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Redneck ranger

DRIFTGOD187

Well-Known Member
Joined
February 28, 2009
Messages
126
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City, State
UPSTATE NEW YORK
Year, Model & Trim Level
94 RANGER / 98 explorer
hello, i have been visiting this site for a long time but finally decided to register.






i bought this truck last year for $400.00 just to drive to work, it has a 3.0 V6 and push button 4WD. the 4WD has never worked because the previous owner removed the actuator motor from the transfer case and cut all the wires, he also lost the mounting bolts. the auto locking hubs were stripped out and it had 4 different tires on it.


the tires i put on it last year are 235/70/R15 WINTER FORCE and i payed around $350.00 for all 4 tires.



i bought a used actuator motor for $81.00 and got the bolts i nedded for free.

here is a pic of the actuator motor:



after installing the actuator motor it was time to fix the auto locking hubs, i decided to swap them with manual locking hubs. i bought the manual locking hubs and a conversion kit for $250.00.

here are the hubs i bought:



here is the auto locking hub next to the manual locking hub:





after converting the front end from auto locking hubs to manual locking hubs it was time to test it.

this snowpile is about 4 feet high, i drove up and down it a few times, and also drove through the front yard that had about a foot of snow on it with no problem.







and to give you an idea as to how small my garage is, here are some pics:






the truck is now in the garage again, but this time i have it over to one side so i can work on the exhaust.

edit: i changed my speedometer cable and speed sensor, changed my heater core and i replaced the exhaust, flushed the coolant system, changed the oil, and got the truck inspected.








i took the ranger out in the mud for the first time today, the pics arnt very good (lighting) hopefully the rain we are getting wont wash it so i can get beter pics in the sun :D









no sun today, but it looks beter with the mud dry :tu:















i basicly just drive this truck to work, but im also looking for another truck with a good body on it possably a 2001 because i like the way the front end looks, if i end up changing all the body parts exept the cab i might put a 3 inch body lift in it.

this is the front end i like, if i can find one wrecked in the rear or with a blown motor i might be able to get it cheap. the only problem with converting it would be if the radiator core support is different.



eventually i would like my truck to look something like this, different front end of course.

 



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nice, lift it a little, hit it with black or white rattle can and you will have yourself a nice looking truck!
 












lol i just noticed i never posted any engine pics, not that its anything to brag about (runs really good though) ;)



 






i forgot to add this pic, my antenna ball liked the way the 4WD works too :thumbsup:

 


















the ranger is in the garage again undergoing some minor surgery :D

















painted the box & cab flat black:




got my parts truck tuesday, sofar nothin but good news on the parts i need for mine :tu:





while the tow dolly was there we pulled my truck out to get my lawnmower out of the bed.





i swapped rear windows, now mine has a slider.





i stripped down the front of the parts truck and part of the engine, also swapped seats.







the parts truck now has my front end on it :D





here is a pic of the engine on the parts truck. i removed one of the heads because mine has 2 cracks in it, just that head is worth the $250.00 i payed for this truck ;)

 






...:eek:...WoW....You've been a busy man...:salute:
 






lol yes the last 2 weeks have been really busy, hopefully tomorow the engine will be back together ;)
 






got it back together but the timing is way off, seems to run strong and has heat. no leaks yet exept the thermostat housing.

painted the valve covers ford blue just for the hell of it lol.



here is a pic of it with the front end from the parts truck, bumper needs adjusting but i think it looks good.

 






....It's coming along fast...:biggthump

...What are you going to do with the other Ranger???
 






the parts truck is in bad shape, when i removed the rear window and seats i found that it had been wrecked because the rear of the cab is black and it has spot welds all over that are definatly not factory. the radiator core support is really rotted, and the shackles and leaf springs look like they have been replaced.

i will most likely strip any parts i can sell/use then scrap it.

right now my main concern is getting my truck running properly, the timing is off and when i drove it today it quit on me at a intersection and had to be jumped to get started again.
 






...Is the little timing plug in???
 












man looks good, a decieving title lol, you kinda made me want to pick up an older ranger haha
 






subscribing... love it

Si

man looks good, a decieving title lol, you kinda made me want to pick up an older ranger haha

thanks guys, i have more plans for the future :D

...Is the little timing plug in???

if you are talking about the plug that goes in the distributer then yes. im thinking that at TDC the rotor was pointing at the wrong point on the cap, im going to pull the distributor and put the #1 cylinder back to TDC then put the distributor back in with the rotor pointing at #1 on the cap.
 






more pics.

in the rear pics you can see the rear windows i swapped, the third brake light on my truck also came off the parts truck. the rear bumpers will be swapped too.








 






i swapped rear bumpers and aligned my front bumper. i also picked up a bedliner for free.







 



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the parts truck had a kenwood cd player in it so i installed it into my ranger:



i looked for snorkels online and i saw a "cowl snorkel" that somebody built and decided to build my own.

first i removed the air box off of my parts truck and sealed the filter housing with RTV:

edit: the first 2 pics show the air box i used and the position of the stock inlet.








i then took a 3" to 2" PCV reducer and connected it to the outlet on the airbox:



i then used 2 pieces of 2" PCV pipe and 2 90 degree fittings to route the piping to the inner fenderwell:





from here i cut a hole in the cowl housing and used 2 pieces of 2" PCV, a 2" coupler and a 90 degree fitting to complete the routing of the snorkels piping:



now instead of being limited to driving through mud/water up to the bumpers, i can drive through mud/water up to the cowl.
 






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