engine swap from a 3.0 to a 4.0

[robert89]

i have a 99 ranger etd.cab 4x4 with a 3.0 auto. i have gone threw three motors and i've only got 80,000 on the truck its self. my question is will a 4.0 out of a 97explorer work in my truck and will it bolt up to my tranny and also what all do i need to come with the motor? :

 

[Electrohacker]

motor, ECU, GEM (supposedly) engine harness and all accessories (probably EVERYTHING out of the engine bay), transmission, driveshafts, transfercase (if applicable)

it will be easier and cheaper to get the whole truck. back in the day my dad got a whole F250 for $500 for the engine to put in our steak truck (also had a 351) and we then sold the truck as scrap to make some money back.

if you can get it sub $1000 you're golden and you can probably rip some of the major components off that you dont sell and sell them (axle, your old engine/ trans, wheels, fenders, hood, box) then scrap the rest

 

[robert89]

got the 97 explorer from my father inlaw runs and drives great but overdrive doesnot work thats why i want to use the tranny in my truck.

 

[rhauf]

friend of mine has a 97 ranger with a 3.0 in it.. it's got 270k on it, all he's done is changed the clutch, rad, and a couple electrical parts. why not just figure out why you keep having problems with the 3.0? maybe there is some accessory that's bad (egr or something) which is causing the engine's to self destruct?

something to take into consideration, is a 4.0 only has about 10 more horsepower than a 3.0

 

[robert89]

for one it is a nutless wonder. the reason the first two motors locked up is the cam shaft postion sensor came lose and thats what drives the oil pump. this last one i hydro locked it playin in the mud. the reson i want 4.0 is that explorer will run circles around my ranger with a 3.0. and its free.

 

[ahodges]

is this 97 explorer a 4.0 SOHC?? that would explain the power difference.. I have a 4.0 OHV explorer and my 1999 3.0 5 speed ranger can kill it in a race!

I also have 81k on the original 3.0 engine and no problems to speak of (knock on wood) I've had far more problems with the 4.0 than the 3.0.. food for thought..

Also look into the gear ratios so see what you have and that explorer has, it makes a difference

 

[rhauf]

for one it is a nutless wonder. the reason the first two motors locked up is the cam shaft postion sensor came lose and thats what drives the oil pump. this last one i hydro locked it playin in the mud. the reson i want 4.0 is that explorer will run circles around my ranger with a 3.0. and its free.

so the first time a cam position sensor came loose... it kept running? why did it come loose, was it not on tight enough?

and the second time.. it came loose again? did you lock-tite it or anything after having an issue with it coming loose the first time?

and the 3'rd time you hydro'd it.. that's not the engines fault. any engine wont appreciate that treatment.

go ahead and do the swap if you want.. but keep in mind, it'll be a gigantic pain in the ass, cost you a bunch of money, and you're probably going to run into problems. i sure wouldn't do it if it were me.

 

[robert89]

the first time it was under warranty. the second time yes i did locktite it. and yes it keeps running but the oil pump does not. and for the explorer 4.0 is a great motor.i also have a 1999 and it has been great to me i have 242,000 miles on the original motor and it will still ***** and gets. i,m not trying to nock the 3.0 i,m a big fan of it . just thought i,d go to a bigger v6 with a little more power. anyone got any cheap ideas to get some extra pony's out of a 3.0? FYI thanks 4 all the opinions.

 

[rhauf]

the first time it was under warranty. the second time yes i did locktite it. and yes it keeps running but the oil pump does not. and for the explorer 4.0 is a great motor.i also have a 1999 and it has been great to me i have 242,000 miles on the original motor and it will still ***** and gets. i,m not trying to nock the 3.0 i,m a big fan of it . just thought i,d go to a bigger v6 with a little more power. anyone got any cheap ideas to get some extra pony's out of a 3.0? FYI thanks 4 all the opinions.

maybe a used turbo? that'd be pretty sweet.

 

[tuele1]

im running into problems in the same way.ive removed my camshaft sensor the gear and all but now have not been able to set it back in correctly,every time i go to start it and once its warm it starts to have a bad missfire.ive tryed to do this about 10 times any suggesteions....

 

[wrigley_1285]

if you're looking for more HP with a motor swap then you might as well do a 5.0 swap in your ranger. i would assume it would be a similar cost bc 5.0s are a dime a dozen plus its a fairly common swap.

on a side note i had a 94 mazda B3000 4x4 it had about 150k on it when i sold it in 2006. the truck was all original and i never has a single problem with it, to me it seems like you might be abusing it if you've blow your 3 motor, if that's the case then i would say take it easy on your truck when you get a new motor lol.