- Joined
- November 29, 2000
- Messages
- 10,611
- Reaction score
- 5,006
- Location
- USA
- City, State
- San Diego, PRofK
- Year, Model & Trim Level
- 1994 XLT
but she just joined the Ford family. I just brought home her own 2010 Ranger Supercab XLT. They are getting hard to find as I spent the past month looking. Finally found one at a great deal that is super clean. 2.3Liter little engine, but it seems to pull pretty good. She has been asking for a little truck ever since the decision was made to get rid of the Volvo S-60 she usually drives (It needs a new cat, bushings, timing belt, struts, and is starting to burn oil; car is not worth the repair costs). She agreed to make partial payments to get a truck instead of whatever we wanted.
Edited on 01/2025:
A not very short summary of this little truck. I bought it used from a dealership for my daughter. She made half the payments, truck was paid off and it's hers. Fast forward. She bought a condo with her long-term boyfriend and moved out. She knew the Ranger had multiple oil leaks, and asked boyfriend to check the oil. He was always waiting for the engine to cool down, she assumed he checked. Engine was oil starved and started making an awful racket. Oil starved engines are not worth fixing because every part has been compromised. Engine had about 180,000 on the odometer and the trans was rebuilt at 130,000. Truck with a blown engine is worth maybe $2,000. Running its worth $8,000-12,000. I like working on vehicles, have never messed with a modern vehicle doing an engine swap, but felt that was way too much money to deprive the daughter of even if they were a little irresponsible.
I did some research, mostly through 410Fortune here on the board, and found out that the Focus, Escape, Fusion and Ranger all use the 2.3 L4 block. Searching the interweb, mostly through Car-Part.com. , I found that used Ranger 2.3 engines are very hard to find and over $2,000. Escape engines are easier to find and around $1,600. Focus engines are all over the place, usually beat and poorly maintained, and $1,200-1,400. Fusion engines are available locally and $500-800. Swapping a 4.0 or even a 5.0 is off the table. California SMOG laws and the amount of work involved, no thanks. This is reliable little commuter work type truck and keeping it that way is best for daughter and her boyfriend.
I located a 2008 Fusion 2.3 locally with 117,000 miles on it at a local wrecking yard. They had it stored in a shipping container for the last two years. I ended up buying it for $600. After removing the pan, timing and valve covers, I discovered the engine was in very good condition internally. It needed to be resealed but otherwise was good to go. I did the math and figured I could get this truck running better than ever for about $1,000 total and end up with a bunch of new tools I never knew I needed. Getting a Fusion engine into a Ranger means swapping every bolt on part, deleting the VCT intake cam and balance shaft, slightly modifying the oil pan pickup tube, tapping a few holes, and other things I'm sure I forgot. The last sentence was simplifying a lengthy process for a novice engine guy like me. Prior to this, my experience with rebuilding engines has been restricted to 60's era GM V8's (I know, I didn't really rebuild the engine). These 2.3's are interference engines without crank shaft keys, so timing the engine is critical. It requires an engine timing kit, which was actually very simple once I understood how it works. The only thing holding the engine in time is the crank pully (harmonic balancer) bolt torque. It still makes me a little nervous thinking about it.
Swap went slow, but it went and now the truck is a running, driving 2010 Ranger. Daughter's boyfriend helped me pull the old engine and install the replacement engine. He got to crawl around under the truck and play contortionist a few times. I've let the engine idle up to operating temp about a dozen times, then let it cool to heat cycle the seals. These engines are prone to leaking and I wanted to give it every chance to not leak. It's obvious why they leak once you pull one apart. Aluminum oil pan is RTV sealed to the block and the bottom of the thin steel rear main seal, aluminum timing cover is RTV sealed to the block and head, and the front of the oil pan. Plastic valve cover uses gaskets and is bolted to the heads and the top of the timing cover. That's several different types and thicknesses of material, all with different contraction and expansion rates. This is fairly normal for modern engines to be built this way. They are easier and quicker to manufacture, and to heck with the end user.
A/C and power steering hoses are long and flexible enough that you don't have to disconnect them to pull the engine. I did have the suction hose of the A/C system start leaking. I'm not sure if it was from moving it around or setting the compressor down low out of the way, or all of the above. That hose could have been 6" long, but for some reason Ford made it about 3' long. It must be for system volume. In any case, that hose is available and under $25. One is on the way, and as an added bonus it was my excuse to order a A/C service four-hose service manifold because I have always wanted one, and I like tools.
I had some EGR codes pop up the first two times I drove it. This was after I dumped a bunch of Lucas intake cleaner in the tank and filled it with premium. Short trip, parked for less than ten minutes and restarted = code. I took it for a 45-mile drive yesterday, and I think it might have just needed to be driven to clean it out a little because it didn't throw a code. I think it's good to give back to the daughter after I change the transmission fluid/filter and the fuel filter. I'll change the oil/filter again in a few weeks after they put some miles on it. After sitting for so long and swapping all those parts it makes sense to me that there is some old oil, gunk, rat turds, etc., now sitting on the bottom of the oil pan or in the oil filter. Her boyfriend will sell his BMW that's on its last legs and drive the Ranger. Daughter bought an F-150 with the 2.7 Ecoboost after the Ranger died so they will have two reliable vehicles for the next several years.
Edited on 01/2025:
A not very short summary of this little truck. I bought it used from a dealership for my daughter. She made half the payments, truck was paid off and it's hers. Fast forward. She bought a condo with her long-term boyfriend and moved out. She knew the Ranger had multiple oil leaks, and asked boyfriend to check the oil. He was always waiting for the engine to cool down, she assumed he checked. Engine was oil starved and started making an awful racket. Oil starved engines are not worth fixing because every part has been compromised. Engine had about 180,000 on the odometer and the trans was rebuilt at 130,000. Truck with a blown engine is worth maybe $2,000. Running its worth $8,000-12,000. I like working on vehicles, have never messed with a modern vehicle doing an engine swap, but felt that was way too much money to deprive the daughter of even if they were a little irresponsible.
I did some research, mostly through 410Fortune here on the board, and found out that the Focus, Escape, Fusion and Ranger all use the 2.3 L4 block. Searching the interweb, mostly through Car-Part.com. , I found that used Ranger 2.3 engines are very hard to find and over $2,000. Escape engines are easier to find and around $1,600. Focus engines are all over the place, usually beat and poorly maintained, and $1,200-1,400. Fusion engines are available locally and $500-800. Swapping a 4.0 or even a 5.0 is off the table. California SMOG laws and the amount of work involved, no thanks. This is reliable little commuter work type truck and keeping it that way is best for daughter and her boyfriend.
I located a 2008 Fusion 2.3 locally with 117,000 miles on it at a local wrecking yard. They had it stored in a shipping container for the last two years. I ended up buying it for $600. After removing the pan, timing and valve covers, I discovered the engine was in very good condition internally. It needed to be resealed but otherwise was good to go. I did the math and figured I could get this truck running better than ever for about $1,000 total and end up with a bunch of new tools I never knew I needed. Getting a Fusion engine into a Ranger means swapping every bolt on part, deleting the VCT intake cam and balance shaft, slightly modifying the oil pan pickup tube, tapping a few holes, and other things I'm sure I forgot. The last sentence was simplifying a lengthy process for a novice engine guy like me. Prior to this, my experience with rebuilding engines has been restricted to 60's era GM V8's (I know, I didn't really rebuild the engine). These 2.3's are interference engines without crank shaft keys, so timing the engine is critical. It requires an engine timing kit, which was actually very simple once I understood how it works. The only thing holding the engine in time is the crank pully (harmonic balancer) bolt torque. It still makes me a little nervous thinking about it.
Swap went slow, but it went and now the truck is a running, driving 2010 Ranger. Daughter's boyfriend helped me pull the old engine and install the replacement engine. He got to crawl around under the truck and play contortionist a few times. I've let the engine idle up to operating temp about a dozen times, then let it cool to heat cycle the seals. These engines are prone to leaking and I wanted to give it every chance to not leak. It's obvious why they leak once you pull one apart. Aluminum oil pan is RTV sealed to the block and the bottom of the thin steel rear main seal, aluminum timing cover is RTV sealed to the block and head, and the front of the oil pan. Plastic valve cover uses gaskets and is bolted to the heads and the top of the timing cover. That's several different types and thicknesses of material, all with different contraction and expansion rates. This is fairly normal for modern engines to be built this way. They are easier and quicker to manufacture, and to heck with the end user.
A/C and power steering hoses are long and flexible enough that you don't have to disconnect them to pull the engine. I did have the suction hose of the A/C system start leaking. I'm not sure if it was from moving it around or setting the compressor down low out of the way, or all of the above. That hose could have been 6" long, but for some reason Ford made it about 3' long. It must be for system volume. In any case, that hose is available and under $25. One is on the way, and as an added bonus it was my excuse to order a A/C service four-hose service manifold because I have always wanted one, and I like tools.
I had some EGR codes pop up the first two times I drove it. This was after I dumped a bunch of Lucas intake cleaner in the tank and filled it with premium. Short trip, parked for less than ten minutes and restarted = code. I took it for a 45-mile drive yesterday, and I think it might have just needed to be driven to clean it out a little because it didn't throw a code. I think it's good to give back to the daughter after I change the transmission fluid/filter and the fuel filter. I'll change the oil/filter again in a few weeks after they put some miles on it. After sitting for so long and swapping all those parts it makes sense to me that there is some old oil, gunk, rat turds, etc., now sitting on the bottom of the oil pan or in the oil filter. Her boyfriend will sell his BMW that's on its last legs and drive the Ranger. Daughter bought an F-150 with the 2.7 Ecoboost after the Ranger died so they will have two reliable vehicles for the next several years.
Got 15 phone calls, emails, and texts within 15 minutes. Guess I should have asked for more, but I was honest with what was wrong with it, and priced it accordingly.
