1989 Ranger Drum Brakes to Disc

[quinoacowboy]

Does anybody know of any kits that I could buy to convert my rear drum brakes to disc brakes? How does the sort of conversion go? Do I need to buy one specifically for the ranger or would a "universal" kit work (with a matching hub)

 

[SenorNoob]

IDK anything about kits, but there is a method for using Mustang rear discs on the Ranger axle:

https://www.therangerstation.com/tech/ford-ranger-bronco-ii-rear-disc-brake-conversion/#gsc.tab=0

 

[MyOld88]

I’ve been looking at the same thing for my 88. There are several direct bolt on kits/upgrades available on line and they look like a fairly easy upgrade. I am going to call one of the ones offering these kits as I have read that you need to possibly replace your master cylinder/ proportioning valve as the ratio changes when going drum to disc. There have been a number of folks that have done junk yard repurposing of mustang and others but I personally like the bolt on kits and starting a new install to make sure it as good an install as possible and maybe have warranty benefits as well. I don’t want to make a mistake with brakes for sure. Thanks, Bob

 

[rubydist]

imho the Ford parts from the Mustang are better than any 3rd party kit that exists for these. You can always buy new calipers (which I did) to make sure that the parts function correctly.

The 94-04 Mustang rear brake parts work on the 28 spline axle trucks. The Ford Racing kit for the 9" axle also works on the 31 spline axle trucks and it uses the rear brake parts from the 05-09 Mustang.

 

[MyOld88]

Hey Rubydist,
I had the same thoughts as yourself so when I started researching this, I came to see that the manufacturers (SSBC-USA, Wilwood, PowerStop, and Brake Performance) of these are building high end products for race/track cars mostly. It appears like they just filled in a niche and provide everything needed to do bolt on swap rather than having to do any fabrication. It was different than my original thought when I really did some research. BTW-saw where you had a 89 Mark LSC-I had an 87 which I gave to my wife to drive when I got my 88 Ranger. Merry Christmas to you and yours!

 

[gaz]

@quinoacowboy
If I were to switch to rear disc on a 1st or 2nd gen RBV, I would use the entire 8.8"rear end from a 95+ Explorer with rear disc brakes; it comes with the 31 spline axles, all Ford components, about as simple as it gets.