Wanna lift my 1997 ranger. Need help

[Madman2021]

Ok soo I got this ranger for $300 and I've been wanting to Jack it up for a while now. It's a single cab 2wd 4 banger. I wanted to put 5.5 inch coils 3 inch coil spacers, and 3 or 4 inch blocks, and add a leaf. My friends are telling me this setup won't work and they don't know why. What am I missing that won't allow it to work? Any other lift setups y'all think I should consider? On a majorly small budget.

 

[pillen140]

Um... You would have over 8inches of lift with stock brackets. You wouldnt even be able to get those in the front. And if you did, you would be able to til up a garden with your front suspension cause it would make your front wheels camber in so much. Lol. Rear blocks would work though.... With longer ubolts.

 

[Madman2021]

What can I do to the front?

 

[adsm08]

Ok, the key point here that everyone is trying (and apparently failing) to get across is....



LESS LIFT!!!


You have a 4-banger. You also claim to have a tight budget. The lift alone that you propose it going to cost probably over a grand. Then to make it not look retarded you will need something in the neighborhood of 35" tires. And yes, it will look retarded with anything smaller. I regularly see an 8" lifted F-150 that has to run stock sized tires to keep his bumper at a legal height. It is the dumbest looking thing I have ever seen.

Now I'm guessing that you already have 4.10 gears with that little 4-cyl. To get those big old 35" tires rolling you will probably want something closer to 5.13 gears. You will also want larger rims to mount them on safely. Those things are both money. Money that you claim to not have.

That will also be a pretty extreme angle for your drive shaft. Enough that you will probably want to carry spare u-joints and the tools to replace one just for normal driving.

All that on top of what pillen said about what it will do to your steering angles. With your camber adjustments maxed out your front end will still look like this: / \ and you will tear through tires, front bearings, ball joints, and possibly shocks.

 

[Madman2021]

Well I priced the parts that I listed and it's only a few hundred bucks. Already got AM rims, my cousin is giving me his 35's in ok shape. It still has stock gears. Yes it's a 4 banger but it doesn't need to be fast, it's just a weekend truck. I have a daily driver already. If that lift doesn't work what else could I do? This is my first 2wd I've lifted. I grew up with lifting 4x4 straight axles. I've looked into kits but there way out my range. I could build my own for less.

 

[adsm08]

I'm not saying don't lift it at all, just don't go that high. A large lift doesn't mess with a front straight axle like it will your independent setup.

Get a 4" body lift with some 33s. That will still look good and it won't kill your truck.

If you put 35's on there with your current gears it won't only be slow, it will be near impossible to get going.

 

[Madman2021]

I looked for a 4 inch body lift and could not find one. Who sells it? Also friends are telling me not to do a body lift. Is there something bad about them? Would a 4 inch body lift and 3 inch coil spacers and add a leaf or blocks be a nice lift? I plan on changing gears soon. So what would be the biggest tires I could fit. There's no hills here in Texas and this trucks not going on the freeway. Maybe only need 50 mph out of it max. Gas mileage ain't an issue either. It's a weekend truck only. Not using it to tow either.

 

[adsm08]

I don't look into body lifts much. Coil spacers are essentially a body lift, so you would still be looking at about 7 inches in the front.

I wouldn't try to go any bigger than 35's anyway. I think 33's are where you start breaking things in the 7.5" axle, so you might just want to stick with 33's.

You might also try a 3" and trim the fenders out an inch or so.

 

[Madman2021]

Would a 3 inch body lift, 1.5 inch coils, 3 inch coil spacers, and 2 or 3 inch blocks work good with 33 inch tires. I'm just trying different ideas here.

 

[mp3deviant721]

Would a 3 inch body lift, 1.5 inch coils, 3 inch coil spacers, and 2 or 3 inch blocks work good with 33 inch tires. I'm just trying different ideas here.

If you are going over 2in of lift on stock TIB brackets, aligning it will be impossible. I'd say just a 2in leveling lift and 3in body should get you 33's with fender trimming. But if you do want to go more that 2in you will need lift brackets. Unless you want to convert it to solid axle. Because from what you have said, you know how to lift solid axle trucks. And adsm08 is right. You need less lift.