I am going to look at a 1998 Ford Ranger xlt with 169k on body and app 1200 on new engine. V6 five speed, Don't know if it's the 4.0 or 3.0. Anything specific I should be on the lookout for?
Possibly trading my 99 Grand Prix for it and I'm a little nervous about trading my reliable car for one that might not be. Don't really like Fords all that much but if it's in decent shape I might.
Rear shackles like disappearing. Front upper balljoints require new arms and therefore an alignment. 3.0 sucks to do an oil change on, unless it's cold. Same basic truck since 83.
Their eyes are upon you.
Rangers currently lead the AL West w/ .514 avg., but it's early yet
Apparently, they "lead the way"
I drove a red one for a body shop supply company. It was at 300k on the odometer when I quit there. I think someone still owns it, and drives it. Just had regular maintenance. Much like the one below. Had a lot of fun with a mere 110 HP.
As for yours? The real advice is up that way. 
OH, I SEE WE HAVE COMEDY HERE!! (Read that with a loud Bosnian accent I have a coworker from Bosnia that says that all the time)
Ranger John Smith, A former US Army soldier, he is the serious and stern authority figure in Jellystone Park, in contrast to the antics of the troublesome Yogi, and he greatly disapproves of Yogi's picnic basket thievery.
Unless you were refering to the Ford Ranger. My brother's 99 has been indestructible so far except for the paint.
I owned a '94 and put about 90K miles on it....but it was a 2.3 with the 5 speed.
The newer ones, thankfully, don't have the same rotary knob for the lights that mine had. I've seen several high mileage PRE-'98 Rangers that had that switch bypassed...it just goes flakey after about 85K miles. I never had the rear shackles "disappear" on mine, but then it spent all it's life in the mid south.
Depending on how it was driven, the clutch CAN have a shorter than what SEEMS normal life. And don't count on the e-brake holding this truck on any kind of incline....park it in gear when possible.
On mine, rust developed around the brake booster, if this truck you are looking at has spent time in/near the "rust belt" look there for rust. 1 or 2 mechanics mentioned the rust to me, which I thought was kind of odd....what could they do about it? I mean, if it was really bad, it's a body shop fix, at least the firewall part.
My father had a 3 liter with 5 speed and 4WD, a late '90s/early '00s....that truck still looked new when he sold it a year ago, they hold up if taken care of.
The bible (tech library): www.therangerstation.com
If it's a 3.0 you need to only worry about a 'chirping' cam synchronizer, sounds like a failing idler pulley bearing, both are easy fixes, the 3.0 will literally outlive you, but don't expect performance, they are what they are.
The 5 speeds can munch synchros if abused, but can take many bad shifts before you start damaging things. Best way to tell is to make a couple of quick shifts to see if it engages correctly.
They're not the most exciting vehicles, but they're stupid simple, that's all I have...
I have had two 2.3/5 speeds. Great on gas, mid 20s around town. Terrible transmissions. Gotta baby them which is hard given the engine only has about 12 HP. Still a fun small truck to have around.
Honestly, that looks more like a Hummer than a Ranger...
porschenut wrote: I have had two 2.3/5 speeds. Great on gas, mid 20s around town. Terrible transmissions. Gotta baby them which is hard given the engine only has about 12 HP. Still a fun small truck to have around.
What years did you have? I thought that the Mazda M50D-R1 in the later years was a fairly robust transmission...
M5OD is a great tranny. Like racinginc said, fix the leaky plugs. 90% of the ones we rebuilt were because of lack of fluid.
I would avoid the 4.0L. They have two massively long chains for the cams and they have chronic guide/tensioner issues. Replacing them really requires removing the engine. Mitchell lists it as something like an 18 hour labor time.
If yours is truly rebuilt/new, don't worry about it. You'll get 100-120k from it before they start making noise.
I have a '96 that I was given. Two years on, truck has over 300K. 3L V6, 5 speed. Odo broke, so no gas mileage figures, but it's pretty good. Interior still good, no rust, but this is about as far south as you can get. It's a truck. No excitement, just does what a little truck is supposed to do. I like it.
I will check the plugs and change fluid to see what happens. Both of mine were 94s, first one locked up in gear. Had to push it home with the clutch in. Current one just feels weak and fragile compared to my other cars.
Switch tranny fluid to synchromesh for smoother shifting
Well after talking with the guy several times he was a no show. Can't get ahold of him at all. Stupid craigslist.
That sucks.
Yeah, that does suck. They're great little (slow, but reliable) trucks. I bought a '96 2.3 5-speed with a bad headgasket but new tires for $1600. I fixed it and drove it as a daily for the next 2 or 3 years, and when the tires were looking like they were gonna need replacing, I sold it (with a cracked windshield, too) for $1200.
I couldn't help but be surprised that the Ranger was built by the same company that made my Fox body.
racinginc215 wrote: Wait forgot about the transmission. there are 3 plugs below the shift tower that leak and leave the trans dry. an hour and some RTV cures the problem. therangerstation.com is your friend.
Quoted for super-truth. Those stupid rubber plugs lunch more trannys than you can imagine. Easy enough to replaced. It will look like it's leaking fluid from the rear housing joint to the main case...but it's not. It's the stupid plugs.
The 3.0 has a solid oiling system. I hear it rarely leaks.
I have bird nested a ranger clutch, though.
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