'99 Ranger rear spring replacement interchange help needed

[nofortunatesonII]

I am interested in replacing the rear springs on my '99 Ranger Sport. I want something a little more HD than the stock 3 leaf rear springs. A local salvage yard has a couple of '97 Explorers that have 4 leaf rear springs and a '94 150 that has 5 leaf rear springs. Will these other vehicles rear springs fit on my Ranger? I imagine the F150 springs might make the Ranger a litle too stiff, possibly the Explorer would be the best choice if it will fit. Any suggestions on what I could use would be appreciated, maybe there are other vehicles that would work also. Thanks.

 

[rwenzing]

Those two are either the wrong length or the wrong arc for your Ranger.

By far, the easiest bolt on swap would be the "C" rate Ranger rear leaf pack that were the heaviest available from the factory. They are still a 3-leaf plus overload but the spring pack is thicker and stiffer.

Check your door jamb label under "SPG" or a similar heading to be sure that you don't already have the C's. The first character is the front coil or torsion bar, the second is the rear leaf pack.

It is also possible to do a swap from a 88~98 fullsize Chevy C1500 2WD pickup (also a 3 leaf plus overload but stronger yet). The only problem is that it is not a bolt on swap and would require relocation of the forward spring hanger and fab work to keep the parking brake operational.

 

[nofortunatesonII]

Bob, thank-you for the info. I guess I explained the situation slightly incorrectly. When I stated my leaf springs have 3 leaves I meant a total of 3. It has 2 and the helper/overload so the C springs you spoke of would be stronger with 3 leaves and the helper/ overload. I recently bought an 8.8 3.55
Traction-Lok rearend from a salvage yard that came out of a '98 Mazda P/U. I should have looked at the springs. Maybe the vehicle is still at the yard and it will have what I need. Thanks again for the reply.