How cheap could you build it?

[dogboy]

I will have about 2800-2900 into my truck once I buy a body lift.
Mind you it is a '93 4.0L auto, 4wd, ext cab. Good looking truck, and prett capable offroad.

Truck (wrecked) -$475
fixing/ body parts- $1300
33x12.5x15 Pro Comp Mud Terrians with very good tread- $275
New wheels- $200
Body lift- $130
manual hubs (with nuts and clips and all that stuff)- $30
Total- %=$2410


And, a couple things to make it more capable:
Locker(s) -$500
Winch- $30

Total- $3210


If I didn't care about the looks I could have just pounded the fender, and hood out, and biult a front bumper and that 1300 for the body parts and paint would have gone away.

 

[mhughes165]

well...this is the story of my ranger

Truck = $250
4.0 = Freebie
7.5 w/4.56's = freebie
d35 = freebie
4" susp lift modded for 5.5" = $400
3" boyd lift= freebie
4.56's for d35 =$130
welded up 7.5 = freebie
free 1/4" wall tube bumpers= freebie
38.5" gumbos= free
zoom clutch for 4.0 = $200
10klbs winch = freebie


so....all in all when my trucks done ill have it done for 980 and itll be a VERY capable truck all around.

if the 7.5 goes and i replace it with my 8.8 thats another freebie, aside from new perches

so......with the 8.8 it would be 1000 even

 

[reno]

3" Body lift from e-bay, bids start at usually $20 (bids increase, you decide when to stop)

2" "C" channel cut to 4" lengths, use under front coils scrap metal $0.

Swap meets\craigslist\yard sales, usually can score Tires for around $200

Weld rear end to lock it, own your Welder\have a buddy that does $0

2" lift blocks for rear $20 each = $40

Total = $240 approx.

 

[rickcdewitt]

buy a cheap sandrail frame,locked yota axles,cheap 39.5's on wheels and dual yota cases from classifieds,running parts yota for drivetrain and steering/brakes,and the usual trail gear.probaly around 3000-4000$ for a sweet tough simple leaf sprung crawler that will go anywhere

 

[MAKG]

Sometimes people complain about the costs of building a capable trail rig.

Most trails? Make no modifications whatsoever. It's free.

It's only the significant trails that you need to "build" for. Not most of them.

Let's say that I've been on some ungraded desert trails with a stock Geo Prizm. If I can do that, an unmodified Ranger can make it.

Just carry some offroad tools with you, especially a shovel and high-lift jack with tow rope.

Well, you asked how cheap it can be with very little constraint. No one can beat free.

 

[Pt_Ranger_V8]

I've got in between $5-600 in my junk.
wheels, tires, everything.


Of course, it's a FS crew cab, sitting on 36's that need replacing, but it works.

Needs some refinement, and a little tranny work, but it works pretty good.

 

[CheapThrillB2]

about 2 grand including tires

 

[Will]

I think whatever it is it should have some class, even if it's cheap. You could chop the fenders, weld the axles and put used 33s on stock rims and go about anywhere. That's been done many times.

I like a little more grace than that. I like some soft suspension travel. You can get a lot of places without it, but I like to quietly and gracefully get through it when I can--and the power to blast through when I can't. I like some recovery capability too. And I don't like junk or things that don't do anything. If I could have a truck with no moving parts and made out of a solid piece, I would take it. Anything added that doesn't need to be there for the function of the machine is ugly to me. Every part that you add should be vital and make people say "Yep, that's the right way to do that."

I don't like welded axles because it's tough on parts and rips up the ground--so I say a lunchbox locker is the first thing to add. The, a truck isn't a truck without something strong front and rear to hook things to. A homebuilt mount on the front for a winch and some clevis hooks and a $100 frame hitch on the rear. Definately need rubber next so you need to figure out how to fit them. Then I would put some 33s mud terrains (no ATs) on with a 3"-4" lift and a little fender trimming. No body lift for me. Haywood sent me a link to someone using Thunderbird coils on a Jeep Cherokee. They will work on a Ranger as well with a little work. Just about perfect to max out the flex on your home-extended factory radius arms--that's been done a lot around here. A single shock can work if you bag the front coils--it can drive like an F250 until you dump the air--then it will wade through boulders and side-slopes without upsetting your capuccino. This website can help you get the drops--which you can reinforce if you don't trust them.

Your done. My truck has evolved into something extremely simple that goes anywhere and never breaks. Mostly it was taking things back off and looking for simpler options--figuring out why things broke and making adjustments instead of spending more on bigger parts. If I had it to do again I would spend hundreds, not thousands--and do it just the way I described.

 

[Redneckryder]

Most trails? Make no modifications whatsoever. It's free.

It's only the significant trails that you need to "build" for. Not most of them.

Let's say that I've been on some ungraded desert trails with a stock Geo Prizm. If I can do that, an unmodified Ranger can make it.

Just carry some offroad tools with you, especially a shovel and high-lift jack with tow rope.

Well, you asked how cheap it can be with very little constraint. No one can beat free.

cheater....true, but cheater

 

[mhughes165]

but that defeats the purpose of saying BUILD a rig

 

[86ford]

i have had my b2 for around 6 months. only OFFROAD related things i have put in it are tires and some mild lift parts (spacers and blocks). if i dont factor in all the other crap (maint crap) i would only have 650 dollars in it.

650 B2 and 31 11.5 15 TSLs on rock crawlers

just got a mini spooled 8.8 31 spline (456s) that already has the IFS diff cover along with a d35 with ARB (456s) and the majority of the fixings for installation, 1354 t-case for 200 bucks

selling the ARB for -140

4liter,trans,wiring,pcm, radiator for 200 bucks.

so as of right now my actual build only has 910 dollars in it.

86

 

[JohnnyU]

My Ranger went nearly everywhere I wanted it to. It was really a point-and-click type of rig. All said and done, there was less than $2500 in it.

That included the lift components, D35/8.8, 5.13 gears, lock-right, winch, flatbed, bumper, etc. Rust got the best of it, and it was deemed unsuitable for the type of rig I wanted to build it into, so I moved onto a bigger and better platform.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Parents bought the truck for me to run parts around in for the family business while in high school 8 years ago this fall.

Grille guard cost me $20 for the pipe, the rest is scrap.
Hella 500 lights on grille guard were $30 at Wally World
Bodylift was about $150
Front bumper bracket:
$10 for angle iron
$30 for 15k D rings
Rest was scrap, so $40 total
$260 for 75% set of 235/75-15 Dunlop Mud Rovers
$100 Duraspark ignition

That made it a pretty good rig for what I do, misc year-round odd jobs around the farm and the occasional mud road.

I have to put in a 31 spline 8.8 L/S and Explorer springs I got for $100.

 

[Dishtowel]

, so I moved onto a bigger and better platform.

 

[mhughes165]

My Ranger went nearly everywhere I wanted it to. It was really a point-and-click type of rig. All said and done, there was less than $2500 in it.

That included the lift components, D35/8.8, 5.13 gears, lock-right, winch, flatbed, bumper, etc. Rust got the best of it, and it was deemed unsuitable for the type of rig I wanted to build it into, so I moved onto a bigger and better platform.

chevy on this site just makes my skin crawl