Hi guys,
I have an '02 Ranger 2x with 80,000 miles.
I recently added a class 3 hitch and saw the rear end drop slightly.
It seems it is still sagging, and when I throw the sand bags in it really drops!
I was wondering if new shocks would help, or if you all had any suggestions.
Thanks!

 

try jogging...

Fresh new shocks will help, I'd also do and add-a-leaf to stiffen it up

 

AAL, might hurt the ride a little. Shocks prolly would'nt help much with sandbags.

 

I wonder if I can install the shocks and "add a leaf" myself?

 

im by no means a mechanic but I dont see why u couldnt, unless u got the same type of spring

 

x2

or you could put chevy 1500 springs on there

 

Are you messin' with me, or is that really an option!?
Is this something you've done b4?

 

i havent done it before, but some people on here have.

it will hold more weight and i think is just bolt on.
you will have to remove the rear block because the springs will lift it up a bit.
but ya just search around on it

 

almost just bolt on. you have to move the front spring hanger up to the front holes and drill two new hole on each side. and add new bolts. but its well worth the hour worth of work.

 

id go with the add-a-leaf, for what your looking to do its the most logical thing to do......id get some new shocks as well just to help out a bit

 

Thanks guys, I will add the shocks, then maybe "add a leaf" if needed.

 

I think for your situation Bow-tie leaf packs would be a tad bit overkill. Unless you know of a good junkyard to pull them from and have air tools and are prepared to remove your bed, then I think the 1500's leaf pack is more money and time consuming than what you want.

a simple AAL from summit will stiffen the ride a little but not uncomfortably, it will return the rear-end to stock ride height and take more payload and not sag.

chevy springs would give you almost 2" lift in the rear in addition to what the AAl provides

 

shocks wont affect ride height. AALs will lift the rear all the time. so the truck will be raked when you dont have sandbags in the bed.

if youre lookin for a part-time solution for light loads like sand bags, you might look into a set of airshocks.

 

I think the AAL may be too muck lift. The air shocks would be a bonus since I tow a boat too, but can I leave them pumped up for normal driving?

 

up to you. leavin em filled with alot of pressure will affect how the truck rides and also the amount of strain on the upper shock mounts. smaller pressures will have lesser effects. i have run them on rangers, and have never had any issues with them.

depending on the size of your boat you may also look into a set of load helper air springs. they are a small air bag mounted over the leaf. they can handle higher loads than a simple airshock and wont affect the shock mounts any.

 

Have any of you used Rancho Lev-a-leaf? It seems they are meant to add stability, but not a lot of lift. Whadda ya think?

 

air shocks are cool, till the explode, than they suck, really a add-a-lead is what you need, it would look fine, not to much lift so it wont look bad, like its stated, shocks wont help you......