Time For Some Questions

[Krebs21]

Hi Everyone,

I think I should start off by saying this is my first 4x4 vehicle, and I have very little mechanical knowledge of any sort, let alone offroad modifications.. I have a stock 1992 Explorer 4.0 4x4 five speed. I picked it up for next to nothing from the previous owner who had blown the head gaskets.. I took it to a few known offroad spots around town and quickly realized two things.. 1) I want more and 2) there won't always be a farmer driving by with a tow strap.

What I'm hoping for is some information on starting out and getting something done rather than just searching, reading and dreaming. From what I've picked up so far it seems like a good start would be a 4" suspension lift and 33" tires on 15x8" wheels.

But as of today I started reading about gear ratios and learned that mine are 3.27 and it seems that may be a problem if I want to run larger tires.
Does that mean I need to re-gear my explorer? Also are a lift kit, tires and wheels reasonable start or is there more to it than that for now? I really appreciate any information, thanks in advance.

 

[clevalley]

Hi Everyone,

I think I should start off by saying this is my first 4x4 vehicle, and I have very little mechanical knowledge of any sort, let alone offroad modifications.. I have a stock 1992 Explorer 4.0 4x4 five speed. I picked it up for next to nothing from the previous owner who had blown the head gaskets.. I took it to a few known offroad spots around town and quickly realized two things.. 1) I want more and 2) there won't always be a farmer driving by with a tow strap.

What I'm hoping for is some information on starting out and getting something done rather than just searching, reading and dreaming. From what I've picked up so far it seems like a good start would be a 4" suspension lift and 33" tires on 15x8" wheels.

But as of today I started reading about gear ratios and learned that mine are 3.27 and it seems that may be a problem if I want to run larger tires.
Does that mean I need to re-gear my explorer? Also are a lift kit, tires and wheels reasonable start or is there more to it than that for now? I really appreciate any information, thanks in advance.

Welcome - I started in December 2014 and have already raised the suspension 2" and the body 3".

A true 4" suspension lift will cost $$$, not sure on the Generation 1's, but poking around in the Gen 1 Modification Forums will give you some insight into what you can do.

A body lift will be cheaper in conjunction with a smaller suspension lift, but again, I would ask specifics in the Gen 1 area.

33" with 3.27's - yeah, that is a bit of a stretch but may not be bad for street driving. There are some charts around which will show the effects of taller tires compared to gear ratio. It does not take into account your transmission gearing, but will give you the idea of the RPM difference the motor will encounter. It is more food for thought.

My 2000 has 3.73 from factory and I opted for 32" tires at that puts me on the bubble for re-gearing. After the suspension lift (new shocks, shackles, add-a-leaf spring, tightening the torsion bars 'ttl'), body lift, tires/rims and associated misc crap to get it all done I need to take a break from working on it and enjoy the new found height.

With a basic mechanical understanding you can do what you want to do - and it is a GREAT way to learn. People are here to help you through what you want to do and there are tons of information on how to do it, once you decide on what you want to do.

Good luck, and welcome.

 

[Krebs21]

Awesome thanks for the info, Were you able to keep you're stock wheels?