Hmmmm....where to start? '97 Ranger

[Daox]

Originally Posted by Frank Lee

Don't do a gate net. They are a step backwards.

Get a small motorcycle and really make a difference.

Or get a car that gets good mileage. You'll never be able to mod your ranger to the point where you could start with a nice small car.

[elhigh]

Hi,

Your engine should be an actual Ford engine, it can trace its lineage all the way back to the Pinto, and even further. It's a good, sturdy engine.

Start a vehicle log page so you can track - and show us - your results. Especially me, 'cause I'm nosy that way.

Fab up an aerocap and see how she do. There's a couple of folks here who've done it already and posted their results; it looks to be worth the effort.

+1 on moving to a smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicle. I'm right there with you on not moving closer since I also live in a small town and wouldn't trade, and the house is nearly paid off. But maybe you could buddy with somebody a day or two per week? My wife and I carpool, that's 50 man-miles per gallon, same as a Toyota Prius carrying the typical single commuter.

Wheel covers, lots of EOC, skinnier tires at higher pressure (I run 195/75R14), air dam under the chin, look at blocking some or all of the grille. Lots of easy, low-hanging fruit. I don't want to buy a new vehicle for the sake of mileage either.

[hat_man]

Thanks for all the ideas everyone.

I have been thinking about closing off the grille, but am still a little worried about it. I don't live in Death Valley or anything but we do see upper 90's with 90% humidity. Also my Ranger is black and absorbs heat like crazy. Can anyone chime in here with an opinion, please?

There is also a small factory "air deflector" under the front bumper. I was thinking about removing this and making a new, longer one that would reach lower to the ground. I have also thought about lowering the truck a couple of inches. Wouldn't this help with air under the truck and over the truck at the same time?

Also, my Ranger rides "downhill". It looks like it is "jacked-up" (at least that's what we called it when we were kids). Is there a way to level it out? I would like to try and build an aero-cap someday but with this ride attitude, won't it create more "square-inchage" facing the wind? I guess the more I think about it, at 12 degrees, the cap might just about "look" level. I'll have to get out some thin wall and see what the angles look like. It's a short bed truck. How about a 12 degree aero-cap with a Kammback or some other crazy looking thing?

Narrower tires aren't an option right now as I just bought the ones on there. I'd rather wear them out first and then switch. I do wonder how the narrow tires will handle in the snow we get in northern Illinios. Has anyone out there had any bad experiences with narrow tires in the snow?

I would love to buy a motorcycle, but the expense is just to great right now. Until this economy turns around and I find better work, I will have to try and make my little Ranger as efficient as possible as cheaply as possible. As more funds become available I will probably make better mods, but as for now I'll do what I can.

Thanks again to everyone who has chimed in with ideas. It's nice to have such a collection of knowledge out there to help the un-informed like me.

Hat_man

[Frank Lee]

Close the grille in increments and monitor the temps. You'll be surprised at how much it can be closed off with no ill effect- IF you aren't towing to full capacity through Death Valley.

I'm told an extended air dam can help. I haven't done it though.

Slight nose-down rake is said to be good aero. Too much can't be good though. Got coil springs on the back? They can be compressed with clamps. Lowering supposedly helps but the effect is quite small. Don't spend a lot of money to do it if your purpose is to save money on gas.

Aerocap would be the best aero mod to make, by far.

Narrow tires are BETTER for snow. How long have you lived in the Midwest? Don't go narrow for fe though. It probably won't pan out.

You don't have to buy a NEW bike. I have bought good bikes from Craigslist for $500.

[hat_man]

Thanks for the advice Frank . I have been contemplating a simple cap for the bed. Not being a real "design guy" and having limited fabbing skills, (but great pipe bending skills. I'm an electrician) does an aero-cap need to be all "swoopy" with rolled edges or would something with some right angles still be workable? Imagine a rectangular box, cut down, with a sloping horizontal plane for the top. Where the sides meet the top would be 90 degrees, but with a sloping plane at 12 degrees from the bed.

As a side question--- How in the world did someone figure out that 12 degrees was the right angle? It seems I read it somewhere that 12 deg. was optimal but how it was decided I can't remember.

Anyways, thanks again for the help.

Hat_man

[Frank Lee]

You're welcome~

Do you use the truck bed?

Even a tonneau cover provides much of the improvement of a cap. Much easier to build/cheaper to buy as well.

I would imagine, though, that if the angles are right the swoops wouldn't be necessary.

I'd have a preference for a cap's sides to slant in to match that of the cab. I wouldn't care to try to guess the aero penalty a straight up-n-down cap would have vs. a cab-matched one... it's probably not too bad, but if it was me and the interior space requirements allowed it, I'd slant it. Likely the biggest aero penalty would be from the slight frontal area increase... but then again, Ranger greenhouses are pretty vertical along the sides anyway, and the vehicle is almost always in yaw anyway too, so I guess in the real world maybe there is no penalty for vertical sides??? If that's what you wanna build then go for it.

The angle of the "back slope" is the more critical one, and if anything it's better to err on the side of too shallow than too steep. Why? Too shallow an angle will still allow orderly flow down the length of the cap, so the only aero penalty it suffers vs an optimized cap would be a slight increase in the trailing wake area behind the vehicle. However too steep an angle and there could be turbulent flow all along/about the slope of the cap, which would render it pretty much useless. I think what I would do is mock up the cap first, and do a yarn test to see if the flow behaves before committing to the design. Oh, and if the sides stick out some along the back of the truck cab, nice larger radii on the leading edges of the cap should help.

[darcane]

Originally Posted by hat_man

There is also a small factory "air deflector" under the front bumper. I was thinking about removing this and making a new, longer one that would reach lower to the ground. I have also thought about lowering the truck a couple of inches. Wouldn't this help with air under the truck and over the truck at the same time?

Also, my Ranger rides "downhill". It looks like it is "jacked-up" (at least that's what we called it when we were kids). Is there a way to level it out?

For your Ranger, there is a nearly free way to lower the rear:
General Tech

And you could always cut a coil off the front if your not adverse to doing so. With your goofy, twin I-beam front suspension, you can only lower a little bit before you start really messing up the camber.

A slight rake is generally good for aero.

Originally Posted by hat_man

Narrower tires aren't an option right now as I just bought the ones on there. I'd rather wear them out first and then switch. I do wonder how the narrow tires will handle in the snow we get in northern Illinios. Has anyone out there had any bad experiences with narrow tires in the snow?

I've driven in snow a lot, and all other things equal, narrower tires perform better in the snow. Every watched a WRC snow race? You'll notice that in addition to the several hundred studs (for ice), they use a very narrow tire (185 wide?) with an aggressive tread pattern which is excellent for snow.

[hat_man]

Thanks again for all the knowledge.

The only reason I was looking at the vertical sides was that my bed is a stepside anyhow. If I remember right it is only 44"-47" wide inside-to-inside. I didn't think that matching the curve of the cab would make a big difference beings the bed is "inside" the sidelines of the cab. Guess I'll have to give it a go and see.

Thanks again to everyone.

Hat_man

[elhigh]

Hey, if the leaf springs out back are bolted under the axle like on my truck, lowering the rear is a simple matter of just putting a block between the axle and the spring, and longer U-bolts. It's a snap, to a degree. If you're not moving too far, there shouldn't be any big problems with driveline angles or stuff like that, but it's something to keep an eye on.

[wriley4409]

I used to own a '96 Ranger similar to yours, so I am fairly familiar with it. Here are my suggestions:

1. Swap to 87/89 octane as others have mentioned. You will get better mileage!

2. Switch to full synthetic engine oil, transmission fluid, and rear end lube. My Scangauge actually measured a .1 gallon per hour improvement in fuel consumption (at idle!) by switching to Mobil 1 motor oil from regular dino oil of the same grade.

3. Swap your mechanical fan for an electric fan. The fan is a huge power hog on this engine and this swap is a very effective way to reduce your power requirements.

4. A tonneau cover is a good way to improve the aerodynamics of this vehicle.