lowering an 89

[seth959ci]

hello all, debating on lowering an 89 ranger with the DJM 3/4 kit but i have a few questions. Will the truck sit level? wanting to lower it for increased handling capability and i dont care the saggy rear end look. does this kit require lowering springs/ shocks on the front(i know ill need lowering shocks for the rear)? will this require different eccentrics and what exactly are eccentrics?
Also the truck has 16" mustang wheels wearing 225/55 tires. will they rub without rolling the fenders?
And are there any recommended sway bars?

 

[JoshT]

DJM 3/4 Kit. IIRC that had Dream beams for the front and an axle flip kit for the rear.

Will it make your truck level? That depends on your truck, every one is different. On the 84 I totaled (never got around to doing suspension drop on it) the back end sat up a good 1.5 - 2 inches higher than the front. If I had installed the 3/4 kit for it I would have been nearly level but possibly still had a slight rake. If your truck is sitting level now it may sit a little lower in the rear than the front, but it be that noticeable. Just guessing I'd say you'll be level or have a slight rake. If it does sag a little there is a fairly easy fix for it, use Chevy drop shackles. On a Ranger without the hangar flip they will raise the suspension, and are good for approximately 1 or 2 inches depending on the setting used. Most people use Belltech 6400 shackles, but you can get basically the same thing at the local auto parts store for about half as much.

Lowering springs aren't required unless you want more than a 3" drop, same goes for shocks. With the design of the beam the radius arm stays in the stock position relative to the frame and as such the lower shock mount doesn't move. If you add drop springs to get more than 3" you will probably need shocks.

Eccentrics are camber caster adjustment slugs that install in the upper eye of the beam and the upper ball joint goes through it, you will also see them referred to as camber/caster bushings. Are they required, yes, they come on the truck from factory. Will you need different ones, once again this will depend on the truck. Some get by fine with moving the stock slugs to the new beams, others need new slugs. I'd recommend buying aftermarket adjustable eccentrics, I think the common consensus is that the best ones are +/- 4 degrees available from NAPA. I recommend this because you will have to get an alignment anyway, and if you get in there and find out you do need them it'll cost an arm and a leg having the shop do the work. If you install them ahead of time they are already there and you are just paying for an alignment. You could also take it in with the stock eccentrics and let them check it then install them your self and take it back in for the alignment, can't say they won't try to charge you twice though.

Tires. Yes, I think those should fit no problem, though you may run into an issue with backspacing/offset. I had 225/60 on 16" Ranger wheels on my 84 and had plenty of room for lowering it three inches. The offset of the wheel is what may get you though. If you have no spacer now you should be fine, but if you have a spacer installed it just depends on how far it pushed the wheel out.

Sway bars that's a whole other big subject that you will got a lot of opinions on. Do you have a sway bar on front or rear now? If so how big is it?

 

[doorgunner]

Gooooooooood summary josh.........he can mod the front end....then lower the rear end to his liking using your info....win/win!

I don't use the sway bars...don't need em now that it's lowered...takes corners like a Ninja now

 

[JoshT]

VP Doorgunner has spoken, so I must have said something right. Thought is doesn't seem like much of a summary to me, I though it looked more like a book. As light as that 36 Ranger is you probably wouldn't have much body roll if you were at stock height.

On a modern Ranger (you know, with a steel body) I don't know how much difference they will make on a lowered one, never been in a lowered one. I know my stock height 84 came without front or rear, and had a lot of body roll. I searched and couldn't find a stock front bar, so added the biggest aftermarket one I could find and helped a lot. I couldn't be satisfied with one, so I went out in search of the elusive 1" BII rear sway bar. For something supposedly so hard to find I was amazed to find it on my first trip out. When I finally got around to adding installing it (over a year later) I was amazed at the difference. As I mentioned on another thread the addition of both bars took the truck from feeling like a small boat on the ocean, to riding on rails. I was going to lower the truck as well, even had the Dream Beams to do it, but totaled the truck before I got the chance. Now I'm building an 86, but this one will have dream beams, axle flip (+ lifting shackles) and those sway bars from the start, so I'll never get the chance to see how a lowered Ranger rides without them.

 

[doorgunner]

10-4

 

[seth959ci]

wow thanks for all the info now i just gotta decide what i wanna do. Also can i run lowering shocks with stock springs(truck needs new shocks anyway). it currently just has the stock sway bars, was just wondering if the aftermarket ones were worth buying

 

[JoshT]

You probably can, but can't say how well they'd hold up. Every shock has a minimum length, a maximum length and a neutral length which is about center of the previous two. The distance between the minimum and maximum is known as the shock travel, ideally you want the shock at rest to be about the center of the travel range, or at the neutral length. This allows plenty of compression and extension during shock operation. If you move the shocks idle position away from the neutral length it decreases the amount of travel in that given direction, which can lead to bottoming of the shock, which can lead to damage and premature wear. IMO keep stock shocks with stock springs, and lowering shocks with lowering springs.

As for the sway bars it's a matter of opinion, yours in particular. If you have both front and rear sway bars from the factory (and it sounds like you do) you have a good starting point. From there decide if you are happy with the amount of roll (IE sway or lean when turning or changing lanes) you have int he body. If it's too loose start by upgrading the bar to the next larger you can find, the try the same with the rear. I can't say that the aftermarket bar is worth it as I never ran with a stock bar in the front. If you can get acceptable performance from $20 factory bars (guessing price from junkyard) then it's definantly not worth it to spend the money on a $100+ aftermarket bar.

 

[doorgunner]

If you got tons of cash that you don't need, buy aftermarket swaybars...

OEM swaybars do a good job (junkyard swaybars too!)