Lifting Question

[Becket]

I have a 98 Ranger, 3.0 V6 4x4, I am wanting to lift it up a tad and put bigger Tires on it, not wanting a Monster, the Truck will see use getting to and from Fishing holes across deep Sand and some Mud getting around in fields for Duck Hunting, tire size will be 31-10.50-15, I am putting 4:88's front and rear with Posi rear, I want to lift it up about 3" or so, Now the Question; I see all kinds of "Kits" out there, will the Key and Block kit work or need to go a different rout? again, this is not going to be a Mud Bogger, the "Power house" 3.0 is going to remain STOCK. it's just gonna be an A to B back to A Truck in some other than Ideal road conditions.

I have plenty of other Toy's to throw Money at, this don't need to be another one...

Thanks for any Advice you can spare.

 

[JohnnyO]

A torsion twist or torsion bar keys will only lift it so much because however much you "lift" is how much downtravel you lose. 31's will fit with a torsion bar twist just enough to level it. If you want a little more I would get a body lift although you will have to lose the front tow hooks or cut notches in the bumper although some have said if you replace the tow hooks with Chevy S-10 units they will work without cutting the bumper. The only real suspension lifts for late-model 4x4 Rangers are from Superlift at around $1800 and the Dixon Brothers long-travel coil-over conversion that costs around $6000. 4.88's are a lot of gear for a 31" tire, i would recommend 4.56's. Remember, you have low range. The best mods to do for 'froading are 1) limited-slip or locker and 2) quality tires.

 

[Becket]

Thanks JohnnyO, 4:56 you say.. Hmm, well, 4:88 has not been purchased yet so I can still do 4:56, and it will have Posi unit in rear, I just thought I would help the little Engine out as much as Possible, it has a 5 speed in it and Stock sire size now, seems like I am pushing it for all its worth trying to maintain 70mph on the Highway. (which, by the way, it wont see much of)

And on the Subject of the Key Style Torsion twist, lets say I got the 3" leveling kit, would loosing 3" of Down travel effect it in a bad way? How much down travel does it have stock? If the Key is not a good Idea in the long run, then I will get the full "Suspension" lift, Body lift, no way, been there, done that, long story, but I won't do it again...

Thanks for your input, I look fwd to hearing more.

 

[Becket]

Wrong Thread

Mod's I see now that I have put this in the Wrong place, I totally missed the Suspension Thread, can you move it to there please.

 

[JohnnyO]

Thanks JohnnyO, 4:56 you say.. Hmm, well, 4:88 has not been purchased yet so I can still do 4:56, and it will have Posi unit in rear, I just thought I would help the little Engine out as much as Possible, it has a 5 speed in it and Stock sire size now, seems like I am pushing it for all its worth trying to maintain 70mph on the Highway. (which, by the way, it wont see much of)

I used to own a 99 Supercab 4x4 with a 3.0 5 spd so I know what you mean. The 3.0 is never going to make a lot of power no matter what. Just saying that compared to stock, if you go to 33" tires then 4.56's will put your rpm vs. mph close to stock. So go 4.88's if you won't be on the highway. Last I heard 4.88's were hard to find for the front though.

And on the Subject of the Key Style Torsion twist, lets say I got the 3" leveling kit, would loosing 3" of Down travel effect it in a bad way? How much down travel does it have stock? If the Key is not a good Idea in the long run, then I will get the full "Suspension" lift, Body lift, no way, been there, done that, long story, but I won't do it again...

Thanks for your input, I look fwd to hearing more.

BAsically if you lose the downtravel then you will rattle your teeth off road because the suspension is topped out all the time and the front wheels will spend a lot of time in the air. Tires will only move up because they can't move down. Stock travel is about 5" each way. Also it will put more of an angle on the front CV joints which aren't real strong to begin with. It is best to keep a torsion twist to 2" or less. You really don't need a bigger lift to fit 31's. Just that, quality tires, and a rear locker or limited-slip and you'd be surprised what it would do. However since you have a 3.0 your truck likely has the smaller 7.5" rear (like my 99) and i don't know if they make a locker for that, probably just limited-slips. The 4.0 motor also got you an 8.8" rear which is partly why the option cost so much back then.

I never 'froaded my 99, it was ordered to get around in snow and be good on gas, which it was, but slow as hell. I went from that to an 02 Off-Road Package with a 4.0, limited-slip, and 4.10's. The OE limited-slip was set very tight from the factory, it would chirp the inside rear tire turning corners in town like a locker, I just did a torsion twist and got bigger and better tires (Bridgestone Dueler REVOs 265/70-16), that was when I found this place and I don't live real far from Jim and the off-road events that we would do. If there is anyone left here from those days (I checked out for a while) they would tell you that for a relatively stock Ranger it was a total beast off road and proof that you don't need to do a lot of pricey mods to do some goofy shit 'froading.

 

[don4331]

Becket:

265/75R15 was an option tire size for the '98 Ranger 4x4. 31x10.5R15 ~ 267/75R15, close enough to same size for girl I go with. And lowest ratio Ford offered stock in '98 was 4.10s.

So you don't need a lift kit or 4.88s (I have replaced my torsion bars with #1s from Explorer but then I have a V-8 now too). If you have 3.73s (luckily 3.27s didn't come with 3.0/4x4 in '98), I would probably go with 4.56s but gas is only $1/liter at moment. And you can get 4.56s for Dana 35 and either 7.5" or 8.8".

p.s. A 'cheat' for lifting the rear is to use the longer shackles from the DJM lowering kit to gain a couple inches. Better than the Superlift blocks IMHO.

 

[Becket]

Thanks for the Input, it gives me plenty to chose from

 

[johnday]

Well, here's my .02cents.
Do a torsion twist to get 2", and a Add A Leaf on the rear. I'm running that in combination with 265/75/16 tires, close enough to 32" to call them that. 4:10 gears on a 3.0 5 speed manual. I think 4:33's for what you want would work well. I do mild off roading on loggging trails with zero problem. Oh, and it's a 2WD Edge model.