I am in utter amazement. This is looking beautiful!

 

Shortened Ranger rear shaft and stock 2003 F150 front shaft:




The internal factory Ranger slip yoke was cut off and a new fixed yoke welded in by a driveshaft specialist. Then a 2006 Expedition slip yoke was added before the assembly was balanced. The genuine Ford yoke is the right size for the F150 BW4406 transfer case and it was only $19 brand new on eBay.




This is the conversion U-joint to match the F150 front driveshaft to the stock pinion flange on the Ranger's D35 diff. Otherwise, it is a straight bolt on when using the BW4406 transfer case.

 

I'm in awe.

Brenton

 

How much did you need to shorten the ranger shaft by?

 

Somewhere between 9~12". It depends on where you decide to measure it because the original yoke was inside the driveshaft and the new one is outside. So, the original shaft had a variable length but the shortened one is fixed

My goal was to end up with 1.5" of available inward slip yoke travel on the final shaft because that's what was available on the original - both measurements taken with at static ride height with an unloaded bed. The finished driveshaft measures 48" center-to-center on the U-joints. The original was 57~60".

 

how much did it run you to get the shaft made?

 

This is probably a dumb question, but why aren't there any splines visible on the end of the revised rear shaft?

 

i think its cause the 4x4's have a transfer case that it bolts onto instead of a 2wd tranny that it slips into

 

The splines are on the inside of the slip yoke ahead of the front u-joint. The transfer case I'm using has an extension housing similar to a 2WD Ranger transmission.

 

The breakdown was something like $45 to shorten and weld, $50 to balance, $30 for the new fixed yoke to replace the 4x4 slip yoke. I bought the Expedition slip yoke off eBay for $19+$7 shipping. So figure around $150 total.

 

Nice!!

 

Got it.

Just curious, have you thought about the kind of grease are you going to use on the slip yoke?

 

I bought a can of the special Ford PTFE stuff ($25!!) a few years ago. So I'm all set there.

 

looking good Bob, new d-shafts look perdy. cant wait to get mine done soon too cause then i can drive mine hah, except i need a new front shaft too, cause i didnt go the f-150 way like you

 

Ford made stainless exhaust manifolds for early 5.0 Explorers and an iron version for later ones. Both types of factory manifolds are super restrictive because they are necked down for assembly line bolt/socket clearance and the tubes are siamesed together in a very flow-unfriendly fashion. This all has to do with the very limited amount of clearance for the 5.0L in the Explorer engine bay. It is unfortunate because, other than the exhaust compromise, the 5.0L Explorer engine is assembled from of a bunch of decent performance parts.

The picture below shows the aftermarket "Torque Monster" 5.0L Explorer headers. These are the only commercially available individual tube headers made for this application and you can see how hard the designer had to work to stuff all that tubing into the impossibly tight Explorer engine bay - virtually identical to the bay in a 98+ torsion bar Ranger.

The headers retain the stock EGR and are CARB/EPA certified for 50-state legal use (on Explorers). They are supposed to unlock +20 HP and +35 lb-ft torque and yield a small fuel economy improvement.

The nice UPS lady delivered my set today.

 

wow it just keeps getting better and better

 

Yow! Those headers look crazy! I can't believe you don't lose a lot of your exhaust flow rate to all those wild bends. I guess it's still gotta be better than stock though!

 

No, they are not at all what you would consider optimal, either in shape or in length. However they are far better than stock and a fabrication marvel if you look at the space available.

 

Bob, dear I ask what the running cost is for all of this thus far?

 

Wow, the stock mainfolds look like trying to shoot air through wet concrete. Those headers should make a significant difference.

 

Are there any major differences between a 4wd 4R70W trans and a 2wd version besides the obvious lack of a transfer case attached to it? Also, are there any issues with using the stock Ranger automatic shift linkage with it? Seems like it would go right together. One more...why is it necessary to swap the 4-wheel ABS module to a 5.0 4wd Explorer unit? I have noticed that they are marked differently while rooting around in the JY but never was sure what the mechanical differences were from say a 2wd or 4wd Ranger unit.

 

Wow, those stock headers look disgusting.

 

holy crap! those stock manifolds are terrible!

 

Yes they do....

 

As I understand it, the only difference between 4R70W in the 2WD and AWD Explorers is the extension housing and the output shaft. Not sure about the Ranger cable - I didn't have one so I just bought a new 5.0L Ex cable.

If you have a 2001+ Ranger, the vehicle speed is sourced at the transmission and corrected in the PCM. By contrast, the Explorer's is sourced at the rear axle and corrected in the 4WABS module.

You need an Explorer (or possibly a 98~2000 Ranger) 4WABS Module to make that correction since the PCM in the Explorer is not capable of doing it and the 4WABS module in the 2001+ Ranger is not capable either. The module does not necessarily need to be from a 4x4 but I think it does need to be from a 98~00 4WABS Ranger or ???~2001 Explorer, not a RABS Ranger. The 98~2000 RABS Ranger does its speedometer correction in the GEM and using a GEM from those years in a 2001+ Ranger would surely cause compatibility issues.