Anyone have any idea the minimum lift required to do an SAS on a '99. Funny question I know, but I'd like to do one for 33s and 4" lift max...possible?

 

you couild probably do stock height if you really wanted... just have to get small leafs/coils....


only problem i see that might arise though is with the solid axle, if its not far enough from the engine bay it may cause damage if you articulate it enough...

 

For example, take the ford excursion suspension.

They have about 3" of uptravel before the bumpstop. (when stock). You can't even see the axle when you look at the truck dead on, it's very tucked up.

Now of course you could get about 1" of lift from stock, but I'm sure you could ride nearly stock height if you REALLY wanted to.


Anything can be done, it's just a matter of tools/time/experience!!!

 

i wouldnt waste my time on a SAS if you are going to keep it that low

 

If I were to do an SAS, I'd only run 35"s with enough lift to clear the tires all the way around.

 

ive seen pics of a ranger with the front axle as a spring under axle (similar to a explorer's rear setup) and that took alot of the lift away

 

It's still beneficial. Not sure why you'd say that actually.

 

if you arent going to lift it, why put all the custom work into a SAS when the indep would be just fine lifted a few inches and prob ride nicer on the road.

i might be missing something, but im not sure how it would be benefitial to change what already works?

 

Jeeps are still very capable in stock form with solid axles and spring-under-axle setups, so a ranger with mild lift and 33s should be just as capable with a solid axle under there. You will want to be careful with your bumpstops though because you do not want your axle to be able to articulate up into the bottom of your engine! It certainly CAN be done.

 

that makes sense to me, but 33's can fit without a problem without a TON of lift


thats most of what i was thinking, but then again jeeps dont come with independent suspension up front

 

The main reason I'm asking is because by previous vehicle, a 4" lifted '92 on 33s has been retired to plow vehicle status. I don't do a whole lot of wheeling anymore being an adult building a house and maybe a garage this summer. In any event, the Explorer will handle a steel plow fine, but the new B4000 ('99), maybe not so much. I always wanted to do an SAS on the Explorer, but at this point its on its way out (250K, starting to rust bad after a few Maine winters). I figure the B4000 with SAS would be a mean plowing machine so if it's possible to keep it under 4" with SAS, that'll help me choose a steel plow instead of a plastic one.

Plus it'll just be a fun project that I've always wanted to do you know...:)

Anyway, if anyone comes across some pics of a low slung SAS please, post them in here as well, or a link. Thanks for all the info.

 

You don't need a ton of lift. There's not SAS kit that you buy lol. It's as high as you design/build it to be. I wouldn't mind SAS'ing my truck if I have it long enough to turn 150k miles and the front end is all phukt. I wouldn't be running 37's or 38's like most guys do though. The SAS is alot more resiliant and simpler than the IFS. I'd love to have a SFA, I just don't have a need/time/energy for it.

 

im pushing it to the minimum lift.

i only have about 6"-8" of uptravel before i hit the frame

 

I only have about 6 inches also and I am running 31's.






It isn't so much that if you do a SAS you have to lift the truck up high, as people that want to jack their trucks way up have to do a SAS.

 

your way beyond minimum lift. 6-8" of up travel is alot. my sas is shooting for 3-4" of uptravel

 

well im only an inch or so. if it hits at 6" ill prolly limit it to 5, 5" seems like alot anyways, shouldnt ever need more then that.

 

Depends on what sort of driving you're doing. But for street driving/rock crawling 3-4" of uptravel should be fine. I wouldn't want to do much of anything at highspeed like that though (dunes for example). There are plenty of advantages to SAS'ing a truck even if you don't want a huge amount of lift. It's generally stronger, simpler, and articulates better. Ideally if I were to SAS my truck I would run 33's, maybe 35's max. I like the idea of the adjustable coils lake zach is doing, and setting the minimum height to 3.5" of uptravel, max height at 6" of uptravel. Run straps and 1.5" stroke airbumps or something.
I'd love to ditch my bodylift and sas with fiberglass fenders and 35's, minimal lift.

redranger, how much lift over stock will you sit with 3-4" of uptravel? What is the first contact point on the axle? Is it the axle tube on the frame, pumpkin on the oil pan, or control arms on the frame?

 

A lot more flex (IFS sucks bad on flex) even with stock height. Think of Jeep Wranglers and how well they perform at stock height and you'll figure it out, lol.

Independent suspension can't conform as well on terrain and it's easier to lift a wheel and lose traction. Especially with an open front diff, a flexy SAS is far superior to the stock or lifted stock IFS.

If you are correct in your reasoning, no one would bother wheeling a Wrangler since that solid front axle isn't any better than IFS -- but the fact is it's far superior offroad and so would a SAS'd Ranger even without additional lift.

 

My upper 3 link arm is going to be what contacts first i think. Its going to have an 8" tall link tower off the tube. Another problem I ran into with going so low is that my upper arm is going on the passenger side, which means I have the exhaust routing to deal with. It looks like im going to be making a whole new exhuast so that I can fit my chassis side link mount in.

 

 

That's what I'll be doing. Too much lift can be a problem especially on the street. It think it contributed to Ben's (Ranger1's) rollover. He had the coilover lift plus the body lift and it was quite tall. Really big looks great and for some things it is great -- but overall with a daily driver I think it's a potential problem.

 

Not only for a DD but for a truck thats going to see any serious trail time its a good idea to keep it as low as possible.