I'll never fully understand why Ford put a drumed 31 spline 8.8" rear on the FX4 when they already made a disced axle of nearly the same specs for the 'exploder'..

i really don't want an explorer axle. the reason is that it will be the 3/4" wider on each side. heck i took a bunch of pics the other the other day and some of them where flexing pics, if i had, had the X axle i would have completely destroyed my rear fenders.

also with the FX4 it comes with the limited slip.

BUT let's say i got an X one, would i be able to get it shortened up, or would it not be worth it?

That would most likely be cost prohibitive, but you could. Is pulling the bedsides an option?

Why not go with a 9"? You can get one dirt cheap, add a locker or LS and have a near bullet proof rear end. Dont know how it would do on a 3.0 though.... its an idea

the 9 is an idea, but i don't know.

sorry, but pulling the bedsides is not an option. it won't fit into the look of my truck, in my opinion.

9 probably isnt an option. I was thinking about it and the 9" is even wider than the explorer. If you are going Long Travel some day extenened arms, then the 9 would look good, but with the route your going its proably best to find and FX4...

Also, the easy way to find out if the axle will work... park next to an FX4 and crawl under and compare to what you have.

does anybody know of an FX4 II in SoCal!!! LOL, none of the people i know have one. i already thought of that but thanks

I am 99% sure it's a direct bolt up. The one you want will have a red sticker on the passenger side that says "new model" wrapped all the way around. If it's an '02 anyway.

I know a couple places that have them....I'v never been stoped from crawling under cars at dealers.

I do know one person that has one. He is a member of OffRoadWorld. Brand new 2004 FX4 Level 2. He beats the hell out of that thing. But I havent seen him in a couple months.

I'll take a look at my Ford Dealer today since I need to pick up some parts, if they have an FX4 I'll take a picture of the axle for ya. Should be able to tell.

Oh yea, and Sean (desertspive) at Offroadrangers has one. So theres two in So.Cal.

Edit: And Tim (01Baja4x4) had one.. so theirs another.

I don't see why it would not work, that guy probley dosn't have a clue to what he is saying. The only thing I could think would be a problem, would be that the axle tube is bigger, and it my not fit your mounting hardware on your leaf springs. Just get the leaf springs and mounting hardware from the FX4 and it should work fine.

Oh fo shizzle the u-bolts won't work. You'll need those and the mount they go through.

yahh i figured the u-bolt's wouldn't work already. i don't know why i didn't think of going to my dealership :P lol

Is the 3/4" difference in width really that bad? It sure doesn't sound like it'd be a problem.. What's wrong w/ trimming the fender flares? Hell, if you go for wider tires you'll prolly have the same problem regardless of which axle you use.

well i don't have fender flares to worry about and i already have wider tires then stock. before i got the back lifted i had problems with big bumps because i would hit the lip on the inside of the fender opening

Re: front end conversion kits?
 

in the new petersons fouw wheeler they have an artictle on trimming axles.

3/4 of an inch is 3/8 on either side which isn't much at all..

greg, it is 3/4" on each side so the axle is 1.5" wider then a ranger

The FX4 LII axle is a direct bolt in operation. Unless you have a pre 94 or so Ranger. Then your going to need a new driveshaft or change the pinion flange to match your driveshaft.
The things you will need to change that are different are the u-bolts and the spring clamping plates. You will need these parts weather your installing an FX4 axle or an Exploder axle. The normal 7.5" or 8.8" Ranger rear measures 2.75" in diameter at the ends where the spring mounts are and the FX4 or Exploder's measure 3.25" in diameter. The larger diameter is to accomodate the larger end bearings used with the 31 spline axles.
The u-bolts are best gotten from a local source and should measure 9/16" or 14mm, standard Ranger bolts are 1/2" or 12mm, with a length to accomodate the spring pack and lift blocks you are useing. The spring clamping plates believe it or not are best gotten through the dealers parts department. The dealer only charged me $16.92 for a pair of them and the part number needed is F4TZ-5796-CA. For some odd reason they only show one part number for ALL Rangers and don't show a different PN for the FX4. So when you ask them for the part number they will give you the number F2TZ-5796-A and these are really the ones for the normal Ranger axles. Worst of all they will charge you $33.54 for the wrong parts! Don't even ask for the u-bolts, they want nearly $20 each for them and they are only sold in sets of 4. Local suppliers want much less for them.
There is a problem with the diffs that are in some 1000 of the first ones built and if your not sure of the one you have just get the number thats etched into the side of the Torsen LS unit and e-mail it to Zexel. They will tell you if its one of the defective ones. The one that I had was, so I discarded it in favor of a Detorit True-Trac. Its been under there for over 50,000mi now and it still works perfectly.

BTW Its a rare thing to see an 8.8" rear under any Ranger that's not equiped with a 4.0L engine. These hybreds are normally reserved for chassis cab trucks intended for custom rear bodywork.
And the easiest way to tell what axle is installed if your not sure or the door or rear tags are missing, unreadable, or questionable is to look at the shaft tubes. The 7.5" rear has straight tubes that measure 2.75" for their full length. The 8.8" 28 spline axle measures 3.25" out to between the housing and the spring mounts then tapers to 2.75" to the brake backing plate. The 8.8" 31 spline sxle measures 3.25" for the entire length.

Thanks for the info.!!! i am still not sure if i want to buy it.

by the way lots of 3.0l's have 8.8's. i think after mid 2002 is when ford started doing it more