My 92X and $8K

[Coonash]

Ok let me ask a question. My wife told me to look at new cars , but I don't want a note. So I figure if I spend about $8K on my 92x(4x4almost200Kmiles) It should be pretty cool. It's currently a five speed, which needs to go(knees can't handle it anymore)

I'm asking for everyones input on this, because people who have already tried things know what does & doesn't work.

Just a couple of issues.
1. no more than 4 inches of lift(daily vehicle)
2. I am capable of doing mechanic work.
3. I am considering a 5.0 swapw/auto
4. I'll change interior and wheels also currently 30'sw/no lift

Any advise is appreciated. Fisrt thing I'd like to tackle is the engine then suspension.....

 

[93liftedXLT]

8k ---- WTF, if your spending 8k, on a lift,tires,rims, and a v8 swap and tranny, and mount's, your getting ripped off,

4 inch lift complete is anywere from 300-800
rims- tire's --900
302 v8 used with tranny, 300-1000, new from factory 2000-2600 depending who u know,

max total--4300

 

[95offroadx]

i think he means he has $8,000 to spend.

swap a 302 in there and lift it 4" with 33's

 

[Creager]

8k ---- WTF, if your spending 8k, on a lift,tires,rims, and a v8 swap and tranny, and mount's, your getting ripped off,

4 inch lift complete is anywere from 300-800
rims- tire's --900
302 v8 used with tranny, 300-1000, new from factory 2000-2600 depending who u know,

max total--4300

There’s a fine line between getting something done... and doing it right.

8k might not be enough =)

1) Get a 3" body lift. If this is your daily driver that will hardly see the dirt and mud then there is no point in ruining it with an all out suspension lift.

2) Rebuild the stock suspension with new bushings, coil springs, and shocks. Restore that fresh out the factory ride. It will be easier to align and keep tires on the TTB. New ball joints, tie rod ends, u-joints, wheel bearings... Keep that driveline TIGHT

3) All you will need are some 32"s on 15x8 rims. Keeps it looking clean.

4) If you are driving this off road or not, if you lift it and put bigger tires on it you will need gears. That is if you want to keep your tranny, clutch, and gas mileage and engine power. 4.10's should be just right (im getting 23 mpg City, this was directly after i swapped my 3.27 gears for 4.56 with 32" tires. I was getting ~15 mpg before hand but now the engine doesnt have to work as hard to push the wheels)

5) As far as an engine swap I don’t know what to tell you there. Plan on spending anywhere from $500 to $15k =)

A remaned manual tranny (for your current engine/tranny combo) goes for anywhere between $700-1200... A new 4.0 motor goes anywhere from 1k-3k... If you want a cost effective 5.0 swap that will make things easier for you, then your going to need a 96 5.0 explorer, second best would be a 5.0 mustang. All I can say is research! If you buy the swap parts one at a time... expect to spend easily 10k on just the engine swap.

Once you get a fresh motor and tranny in there with big gears and big tires with lift and some smooth riding suspension... your going to want a paint job!


Expenditures
- $120 Body Lift
- $700-$1000 wheel and tire combo
- $300-$1200 for gears, are you 4wd or 2wd?
- 60 bucks for coil springs, $100 for shocks, $100 for bushings, $100 for misc. including ball joints, tie rod ends, u-joints, bearings

That will put you around the $1500-$3000 area with the rest for your engine swap. It’s probably just me but I would do all the suspension/gearing work before the engine swap. Just because it might make you change your mind about doing the swap all together; two because you don’t know how much your engine swap is going to run... saying its going to take 500-15k is just way too generalized, you will have to find out what you want to do by researching.

But again if you don’t plan on doing heavy wheeling with your truck, skip the suspension lift and do a body lift and rebuild the stock suspension.
The main reason I would rebuild the stock suspension is the fact your coil springs have 200,000 miles on them and more then likely sagged an inch or more and your bushings are probably creaking' like crazy. If you don’t rebuild the suspension you will be plagued with a noisy, rough ride that doesn’t keep tires or an alignment for too long =)

 

[jarv]

dont piss 8k into a truck with 200k miles on it!

 

[Creager]

dont piss 8k into a truck with 200k miles on it!

why not? in like 3 years its gonna be considered a classic haha

 

[Rhett]

It's currently a five speed, which needs to go(knees can't handle it anymore)

Well, if you must go to an automatic transmission in your 1st gen then you would probably be better off putting a V8 and its transmission in your truck.
Reason being, there aren't too many reliable auto trans for the OHV engine, especially if you run larger tires, tow a lot, and/or go off-road. Now if you just do daily driving, with fairly stock tires and gears, I have seen late A4LD's (93 and 94 model years) do very very well. So an A4LD out of a 1994 Explorer is another (cheap) option...but I still wouldn't do that, especially if you plan on 32's and gears, etc.

There are other options, like the GM 700r4 transmission, but in my opin it's throwing money at it. Might as well go with a bulletproof setup like a 302 with AOD or 5r55e. Especially if ya got $8000 to work with, heheh.

A swap is a lot of work, and money, but you probably know that already. But to me, it's also fun...so...

 

[Rhett]

Oh yeah, one more thing...consider putting a disc brake rear axle on your truck, too...might as well. That's a worthwhile mod for a 1st gen if you're thinking of re-building your truck.

 

[Creager]

Oh yeah, one more thing...consider putting a disc brake rear axle on your truck, too...might as well. That's a worthwhile mod for a 1st gen if you're thinking of re-building your truck.

thats an awsome idea... you might get lucky and find one that has 4.10 gears with a limited slip from the factory.

 

[Coonash]

I appreciate all the input. Why put that much money in a car with 200K miles?
It's been paid for for a LOOONNNGGGG time, and I really like it. I would like a suspension lift because I am planning a move to Co. and would really enjoy 4wheeling in the mountains. I need to change so many things on the suspewnsion I figures it would be easier just to go with a suspension lift which would change some of the worn out parts. I understand I'll need an alignment every 5 to 6 months.
The engine does run great. but it has to warm up for a while before the tapping sound goes away. I figure it'll be a little bit more for me to start tracking down a mustang or thunderbird for all the parts for a 302 conversion.
and I understand someone on this board is excellent with the wiring harness.

Well I really appreciate all the info keep it coming.
Even my wife has gotin interested in my X (the truck) again

 

[93liftedXLT]

There’s a fine line between getting something done... and doing it right.

Your right there is, but if you have the Knowledge and the know how, and doing your own work, you will save alot more money,

i know mechanics, and welding, and basic's of lifting, but still rusty on SAS and things that go along with that ,front/rear end, gears,

But over all i Really enjoyed your Write -up

 

[Creager]

I appreciate all the input. Why put that much money in a car with 200K miles?
It's been paid for for a LOOONNNGGGG time, and I really like it. I would like a suspension lift because I am planning a move to Co. and would really enjoy 4wheeling in the mountains. I need to change so many things on the suspewnsion I figures it would be easier just to go with a suspension lift which would change some of the worn out parts. I understand I'll need an alignment every 5 to 6 months.
The engine does run great. but it has to warm up for a while before the tapping sound goes away. I figure it'll be a little bit more for me to start tracking down a mustang or thunderbird for all the parts for a 302 conversion.
and I understand someone on this board is excellent with the wiring harness.

Well I really appreciate all the info keep it coming.
Even my wife has gotin interested in my X (the truck) again

ok well a 5.5 in lift (Spring over Axle) is really easy. the front on the other hand is much harder to lift. It might actually be cheaper to put a Dana30 from a jeep under there and put a lift on it.

if you want 4" you will end up having to buy new leaf spings... well with a SOA you can reuse your stock springs =)

the front is tricky, if you plan on keeping the beams then you have tons of options here. Rough country, Trail master, Tuff country all have 4" lifts for $400 or so. But they are designed for cheap lift, and might end up being un-reliable.

 

[Rhett]

I appreciate all the input.

Hey when it comes to 1st gen, BII or Ranger and swaps I like to talk about that stuff all day...except the wiring, poo on that, but like you say there are others who are great at that, and one of them lives in Co. where you say you are moving...

need to change so many things on the suspewnsion I figures it would be easier just to go with a suspension lift which would change some of the worn out parts.

I like 33 x 12.50's on 15x8 rims and a 5 to 6 inch lift. Looks good on a 1st gen, well, any generation of Explorer, really. Body lifts are against my religion so I can only recommend them if you have clearance issues with the new engine and trans. My buddy did a 1" BL on his Bronco II when we swapped the 2.9 for a 4.0 OHV engine. Worked for him.

I figure it'll be a little bit more for me to start tracking down a mustang or thunderbird for all the parts for a 302 conversion.

You oughta read up on all of the V8 swap threads on this board and on The Ranger Station board, you'll get some great ideas and info. Don't forget about the 96-01 V8 Explorers as a donor, either. Depends on what setup you want to run, carb, EFI, OBD-I or II...

Even my wife has gotin interested in my X (the truck) again

sounds like a keeper if you ask me

 

[Jason94sport]

I wouldn't waste $8K on a 92 Explorer with 200K miles, if it's a daily driver. No way. Take that $8K trade in the X & get something alot newer, nicer, & something with a warranty. With that much down your payments on most anything you get will not be more then $300. Hell, save the $8k, save the X & lease something. There are some killer deals out there.

 

[Rhett]

If a person likes their truck, and rebuilds it all, it wouldn't be wasting money. It's all about what a person wants, I guess. Look at Jamie's 88 Bronco II, it's an 88 in name only, every thing else is a new truck. If it's all rebuilt, then it's new. The odometer might say 285,000 miles but that means nothing if the truck is all new.

 

[DeRocha]

If a person likes their truck, and rebuilds it all, it wouldn't be wasting money. It's all about what a person wants, I guess. Look at Jamie's 88 Bronco II, it's an 88 in name only, every thing else is a new truck. If it's all rebuilt, then it's new. The odometer might say 285,000 miles but that means nothing if the truck is all new.

Agreed... My '93 is obviously not new, but with all the mods and upkeep it should last as long as its maintained. I can understand many people saying to get a new ride, but a well maintained it should last.

 

[410Fortune]

You know my vote: see my signature.

 

[FROADER]

Well I really appreciate all the info keep it coming.
Even my wife has gotin interested in my X (the truck) again

Sell yours and use the 8K + the 2K you'll get for yours and buy another one that is already done. For 8K - 10K you can get a pretty bad ass explorer!!

 

[FROADER]

Example: http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=133503

Buy this one, get some 35's, swap the 5.0 and you're good.

 

[TheRookie]

You wont get 35's on that X without major cutting.

With 8 grand I would drop most of it into drivetrain. Find a wrecked 96 5.0 expo and buy the whole thing. Then think about your end goal as far as tire size. From there decide on lift and gearing.