Towing with B2

[rusty ol ranger]

thats not accurate. they did model and prototype the d35 and a wider rear axle in the b2...even the 4.0. it didnt stop the jacking propensity due to wheel base and sprung cog....the d35 DID help a bit but not enough to stop it. going to the wider rear was still going to require major body changes...

the cog of the b2 and chassis offset makes them handle totally different...b2 was also born in the 55mph era and just fine for that.....i am talking 2 door to 2 door.

the 4 door explorer is in the zone that got them too comfortable at 80 mph...which is the reason we had the firestone debacle. that and...ugh...the target consumer

wheel base and cog, the explorer and b2 handle nothing alike. they feel totally different at 70 mph.

I didnt know that. But that said i never drove a 2dr early explorer...and only a handful of 4drs of that era.

I knew they have spring under in the back which dropped the ride height.

I retract my statement then.

 

[franklin2]

I had heard all the concerns about the BII, so when I got mine I was cautious with it. But I have had it about 8 years now, and I drive it like anything else.

I drive over a mountain everyday to work. Many times I do not brake for a turn, I just throw it in a lower gear and control it through the turn that way. It will slide all 4 tires, I do it all the time.

I do have a couple of modifications to it. It's 4x4 and stock height. But I have a little bit wider 70 series tire on it and the aluminum rims on it probably sit out a inch more than the stock rims. What really flattened it out in the turns was the plastic body bushing kit. It has more road noise which I do not like, but it really tied the frame and body together and made a noticeable difference in the handling.

 

[bobbywalter]

I had heard all the concerns about the BII, so when I got mine I was cautious with it. But I have had it about 8 years now, and I drive it like anything else.

I drive over a mountain everyday to work. Many times I do not brake for a turn, I just throw it in a lower gear and control it through the turn that way. It will slide all 4 tires, I do it all the time.

I do have a couple of modifications to it. It's 4x4 and stock height. But I have a little bit wider 70 series tire on it and the aluminum rims on it probably sit out a inch more than the stock rims. What really flattened it out in the turns was the plastic body bushing kit. It has more road noise which I do not like, but it really tied the frame and body together and made a noticeable difference in the handling.

bronco 2 people are bronco 2 people.

i was shocked at how much better my b2 drove in deep snow and slush spooled with solid front axle over our stock bronco 2s.

turned out the predictability of the spool was not what i would have assumed. more asset then cost. after a few days of driving in horrid conditions i was very happy with it... my ranger is ridiculously stable with 128 wheel base and full width 60s....so i had concerns based on my previous b2,s and i had a cherocar too. and that thing was waaay better in the snow then a stock b2 on the hiway....but my eldest daughter was driving that and out on her own at that time..

i had just blown the trans in my ranger and was driving an hour and a half one way to work....back then that particular rig was just being transitioned from trailer trash and was not intended to be street driven as a primary. but my daughter Madisyn wanted to drive it...so i was glad i had it semi setup for street use. breaking the 4l80 with a n/a diesel was definitely unexpected. and 12 hour towers and 3-5 hours travel and shift change dont leave alot of time for rebuilding transmissions.

but the b2 was great.


i have driven that rig to southern florida and all over appalachia to work over the years, and i would wager most people would be terrified of it after 5 miles...

i know driving home from florida after a work hitch one of my hands (oil rigs) didnt even make it 3 miles driving my ranger when it was his turn to drive...he had never even driven any kind or truck before and was a new hand that had flown in......at that point he had only driven cars....so i napped in the truck every couple of hours going home when i started to nod out...

i bet i would have slept like a baby in the passenger seat if it was your turn to drive.... because....bronco 2 guy.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

I remember we had our '94 Explorer XLT out in Montana loaded down on family vacation after camping in Yellowstone. Speed limit at the time was "reasonable and proper" so rightfully dad let the big dog eat.

About 80 it started getting kinda floaty and he started catching flak from the copilot so he reigned it back a little.

My Ranger is a long bed, it is by far the most comfortable cruising at 60. And at 60 it is the most comfortble riding thing we have.

Our Bronco is about the same wheelbase, it is a lot choppier but it has freaking massive sway bars... that it desperately needs. I have never had a vehicle try to weathervane in a heavy crosswind before. Kinda weird, aerodynamically it makes my '85 look like a B-2 stealth bomber.

Calm wind, we ran 80-85 in Texas with the Bronco no problem though.