New Explorer looking for suggestions!

[MileHighRango]

Hello! My name is Chris and i just acquired a 97 Explorer Eddie Bauer edition with the 4.0 engine and 200k on the clock. The vehicle will be a christmas gift for my brother and i was hoping to make it a little more attractive for him. He absolutely loves my current truck (2004 Hemi Durango) so i was hoping to make the explorer something close to mine without spending a lot of money. Things i was thinking of are: Wheels, Lift, Stereo, and possibly some paint to get rid of the EB gold.

Here is my truck (What i am striving to kinda replicate):

And her is the Explorer

Sorry, for the less than perfect iPhone pictures and Thanks for all of the help!

 

[colintrax]

Ehh not a fan of the Durango (sorry) but the x needs some diffrent rims, and a paint job. You could cover the entire truck in bedliner, or actually get it painted. Search the modified section, a custom winch bumper, paint, and rims would make a huge difference.

 

[shadowless127]

re-tint the windows. That mirror tint crap Ford used pre-98 looks absolutely terrible.
new rear shackles, add a leaf, and new torsion keys should give you about 3" of lift
I'd sand down and put bedliner on the gold.
Ditch the lower valance on the front bumper.
Get a grille guard and set it up to mount a winch on it.
As far as wheels, go with black Cragar Soft 8's. They can be had for <$100 per tire.

 

[rabbit91]

Definitely change those wheels
Bed liner two-tone is nice
Sub?

 

[2TimingTom]

Buy my factory wheels (see registry), body lift, call First Choice Customs (in Denver) and get a proper bumper made- for the EX and the Durango. Maybe get some sliders built for both too. Shackle lift for rear and torsion twist for front. Skid plate for front subframe.

I'm also in CO.

 

[01STrunner]

shackles, TT and body lift will let you fit 33s and an add a leaf to fix the rear sag. I'd say repaint the truck judging from the chips and scratches in the pics.