Thanks man! I wasn't sure and I know some guys on here know way more then myself!
You think that's due to the Badlands suspension being upgraded and why it's not an issue with the Badlands?
From who? They don't protect the other vehicles, they are there to protect you. To my knowledge they aren't a federally mandated item.
Exactly. Badlands suspension has increased ride height over all trims that do not include the Sasquatch package. Also, the offset/backspacing of the Badlands wheels was designed to run a 33” tire. On a Black Diamond seeing mostly street use, some Badlands takeoffs should work just fine. If you are going to be flexing the suspension off road I would plan on a leveling kit, larger bump stops, or you could just remove the flares.
Ok. Thank you. Makes sense, just trying to visualize this stuff and make sure I'm thinking of this correctly.
Your passenger's lawyer may be interested you removed the crash bars.
I'm back to gauging the stock Badlands with nothing added to it (creature comforts, leave off the 2.7L upgrade, etc) and the Black Diamond with Mid and 2.7L.
Personally, I would probably go with the Black Diamond with 2.7L and mid if I were in your shoes. You don't need to swap to 33's right away, and Badlands take-offs will be a dime a dozen in a year or so, just like the Rubicon take-offs are. That will cover your wheels and tires. Also, most leveling kits for Jeeps are only a couple hundred dollars.
Fantastic pics!! So easy to understand now.I believe the crash bars are the same on the current Ranger and many who add bigger tires will swap them out with aftermarket versions. This way, they still get the protection (or at least some of it) and can run the larger tires. How safe it is to remove them, I do not know.
What I can tell you, is that they are bolt on and will be easy to remove if you need more clearance for larger tires. I took these pictures a couple of months ago of the front and rear crash bars in the front wheel well. This is on a Badlands with standard wheels and tires.
For most that will be the case, but remember, the SQ, BL and WT all have the HD front axle. Ford is being very specific about not running tires bigger than 265/70/17 on that set up (Ranger or Bronco). They have to warranty what they build and many of us would be fine, but it will be a weak spot with larger wheels and tires. At the end of the day, once I bought a second set of wheels and tires and potentially had to do a leveling kit and or wheels spacers, AM intrusion bars, the upgrade to BL was worth it, plus I got the Bilstein shocks and Sway-bar disconnect. Lot's of people are ok with the lighter axle and or a bit of wheel rub at full lock or full articulation. For me thats a no-go, along with removing the crash bars. If it was just me, I wouldn't care, but the thought of a passenger being injured or injured more severely because I removed the crash bar isn't a good trade off, but I make irrational decisions all the time about other things
Yep. For now it'll just be car camping and running fire roads/trails. I do not know what the future holds, but I envision trips out west with my wife and 2 boys as they get older. The big question is, will I want/need that extra capability? Only I can answer that, but I'm leaning no and going with the Black Diamond with the mid/2.7L. The need wouldn't come for at least 5-8 years, even then I might not be using this vehicle in a way that would need upgrades.
Only passengers I have are my family. We are all covered by the same insurance.
If you stab them in the neck, that would solve that problem.
Good question. I know this is really off topic, but couldn't your insurance company also hassle the policy holder if the vehicle was modified in a way that made the accident more severe? That could go for any modification, and i really don't know what they could/couldnt do. Who knows.
