Frozen axle (not sure in front or rear) . . .

[treeguy]

A friend has a 200something 2wd ranger and if it sits for a day or two as she starts it up and puts it into first or reverse, she reports that it feels frozen in place, makes a loud sound than starts to move, and it not freezing outside either. Any hints on this one ??? . . . Shane

 

[rangerbum]

I'm thinking its a seized parking brake cable. My old ranger had the same issue. Worse in first gear, could only get it to "pop" loose in reverse, and took quite a bit of power to do.

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

^^^ x2

 

[--weezl--]

ebrake sounds like a very likely suspect...

push the ebrake down nice and far, then let it back up, see if the cable droops along the side of the frame, if it does, there's your problem

 

[treeguy]

I recall asking her if she happened to set her parking brake before hand, and I THINK (not certain here) but I think she said no . . . so I was stumped, BUT I will ask her again just to make sure! Thanks guys, very helpful. Have a good Easter Weekend.

 

[5speedin2.3]

It's fairly common for the brake shoe to separate in the rear.
The metal rusts or the material cracks and gets pulled in to the other side.

My moms Ranger did the same thing, but it's a 92 and had the original rear brakes..
I just had to replace EVERYTHING including the hard line to the rear.

Jack up one wheel at a time and turn it, go all the way around the truck till you find the wheel that won't spin.

 

[treeguy]

I will give this a try and will let you know what I find, and if this isn't the solution, it's back to the drawing boards!