Scott B's 93 Ranger XLT V8

[mjmcdowell]

Scott's "new truck"

Hey Scott, you have been busy, looks good, I like the flares, I don't want to wish my life away....... but darn I can't wait till the marching orders for Moab to come out and we can start this grand adventure! stay safe, Michael

 

[Scott B.]

Our trucks have "insulators" between the inner and outer fenders, just forward of the door hinges. These help keep engine noise out of the passenger compartment, and keep dirt off the forward edge of the door.

Mine are made of closed-cell foam, and are very dry-rotted. (And red clay stained!) Since I had the inner fenders out to remove the flares, I was able to get to the insulators and replace them.

Ford did not have a listing for this part for a 1993. I checked for a 2006 - that number has been superseded. But, the parts are available!

The parts have been re-designed. Instead of being foam, they appear to be an injection molded rubberized plastic. Stiff but flexible.

Whatever they are made of, it appears they will stay in place - and they fit quite well.

Here, you can a new one compared to an old one.

 

[Scott B.]

Teardown Started

I started the engine removal process!

Cooling system out. P/S drained and disconnected. A/C - it was already drained. (Need to get a set of disconnect tools.) Exhaust - cut off. Haven't pulled the cats yet - need a different length extension for my impact. MAF/air intake out. Drained transmission and engine oils. Disconnect throttle and cruise cables. And other stuff...

 

[Scott B.]

Teardown Continued

The engine and transmission are almost ready to come out. A couple of wires, the kickdown cable, and removal of the oil pressure sender - then out it comes!

 

[Scott B.]

It's Empty!

Busy day. Engine and transmission have been removed.

 

[Scott B.]

No surprises - didn't even make that big of a mess.

The seals have been leaking for a while - the engine block and front part of the transmission case are covered with an oily, dirty sludge. At least the sludge is on the outside, not the inside!

Now to clean the engine compartment...

Anyone need some parts?

 

[Scott B.]

Work Continues

I've been busy prepping the truck for the new engine. I have a long list of things I want to do...

First off, I cleaned the engine compartment. It is hard to believe how much dirt I've been carrying around!

I originally wanted to repaint the engine compartment, but decided I really didn't want to remove the remaining components. Besides, it will get dirty the next time I am in the dirt.

 

[Scott B.]

Battery Cage

I repainted the battery tray with undercoating, and mounted a RuffStuff Optima Battery Cage - powder coated by Turdle.

(The fender splash shield is loose in these pictures.)

 

[Scott B.]

Started fitting the conversion radiator...

 

[Scott B.]

Enlarged the transmission tunnel by folding back the body seam.

 

[Scott B.]

Changed the heater core (the one I pulled out was the original.)

Kind of hated to do this - the factory unit appeared much better built than this made in Mexico replacement.

 

[Scott B.]

Rebuilt Seatbelts

I had my seatbelts rebuilt with new webbing. After 18 years, the old webbing was dirty, stiff and slightly frayed. Seeing as I am changing the interior color to black, I selected black webbing too.

The retractors were also cleaned and function checked.

 

[Scott B.]

Trial Fit

Right about here...

 

[Scott B.]

On-Board Air

I added an air tank under the bed (build thread)

 

[Scott B.]

Wiring Harness

Over the holidays, i started re-working the wiring harness. The chassis harness and the engine harness are woven together. (On this truck, the computer is in the firewall, to the left of the steering column - next to the bulkhead connector.)

I removed the harness(es) from the truck, and removed the engine harness part - starting at the computer connector. At this point, I have 13 wires in need of new connections. (Of those, a couple will tie into the new engine harness.)

For an engine wiring harness, I bought one from Ron Francis Wiring. It is in "kit" form (as opposed to pre-assembled.) The advantage here is, I get to route all the wires - more work, but I will be able to retain the factory computer location.

 

[Scott B.]

Speaking of computers...

I have installed the "new" engine computer - a fabled A9P!

 

[Scott B.]

Interior Work

I have also been working on the interior.

The headliner has been recovered, and several panels have been painted black.

While the interior was out of the truck, I also covered the body panels with sound deadening (I forgot to get pictures.) Hopefully, the long road trips will be quieter...

EDIT: You can see the re-webbed seat belts here.

 

[gmanpaint]

Ugh! Wiring! Bleh!

So whats the story behind the A9P pooter? :scratch:

Interior looks Pimpin! lol You go you big bad dawg you!

 

[Scott B.]

The wiring harness I am using requires a car computer (vs. a truck computer.) I am not sure what the differences are.

Of all the car computers from that era, the A9P (auto) and A9L (manual) are supposed to be the best ones. By best, the thought is performance based. The A9s were used in Mustangs. Of course, many people say the various computers are the same (running parameters, etc.), so who knows? I don't think you can definitively determine that without seeing the actual firmware.

One of the guys here at work is a Mustang guy. He is building an '85, and was going to run an automatic. He changed his mind, and sold me the computer.

 

[Tbars4]

..You know...You only have about 3 months to get this thing back to resembling a running truck...

..:scratch:..Maybe I should pack extra straps..: