I have a 2011 ford ranger xlt 4wd. I'm putting on Goodyear wrangler duratrac tires, 265/75/15. They might be a tad too big and possibly might rub. Could I crank the torsion bar just enough to make enough room for the tires without sacrificing the ride quality. I could probably go without the crank but to be safe, maybe a half inch or so ? Please respond with tips. Thank you

 

I cranked mine 1.5" without sacrificing ride. Anything over that is pushing it. Even with the lift I did, the ride height is still with the Ford specs for new vehicle (or new suspension components) ride height. It is over the used vehicle ride height specs but you should have no problem up to a 1.5" T-bar crank lift.

I have 193K miles on my Ranger and I did the T-bar crank only a few thousand miles after I bought it new in 02. I did replace the upper ball joints along with the upper control arms and bushings about 10K miles ago but the lower ball joints are still the originals installed at the factory. I will probably replace them soon because I take a lot of off-road trips and don't want to risk having any problems.

 

Did you mean 15" or 16" rims? Stock on a 4wd for your year should be 16". A 265/75 on a 15" rim is is only a 30"x10" tire, that's almost stock, just a little wider. If you meant a 16" rim it'll be a 31.6"x10.43".


My 08 had 16's and I went from a stock 255 to 265/75r16 and cranked my tbars until I did the coilover swap. I had no problems with my truck while I just had the crank. It did rub at full lock but I didn't trim anything as I knew it was rubbing plastic and not causing serious damage to my tires or anything else.

I never replaced my ball joints or any suspension component aside from shocks for coils. When I did have to adjust the coils for height setting and coil spring replacement, the alignment shop never mentioned problems doing alignments. They did say caster kits would help but it was still in specs that were acceptable.

 

My model came with 15" rims. I'm gonna have to buy 16" rims with less backspacing to compensate. I wanted to try to fit them without a t bar crank but I'm gonna go ahead and crank them anyway. Haven't decided wether I should do a half inch, 1" or 1.5" crank . Any suggestions ?

 

Start with an inch and drive it around the block to let things settle, if it needs more go an inch and a half. Drive around again and recheck.

Be sure to get an alignment after you do this and settling has happened.


It's weird that your 4x4 model came with 15" rims. I thought they all came with 16's.

 

Yeah I know, mine came stock with 235/75/15

 

I'd keep the 15's then and not go with 16's. It's cheaper to find tires in 15" sizes. If you do want a larger rim go to a 17". It still might be cheaper if I remember.

 

What is the biggest size I could go with a 15" rim with a small t bar crank or no crank at all

 

31"-33" depending on how much rub and offset. Like I said, I fit a 31"x10" on a stock rim. It rubbed a little and I didn't give a **** that it did.

You have a post 07 truck so you have torsion bar keys that are indexed for a lower height from the factory for mileage. I swapped for an older set and that alone gave me about an extra inch. I cranked and that gave me an inch. Tires gave me an extra inch. I was where pre 08 trucks were sitting with a crank and tires. I was happy. It's a little rough but I lived with it. If you want to do the "pre-key" mod" look for keys for a truck that is prior than 08, mine were from an 05. You can find them cheap.

I would do that again if I bought another ranger, cheap and easy. My lift was $60-70 front and rear as I had an AAL. It was also all suspension components, I didn't do a BL even tho I had it in the box. I bought longer shocks for the rear but I don't think it's mandatory.

Search, that exact question has been asked numerous times and some responses are from upset members seeing their 10th thread titled "what's the biggest tire I can fit with a t-bar crank?"