Ok so I decided I wanna lift my truck a bit, just enough to run 31s or so. Lemme break it down for you guys.

No serious offroading, maybe cut across a field or two occasionally. It's a '94 4.0L 5 speed, 2WD.

I'd like to run 31s, how much of a lift will I need to comfortably run them?

I have 3.08s in the rear right now...I figure it's a good time to upgrade. I like the thought of 3.73s with my current wheels, so what gearing would give me a 3.73 feel with 31 inch tires? (ie X gearing with 31s = 3.73 with stocks)

Thoughts appreciated, and I need to do this on a budget!

Thanks guys,

RP
Zach

 

Zack, did you look at that daystar 2" lift from rockymountain susp.com, it was only 96.00$, it should let you run 31's if your not going to do any serious offroading. There's only one gear available (I think) between 3:73, and 4:10, and thats a 30. I would go with the 4:10 with 31's, not only is the tire taller, it's also heavier, with more rolling resistance, the added torque of the 4:10's will make it more comfotable, easier on the clutch. I'm sure one of our rocket scientist like Bob will chime in with the exact calculations, but on my gear chart in offroad mag, it recomends 30 to 4:10 for 31's, with 4:10's being the better choice. I would throw in a lsd while I was doing the gears, the added traction comes in handy, even on the street. There's also a complete 4" lift kit from rough country for 430.00$, and there's a 3" spindle lift for around 350.00$. The 2" daystar coil spacer lift is the cheapest, I know your on a tight budget with school, and all.

 

Wendell, I don't seen a 2" lift anywhere. They mention it, but I can't find it elsewhere. On the 2WD Ranger page all I see is 3.5" and 5" lifts.

I'll just go with 4.10s then I guess, probably easiest.

So what exactly do you mean by "you should be able to run 31s if you don't want to do any serious offroading"? Is there a risk the tires might rub if I go over something? I mean I don't wanna go dashing around in the fields down here ALL that much, but I don't wanna have to practically stop to go over a speed bump because my tires might rub.

EDIT: I found a body lift 2 or 3 inches, for barely $100. Is that it? And what's a manual tranny shift extender? My Hurst is coming in and I don't want to lose the short throw shifting.

RP
Zach

 

Speed bumps won't hurt, but blasting down a wash board dirt road at 50 mph might. I 'll tell you what Zack, I just got a new JC WHITNEY truck catolog, it has a whole rough country suspension section, with several lift opions for 2wd rangers, like lift kits, and front coils ,and such, also daystar. I'll send it to you, anything to help a buddy out. You could get away with a 2", but I'll would feel more comfortable with 3"', you could have more fun with it, with less worry.

 

Alright thanks so much Wendell, dunno where I'd be without you man. Anybody else got input?

RP
Zach

How much you guys think a full set of 31s on stock rims will run?

 

Zach, I would have thought you would know the price of new tires, rims, new dif. along with the lift kit before you decided to do this? I'm sure you
already know my opinion on doing something like this....

 

Hey Bob, yes I know your opinion, and I fully respect it, don't get me wrong.

I'm HOPING I can find 31s to fit the stock rims. If this isn't possible...well suddenly my motivation to do this goes way down.

After hitting a mailbox (yes I know...stupid) my alignment was knocked around, front tires got kinda worn out, rotated since then, so they're on the back. They'll need replacement anyways, so I figured if I was going to get any special tires (i.e. different sizes) this was the chance.

The new diff, I figure a 4.10 will work just fine...I like the higher torque over the current 3.08 I have, not to mention I don't see a 3.08 moving bigger tires! lol. I believe I will just swap out the required parts, but this is one thing I'll let our mechanic do, I'm not screwing with something like that. And the drive from the mechanic's to the tire shop outta be FUN with 4.10s!

The price doesn't bother me too much honestly. I'm working this summer with little else to spend money on but the girlfriend (eesh...year and a half anniversary this summer...great more money for her and less for truck...) and the truck. I want a new tranny, well a rebuilt one, because mine's the original as best I can tell, and with that comes new clutch, throwout, and slave. The parents will cover that they said.

So my money goes to the lift and probably a new cam if I can find it.

Can anyone give me a truly ballpark estimate?
The lift kit I saw was $105 or so.
Shocks I'm assuming? It's a body lift, but I need new shocks anyways.
What's the manual tranny shift extender and what does it do? It's $35 or so.
New tires, 31s on stock rims (I hope, new rims if ABSOLUTELY necessary).
4.10s in the rear, labor (our mech is EXTREMELY easy on labor)
Anything else, miscellaneous stuff I might need?

RP
Zach

 

Oh yeah, and I remembered this driving earlier.

The speedo gear on the tranny will have to be changed, correct? How do I set it up for a 4.10 ratio and 31 inch tires?
It reallllllly looks close with the tire being near the front bumper and back of the fender well, is that right? My mom's Silverado has 29 inch tires on it, I'm going to pull one tommorow and stick it up there and see how close it really is for comparison.
The VSS on the rear diff, do I need to change it? And how?
Will my odometer still work correctly?

Thanks again guys.

RP
Zach

 

Zack, I put 31/10-50's on my 96 rangers stock rims, also put 265/75's on my 04 stock rims. I sent the catolog out to you at the post office yesterday, you'll find lifts from under 100.00$, to alittle over 400.00$. I respect Bob's opinion, and I think what he maybe getting at, is to save some of your money as well, for the future, and thats pretty good advice. Personally, I think 31's, and a lsd is a good investment (if you can afford it) because it gives you a more versatle truck, for a wider range of applications, and duties, in other words, it won't be so one dementional. Like if you needed a load of sand in your backyard, and it rained all night, with 31's, and lsd, you could still get her done. It won't just be glued to the pavement, even if thats where it's used 90% of the time. Spend alittle on your truck, alittle on your girl, and save some for a rainy day. A truck hobby can be a life time hobby, so take your time, do it right, plan, and budget, keep your prioities straight, and you'll be ok, your a smart young man.

 

Zach, check out this URL for calculations tire size & dif. ratios. If you only have the VSS in the rear diff, the PCM can be reprogrammed for speedometer error, the sensor will not be changed.

http://www.4lo.com/calc/geartire.htm

 

Thanks for that link Bob.

With 31s as opposed to the 26.5s (?) I have on there now, running 4.10 gears would give me roughly the feel of 3.55s.

My question is, would I be happy with 3.55s? I know I can get 4.10s out of a busted up Ranger, just take the whole axle and be happy. On the other hand, I can look for approximately 4.80s, which will give me the feel of 4.10s. What you guys think? Bite the bullet and get the 4.80s (what's a "real" size close to that?), or just get the 4.10s from a wrecked Ranger and live with the 3.55 feel?

RP
Zach

EDIT: Bob...I have a '94, so speedo is cable driven. I know I can change the gear in the tranny (which I assume means I have to remove the driveshaft...eww...), but can you reprogram a '94 for a new tire or rear end ratio? I would assume the VSS would have to be replaced if not, so the truck knows how fast it's going. And I reallllly want my odometer to stay correct.

 

Zack, if you have a speedometer cable, then the gear will have to be changed to re-calibrate your speedometer and odometer (both are effected together). Another thing to keep in mind, your MPG is going to drop, is this
something you really want to do with gasoline prices today, and in the near future???

 

4:10'S are enough with 31's, it's all the gear you need with what you'll be doing with your truck, if you were desert racing, I might say 4:56. Stick with the basic formula, 4:10's, and 31's, it won't effect your mpg that much, because your makeing up for the gear with the taller tires, you'll still feel a difference going from 3:08's, even with the 31's. DON'T GET CRAZY ON US ZACH! 4:80's, and 31's would sorta be like driving around in low range ha ha at 3.00$ a gallon. I don't think you want to go there.

 

The rolling friction is higher with the larger tires, which will make the MPG lower....

 

It still won't be that much effect on mpg, alot of people report better mpg when going to a deeper gear, as it takes less throttle to acheive desired power levels, and speed. I have 4:10's on a 4x4 with 265?75-16's, thats a 32" tire, and I get 18 to 19 around town, depending on my foot , I even gotten less when I really dogged it, but have never gotten better, nomatter what I do. On trips to W,Va, I get 22 on average at around 70 couple mph. So all in all, I am satisfied with my mpg for the way my truck is set up. The 4.0 sohc seem to do alittle better on gas than the ohv 4.0, depends on who you talk to I guess. I hate to say this, but do a search over at rps, there's a lot of gear swapping go's on over there, and see what some of those folks are getting for mpg with your intended setup.