Web Ranger
Question: I was reading through an older issue, and I came across the "5- Day Interview" piece you guys did (June '07). The Ford Ranger you guys had in it caught my eye. I am thinking of building a similar truck, and I was wondering if I could get some specs on that truck. Where do you get the fiberglass fenders, lift size if any, and tire size?
Mike D.
via 4wheeloffroad.com
Answer: That is our Web-guy Jason Gonderman's '99 Ranger. The front suspension is from Dixon Brothers Racing (www.dixonbrosracing.com) and is the company's four-wheel-drive long-travel kit. The rear suspension in the photo in "The 5-Day Interview" was Deaver long-travel leaf springs and Camburg shackles. Since then the truck has undergone some changes and now has a four-link rear suspension with a built Ford 9-inch rear axle. The truck is dampened on each corner by a single 2.5-inch Sway-A-Way coilover (8-inch stroke front and 16-inch rear) and a 2.0 hydraulic bumpstop at each corner. The front has 14 inches of wheel travel, while the rearend is limited to 28 inches of travel. The truck sits on 33/12.5/15 BFGoodrich A-T tires and those are covered by Glassworks Unlimited 6-inch flair fenders in the front and 7-inch flair fenders in the rear. By the time you read this the truck will also have a full interior rollcage, Beard seats, and Crow harnesses. The truck has no lift at all; in fact, sitting next to a stock four-wheel-drive Ranger it is the same height or shorter. The truck was designed for going fast in the desert and exploring trails where two-wheel-drive trucks wouldn't make it.... A hard-core rockcrawler it is not. With the long-travel suspension the truck has tons of flex and does work well on mild trails, such as the one it is shown on in "The 5-Day Interview." Go check out some Ranger buildup photos at www.4wheeloffroad.com.
Enlighten me
Question: I'm looking for a seven-light desert front bumper that bolts on in front of my stock bumper. Can you give me any suggestions to find one?
Mark
via 4wheeloffroad.com
Answer: I would check out Randy Ellis Design (602.803.1122 www.randyellisdesign.com) or N-Fab (866.806.6322 www.n-fab.com). They have a bunch of great lightbars that bolt to the stock bumper of most trucks. Also rather than using seven lights, why not just get two really good lights like a set of HIDs from Pro Comp, Hella, IPF, KC, Warn, Baja Designs, or Vision-X? HID lights offer greater performance with less amperage pull, and the fewer lights will also help by not disrupting as much airflow to your radiator.
Grand Plan
Question: I have a stock '04 Jeep Grand Cherokee. It is four-wheel-drive and I am wanting to lift it at least 4 inches and I am also thinking about getting the ARB front bumper for it when I get back from Iraq. What should I look for when choosing a lift kit?
Name withheld
via 4wheeloffroad.com
Answer: I would talk to other Grand Cherokee owners and ask them what suspensions they've used and which ones they liked since the only kits I could find that were 4 inches and above come from Rock Krawler (518.270.9822, www.rockkrawler.com). Tera (801.288.2585, www.teraflex.biz), and Rusty's Off Road (256.442.0607, www.rustysoffroad.com). If you are looking at ARB for a bumper, then note that they make great suspensions as well, but nothing with that much lift for the WJ ('99-'04 Grand Cherokee are known as the WJ).