'97 ranger questions

[foxmx217]

hey guys whats up im kinda new to the whole 4x4 scene. i have a 97 ranger xlt 4WD, automatic, and live in CO. im 16, and looking to do some stuff to it. im looking into a body lift, but the people are saying upwards of 800 dollars to install it. is this true? how hard is it to do it yourself. also, i wanted to change my rims, should i keep the stock size (15), or go bigger? im not looking to go hardcore offroad, just make it a little beefier, may want to add a leaf spring too. what about wheel spacers? do i need them? should i go bigger tires, cz i just got some new A/T tires (stock size). also, idk if anyone knows about this but does anyone have any audio recommendations? any help would be great. thanks, David.

 

[LittleBigFoot]

A body lift should only cost a grande meal at taco bell and some buddies.

Where are you in Colorado? I might be near by, and willing to help.

 

[AngloSaxon]

$800? I need to quit my job and do BL as a profession

 

[jrmustranger97]

Stick with the 15" wheels. The price of tires seems to get exponentially higher as the size of your wheels increase. If you're 16 I'm assuming that you're still in school, so don't forget that the more modifications you make to your truck, the more expensive it is to maintain. In my experience, the bigger and better I make my truck the more maintenance I have to perform. I'm not saying you should keep your truck stock, just try to pick projects that aren't going to break the bank or keep your truck off the road for long periods of time. Also, don't buy new tires until the ones you just bought need replacement. No sense throwing money out the window! Anyway, welcome to TRS! Good Luck!

 

[Legion]

if u have a mechanic that told u its 800 bucks for a body lift walk away.

 

[99stepside]

okay, my body lift was 193 dollars and i put it in myself. PA body lifts have excellent insrtuctions. 4wheel parts wanted $470 to install... not worth it. the only problem i had was the front bushings were seized so i hacked them off and bought new ones. $25. all in all it wasnt that hard and it saved me about $500. Note... you will need to get a t55 torx head wrench for the stock bolts on the bed. other than that a standard and metric tool set is all you need. have fun.

 

[metalmacguyver]

Welcome to the forum. look in the tech library. there is a ton of information there and often times you will be able to answer your own questions. also checkout the regional forum to find others that are in your area that might be willing to help you like LittleBigFoot. wheel spacers are not something you will need to bother with. we fix tire clearance issues with more lift and by trimming fenders.

when it comes to modifying our trucks, we do almost everything ourselves for two reasons, we enjoy working on our trucks and because mechanics charge $75 per hour and up.

 

[foxmx217]

ok thats great, im in evergreen, also. so would it be worth it to get wider rims, or just keep my stock size rims and throw my new tires on those? also, im not the greatest at working on cars, so would putting the kit in require an in depth knowledge of cars or is it pretty straight forward?

 

[99stepside]

its up to you. i got a great deal on my wheels. Pro comp rock crawlers 97 series 15x8 with 3.75 backspacing for 40 bucks each. they look great.

 

[LittleBigFoot]

Knowledge of basic terms and some upper body strength is all it took really.

The thing about the 3" isn't too bad, but it does require remounting the radiator, extending the steering linkage, the ground wire on the firewall has to be extended, and the bumpers get relocated.

Me and a buddy tackled it in a day and a half. Would have been shorter but we chose to not hack off the bushings when they were seized up. Come on down the mountain and I'll give ya a hand. I'm sure Mike (PaleBlue) would be in to lend a hand.

And check on craigslist for wheels/tires. I got a set of 33x12.5R15 ProComp A/Ts and 15x10 RockCrawlers for 400 bucks.

Good luck