Some opinions would be great...

[bboymime]

So far, I have made this thing into my vision of a post-apocalyptic vehicle. There are some things still lacking that I need opinions on that I would certainly appreciate feedback on...

1) I could not install a winch in the front because I was told it would rip the entire front off. Is there any way to reinforce it??

2) I just bought these tires, size 265 I think, but wish I had black rims. I don't want to buy new rims if these are perfectly fine. Powder coating it cost around $135 per rim. I could buy a rim for that price. Has anyone had any success with spray paint or something of that sort?

3) LIFT!?? I need clearance! Does anyone have a cost prespective? I saw that people are using the ford ranger list kits. It looks expensive. Any idea on how high I should go? What kind of problems will I be facing as far as making turns at high speed?

4) I attached the snorkel which works great as an intake. I haven't tested it by submerging the vehicle in waist high water. I know water is going to pour into the interior. I am not worried about that. My only worry is the engine compartment. I don't know enough yet to confidently do it. Does anyone have experience with this? Is there something I need to do to make sure the engine and everything else works under water?

5) I want to make this thing look even more aggressive. Any ideas?

 

[IZwack]

1) I could not install a winch in the front because I was told it would rip the entire front off. Is there any way to reinforce it??

Remove that metal thing in front of the bumper (its only decreasing your approach angle anyway), then the bumper, and it should be obvious where you need to weld more material to properly brace the front for a 8-10k winch.

 

[bboymime]

You mean the bar in front of the license plate?

 

[IZwack]

You mean the bar in front of the license plate?

THe "grille guard" thingy

 

[Kazer]

Do a search on this site for a user named "Jcuz", he mounted a winch to the front of his third gen. A lift will cost you $250 and will net you roughly 3" of clearance

 

[Kazer]

http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=326986

Here is a good thread to read for the coil spacers.

Your truck is comin together very nicely, a lift should top it all off

 

[guilateen]

You should get the police package bull bar ita not as big but is stronger you will need the front end protection to push stalled vehicles, zombies, or whatever. Consider some underbody protection no lift will be high enough to clear all obsticles and still perform decent on the road. You will want to protect the fuel system and brake system as well as the oil pan drive train components. The winch should work perfect with the pp bull bar since it attaches to the frame and is robust. You will need on board air and a tire repair kit. Also install the cabin air filter the sticky is already up there. I could go on for days.

 

[Kazer]

this is available for a third gen explorer

specs and pricing are as follows



***2002-2005 Ford Explorer 4 Door -- Winch Mount Product

WINCH MOUNT GRILL & BRUSH GUARDS

TECHNICAL INFORMATION:
- Full 5/16” Mild Steel Side Plates
- Grill Guard Tubes: 2 1/4"od x .083" Wall Mild Steel Tubing
- Brush Guard Hoops - Wrap-Around Style & Flat Style: 1 1/4"od x .083" Wall Mild Steel Tubing
- Winch Cradle and Fairlead Mount: 3/8” Mild Steel, Fully Integrated. Mount Hole Pattern 4.5” x 10”. 6K, 8K, 9K, 9.5K, 10K, 12K, 15K, 16K Winch Capacities.

- One-Piece Fully MIG Welded Construction.

- Powder Coated Finish - Semi-Gloss Black (Sorry, NO CHROME/STAINLESS/ALUMINUM)
- Complete Installation Hardware And Instructions

WINCH GUARD MODELS:

-Gator Model -- Part# 83XFWP-G @ $600.00 + Freight
(Traditional Model Brush Guard / Grill Guard below plus Gator Option, Jammer Option, 3rd Bar Option, Euro or 2” over-rider Option, and Wires Option listed below)

-Deluxe Model - Part# 83XFWP-D @ $590.00 + Freight
(Standard Model Brush Guard / Grill Guard below plus Jammer Option, 3rd Bar Option, Euro or 2” over-rider Option, and Wires Option listed below)

-Standard Model - Part# 83XFWP-S @ $520.00 + Freight
(Base Model Grill Guard below with integrated Wrap-around Style Brush Guard Hoops)

-Traditional Model -- Part# 83XFWP-T @ $490.00 + Freight
(Base Model Grill Guard below with integrated Traditional Non-Wrap Style Brush Guard Hoops)

-Base Model -- Part# 83XFWP-B @ $445.00 + Freight
(Two steel side plates, winch cradle, and cross tube)

OPTION CODES:

-G: 2"OD round tube brush guard hoops. Option for Traditional Model Package only @ + $40.00.

- To order add "-G" suffix to part #

-W: for combination grill guard & brush guard models only. Horizontal 1/4" wire screen in brush guard hoops (wrap-around and flat style brush guard hoops) @ + $95.00

- to order add "-W" suffix to combo part #

-B : third across tube added at base of guard @ + $30.00.
- to order add "-B" suffix to part #

-J: 1 1/2" wide steel backbone added to steel side plate edge with full length vinyl overlay pad. @ + $75.00

- to order add "-J" suffix to part #

-E : 1.25” hood bar on top of guard only or span between brushguard hoops on brush guard models @ + $30.00.

- to order add "-E" suffix to part #

-S : 2" tube over-rider Bar (center hood bar) on top of guard @ + $40.00.

- to order add "-S" suffix to part #

-AR : 2" box receiver mount added to bottom of winch cradle. @ + $50.00.

- to order add "-AR" suffix to part #

-L : Light bar cross bar for mounting 4 auxiliary light mount points just above winch. Drilling required. @ + $75.00
- to order add "-L" suffix to part #

-WP12 : Upright Heavy Duty Winch Cradle for mounting Warn 8274 / M12000 / M15000 / 16.5ti electric self recovery winches @ + $50.00
- to order replace "WP" in part # with “WP12”

these are the models i've listed

 

[bboymime]

Thank you good sirs. I will put all of this under consideration. The lift is something I really want to do really soon.

 

[mattd08]

Man that is one good looking Ex! Keep up the good work, that lift will make that thing look mean!

 

[2002GreyHD150]

painting anything, wheels, step bars, hoods, or your fav bowling ball is ALL about PREP!!

Wheels are easy, even with the tires on. A deck of playing cards or index cards, deflate the tire down to around 10-15psi, flex the side wall, slip the cards between the tire bead and the rim's edge. Over lap the cards and run them around the bead of the tire. scuff with 600 grit sand paper on the wheel and center cap. fix existing chips/nicks/scratches with spot putty. primer, paint, then clear coat. A long saturday you can knock out all (4) wheels without dismounting the tires.

Duplicolor, Krylon, and others make "wheel paint" but any decent enamel will work. Just be sure to use a clear coat. Also, remember clear coat can be flat/matte, semi-gloss, or gloss. So whatever effect you want can be achieved and the clear is what protects the paint... figure 1 can of paint and 1 can of clear per wheel is about right for a 15"-17" rim.

Also, another trick for easy clean up is petroleum jelly on the tires. Slather the jelly on the tire right up to the edge of the rim. Then when done, soap & water any over spray on the tire will wash right away.

Rob

 

[BlkSquad]

Bringing this up from the dead...

Anyway, OP hasn't been on in a while but I'm hoping someone else may have an answer. Where can I get some of these mesh window guards? I've searched every possible combination of words and I can't find anything other than the partitions in Police vehicles. Any ideas or links much appreciated.

 

[BlkSquad]

Okay, so I did finally find some of these but they are very expensive. $250/pair. I'm gonna look into fabbing up some of my own instead.

 

[Vinsanity92]

I'm going to ask a dumb question if he were going to be fording water up to the stock airbox location wouldn't he need to relocate anything electrical to above that height ? Which is pretty tall as it is ? I think the blower motor inside the truck is lower than that not to mention the wire loom in the passenger side kick panel....

Other than that man your truck is absolutely gorgeous I love it

 

[bboymime]

Okay, so I did finally find some of these but they are very expensive. $250/pair. I'm gonna look into fabbing up some of my own instead.

How did the windows come out? That is my vehicle btw.