Drivetrain TechGeneral discussion of drivetrain for the Ford Ranger.
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well i am looking at getting a lift kit. i was looking at 6 inch lifts with somewhere in the neighborhood of 35 inch tires. one of my buddies told me that if i lift it that much and put those big of tires on it im gonna need a new set of gears. is this true? right now i have 3.73's. and what about a drive shaft? will that need to be switched out to some kind of extended driveshaft?
you WILL need to swap out to a 4.56 gear....i had a 3.73 gear in mine when i first went to 35's and trust me IT SUCKS! fuel milage goes way down and things over heat.......a 4.56 gear is a minimum that i would run if i were you.....a 4.88 is just too much for a 35" tire and a 4.0......
now as far as the drive shaft, since you have an extended cab, you have a 2 piece driveshaft.....what you need to do is swap it out for a '98+ Ranger extended cab 4x4 drive shaft......it is a solid 1 piece and it will bolt directly in.......the carrier bearing crossmember you can take out....i haven't had it on mine for 2 years now.....i talked with a Ford engineer and he said it wasn't a structural part of the frame......
you WILL need to swap out to a 4.56 gear....i had a 3.73 gear in mine when i first went to 35's and trust me IT SUCKS! fuel milage goes way down and things over heat.......a 4.56 gear is a minimum that i would run if i were you.....a 4.88 is just too much for a 35" tire and a 4.0......
now as far as the drive shaft, since you have an extended cab, you have a 2 piece driveshaft.....what you need to do is swap it out for a '98+ Ranger extended cab 4x4 drive shaft......it is a solid 1 piece and it will bolt directly in.......the carrier bearing crossmember you can take out....i haven't had it on mine for 2 years now.....i talked with a Ford engineer and he said it wasn't a structural part of the frame......
4.88s will be better for someone who will be using their truck to tow or haul often, and also wheels more than most.
ok...so i need a new rear. do you know how much it would cost me to get a 4.56 rear? i have seen some on ebay but im just not to keen on ebay stuff. and what about installation?
ok...so i need a new rear. do you know how much it would cost me to get a 4.56 rear? i have seen some on ebay but im just not to keen on ebay stuff. and what about installation?
Well you don't have to get a new rear. you could regear your current rear that will cost somewhere around $500 depending on your location. Now finding a rear on ebay with 4.56's is going to cost you a lot more than if you were to regear your current axle. Now if you have a 7.5" axle you may want to get a new rear since that will be pushed to its limits with 4.56 and 35's.
You best bet is to find an 8.8 rear from a junkyard and have someone regear that for you. This will be plenty strong enough for some 35's. If you have the 8.8 already then just regear that.
Do some searching about axles. there are plenty of guys that have regeared and have done axle swaps on this site.
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98 Xlt 4x4 auto 4.0L
PA Body lift, 33'' Super Swampers TSL's.
Chevy spring swap with torsion crank.
Explorer rear, 4wheel discs, 4.56, and a rear lunchbox locker.
K&N drop in fliter and cowl box snorkel.
Herculined bed and a topper.
Diamond plate skid plate.
Herculined interior floor.
Now if you have a 7.5" axle you may want to get a new rear since that will be pushed to its limits with 4.56 and 35's.
he has a 8.8 since he has a 4.0.....Ford/Mazada never put a 7.5 behind a 4.0....
you wont need a complete new rear axle....regearing the one you have is fine......just make sure you do the FRONT AND REAR or you wont have 4wd anymore if you do just the rear...
for doing front AND rear and buying the gears you are looking at about $1,000 total including the install/master install kits/gears....
1k eh...not worth it to me then. good info to know though for future trucks that might actually be worth lifting other than a 13 year old one! thanks alot guys!
1k eh...not worth it to me then. good info to know though for future trucks that might actually be worth lifting other than a 13 year old one! thanks alot guys!
Don't give up just yet. 1K is if you go all brand new parts and pay quality shops for the installation. If you have know anyone good mechanically who is able to install the gears, and you find some used gears you can get it all done real cheap. What do used gears run, like $100 a pop?
well that price range would be more acceptable. i would really like to lift it but i dont want to spend 1k in just gears to get what i want. cause i still have yet to buy the actual lift, tires and wheels.
Quote:
Originally Posted by lifted97ranger
actually the money you spend on lifting the '94 will be over 3-4 time cheaper than lifting a newer truck...
and while you do bring up a good point....i can justify spending a couple thousand dollars on a new truck more than i could an older one just because the newer one would last ALOT longer. i dont want to dump all that money into a lift just to have the truck take a dump on me a couple months later. while i know the parts could be rememoved and swapped... but i cant say 100% that the next vehicle i would get would be a ranger.
will i need a new rear?
