Well ive been looking for a truck quite some time now. ive looked at rangers, f150s, f250s and allot of trucks. I really cant decide what is the best truck. I definately want some thing mud worthy that can handle some weekend fun yet i dont want some thing that will kill on gas or will kill on parts when i take it mudding. im just looking for a lifted truck that can take some fun with out breaking on me that wont be a hog on gas. right now im looking at a 92 f150 with a 5.0 efi motor and a decent lift and 36in tires. now i know this truck wont be the greatest on gas but im also looking at a lifted ranger. a few people told me just to get a fullsize truck because when you lift a small truck it will be bad on gas also and your parts will break more often. im just looking for some advice here on what you guys think. thanks again.


Mike

 

Offroading = broken parts.... just my experience. Rangers are way to small i think, and depending on the motor in it, it will probably be a dog with a lift on it. Even the 4.slows weak. Make sure its got a good lift on it. My trucks lifted but its just for looks. I wouldnt hammer on mine too bad. Just my 2 cents.

 

thanks i appreciate it. my truck wont really be beat on just taken in some mud to have some fun occassionally. and the lift on the 92 just might be leafs or a body lift. the truck is at a dealer it was a trade in.

 

Maybe you should look for a stock truck and then add a 4" lift, which is enough (that way you'll know what was put in there). I've traveled a lot and done my fair share of mudding, even being stock. To me my Bronco is a great truck to do so... I would search for a 92 or up F-150/Bronco with a 5.8 and auto tranny. If you don't drive a lot on the HW get a 300 I6 with a manual, it will deliver the best MPG numbers, it will be a very good truck for mudding/daily commute and it will be very hard to kill. The shorter the wheelbase the better, so for me the Bronco is the one to choose (or the F-150 with the shortest bed).

 

ya i only have about $4200 right now to spend on a truck right now. and here in ohio clean trucks are pretty rare. this 92 f150 im looking at now has minimal rust starting and already has a lift. but i dont know where it came from it could be beat i just dont know.

 

This is all my opinion so.... The short beds look too short when raised more than 6 inches. The long bed 150's flex alot when going over uneven surfaces. The frames are thicker on the 250's but they weigh alot more so they sink harder. Im not big on going slow and getting stuck in the mud. And when I say slow I mean you cant really go fast with your typical lift kit with out rattling your teeth out. If it was me I would get a lightning with no drive train. Get a 302 out of an explorer and put aluminum heads on it. Maybe a700r4 with a 3k stall. That would be a pretty lightweight combo. The rear is already posi and the frame is thicker than a 150. Then I would get a long travel extended trac kit from Camburg. Top it off with some killer lookin faux bead lock wheels . What you would have is a somewhat affordable stage 1 Prerunner . You could do some serious off roading at speed,fly around corners and jump some small ramps.

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/p...ictureid=64755

 

haha sounds like a good setup just lacking the cash.

 

All I know is the smaller the truck the better if you want to offroad. Friend of mine had an 88 ranger with a stick and the v6, we cut out the fenders to fit 32 mudders and that sucker went EVERYWHERE.

 

36's are gonna be rough on a f150, i'd get a f150 or 250 and got with a 4" lift tops. my 31s have done great and my brothers bronco does great with 33s.

 

If you want something you can drive every day and still take off road, I'd go with a ranger. Lifted you'll probably still get better mpg than a bone stock 4x4 full size from the 87-96 range. If you don't plan on pulling anything or hauling heavy loads, this is the way to go. One thing's for sure, gas is going up, and up, and up, so running around in something that gets less than 10 mpg is getting real expensive. My friend's F150, 302, 4x4 on 36" tires, 5 speed, was getting around 8 mpg. He sold it for a 4 cyl car because he couldn't keep gas in it.

Rangers are pretty tough little trucks. Parts are pretty cheap, and the junkyards always have a couple laying around. If you break something, you can get what you need pretty easily. Rangers are generally slow, but make up for it with their toughness

 

thanks for the advice. i keep hearing different things from some of my buddies. my one buddy has a lifted s10 and everytime he hits some trails or mud he breaks parts. my truck will be mostly a daily driver but will get some mud occasionally on the weekends. and i keep hearing if i lift a ranger it will really beat up the motor and get almost as bad as a fullsize. im not too sure what truck i want yet. im leaning a little more towards a ranger. thanks again.

Mike

 

S10s are pretty tough little trucks too. It really depends on what's been modified and how you drive it, as to what's gonna break. There's a lot that can go wrong with an older truck, besides what gets modified. A ranger or s10 with 31's and 2" of lift will handle most trails pretty well. 31x10.5 r15 tires are super easy to get and much cheaper than a 32" and larger tire. It makes for affordable wheeling.

I don't do much off roading, but my '94 Jimmy is unstopable in heavy snow and general mud, at 165k miles it's a great truck. It has decent tires and I swapped in a manual t-case along with the factory shift lever.

 

ya im mostly be using it as a daily driver that can handle some mud or maybe tearing up a field or two. Just that many people keep telling me to get a full size because most rangers i find are the smaller 3.0's and they cant handle a lift and the bigger tires. i would want to do a 4 inch suspension lift and maybe 33 in tires. not too sure what i want yet its really driving me crazy i keep leaning to a full size f150 then to a ranger. im just gunna keep thinking on it. thanks again.