Man Buys 1996 Ranger for First Vehicle, Slams it

Could You be the One?

Everyone agrees that a truck is a pretty good birthday present, even if it's a present for yourself. When Greg Salatino was shopping for his birthday present back in 2002, his wish list had 'extra-cab' and '4x4' fairly high up. Not only was this truck to be his present to himself, it was also going to be the first vehicle he'd ever bought. First-time buyers don't always get everything they want, and so it was with Salatino—his bank account had a say and it voted for the standard cab, rear-wheel-drive 1996 Ranger you see here.

Well, actually the Ranger you see here is a lot closer to the pavement than it was when Salatino purchased it. Originally he was just happy to have wheels but as time went on he wanted something a little less staid-looking. After happening upon a few issues of Mini Truckin' you can guess what kind of ideas were filling his head.  

Rounds 1 & 2

Salatino's first course of action was a simple static drop. After taking the newly-lowered Ranger to Indy Truck Bash for its first show, a look around lit a fire inside and he knew he had to go further if he wanted to run with the more advanced members of the pack. Specifically, he wanted to get his pickup to sit flush with the floor. Once he got back home from the show he started stripping the Ranger down to the frame and commenced air-bagging the suspension. By himself. With only magazines and a smattering of tools to tackle the job, he laid out the mods. 

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Begin Round 3

With the bags installed, Salatino did a little interior work, sent the Ranger to his buddy John for a quick respray, and hit a few more shows. After saving his pennies for a couple more years he was ready for round three. This time it would be surgery, again mostly completed by himself, though he does single out his friends for helping him lift the cab and bed off the frame and back more times than they could count. 

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Chassis and Suspension

Suspension surgery in the front meant adding Slam Specialties RE-6 bags on Suicide doors bag mounts, mounted to DJM 3-inch-drop I-beams. The Ranger's rear suspension is a custom-built cantilever system that required the bed of the floor be removed to make room for all the working parts to work. Parts include a Suicidedoors four-link set-up and Slam Specialties RE-7 bags, with air for the whole system coming from an engine-driven York 210 compressor utilizing 1/2-inch GC 450 valves. Salatino fabricated the fame from the firewall rearward to allow the three-and-one-half inch body drop.
 

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Body and Interior

The body wasn't just dropped though, it got the full once-over. Salatino shaved the Ranger's emblems, door handles, wiper cowl, roll pan, tailgate, stake pockets, ugly third brake light, taillamps, cab seams, fuel filler door, and antenna. As mentioned earlier, the bed's floor was no more, but most of the bed went with it as well. Likewise, the firewall went under the knife and the front fender wells went bye-bye too. Additions consist of a sliding cloth top, an AIM hood, and Salatino's skull-sporting custom-made grille. When it was done the pickup was repainted again—including the handbuilt custom interior—this time by CJ Pettit and Jeremy Cyphert in a custom-mixed blue from Valspar.

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Odds and Ends

The Ranger retains its 3.0-liter V6, albeit in slightly breathed-on form, with a custom-made cold-air intake and custom-made header-back dual exhaust rounding out the package. When it's not on the floor the pickup rolls on 245/45R17 Kumho Ecsta 711 tires over Limited 665 17-inch wheels. The transmission tunnel had to be raised four inches to accommodate the body drop, and if you are wondering where all the wiring went, Salatino rerouted the majority of it to its current under-dash location. 

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First-timer

For a first-time, and second- and third-time, build, the attention to detail, individuality, and tidiness of Salatino's Ranger are something to behold. Maybe it was because of, rather than in spite of, the fact that it was just him and sparks of inspiration that created this truck that it came out the way it did. Looking back now he has no qualms about not getting the extended-cab 4x4 he originally desired. If it weren't for the drop, the shows, and all the people he met along the way his life wouldn't be as full as it is. Passion for Fords has a way of doing that.