Newbie with questions...

[Sport-Trac 01]

Okay, first post. A little about myself. I'm a 17 year old high-school senior. I work for my dad who owns a auto-repair and towing company and take an Auto-service class in school, so time for me to work on my rig is not limitted. In case you can't figure from my username, my aforementioned rig is a 2001 Ford Explorer Sport-Trac. It has the 4.0l V6, an automatic, 4wd and 188,000 miles.
I know that parts for the year Ranger will work on my truck, as will some Explorer parts.
I am on a very (Parental) limited budget, as well as this truck is my daily driver, so I can't modify it too much.
Do any of you guys have suggestions as to what I should upgrade on my rig, keeping in mind my limitations.
I don't plan on using this truck as a cross-continetal expedition rig, but more as an off-road, trail truck to camp in/from.
P.S. I've already planned on adding a brush guard, auxillary lights, and am trying to get a set of larger (Haven't decided size yet, can fit 31s) off-road tire.

 

[tdesanto]

First of all, Welcome.

Secondly, skip the brush guard. They don't do anything functional, unless you count damage multiplier as a function.

Lights would be good if you plan to drive any at night.

Give us an idea of where you'd like suggestions; otherwise, we could give you too many on too many areas.

Are you looking for suggestions to make it easier to camp out of or are you looking for suspension/tire/drivetrain recommendations?

 

[datrupr]

I second the motion to forgoe the brush guard. They serve no purpose, just asthetic.

I woudl recommend tires, maybe a small lift, and most impotantly protection (skid plates, sliders, etc.). I have spent many a mile sbehind the wheel of a Sport Trac, and you have a nice truck. Good luck with your mods.



Oh, and welcome.

 

[02TahoeMD]

Welcome aboard, and kudos on a well composed introduction. I would go for a mild lift, 2 -3 inches should serve you well. Maybe some interior mods to make it more friendly for camping, but do let us know what direction you intend to head so we dont overload you with too much stuff.

 

[Sportsman Matt]

Don't know how the transmission is on your Sport Trac, but I had to replace the valve body on the transmission of my girlfriend's '01 Explorer XLT at 104,000 miles,:Mechanic: something to keep in mind. Never took it off road, just on dirt occasionally, so if it starts shifting funny consider that first. I keep a couple things in the back of the Explorer, key is a really good shovel with fiberglass handle, a small 8'x8' dome tent with rainfly, couple sleeping bags and foam matresses, and a pack with couple changes of clothes and of course a small led lantern made by Coleman. :camping: As for mods for the Explorer, first thing I intend to do if I do get my girlfriend to consider seriously taking it off road is to get rid of the plastic sideboards, remove anything lower than the differential cover, add aftermarket differential covers with heat fins, and possibly changing the tires from stock 235/75r15's to a larger tire. Also adding better mud flaps would be very helpful also.
Lots of guys I camp with check out the Ford Ranger forums for ideas on how to modify their rigs, mainly because the Ranger shares a lot of the same parts a the Explorers and the Sport Trac

Good Luck

Matt

:mixed-smiley-030:

 

[bronconite]

In your position I wouldn't modify anything yet. Buy yourself the basic camping gear and start using it in its stock form. You'll be impressed with what a stock rig is capable of. As you use it it will become obvious what needs improving and modifying. The best first thing to do is a set of tires that fit the intended use. As a daily driver probably an all terrain tire. And I wouldn't put on the biggist tire that will fit either. Have fun with it, that's what's iimportant.

 

[Sport-Trac 01]

Well, first off, I want to thanks to everyone who commented on this thread.

Okay, I've decided to scrap the bruch guard idea. I'm now more in favor of something along the lines of this attachment.

I would like to set up the truck so that is it easier to use for off-road camping but not anything as far as a RTT. But, in that thought, does anyone know if there is a kit or something to make the two plastic rails on the roof of my sport-trac able to mount a roof rack?

The terrian I mainly deal with is dirt trails, some rock, some sand (including some trips to Silver Lake Sand Dunes), but mostly dirt two-tracks (Log roads, the like).

I will probably go with a two-inch lift, all-terrian tires, skid-plate work, clearance, and extended breathers.

More later.

 

[bronconite]

But, in that thought, does anyone know if there is a kit or something to make the two plastic rails on the roof of my sport-trac able to mount a roof rack?

http://www.thuleracks.com/

 

[Zorro]

Wheel it stock. You'll be surprised how far it will get you.

I keep wanting to upgrade my Ranger ... but every time I go out I come back and go "well ... I went everywhere I wanted to ... instead of buying 2k worth of suspension, I might as well buy 2k worth of hookers and blow".

 

[Sport-Trac 01]

Bronconite, thanks for the link. I knew about them, I just was worried it might make the rack too high off the roof and leave like 6 inches of dead space.

I agree that getting camping gear would be a better investment. I think I'll try and go through my dad's gear and see what I can get. I'll work on what I can do cheaply now. Breathers, Tires, Lights, that's about it.

 

[jh504]

I would steer away from mounting a rack on the plastic rails. If you offroad it very hard you will have some problems with that if it is loaded. Im not very familiar with sporttracs so I dont know what kind of alternatives there would be. If you dont plan on loading the roof rack with a lot of weight or taking it on serious trails I wouldnt worry about it though.
In my opinion start wheeling it now and get used to taking on terrain in stock form. It will make you a better driver. I do think that the first major mod on any offroad rig should be suspension though. Factory suspension and ground clearance on nearly every vehicle out there (save Toyotas or the Jeeps) is very inadequate. Just a few inches (new shocks) and some larger AT tires will make a huge difference, plus those sporttracs look great lifted!

 

[Prybry]

Priorities...

I would suggest the following priorities...

1) Find someone to wheel with... pull you out, spot you, share a couple beers with after.
2) Protection, skid plates and a good solid set of rock rails, in place of the "pretty" factory steps. They need to be strong enough to put a Hi-lift under and raise the weight of the truck.
3) Extraction gear, Solid mounted tow hooks, Good tow strap (no hook ends), Hi-lift, etc..
4) Knowledge, wheel it stock for a while, then pick out the items you really need... adding a loc-rite locker might be higher on the list than tires... etc.

The main rule is... Buy for function, not for looks... The rig that gets past the tough spot in the trail is held in higher regard than the "great looking" one who is always stuck.

 

[maximumrob]

Prybry has the right idea, though if it were mine, I wouldn't even put money in tires until the rubber you have wears out. The absolute most effective off-road toy you can buy is a locker. Put one in the rear and put one up front if your hardware can handle it. Lockers don't look cool, but you'll look like an off-road hero in the woods when you show up guys with lifts and mud tires by climbing that hill they thought they'd have to pull you up.

Forget bumpers and other "expedition bling" if you're on the cheap. Lockers, a good spare, a CB, and a tent are all you need to go most everywhere.

Enjoy!

 

[jh504]

Lockers will definitely make a huge difference in your traction abilities. In my opinion a suspension upgrade should be first though. Vehicles today are not made to drive offroad, they are made for the highways and that is what the suspension is based on. Also I can count many more times I have been stuck because of ground clearance issues rather than traction issues.
To lock or to lift has always been a VERY debatable subject, and I think in the "expedition world" people lean more towards a locker. I have wheeled locked and open trucks, as well as stock suspension trucks to extremely lifted trucks. In my humble opinion on a vehicle like the one you have, first priority would be getting a little extra ground clearance and beefing up the suspension.
I respect the other guys opinions as well and fully understand where they are coming from. A locked truck with stock suspension will drag itself a lot of places. I would say that if you go the locker route, dont do it cheap, and if you only lock one axle, lock the front. The front is where it really counts.

 

[brianjwilson]

A yakima megawarrior basket will mount to the factory roof rack rails, just need some hardware and a drill. Had mine for over a year, no problems. I can stand on it with my spare tire with no deflection in the factory rails.

I wouldn't go spending a ton of money with that many miles, personally.
An aussie locker (offroadlockers.com) can be purchased for $260, and provides a full lockup. If you can do a brake job, you can install one. My truck came with open differentials and installing the rear locker was literally night and day difference. If you buy just one locker, do the rear first. The front may make sense in some rigs, but the sport trac is heavy up front, meaning that the front stays on the ground better anyway. If you lift a tire, chances are it will be a rear tire, and it will sit and spin without a locker. Also, the rear can be done without removing anything from the truck. The front requires removing the front differential, including disassembling half of the front suspension. Also you will be going through cv joints quicker with a front locker. The steering with the front locker is interesting sometimes. No effects in 2wd, but the steering in 4x4 is stiff, and we'll just say it likes to go straight . I only use 4x4 when it's plenty slick to allow turning. But navigating tight trails with mud, logs, rocks with front and rear lockers and low gears is a walk in the park.
I would save a bit of money, throw on some 31's, rear shackles (to keep from dragging the rear end over stuff), an aussie locker in the rear, and disconnect the sway bars when you go off road. You will get very far with this setup.

Here are a few pics of my rig.

Stock suspension, sway bars disconnected, 3" body lift, 33x12.50 tires.

More recent with the roof rack, front and rear 2" receivers, warrior lift shackles (part# war-153)

List of mods;
3" performance accessories body lift with gap guards (lots of plastic trim removed up front during the install, better approach angle)
Warrior 1.5" lift shackles and sway bar quick disconnects
Custom front and rear 2" receivers, warn winch quick connects
33x12.50's on 15x8's
4.88 gears
Aussie lockers front and rear
Xcalibrator 2 programmer
Oversized transmission cooler
And some other asthetic stuff.
I don't have many pictures of technical trails for some reason (on friends cameras), but it gets around Jeep trails with ease, deep snow, sand dunes, mud, whatever.
Go check out explorerforum.com there is a ton of info there.