Ground Clearance with 31's

[Big Bear Bob]

So it's just a matter of bigger tires? or Is there a way you can put blocks or something under the axle to gain more clearance?

Because even with a TT and Shackle lift I understand you can sqeeze 32's on your X but they will rub. Then 32's will only give you a half inch more ground clearance to the rear diff. I know every inch counts, but beyond the TT Shackle lift I haven't heard anything other than trying to fit 32's under your truck to gain more clearnce. I just pulled the plate loose on the rear differential, and would love to find away to gain a little more clearance without busting the bank, and inch might do the trick

 

[MrMatt]

Hey,

Well the only way to gain clearance between your axle/diff and the ground is bigger tires.

Now a larger suspension lift will lift your frame which in turn gives better approach and departure angles, and their is more room between the ground and say your tranny, transfercase, skid plates, etc. Also the larger your suspension lift the bigger tires you can clear.

A body lift really doesn't get you much of anything other than the ability to add bigger tires which is what really helps. I put in the shackles and got 2" from that, going to do the spacers early next week and see what the clearnace looks like, Im really leaning towards going for some 32s but we shall see.

Throw a 3" body on and your TT/Shackles/ and then run some 33x10.50s muhahaha


EDIT: As for blocks under the axles, actually on the Explore the spring goes UNDER the axle not over it so a block would effectivly lower your X, hehe. Now on vehicles with SOA (Spring over Axle) that is just another type of suspension lift, will gain you frame clearance but actual ground clearance (between diff and ground) will remain the same.

Okay Ill shut up now

-Matt

 

[jimbo74]

the only way to gain clearance is bigger tires..... a body lift and/or suspension lift will allow use of bigger tires..... with any modifications, there is always going to be an adverse effect, such as rubbing, etc..... some stock explorers (mine included) had rub in the rear fender wells with stock sized tires.....

 

[Big Bear Bob]

Thanks guys. The thing is I noticed a power loose with the 31s, and it seems to me that the only real way to go would be regear and go with 33's, but that starts getting expensive. Thanks for confirming what I was afraid of.

 

[briantf]

Might consider diff armor

James Duff sells a diff plate for 7.5 and 8.8' Rangers, should fit fine on the 8.8" Explorer diff. Their axle truss likely will not, as the Explorer is spring-under.

Because of where we go driving, getting lifted to fit 33's means getting even more scared on the tilting stuff, so putting metal on the bottom instead is considered a good thing.

Something my wife worries about on her 98 is the two cats hanging down in front of the transfer case skidplate. We haven't quite figured out what to do about that.

You hit the nail on the head with the larger tire issue - squeezing them in is just half the battle, getting re-geared for the tires is 75% of the money.

Regards,
Brian in CA

 

[Big Bear Bob]

So how much will it cost to regear from a 373 ls to a 410 ls. I would like a locker but I'm worried about money too.

Thanks
BBB

 

[coolchris]

if your going to regear from 3.73 you might as well go to 4.56, you wont notice that much of a difference in just going to 4.10 to justify the 1000+ dollars you spend to have it done.

 

[Big Bear Bob]

Thanks for responding coolchriscush

Right now I'm running 31's and when I made the change I noticed a loose of power off the line, but it does great on the fwy and still has plenty of power in 4low, but I have to wonder how well will 373's act with 33s on though? Maybe I should go halfway and get the 32s, but that kind of money for a half inch doesn't seem logical. I've read that when you go to 33's you should have at least a 410 probably 456 setup, and I would at least want a limited slip, if not a true solid axle. You know it's beginning to sound more and more like an older early 90's Ranger or ford F-150 4X4 off road just might be the ticket instead of tryng to make the SUV into a true off road vehicle. Though it has alot of creature comforts in it. It's starting to turn into a money pit.

 

[Alec]

Once you start down the path of modification, it never stops, sorry we got you into this LOL! I have 3.73 and 33s and it's doable (of course with all my power), and the highway manners are great. It's about equal to a stock 3.27 ratio, which I had originally. 4.10s are ideal, but a 3.73 to 4.10 swap isn't really worth the money. If you're going to stop at 33s and stay there forever, it might eventually be worth it, but not while you keep upping the tire size. 4.56 for 33s is a bit much, but doable.

 

[Big Bear Bob]

Thanks Alec

Geeze I was thinking why'd I buy this thing. No ground clearance, decent in the snow, looks good, but not enough to get throughr anything but the moderate trails, or what they call in some cases out here most difficult beginers trails. THe first time I did gold mountain and it said most difficult I said well alright. Then I find out it just barely made the rating, and really to keep two wheel drive vehicles off the road so they wouldn't get into trouble.

It's really has seemed to have turned into a money pit though. But it least it's a decent one, with some sort of payback.

Well no worries I think 33s will be enough clearange, and I will want an ARB locker in the front and a locker in the rear someday.

 

[becker69]

3B; I have 4.10's w/ 32" tires and it is great... I have had the tires on for awhile but I didn't notice too much of a loss vrs my 30" stocker tires (255 70 16's). I am in a similar position though in that I want a bit more clearance, DO NOT want a 3" Body Lift, and can't afford a 4" susp. lift (at least not for a long time). I really want to do a 1" b.l. people have told me that if you are going to hassle doing it at all you should just do the 3" off the bat, but I really only want another inch of clearance for my body panels (my stock side-steps are beat to Crap!! If you want to go up to a 33" tire (and want flotation vrs metric sizing) you can look at 33x10.50's. I know they are the same diameter, but somewhat of a lesser draw on engine and gears (I know you get a lesser footprint than the 33x12.50's, but if all you really want is height....) There are tradeoffs. I think I will go the 33x10.50's so I don't have to do a b.l. or swap my wheels due to offset. Good luck.

 

[briantf]

Saw 33x10.5's on a Ranger

becker69 - those 33x10.5 BFG's are neat, and not just for jeeps.

There's a ranger that lives here with a 5" hybrid lift (camburg arms, f150 rear leaves, fabricated everything else) and 4.56's. The ASE who owns it did it all himself, including re-gearing (lucky dog to have THAT kind of knowledge and experience). He likes to jump sand dunes, said his wife was a little bent the first 5' off the ground hop. He also mentioned he wished he'd gone taller, he's got the bug.

You're lucky to have 4.10's, the 4.56's are going to cost us (my wife anyway, she just told me again she wants her truck bigger) $2K. 3.73's just won't get it. Oh, well, makes it easier for me to spend $$ on my truck.

Regards,
Brian in CA

 

[Big Bear Bob]

Hi Douglas

Good to hear from you again. I want the hieght more than anything else. I understand they do better in snow, and mudd, but never thought of 33X10.50X15's. No how about gearing with the 373's am I going to have to trash the gears I have and replace them with 410's or 456 's? I really don't want to get into a big investment here, at least until after the Holidays ya know? But I think even rock crawling if the tires are aired down to 20, or 18 psi the 33x10.5.15, would be great thanks for the suggestion. But as I said I have at least a few months to think about it.

I see you're in Arizona maybe we'll seeya on one of the desert runs.

3B;

 

[becker69]

3B; Yeah I am hoping to make Truckhaven, and maybe a day run N. of Phoenix on the 28th of Sep.... Then if I am lucky Las Cruces in Oct and .... DesertSpive has 33x10.50's on his Ranger, and he loves them. Yes, Re-gearing is a big $$ thing, but if you plan on having the truck for a while and wheelin' with it, it WILL pay for itself. It's time to make friends with your local diff Shop!! Of course you could scrap the gears and spend 2 big bills and go for an Atlas II LOL
Good luck 3B, I wish I could make your Big Bear run, I love it up there.

 

[Big Bear Bob]

Yeah now my rear diff is leaking, and I just had it worked on.

I don,t know I think I'll buy a beater 4X4 something like a late 80's early 90's 4X4 if I'm lucky, and do what I need to do to it. Big tires, gears etc. I can't afford the X going out on me.

 

[Robert]

3B - If you are going to go with 33" tires then definately get the 4.56s. It will keep your engine RPMs in the range that Ford designed it to run in. My Explorer came with 30" tires and 4.10 axle. I know have the 32" equivalents (265 75R16). To get my RPMs back to their original range, I would have to regear to about a 4.27 ratio. With 33" tires on I would have to go to a 4.56. Don't forget the larger tires weigh more so they are harder to get turning. You would be better off going a little higher than you need rather than a little lower especially since the SOHC runs better in the upper RPMs. My 32" tires are OK with my 4.10 but I did notice a loss in bottom end. Since I now have the equivalent overall ratio of 235 75R15 tires and 3.73 ratio I am still within the designed operating range of my engine. If I decide to get anything taller though I will almost certainly move up to 4.56s.

 

[Big Bear Bob]

OK so how about 32's? My X came with 235x75r15s= 28.9 X 9.1 X 15 I went to 31 X10.5 X 15, so thats less that an inch in hieght,and 1.5"s wider. So since I with this in mind do you think I would need regearing? my understanding is the 31"s are really more like 30.7"s tall. I don't know how tall the 32's are, and it would be awhile, but it doesn't seem like going to 32's would be much of a change off road. But would 32's require regearing too?

I really do not want to regear the X, so maybe as I said before I can find a beater to take it's place around town and wheelin.


Thanks in advance
BBB

 

[Robert]

You probably have 3.73 axles now. With 32s and a 3.73 axle I would not be happy (that's just me). My 32s with my 4.10 are my limit. Since you have quite a climb to your place up the mountain, you would be better off going with 4.10s if you get the 32s. Putting in a 4.56 wouldn't even be out of the question if you don't drive a lot of highway miles. It won't hurt anything on the highway, but you will be turning a higher RPM (nothing drastic though). If you end up getting 33s then I wouldn't go less than 4.56s.

For instance with your stock tires and 3.73 axle you should have been turning about 2300 RPM at 70 MPH. When you put your 31" tires on, your RPM dropped to about 2150 RPM. If you put 32" tires on your RPM will drop again to 2084 RPM. Now if you regear to a 4.10, you will be turning about 2300 RPM which would put it back to your stock RPM. With 33" tires and 4.56 ratio you would have the same overall ratio that mine came with and be turning about 2470 RPM at 70 MPH. If you kept your 3.73 and put 33" tires on you would be turning around 2020 RPM. All of these calculations assume you were turning about 2300 RPM at 70 MPH when stock so they may vary slightly.

 

[Big Bear Bob]

Yes I have the 373 ls, so if I noticed the drop in performance when I went to 31's I wouldn't be happy and would need to regear.

Ok so what about just going with a new locker pumpkin with say 410's just out of curiosity do you have any idea if it's available and then how much that would cost over all?

 

[Robert]

You can put a locker and 4.10 in your rear axle. You will also need to regear your front to the same ratio at the same time. Total cost would be $1000 - $1500. You can probably get a locker put in your rear for about $500 if you keep your 3.73 ratio. If you decide to regear and are still considering the 33s then I would go with 4.56. If you are sure you won't be going higher than 32s then a 4.10 would put your overall ratio back where it started.