My 1989 Ranger with Bullitt wheels

[WhiteLX]

Before:

After:

Yes, I know its dirty. It rained last weekend and they truck could really use a wash and buff.

The wheels are 17x8 off an 01 Mustang GT. The tires are 245/45R17 Nitto 555s. The before pictures are 15x7s off a later model Ranger with 225/60R15s.

I had to install a 5/16" spacer up front so the hub would clear the inside of the wheel. The centercap still would not go on up front, so I painted the dustcaps black until I can find a set of center caps that will work.

Next up, the 3"/4" drop I have in the garage and a new set of headlights, clear corners/parking lights, and new taillights.

BTW this new forum is way better than the old.

 

[Original_Ranger84]

At first they look kinda stupid and small (cause they are next to eachother to compare). But look at the second one with them on makes it look awsome. Love Em'.

 

[derekj]

That looks sharp - reminds me of my old 2wd ranger.

Derek

 

[WhiteLX]

At first they look kinda stupid and small (cause they are next to eachother to compare). But look at the second one with them on makes it look awsome. Love Em'.

I agree that it looks a little funny cause the tires are a smaller diameter, but that won't be a problem once it's lowered. It will look a lot better in a couple weeks once I get time to install the drop beams and leafs. The fender should be right at the top of the tire.

 

[2.8broncoII]

with the drop they will look 100x better, even though they already look really good.

 

[Dsc Motorsports]

Looks killer! ive got Fr 500s on mine 18x9 with 275 35's on it!

 

[NcRanger]

i think a billit grill would look great, nice truck dude

 

[WhiteLX]

finished the lowering today. I'm pretty happy with the way it turned out, but not after a ton of work and some additional parts.

i think a billit grill would look great, nice truck dude

I've never really been a fan of the billet grille on these trucks. I'd like one if I could keep the chrome outer surround and Ford oval of the Explorer grille, and cut out the middle for a billet grill. Maybe I'll work on that someday. For now, I'm going to repaint the old faded sections black so it looks new.

I also want to get new headlights and clear corners and reflectors. Not sure if I am going to tint the rear lights or just get new stock lights. I'll probably tint them first because I have the paint and these lights are pretty faded.

 

[GatorBlue92]

that looks great

 

[compleckz]

im sure u hear this all the time on forums... but damn u and your lack of rust in socal!

truck looks GREAT!

 

[WhiteLX]

It does have some surface rust on the bed where the paint has been scraped off. However, all of the bolts came apart with ease and were rust free.

I'll try to get some better pictures soon. I buffed the truck out over the last couple of days and it looks great! The paint was so oxidized that I couldn't see a reflection in it. Not any more. I'm so happy with the way the truck looks now. I got an alignment today, so I got to see it from the outside traveling down the road and it looks damn good.

I do have a bad shock on the driver side front. Hopefully I can get a decent set of shocks by the weekend. It rides like crap right now around 55-70mph. It smooths out around 75mph. I wouldn't be surprised if the front tire was bouncing on the freeway. I also need to make some spacers for the center support bearing.

The Hawk HPS pads and new rotors made all the difference in the world in stopping feel and power. I had plenty of pad left, but the compound must not have been very good. No idea what they were since they were on the truck when I bought it.

I painted the gray sections of the Explorer grille black. It really makes the chrome pop up front. I feel it also a little more sportiness to it. I think I am going to order new lights all around this next week.