Talk me out of it..

[Jeep450r]

So I have wanted a truck from the time I was 13 or so, but when I found out that my parents required me to have air bags in my first car, I chose a cherokee because it fit the budget best...

Well, now I am 18 and airbags are not a requirement any more (theres a little catch, but thats beyond the point). I am now tempted to buy a dirt cheap commuter car to DD, and build up a ford ranger over winter/summer.

Short term plans would be:
late 80s early 90s ranger
44/9
5.13's
35's
welded rear/lunchbox front
Ford radius arms up front and leafs out back
bobbed, doved, eventually caged.
maybe a doubler.

Im also tired of trying to keep my XJ clean.. and the bed would come in handy quite a bit (hauling my quad/wood/etc). AND IT HAS A FRAME! its just been a dream of mine to have a truck.. but I love my XJ, which will be hard to let go of.

Now I'm just ranting..

Anyway, just looking for some criticism. talk me into it. talk me out of it. smack me back into reality... GO!

:cheers:

 

[Goose_XJ88]

do all of the above except the part about loosing the xj...
yes i know that having three cars will be expensive but will ultimatly be worth it in my eyes...im 21 and trying to do the same thing...i have an '06 sierra, my 88 xj and im now trying to find a '91-'94 xj to either turn into my hardcore basher or camping/expedition rig/eventually a family wheeling and camping rig depending on the condition its in in when i find one..i also kinda want to find a super cheap commuter to dd for mpg but that prob wont happen.

and for those of you that say thats too many cars for me and i should get rid of one, my 88 is really clean and i have a hard time wheeling something hard that is super clean which is why i want a second rig for all function..as one guy put it, "I like having a clean wheeler that i can dd from time to time, but i also like the sound of crunching metal." so same vehicle means spare parts fit either..ill have one rig for camping and moderate trails that can take four people at a time and one purpose built rig for me and one other. My reasoning behind keeping the Sierra is that its my first truck that im still paying off, its also my dream truck, and ill need something that can tow the beater to farther wheeling spots like moab or rubicon.

Rant off..

 

[Johnnie Walker]

Why not get a full-size so you have something to tow your XJ?

 

[Jeep450r]

do all of the above except the part about loosing the xj...
yes i know that having three cars will be expensive but will ultimatly be worth it in my eyes...im 21 and trying to do the same thing...i have an '06 sierra, my 88 xj and im now trying to find a '91-'94 xj to either turn into my hardcore basher or camping/expedition rig/eventually a family wheeling and camping rig depending on the condition its in in when i find one..i also kinda want to find a super cheap commuter to dd for mpg but that prob wont happen.

and for those of you that say thats too many cars for me and i should get rid of one, my 88 is really clean and i have a hard time wheeling something hard that is super clean which is why i want a second rig for all function..as one guy put it, "I like having a clean wheeler that i can dd from time to time, but i also like the sound of crunching metal." so same vehicle means spare parts fit either..ill have one rig for camping and moderate trails that can take four people at a time and one purpose built rig for me and one other. My reasoning behind keeping the Sierra is that its my first truck that im still paying off, its also my dream truck, and ill need something that can tow the beater to farther wheeling spots like moab or rubicon.

Rant off..

I wish I could do that but I dont have the money to keep 3 cars, nor the space to do so. While I could keep my current XJ as my DD, the selling of the XJ would be funding the majority of the ranger build. I would much rather have a DD that gets superb MPG as well.

Why not get a full-size so you have something to tow your XJ?

I contemplated that... but I would be stuck with another DD at 15 mpg. And id need a car trailer.. and I dont want to pay for a trailer with brakes and storage, as I dont have enough room on my side yard.


I guess I could always chop my XJ so I kind of have a truck :gee:

 

[EricsXJ]

I don't understand why you'd sell the XJ just to start over with another vehicle, let alone a ranger. Getting a comuter car will allow you to be more aggressive (building and/or wheeling) with the XJ.

And don't try to use a truck as justification to haul your quads. (I know you have a trailer for that!) If you need to haul other stuff, find a little utility trailer to pull behind the jeep. I bought one a few years ago, for $100 or $150 something like that, which did the job.

I just think if you get rid of the XJ it will be something you regret later on.

 

[Alex E]

You can fit more girls in an XJ and you can lock all your crap inside when you go camping or where ever. XJ wins in my book.

 

[the_weirdo]

Buy a cheap commuter and keep the XJ. Get a small trailer for the XJ to haul your quad and call it a day.

But if you must sell the XJ - Didn't you just gear your XJ? How much do you want for it?

 

[Goose_XJ88]

yeh i dont really have the space for three either..lol but thats what parents houses are for right...lol i do vote for the crappy/cheap dd and keeping the xj and using a trailer for utility and quads and such.

 

[Jeep450r]

I don't understand why you'd sell the XJ just to start over with another vehicle, let alone a ranger.

Well, I personally enjoy building/fabbing as much as I do wheeling. So I would have a blast building a rig that I can chop up more and fab from the ground up. And yeah a Ranger is a pretty oddball rig to choose.. but I think I would enjoy wheeling/driving something a little more out of the ordinary.

Buy a cheap commuter and keep the XJ. Get a small trailer for the XJ to haul your quad and call it a day.

That idea is slowly finding its way back up to the top of the list. I know I will need a commuter car by winter break if I want to do anything at all to my XJ.

But if you must sell the XJ - Didn't you just gear your XJ? How much do you want for it?

Haha lets not go there yet :rof:

Im thinking I just need to get out and wheel and this silly idea will go away!

 

[blondejoncherokee]

dude 5.13s, a 9", and a geared and locked HP 44 are going to cost alot no matter what way you look at it. then front lift, front steering, etc, those are costs you might as well sink into the XJ.....
plus im not sure how good that ford 2.9 v6 is over the 4.0.



for all of the time, effort, and money youll spend doing that and more to the ranger, it sounds like you are flat out too afraid to do that to the XJ. if you have that stigma imbedded that the XJ cant be a crazy wheeler it never will be, if you have it ingrained in your head that the ranger is the only way you can get hardcore, then it will be. its all mental. once you can let go of these preconceived notions youll realize you have all the freedom in the world to :
cut off the back of the XJ (buy some square tubing to make a subframe in the body and in the roof so you can bolt it back on like a scout or a 4runner(40-100 in steel )
then figure out a tail gate situation(shouldnt be too hard)
herculine or lizard skin the bed area (60$)
make the rear seats really easy to remove somehow(free),
buy some 3/16 x 3 " wide flat steel and plate up the frame(40$)
buy 100 or so feet of DOM from that place you found in the city for like 250$ and build a cage,
build a cheap soft top or buy one, ive been considered buying a used JK one and chopping it down to size since they are all over craigslist for cheap, and boxing in a cut off roof and body like a scout or 4runner,

your axles are pretty well set up for 33s-35s no problemo.
maybe get some used chromos or the big ABS shafts for the 30, and then maybe save up on the side and build a used 9" and wait for a third with 4.56s to match your front for cheap,(or maybe an for cheap 8.8,) link the rear, and skin the belly, youll end up doing that crap on the ranger anyway, its worth it...

after seeing how stable robs rig stays with the rear linked on 37s and the dana 30 up front, im in. he puts that thing through pure hell and it out performs so many rigs, buggies etc...

i wouldnt worry about a doubler kit until youve done all of the above, and are still not getting the sort of results you hoped in the really nasty stuff.


i think we are all missing the obvious choice biting us in the a$$ here:
buy a damn MJ,
problem solved.

 

[connor0770]

I don't understand why you'd sell the XJ just to start over with another vehicle, let alone a ranger. Getting a comuter car will allow you to be more aggressive (building and/or wheeling) with the XJ.

I just think if you get rid of the XJ it will be something you regret later on.

THIS^^

You can fit more girls in an XJ and you can lock all your crap inside when you go camping or where ever. XJ wins in my book.

AND THIS^^

I miss my XJ everyday. Dont get me wrong, i love my TJ, but in the end i almost wish i got a DD and built the XJ. THey are cheap to build, work great, and i love having that wheelbase. Plus you can fit way more girls in an XJ and sleep in it when your camping (with the girls you brought)..

Keep the XJ, yours is built extremely nice! Just get a Geo metro or something. I have a dirtbike right now and have no way to get it anywhere. Im gonna get a trailer way before I think about selling my Jeep.

 

[bigalpha]

Wheel a Comanche if you're set on a truck. I'd say Comanches are more rare than Rangers.

 

[suprbst]

I miss my XJ everyday. Dont get me wrong, i love my TJ, but in the end i almost wish i got a DD and built the XJ. THey are cheap to build, work great, and i love having that wheelbase. Plus you can fit way more girls in an XJ and sleep in it when your camping (with the girls you brought)..

Keep the XJ, yours is built extremely nice! Just get a Geo metro or something. I have a dirtbike right now and have no way to get it anywhere. Im gonna get a trailer way before I think about selling my Jeep.

Good thinking, although I've never slept in my Jeep (yet). I did get a trailer, though - a 5'x10' utility trailer - which I bought new at the local trailer shop for less than buying a used one off of Craigslist. I use it for SO MUCH STUFF! Hauling the bikes, picking up loads of fire & construction wood, helping people move (many times), picking up a transaxle/drivetrain swap for my WRX, and more! And when I'm not using it, I just leave it parked @ home & don't have the extra weight to worry about killing my gas mileage.

Wheel a Comanche if you're set on a truck. I'd say Comanches are more rare than Rangers.

+1 on the Comanche - if you get one close enough year-wise to your XJ, you can build it however you want, and still have spare parts in an emergency that you can swap back & forth.

 

[Rammin97]

Interesting thread!!!

Now I am thinking of building something else.. NOT!!!! :yap:

 

[Mike1331]

Frame or unibody cracks are always a concern...

Here's what the PO of my DD tacoma managed to do to my bed...

Although this could have been avoided with the absence of a body lift and a solid mounting system.

I have a soft spot for ranger based vehicles and fully understand the desire to have a truck bed for quick and easy loading/unloading without having to worry about what day you want to roll around with your utility trailer.
I had a beater b2 and a it was very easy to swap in a EB front axle/arm set
up, basically bolt in aside from the track bar. I had the 2.8 in that, while it never let us down i'd stay away from it and go with something more modern.
Also Had a 04 and a 96, both were lifted and were 2wd. 96 with the 2.3l and one the 04 had the 4.0. Both were great engines.

I'd go with the early 90's body style, 4.0, c6 tranny, 1456 ford tcase doublers ( i loved the ford t-case in the b2) EB axles and have some fun.

 

[Mike1331]

sorry meant to say 1354 doubler not 1456. Looks quite easy to do...and only costing around 3-400

http://www.therangerstation.com/Magazine/spring07/BW1350_1354_doubler.htm

And all 3 of my rigs had the ford/mazda manny tranny's which i wasn't a fan of, hence my c6 suggestion.

 

[Starboard M]

I almost purchased a Ranger to build a truggy out of it, but I picked up a MJ cab for cheap, so I will be going that route instead.
Had I not, I would have loved to get a ranger and do a SAS on it. The 5.0 "bolts in", they have a frame, and they have a pickup bed.

The TTB versions have a kickup in the front frame rails which allow for an easier SAS, while the IFS ones have a flatter front frame which make it more difficult. Extra cab with the suicide rear doors would be awesome, but I would be concerned about getting extra body parts for those rear doors. Dovetailed, bobed bed and you are rockin a pretty sweet truck that is pretty rare.

Some pictures to help you out.....:anon:

F150, but sort of similar

And my favorite

Or you could do a F250, extended cab and 7.3....

My dad owns a '89 Ranger, single cab, long bed, with a 2.2/manual and I love that truck. Beat the hell out of it, do minimal work to it, and it gets mid 20 mpgs and is a blast to drive. It looks like hell, is slower than shit, but I still think its one bad ass little truck.
One day, I would love to put an LSx in it, and make it a sleeper truck. Time and money have prevented from me doing it, but one of these days...

 

[Jeep450r]

Thanks for all of the opinions guys. I honestly think I just need to get back home with my XJ and wrench a bit and then go wheel. I might as well stick with my XJ, I just cant be afraid of doing what I want to do with it...

EDIT: and just when I think I made up my mind, Starboard has to chime in and get me thinking again... AHHHHHHHHHHH!!! :doh:

and I blame the first ranger you posted up, along with WHITE RHINO's rig for giving me these ideas haha

 

[blondejoncherokee]

like i said in my last post, if you can turn the same beliefs about the ranger around for your XJ and start treating your XJ a little less carefully and do some of those same mods to the XJ, then id say youll be very happy.

imagine linking the rear of the XJ with a welded 9" and going chromos up front, full belly pan, trusses, an 37s, then start just carry shafts and unit bearings for the front...

or just say screw that, stay on 35s, still do the chromos up front, trusses, belly pan, beef up the steering and go OTK, 2x6 rockers, trimming, cage.
and then just look for a cheap fully locked welded rear, then beat the hell out of it. look at allen in reno. he beats the piss outta his junk on 35s

 

[Jeep450r]

Well, I will be keeping my heep. I wont have enough time to build another rig anyways and after being able to drive it again this weekend, I caught the bug..... again. :clap: