2001 Ford Ranger Winter Weight needed? Why, Where, When....

[Frozen_Ice]

I have a 'new' 2001 Ford Ranger XLT V6 3.0L with 64K miles and Im a Freshman at Pickup Truck University

How much weight should you put in the bed of the truck for winter?
Where do you place it in the bed of the truck?
Is sand the best?
How do you keep it dry?
Can you remove the spare tire and leave it off or does the weight help? (my spare is 10 yrs old and rotted and came with the truck)
What are the negatives of not adding weight in the winter?

Thanks

 

[Josh B]

Good question

 

[Josh B]

Genius winter driving hack for truck owners

Snow doesn’t bother me, I actually prefer when there’s a good few inches down on the roads because it lessens the volume of idiots on the roads

www.therangerstation.com

 

[adsm08]

I have never messed with adding weight, and in general have never had much of an issue. I've found that for the most part good tires and the weight of the snow that landed in my open bed have been enough. But I also have been driving my Ranger from my first day behind the wheel, and learned winter driving in it. If you are used to something else with a different balance there is a learning curve.

Most cars and SUVs have more weight over the rear axle due to body mass and fuel tank position. Rangers in particular have a very light bed, and most pickups (Rangers included) have the fuel tank in front of the rear axle. when you have a long vehicle like this and 90% of the vehicle's mass forward of the driving axle it makes the vehicle longitudinally unstable and it can be easy to put the vehicle into a spin. There is a particular corner near my house where I have spun my Ranger several times over the years, not even in snow, just in rain.

Two to three hundred pounds seems to be the preferred weight point, but more could be added. Being a 1/4 ton pickup 500 lbs (minus your own weight) would be your max legal limit in most cases. But nobody pulls Rangers over onto a scale for a weight check.

Positioning the weight right over the rear axle will get you the best results, so you would want to find a way to keep it between the wheel wells in the bed.

Weight is weight, so anything that gets the desired pounds will do, some people prefer sand bags because if you get yourself genuinely stuck you can use one (or more) to perform a ritual sacrifice to the traction gods by spreading its insides around your wheels and they may bless your tires with enough grip to get out on your own. But I also keep tow straps in the cars just in case.

Leave your spare tire in place, think of it as "free weight" since it was calculated into the truck's curb weight, and doesn't count against your legal limit. Heck, I'd probably take it down and fill it with RV antifreeze or something, then put it back up.

 

[rusty ol ranger]

I just put 4 50 lb bags of play sand all the way to the back of the bed.

I never put weight in my 3/4 ton 2wds and never hsve an issue running BFG A/Ts.

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

Yeah, good siped, studded winter tires on all 4 corners if you can afford it.
Weight in the back If you can't.
I bought a used ranger that had plywood box built of 2x4s on edge. Top piece of plywood was hinged. Sand was in the box. Made it so the back was still usable and the sand was contained in case of an accident.

 

[rusty ol ranger]

i used to put the cheap equevlent of STA super traxs on rusty #1 with about 5 cement blocks in the bed by the tailgate (i know bad idea), but i can remember more then once pushing snow with the bumper and never getting stuck.

Also whatever weight the fiberglass cap weighed. Forgot about that.

 

[Uncle Gump]

Having lived in Michigan most of my life... I just bought 4x4 Rangers. With a fiberglass cap... or whatever snow fell in an open bed... I rarely had to use the front axle. But I've driven them for 30 years or so. As adsm said... it's an entirely different animal then what you may be familiar with.

 

[8thTon]

They sell 60lb bags of sand (called Tube Sand) all over around here. I got 5 bags at Tractor Supply last year, so 300lbs. I set them behind the cab, and it seems to help a lot with traction. It also makes a huge difference in how the vehicle rides and drives, and I don't really care for it much - and of course it doesn't help gas mileage or acceleration. Then again I'm not daily driving it anymore.

I let the plastic bags of sand sit out all summer and they were OK when I put them back in.

 

[racsan]

theres a product called suretrax, basically a bag that sits on the floor of the bed you can put water in. Ive found 200# to be about right. I dont add much anymore even with a 2wd. I run winter tires on all 4 corners, have a fiberglass cap, a sheet of 3/4” plywood cut to fit between the wheelwells on the bed floor, and my toolbox at the front of the bed with tools, floor jack, extra fluids and other things. Also have my spare mounted in the back. my home-built receiver hitch under the back has some weight too. Its never a bad idea to go to a empty snow-covered parking lot and “play” a little. Learn how your vehicle reacts, learn how to bring it out of a slide. Just dont be stupid and get it hung up on a snow bank or slide into a pole. Ive had 1 4wd ranger and it was great in the snow, but 2wd’s can do pretty good as well. A 4wd still aint going to stop any better so you need to keep that in mind.

 

[rusty ol ranger]

The biggest difference between a 4wd and 2wd is 30 ft of strap.

 

[adsm08]

The biggest difference between a 4wd and 2wd is 30 ft of strap.

Not always.

I have never been truly stuck in any of my RBVs, including the 2wds. I have very nearly had to yank my 4x4 Escape out of stuff.

In fact, the one time I only got the Escape free by walking it sideways through the snow until I got it to the road and could grip a plowed surface.

 

[sgtsandman]

All good recommendations above. Another important tip if you are new to RWD vehicles is some practice in an empty, snow covered parking lot and learn how it handles and how to counter steer in a slide. Not only is it fun but good practice. Just give yourself plenty of room in case things get squirrelly on you. Most times, if the police stop by, they won't give you any problems once you explain what you are doing. Mall guards on the other hand might be a different story but you never know.

I've gotten around better with RWD vehicles than a lot of FWD vehicles could. Sure, I might have been going up the hill at an angle but I got up there meanwhile, FWD cars were in a ditch on the way up the hill.