Any rock crawlin' Explorers ect....?
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New User
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 9
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From: SD USA
Any rock crawlin' Explorers ect....?
As I sit here, a broke full time student for a change, facing selling my current wheeling truck an 89 4runner to pay tuition, rent ,etc.. , I'm contemplating what I might buy for my next truck (when I graduate) to build up.
Before the Toy I was a die hard Ford man. I settled on the Toy because it was a reliable vehicle with good ground clearance and a ton of after market support. I could wheel it right off the bat unlike an Explorer that is quite low to the ground. But..... Since I've learned that real 4x4's are built not bought, I'm much more open to other makes as while the Toy has good points, it's 3.0 v6 is sucks and engine swaps are a pain. Nothing from Chevy seems worth a crap plus I personally think they are ugly pos's. They have power but their trucks are just, well as Perterson's 4 wheel put it, " The S-10 is the all time 4x4 turd". So I'm thinking an Explorer might be a fun build up, older of course.
I'm looking for a trail rig, full sizes are too big. It would either be an Explorer, or maybe a Ranger and go flatbed. I like the idea of less sheetmetal to demolish. What t-case gearing options are out there? I want a manually shifted T-case, not electronic crap. I'm looking for a crawler. Naturally I'm looking for some flex. Are there any lift kits designed with lower spring rates? A solid axle swap doesn't look too hard with the TTB as the radius arms are already there. Ford has great engines so I don't need to worry about that department, a 4.0 geared even moderately low should crawl great. I'm cool with paving some new ground and experimenting with spring combos, etc....I like to fab stuff.
What's out there for rock sliders? I'll make my own most likely but am up for ideas.
I guess I'm just looking to see if anyone is currently wheeling Fords on the Rubicon, Hammers, etc..... and what you are using.
Thanks,
Frank.
Before the Toy I was a die hard Ford man. I settled on the Toy because it was a reliable vehicle with good ground clearance and a ton of after market support. I could wheel it right off the bat unlike an Explorer that is quite low to the ground. But..... Since I've learned that real 4x4's are built not bought, I'm much more open to other makes as while the Toy has good points, it's 3.0 v6 is sucks and engine swaps are a pain. Nothing from Chevy seems worth a crap plus I personally think they are ugly pos's. They have power but their trucks are just, well as Perterson's 4 wheel put it, " The S-10 is the all time 4x4 turd". So I'm thinking an Explorer might be a fun build up, older of course.
I'm looking for a trail rig, full sizes are too big. It would either be an Explorer, or maybe a Ranger and go flatbed. I like the idea of less sheetmetal to demolish. What t-case gearing options are out there? I want a manually shifted T-case, not electronic crap. I'm looking for a crawler. Naturally I'm looking for some flex. Are there any lift kits designed with lower spring rates? A solid axle swap doesn't look too hard with the TTB as the radius arms are already there. Ford has great engines so I don't need to worry about that department, a 4.0 geared even moderately low should crawl great. I'm cool with paving some new ground and experimenting with spring combos, etc....I like to fab stuff.
What's out there for rock sliders? I'll make my own most likely but am up for ideas.
I guess I'm just looking to see if anyone is currently wheeling Fords on the Rubicon, Hammers, etc..... and what you are using.
Thanks,
Frank.
Elder User
Joined: Jul 2001
Posts: 726
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From: Glendale USA
Any rock crawlin' Explorers ect....?
I did a solid axle swap on a 1998 Explorer and a coilover suspension on it and the guy uses it all the time for rock crawling and does quite well with it. The swap itself was fairly simple and easy to do
