Thread: Pre-Runner, NEw to This

Hey All

I am new to this PRe-Runner Stuff. I have been 4-wheeling for the past 6 years and went to the dunes not too long ago and seen some awesome pre-runners. I was thinking of buying a 2nd quad when I thought to my self.....How about a pre-runner??? My question to everyoine is....Whats the best suspension and the best truck out there? I would like to spend under 6k for it all.

Thank You
Josh

Im not very knowledgeable about prerunners,but I know a bit,and I think others will chime in.Get a Ford Ranger..cheap and easy to set up.

Are you looking for a DD or a desert only truck? an older ranger is the way to go, get one that runs good with and build it up. search the site and you will find lots of info.

I was look at a Older ranger....How much would a Suspension package cost? I was looking at 93's I want something I can jump some whatl..like 10 foot off the ground.....But not limited to sand because I will be screaming across feilds here in Indiana ....

first of all, don't jump your truck. For suspension look around
camburg.com
giantmotorsports.com
go to the dezertrangers home page and go to links. also search for i-beam

OK I figured a older ranger would be good but Im not sure what a I-Beam is...(I think Starit axle)??? I know what a arms are I am very famialr with suspension stuff in the quad world. Also I have a seen a 94 Ranger 94k MIlease 2500 Bucks.....what the best bang for my buck in Suspenion for something like that...Wanting to only spend 3500 on the suspension?

Do a search my friend, here, www.race-dezert.com, and www.desertrides.com. Jumping 10 feet in the air will require massive amounts of time, fabrication, and money.

I beams are what all rangers came with prior to 98. They are NOT the same as a straight axle.

here is a pic
http://www.camburg.com/images/Ranger.../beamFront.jpg

ust buy a quad

89-95.5 2wd yota

If your budget is 6K, my advice is get the new quad.

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] (shroom52 @ Feb. 21 2005,4:10)]If your budget is 6K, my advice is get the new quad.

agreed

heh, if you want to jump your truck you'll spend more than 6k on the front suspension. Like the guys above said, just get a quad because if you only want to spend 6k, you'll end up with a truck that will break the 2nd or 3rd time you jump it... it isn't fun going home on a tow truck.

Go on race dezert or the classifieds here or even to a junk yard buy a cab with a frame for about 300-500 bucks and start from there. not to be a dick head but 6g's will be spent on shocks, heims,motor, tranny, rearend and tubing alone!! then u hae fab work if you wanna build a nice truck that can handle, start saving ur pennies cause this sport is expensive quick!!

Get a Toyota Prius, great gas milage, tax break and you can use your 6K as a deposit on the purchase so you have low monthly payments. Just don't jump it!

buy a beamed ranger for $6k & get a loan for $25,000 plus & bring it to a shop & have them build it & you will have something that suits your needs...

this sport is by far the spendiest out there...sucks at times...I remember when I skated & rode bmx & we all bitched cause it was such an expensive sport haha

if you are serious then talk to some fab shops & come up on alotof money or you can get something mellow & have it look the part & have something pretty cool that can def. take some abuse but you have to know that jumping 10 feet in the air takes a truck that is BUILT & that pretty much comes down to money

good luck
travis

People, people...come on now...you don't have to be a millionaire to make a prerunner. When I fisrt got into it about ten years ago, I decided to start with a truck, and $3000.00 I spent my 3g's real quick, and alot more since then. But, nowadays people think you need to have equal length 4 inch bypass gold plated dimple died hid coil-over bumpstops with beadlocks to have fun offroad. Geez, it's so hard to keep up with the joneses, you know? Think about a couple things - look at the history of desert racing, and look at some of the rides that conquered the baja - with little shocks, and rubber bumpstops, and no gps or carbon fiber anything. Look at some of the trucks at the local "tough truck" contest launching 10 feet of air and busting crowd pleasers over and over again. Look at some of the 1450 class trucks that are built with 10k or less and out having fun race after race. Hell, how much air did the REAL general lee get in the dukes of hazard? What kind of shocks did that car have? king or fox? I know that Helton has said on a number of occasions that he has much less $$$ into his truck than you might think, and look how it performs off road, and how much fun he gets to have with it.

Don't let these guys discourage you. If you want to build a prerunner - go for it! Build it for 6k and then show it off! and be proud of the fact that you didn't hand over your kids college fund to have it built. But, be aware that the reality is you will need to cut some corners to save some money. That might mean using used or cheap parts. Or not building the truck the way you want right from the start. It will be a work in progress for a while.

I recommend a 1986-97 ranger 2wd. As cheap as you can get it. Do all the work yourself (that you can) and buy your parts used. Keep stuff stock till it breaks like rear, tranny , motor, d-shaft etc. YOU CAN DO IT!

By no means was my post ment to be discuraging what so ever !! Of course you can build a decent truck on a budget. Its all about finding deals where u can and cutting corners where u can and buying shit here and there till you have it all ready.

I mean... shit my truck is being built on a budget as well as many other trucks on this form and many other forms! Like slim jim said you dont have to have a built motor, built tranny, gps, pumpers, race radios and all that crap to be able to have fun. but eventuilly you will want it!! You cant just jump into any motorsport with a built car or truck with no experiance behind the wheel, your just gonna roll or crash. you gotta start small and up grade as time goes by. and with all this damn price inflation going every where u look, its had to build a nice truck on a small budget.

But like said many times before by a ton of people... older ranger with beams is the way to go! start from there and work your way up. as far as products geoff at giant makes awsome affordible quality shit for rangers and other trucks. go to his web site check out his prices you cant go wrong with his products. just my 0.2 cents

as you said slim jim it doesnt necc. take 25k but unless you fully know WHAT your looking for & deals, etc & know how to fab your self, etc then you'll be droppint quite a bit if you bring into a shop & say you want to be able to basically beat the shit out of it

Now If you have the skills to fabricate yourself which I applaud you If you do cause I'll be the first to admit I can not then you can now basically drop alot of dolllars because you are doing labor yourself....used "prerunner" parts might be hard to get though in your area so you might be forced into buying new If thats the way you are looking at going or as stated before you could try your luck at building your own stuff...or you could always get giants weld it yourself stuff & have the best of both worlds.....

I guess the question comes down to the guy who started the thread...

-do you have any fab experience or did you want to have someone else build you the truck?
-do you have any knowledge of what you really want/need in a "prerunner"? if no then please look & read all of these sites before you jump into building something...I still dont know what I want to build & I've had a few trucks already & cant figure it out haha
im sure some people can think of more stuff I need toi get back to work haha

Or you could look for a used truck. I thought i saw a ford ranger on there with bypass and coils in the front for 6k. Its all up to you. But if i was in your position i would looked for a used truck.


andrew

ya used trucks would be a good idea... but you'd prob have to drive out here to find something that fits what your looking for...

As my truck sits right now I have 3500 into it and that's with SAW coilovers up front, SAw's out back, hezco seats, everything, full cage, full glass. I havn't spent shit on my truck but it mobs really really well for how little money I have into it. BUT if I wouldn't have built everything myself I wouldn't have even close to that amount into it, I'd have atleast double that or more.. o if you can weld and fabricate it'll help out a lot but if not 3500 ain't gonna get you shit for the front end.

i will sell you a truck...

89 nissian hardbody 4 banger 140,000 miles
front a-arms about 12" of travel with 2 fox 10" smoothies and torsions( spare set of torsions, and fingers), has mounts for 4.
beard bucket seats that have been reupholstered
5 matching wheels and tires (31" bfg mudders)
front matching red fiberglass fenders front and rear "pre-runner" bumpers
new stereo
put a nice leaf pack in the rear and have a perty cheap and nice play truck

oh yeah, you have to pick it up... apple valley california about 45 miles from ontario airport...

$4000

ill try to find some pictures if your interested

heres another I stumbled across
http://www.race-dezert.com/cgi-bin....id=8746
or here

Search the Race-Dezert.com classifieds, they have trucks on there everyday for sale and most with great bang for your buck. Welcome and get ready for a lot of learning, this sport takes nothing less than time and money!

-Ryan

Oh dude, get a toyota. 89-95

my friends ranger and my expoler had the entry level kit would do great a 1500$ kit at the most maybe not ten feet but we would jump that shit 5 feet puls on a daily bases fords are some of the strongest truck i have seen i have owned 2 myself and going on my 3rd this weekend

Yeah, i dont mind ford, my buddy has one, its been good for him, just have to keep up the work on it. But i still like my toyota

its hard not to spend alot of money when your new to the sport and dont have the resources that alot of us have built up and learned about. if you do ALL of the labor yourself..including building ALL of your own suspension components (not shocks...unless your greg G lol), but it takes alot of research. have to do more than just go online and ask...its best to somehow get INTO the scene...SEE what works, see what doesnt, see whats a waste of money and what actually makes a difference.

ill say these are key features....

SAFETY. cage...seats...harnesses....get that done first
suspension. good shocks, good valving...and components that will make the most out of the shocks
motor. gotta have power, no hp... and youll be hating sand
chasis. stability is key. lots of triangulated tubing, good welds, good material.


focus on things that give the truck actual performance benefits. dont waste time with paint, cool body work...trinkets and gadgets.

FUNCTION OVER FORM...ALWAYS!!

Kind of off topic,where in Indiana are you from?
just noticed this was from like four yeas ago.My bad.

...

holy old thread. 1/2 these people arent on here any more