used temp sensors and proved it. They also built a flat, see-through cover shaped much like the Mag-Hytec to show how it was over-working the oil, and it really was..

It's not hype. It's proven. 99% of aftermarket diff covers on the market are a complete waste of money and can actually do more harm than good.. Nothing more than bling.

Factory diff covers are shaped the way they are for good reason. Engineers that know more than any of us about lubricity designed them..