Ford: 96 Ranger 2WD, road tires, interrior

Question
Hey.

 I have a '96 Ford Ranger XL 2WD Regular cab. There are somethings I want to do to my ranger, like fix up the interrior and exterrior, to make it look sleek, and tuff. Plus add some more kick to it.
 First thing to do, is see if i can make it into a 4 wheel drive truck, from my 2wd? Is this possible? If so, could I do it myself, or is it something that a shop needs to do? Where would I go to make this possible, or what do I need to buy to make this happen? And how much would it cost?
 Second, I was going to lift it anyway, what lift should i do. Should i do a suspension lift, or body lift on it? Is 3" to high? When its lifted I want to put bigger off road tires on it, to give it some tuffness (not too big) what size would you suggest?
 Last thing, when i bought my truck the dome light didnt have a bulb in it. I went and bought some, the right ones, and it worked for about three times i used my truck. Then the 4th time i got out of my truck, the light stayed on. Well vehicils dome light usually stays on around 20 seconds anyway, so i didnt think anything of it. A coupple hours later I went outside and the light was still on. I looked to see if i had turned the dome light switch, but i didnt, then i looked to see if the door was shut all the way, it was. Then i shut the door and waited to see if the light would go out. It didnt. Then i took the bulb out and half hour later put it in, and it worked fine, until around the 4th time i got out of my truck agian, the same thing happend. So i took the bulb out and changed fuses just to make sure its ok, and tried it once more. Well same thing. Is there a defect on the rangers, or my year itself? What could be the problem, maybe the wiring?

Thanks,

Nicole  

Answer
Ms. Burdiek,

Yes, you could change your 2WD to a 4WD but I am going to tell you straight up that it would be cheaper if you trade your truck in on a 4WD version. To make the change from 2WD to 4WD will run you between $6,000 to $8,000. As far as putting in a 3" lift, that is fine but you are going to have to get a special drive shaft made because you will be changing the angle of your drive shaft when you put that much lift in. Without the special drive shaft, you will keep snapping your universal joints. Could you do this your self? That would all depend on how car savvy you are, your mechanical abilities and if you have all the appropriate and necessary tools, such as welders, cutting torches, air tools, among others. You will also require impeccable math skills, especially geometry as your calculations will have to be perfect, you can not be off one smidge as well as an electrical knowledge for the necessary rewiring that will need to be done because of the body alterations that will have to be made to accomodate the changes.

As for the problem with your dome light, it is probably the button in the door that is bad and you can get a new one from Auto Zone, Advanced Auto, Napa or any other reputable parts store for about 5 bucks and replace it.

If you really want to do the job of switching from 2 to 4WD and putting the lift in, please contact me and I will provide you with all the addresses to attain the necessary components that you will need to complete the job.


Hope that this helps and good luck.


Ken