New member, 2000 4x4, 4.0

[Qbird]

Howdy guys! I just bought my daughter a 2000 Ranger XLT 4.0 ext cab 4x4. I'm B-R-A-N-D new to Rangers, but I've had many F250s / Excursions and still do. I'm a retired BMW tech, so I try to do all the work I can myself.
So I'd been looking for about 6 months for one, when a neighbor said he had this one for sale. 95K miles, body is OK, runs great, shifts great, no leaks, etc... But...there are a lot of funky things going on with her. First of all, she's been lifted. I think they cranked on the torsion bars, but I can't make out how they lifted the rear (She sits level). I was told, and I find this hard to believe minus the holes in the bed that may suggest it's true, that it was used to haul a 5th wheel toy hauler. I can see that all of the bed bolts don't look OEM, and there are about a dozen drilled out holes all over the bed floor, but I can't believe there was a 5th wheel in there. Could be wrong, but I don't think so. I've looked up some incredible info here so far, and I'm grateful to be here. I've got a plan, kind of:
-lower it back down to stock height
-new tires/shocks
-figure out why the driver wheel is kicked in at the top (negative camber, big time)
-replace the rear shocks (I can't figure out how they lifted it in the rear, but it sits level and I'm pretty sure the front torsion bars are cranked up)
-all the maint stuff (fuel filter, plugs/wires/coils, flush the coolant and brake fluid, etc...)
Just going to be a daily driver for her...for now.

Anyways, just wanted to introduce myself and get to reading... So much information here and I do appreciate it.
Quentin

 

[MikeG]

If it sits level, they probably just cranked the torsion bars. 'Normal' is for the back end to sit up around 2" higher than the front, so it doesn't 'squat' under a load. If they really were pulling a heavy trailer, they may have put in heavier rear springs (ie. Explorer springs) and so that might change the ride height. A pick of the springs might help identify any changes to the rear suspension.

Can't help with torsion bars, no experience there.

 

[Qbird]

That makes sense, Mike. There is virtually no rear suspension in this thing, but there doesn't appear to be a lift block or added leafs in it. I'm going to take it out of the garage this week and take some pics of her. I'll add pics of the rear springs.
Appreciate the input.

 

[sgtsandman]

There should be some blocks on the rear axle between the springs and the axle unless they removed them. They should be about 2” +/- thick. If they aren’t there, there is your answer on what they did.

If they are there, they cranked the torsion bars.

Here are some pictures of what they should look like. The taller ones are what should be in your truck.

 

[Qbird]

This helps a lot, Sgt. I think it's stock, then. Big block under the spring pack. I have new shocks now and I'll be putting them on shortly. I've also attached a pic of the front. Again, sorry for the quality. Just woke up, heading out to work.