Jack's 1993 Explorer build thread

Heres a quick rundown of my 1993 Ford Explorer Sport

4.0L OHV
A4LD auto trans
4.88s
narrowed hp 44 with spartan lunchbox
8.8 with powertrax no-slip
roughly 6" of overall lift
trans temp guage
rear tube bumper
custom front winch bumper
Rugged Ridge 10.5lb winch
38.5x14.50r15 TSL SXs on DIY TMI beadlocks
internal roll cage
corbeau reclining seats
no glass
dents
scrapes
good times

winter project: extended radius arms with ballistic joints

My 93 2dr was the first vehicle I bought and paid for myself which is one of the reasons I still have it today. The other reason.. do I need to explain? We all know why we have our trucks. I got the vehicle when I was 19 as a daily driver to school and work. This is the oldest picture I can find of the truck, and I already had started putting money into it.

I wasnt a big fan of the deerprints so I had a set of 5 spoke steelies from an old BII of ours powdercoated black and put on a set of 30x9.50 TA K/Os. Winter was coming and I had had other explorers with auto hubs fail on me when I needed them so off they came and on went a set of Warns. The truck looked great with the wheel/tire combo and the factory black trim, cant find a pic though.

When I got the truck it had 85K miles on the odometer, a few years and 45K miles later the engine finally gave out. The truck sat for a year or so but I couldnt get rid of it. A friend from work helped me get ahold of a 90K mile 4.0L and $600 later (including install and other parts) the truck was back on the road.

Found another good deal through a friend on some 31x10.50 BFG Long Trails mounted on American Racing 15x8 Outlaw IIs...

But I had a very slight rub at full lock.. so I had to lift it a little, right? RoughCountry leveling springs and Warrior shackles were on it the next week.

Those springs were stiff.. I took it for an alignment and they said I needed drop brackets before they could align it. Dissappointed I drove home, with horrible camber. Thats when it hit me.. If I need to buy drop brackets I might as well buy a 4" lift, and some shocks, and a pitman arm, and some AALs and get some 4dr leaf packs from the salvage yard and.. well you get the idea.

As you can see.. everything held together during the first 'test run' of the new suspension.

I dont drive my 93 every day.. gas is too much for the 50 mile round trip drive to work. That doesnt mean it sits at home though. Ive taken it on a few trips this summer and take it out on the weekends to have some fun.

I have been a member of this site for some time now and I felt it was time for me to jump up to Elite and make a contribution after all the help, advice, feedback and knowledge I have gained from the other members. It wasnt till I found this site that I thought I would be able to do this kind of work myself, and with everyones help I have. I'll keep this updated as changes are made.

- Jack

 

[black91EB]

tag light for the license plate.. mounted on a bracket cut out of an old charcoal grille stand. how much more 'redneck engineered' could it get? lol

Kinda like my bumper made out of an old warehouse support column. I know about re-used materials. Got a welding cart made from a shopping cart too.

 

[Four0Sport]

I thought I'd update with some things I've done recently..

Ballistic u-bolt plates and rear shocks mounted to sway bar bracket on axle

Rear bumper with tire swingout built by Josh

NEW Cooper Discoverer STT 33x12.50r15's

 

[97sprt4x4]

I was just wondering if you had tested those out STTs yet off road, and what your opinion was of them on road. my friend had them on his F150 super crew and he said they were good tires. but i was wondering how they handled on a lighter truck like the explorer.

Thanks
Justin

 

[X6StringerX]

Hey man, I'm going to be up in Fairmont on the 17th of October. The FocusFanatics are having their 7th annual Cooper's Rock get together on the 18th, but I have a pretty decent drive, so I figured I'd get a room the night before. With the WVU-Marshall game, rooms were uber-expensive. I'm staying at the Super 8 in Fairmont at the tune of $118 for one night! If you have time, maybe we could meet up for a little bit and get some grub or something. Shoot me a PM or something.

 

[Four0Sport]

I was just wondering if you had tested those out STTs yet off road, and what your opinion was of them on road. my friend had them on his F150 super crew and he said they were good tires. but i was wondering how they handled on a lighter truck like the explorer.

Thanks
Justin

Havnt had it 'off road' yet, but they did improve the handling of the truck on pavement. The truck has a good balance of lift height and tire width. I'm going on a big off road run sponsored by 2 clubs I belong to this weekend and will let you know how they do. I'm helping lead the 'stock' group which consists of novice drivers with mild lifts and moderately agressive tires. The trails are technical with some spots that will let me test out the tires while everyone else drives around watchin. I'll try to get some pics this time around.

 

[yostyexplorer94]

I am happy you got yourself some 33's. Looks great!

 

[black91EB]

I thought I'd update with some things I've done recently..

Ballistic u-bolt plates and rear shocks mounted to sway bar bracket on axle

Rear bumper with tire swingout built by Josh

NEW Cooper Discoverer STT 33x12.50r15's

Looks like I started a trend with the coopers, lol. How do you like them so far?

 

[Four0Sport]

I loved the Discoverer LTs I had. For what they were and what I paid for them ($30) they were a great tire. But the tread was wearing down, there were gouges on some of the tread blocks, a bulge on the sidewall of one, and I ran over a razor blade by a car dealership and a piece of it got lost in the tread. A few people I know had the STTs and said they loved them, I talked to people who came in work when I saw them on their trucks, and the price was just too good to pass up on these. Going on an all day run this Saturday and the forecast calls for light showers in the morning so I'll see how they do and post up.

 

[Tbars4]

...Your truck has come a long way...It looks great...:biggthump:

 

[Four0Sport]

Thanks Ted

 

[Four0Sport]

Whoever says an Explorer can't go offroad hasnt led a group of Jeeps into the woods..

..but I do.

 

[Four0Sport]

Went out on the trails today, got some pics. Once again I'm leading Jeeps through the woods, its starting to be a reoccuring trend..

 

[Tbars4]

..I see someone doing a happy dance...:biggthump

 

[Four0Sport]

haha.. today was Beverly's third time out with me and shes getting better. As long as I warn her of whats coming up she prepares herself. I'm glad shes enjoying it more, I like having her with me when I wheel.

 

[X6StringerX]

Jack, if you saw a random 304-651-xxxx cell phone number on your caller ID from Saturday night, it was me. I finally bought another Explorer and I was on I77 on my way home from Cleveland with it. I was trying to get ahold of you to see if you went on the Jeep run to the Good Evening Ranch in Summersville over the weekend. I guess it's better that I didn't go though, the weather is supposed to be crappy here tomorrow, so I got a few little things done today. I'll post up some pics in a couple of days in my "Surprise! I'm BAAAAACK!" thread.

 

[Four0Sport]

I did see that number.. my phone vibrating actually woke me up. My sleep schedule has been way way off lately. I didnt have the money for the summersville thing, saving up for a car and tryin to get some things paid off. We'll deffinetly have to get together when you get your truck up and running.

 

[Four0Sport]

New project.. picked up 10/31/09

 

[97sprt4x4]

it's a cheby....






Nah, just kidding, i had one of them for about a week, then i had to sell it or move out as my mother put it... they're fast cars, what're your plans... Sunday cruiser? or strip beast?

Justin

 

[black91EB]

It's a ford in a bad halloween costume, right? Lol. What are the specifics on it?

 

[Four0Sport]

1984 Monte Carlo SS.. not a clone
67K miles
lock-up TH350 was replaced with non lock-up TH350 3spd trans
feedback Quadra-Junk was replaced with older non-feedback style Rochester
need to check block castings to see if motor is original G code 305
true duals from the manifolds back
interior is in great shape minus headliner and drivers seat
no typical G-Body rust/rot on the rear frame, door bottoms, trunk seams, trunk floor
body is in great shape with minor small dings
original color was white.. was repainted poorly some time back, needs a fresh coat
original GM am/fm stereo.. which is great cause I hate hacked up dashes
wiring for the feedback carb was cut and bundled by the AC accumulator so that needs work
replaced the leaking valve cover gaskets or lack there of the first day I had it home

The car needs a little work.. nothing serious, just small things. Plans so far are to get the interior cleaned/finished, clean up the engine bay and dress it up slightly, fresh paint job, and look into a modest set of 16's or 17's. If the income allows for it there are some suspension and steering upgrades I'd like to tackle.

So it looks like the Explorer is on the backburner so to say. Doesnt mean its getting parked for eternity though. I wheeled it hard halloween night and had a blast. But I'm not sure of how much more money I'm going to throw at it. I will prbly wait to re-gear but do need to get the rust situation taken care of before I dont have a truck left!