The Danger Ranger ?

In a bit of anti social behavior, at least for this forum, I bought a vehicle and started fixing it before posting something to the effect of

"I fell off the wagon, again."

The Danger Ranger, so named in a discussion with Accordianfolder last night, earned its name today. More about that later.

Danger is a 1995 Ford Ranger that I pulled out of a field a few weeks ago. I stole it for the princely sum of $450. It had 4 newish tires, a crunched driver side and a popped timing belt. Oddly I had another Ford, a Courier, in Alaska that popped the timing belt, it was a light blue long bed, had a topper and was my mobile tent / campmobile. Accordianfolder may not remember it as he was very young, like 3 or 4.

Ok, back on topic. I am going to document Danger here in its own thread. I'll start from the beginning adding additional images. It may take me a few days please be patient.

Cruising CL for cheap thrills I find this gem.

Hooking up for one of my trademarked sketchy flat tows...

70 miles home with a light touch on the throttle and brakes because I was not really happy with the frame attachment. But made it home without an incident.

Some things I found that I liked, first I found it has a shorty header on it.

When I was ordering parts I found out it has 10 inch rear brakes instead of 9 inch. From what I read the single cab short bed should have the 9 inch.

Cleaning is up next.

I pulled the seats.

Pyro hosed them down with soap and a pressure washer.

I also pulled the carpet and cleaned it.

I ordered a timing set from RockAuto, it came with the seals and from the oil coating on the engine, it needed them.

I didn't have the right size thing to press the seals in so I printed one. 3d printers are really cool and surprisingly useful. Its not the first tool I have made.

Its hard to see but the yellow arrow points to the seal press thingy I made.

After 3 tries to get the marks lined up I found that Danger would not start. The solenoid on the starter was broken.

Im pretty sure that cable should be attached... RockAuto to the rescue!

Once that came in, it would start, and on 2 year old gas! It turned over about 2 times and fired.

But, hmmm, you know how "But" wipes out everything that came before that?

BUT! I had to short the solenoid to spin the starter. The solenoid on the fender is bad.

RockAuto, again, to the rescue. And since I was ordering I got happy. The, uh, pile....

Has grown as the parts come in from various warehouses.

I decided not to get the brake hoses.

The first part of getting the "Danger Ranger" name was Pyro's first drive. I had put the carpet back in and mounted the seats. I threw the shifter boot and knob on, but its a glue on. Pyro takes off and the knob comes off as she pulls up slightly as she shifts. We started laughing, which didn't help, she hits the blacktop and keeps going as we fuss with the shifter. 4th gear and rolling smooth. She pulls over and we switch. First thing I do? From first to second the knob comes off. More laughter as I hand it to her. We get home fine and park it. I still need the solenoid on the fender.

Yesterday I got the solenoid on and it starts with the key now.

Guess where the "Danger" part comes in today?

I'm cleaning the carbon out of the engine and finding out why the ac doesn't work and drive up the hill to blow the cleaner and carbon out.

Yes up hill, the brakes are getting soft, and I don't notice because I am having brown outs on the electrical. Like the blower and speedo shutdown.

I'm trying to get turned around and back in the drive before it dies, but even though the electrical is getting whacked out, the engine is running pretty good. Then it backfires every time I touch the throttle. the entire time I am using the brakes but dismiss the brake warning light because every other light is occasionally coming on.

Its a good thing its a standard, not auto. I get it slowed down and in the drive when I notice how soft the pedal has gotten. Hmmm, there's a warning light on and the electrical has stopped freaking out, maybe I should look at it? Crap why don't I have brakes? OH!

I get it parked and look up under it thinking I had blown a wheel cylinder. Nope, its the rubber hose. So I will shortly order those, front and rear, once I find out if there is anything else I need.

Last night I talked to Accordianfolder and he said "Danger Ranger" which stuck in my head. So Danger it is.

I ordered the brake hoses, front and rear, front bearings and seals since I already have new rotors. That was another $69, with shipping, from RockAuto.

I took everything out of the boxes and lined it up to get started replacing stuff . I sprayed most of the threads with PB Blaster a few days ago. Right now I am hiding from the heat.

One of the headlights rattled, when I took it out the reflector was loose inside of it (manufacturing defect). RockAuto made the return simple and the new one is on the way already.

Ok, I think the thread is now up to date so I can go silent for the next 3 months.

I love Rangers, what is the plan for this one? DD beater, restore it?

FYI, that exhaust manifold is OE.  

You can put in an explorer gauge cluster to get a tachometer.  If you're interested in one, I'll send you one at shipping cost.

I can confirm that my 97 Ranger had the same exhaust manifold.

Ah. I had a 99 Ranger with the 3.0. At that time - say around 00 I had the fastest NA Ranger with a 3.0 - ran a blistering 15.954 @ 84.  Damn thing blew tires off.  Then they came out with headers and a short shifter and better tunes. For a while though it was a beast (lol at the time). Had nitrous but never ran it at the track with it.  Lots of little things. 5.0 TB, ported this and ported that.  Fun truck.

To lead me to say this.  

To have that truck and not slap a TURBO on it, would be a crime.  

bonylad said:

Ah. I had a 99 Ranger with the 3.0. At that time - say around 00 I had the fastest NA Ranger with a 3.0 - ran a blistering 15.954 @ 84.  Damn thing blew tires off.  Then they came out with headers and a short shifter and better tunes. For a while though it was a beast (lol at the time). Had nitrous but never ran it at the track with it.  Lots of little things. 5.0 TB, ported this and ported that.  Fun truck.

To lead me to say this.  

To have that truck and not slap a TURBO on it, would be a crime.  

 

 

Ecoboost swap is a good option and has been done before.  

In reply to jmabarone :

At the time. Ecoboost wasnt a thing. IIRC they came out with the 2.3 DOHC around this time but it was NA.

bonylad said:

In reply to jmabarone :

At the time. Ecoboost wasnt a thing. IIRC they came out with the 2.3 DOHC around this time but it was NA.

Oh, I know.  SVO/Turbocoupe swap was something I was looking at.  Now the concept is a Duratec swap from a later Ranger with cams from a Fusion or Escape.  Less weight and MORE POWER!!!!! 

jmabarone said:

FYI, that exhaust manifold is OE.  

You can put in an explorer gauge cluster to get a tachometer.  If you're interested in one, I'll send you one at shipping cost.

No wonder I couldn't find anything like it in the aftermarket! I did some research on the 2.3 but I didn't find anything on the header / exhaust manifold.

Yes to the gauge cluster. I'll PM you.

And to all sorry for the silence, my work /life /friends / schedule this week has left me staring at a pile of Rock Auto boxes but unable to do anything with the truck!

Sunday I helped a friend buy his first 3D printer, set it up, print etc. It was an all day thing due to distance, eating out, etc. An interesting side note, I got some glow in the dark filament while we were shopping for his. Anybody remember Pac Man?

Dr Mike CSI - Daily driver for now. I did just find an red 96 with very a straight nice looking body.

So I might have to look at that. They don't have great pics, but from what I can tell its in decent shape.

$1200 and the text from the ad:

"96 ranger I bought in Oregon about a year and half ago. Frame has little rust, new radiator, new back wheel brakes, clutch is 2 years old. Full disclaimer- engine is shot, ran too much when overheated, so will need a replacement motor. Looking for someone who likes to fix up cars (new motor is $2500). I’m the third owner and the entire service record is on Carfax.com"

Well its almost 3 am. I need to get some sleep.

I approve.

As others said, header is OEM. Any of the "ocean wave" dashes you can swap clusters without difficulty. 10" drums typically were on v6's with an 8.8. Check to see if the cover is a football or square. If you want, Aerostar drums are 10" but are ribbed like the normal 9" drums. I'd double check the motor mounts as they are a hydraulic mount that loves to separate as it has no metallic connection between the mounting studs.

Rear SN95 Mustang brakes are a bolt on for the 7.5 with only a little bit of work:
Ford Ranger / Bronco II Rear Disc Brake Conversion - The Ranger Station

You can also install Explorer Sport Trac front disks and make a bracket to space out the caliper.

Sport Trac 12-Inch Rotor Upgrade For 2WD Ford Ranger - The Ranger Station 

jmabarone said:

You can also install Explorer Sport Trac front disks and make a bracket to space out the caliper.

Sport Trac 12-Inch Rotor Upgrade For 2WD Ford Ranger - The Ranger Station 

Woah, I didn't realize my brackets made it into the TRS archives after RPS went down. That's pretty badass.

In reply to jmabarone :

I have a friend with a turbo first gen Ranger.  He enjoys it.

In reply to Bent-Valve :

So some people mentioned turbo-ing the 2.3 so I gotta put it out there that I have a set of turbo pistons/rods and the good turbo exhaust manifold (E7 if i remember right?) that are sitting in my garage waiting to be sold

I really wish I had read your posts before I ordered parts.

I could'a had 12 inch rotors!

But life marches on, so I got part of my pile installed today. And reading those posts I saw some nice clean parts, painted and installed. I need this truck functional so the pretty will have to wait.

Part way through the first side, I destroyed the dust cap getting it off and the cotter pin was in 2 pieces. So this is where I started this morning.

The clip that held the old brake hose took the longest. That thing was tough to remove for some reason.

Both sides got new shocks, rotors, inner and outer bearings, cotter pins, seals, lines, and pads. I also got the new fuel filter in.

And I was working in a nice shady place. I put the new headlights in and it looks so much better. I still have to adjust them.

At least until about 12 or 1. It got hot so I cleaned up. I had gotten to the rear end by that time and its flipped around and jacked up. I found that it was the hard line that blew. I have the rubber line installed and went and got what I needed to fix the hard line, and diner. Once I fix that I'll start on the drums, shoes and new hardware. Then bleeding the mess. I did a gravity bleed on the front to assist in getting fluid flushed.

I am going to have to cut the lower shock bolts on the rear, uppers are off.

To answer the question of the ultimate fate of the Ranger. For now a daily, as quick as I can get it safely on the road. I need something to tow more Rangers home with. Speaking of which ...

I cut some angle iron to length, cut some plates for the frame horns and drilled holes to fit 93 - 97 and maybe other years of Rangers. I plan to drag a few more home. I still need a few nuts, washers and bolts to complete the tow rig.

OK, back to ultimate destination. Lots of truck stuff hauling crap, and daily duties? If I follow through with my day dreams, a bigger motor of some flavor (?) Possibly a 4wd with solid front axle maybe. Or a pre runner flavored build? Who the heck knows? Mostly just fun stuff.

I saw this Cummins dropped into a Jeep. Its 2.8 litres and 300 lbs lighter than a Cummins 4BT coming in at around 500 lbs. 160 HP and 310 torques! Should a $450 truck have a $8500 engine? Add a turbo 400 and a np205, a couple of good axles, and you have my wackiest daydream.

Lucky for me it is out of stock like everything else these days. 

The other direction includes the 12 inch brakes, and rear disc conversion, some 16 inch pre 2002 Panther rims. A mild turbo setup, about 5 psi to keep things simple. Query Accordianfolder for details, he put that thought in my head. Voice of reason, he is.

Oh and Danger just doesn't roll off the tongue, we have discarded Danny, Bob, and tossed around Buck and Bud.

I guess we will have to drive it for a while to find the right name.

Got the back brakes done.

There is something deeply satisfying about completing drum brakes without bleeding. Heck I'd change to disc but I'd miss that feeling.

Ok, so maybe I'd change to discs just to miss the frustration that can sometimes come with drums.

The screwdriver? Well it serves 2 purposes in the picture. I realized I have used that screwdriver on a lot of springs changing shoes and its hiding a nick in the face of the axle. I had to literally cut the drum off this side. I had clamps and a bar pulling on it until it was dish shaped, I had pounded on it with a sledge hammer, breaking bits off the edge. I finally cut right at the hub and it released rather violently.

I found the bad connection / chewed wire. It is also a bit embarrassing.

I had loosened a ground because it was in the way when I was changing the relay and had not tightened it up when I put the relay back in.

I still didn't have ac so I traced that, I'll work on it tomorrow if it stops raining.

Gratuitous shot of Ziggy supervising the chaos ... It also caught the drums condition.

Ziggy showed up during a Miata thing ... He was roughly 4 to 6 weeks old, way to young and on his own.

He has seen several hair brained ideas over the years, hence the bored look. Mostly his waiting to see if I bleed, again.

No pics but I adjusted the headlights, bedded the brakes, wait, I bedded the brakes in daylight, so no I wasn't driving around blind hitting the brakes. And before those i aired up the tires to proper pressure and torqued the lug nuts.

Right now I have a truck ready to go get inspected with new wipers, headlights, starter, shocks, brakes, timing set, bearings, seals, etc for the princely sum of ....

$1226!

And that includes the price of the truck.

So with $773 dollars how could I make it faster? if I run close I am saving the old headlights, that's an extra $50!

So I have looked at this:

I found a youtube where they installed it on a car and the waste gate was crap. I will go back and see what they used to solve that issue. That kit and I will have about $200 to finish the install. So welding or anything like that will be on a tight budget! Not to mention its August, so I have to get moving if I am going to bring it this year.

I have collected a bunch of free metal pieces from trash so brackets are maybe $0.

Some things to keep in mind.

1) I have never had or tuned a turbo anything*. In fact I have only driven a handful of supercharged cars, BTW, Accordianfolder the Exocet with the supercharger was a blast, I still think about that ride. I hope the neighbors didn't say anything. Sorry I got carried away ...

2) I am looking at around 5 psi and hoping the stock internals will live for a little while. It does have 195k miles on it. So a rebuild is in the cards. BUT I can't do the Challenge if I rebuild it and keep it in the "I drove it here and its under $2000" and "I boosted the power a little" goals I have set for myself.

3) I have no clue on what the ecu will do. It may just throw up its hands and puke. I have no way to get mine programed on my budget. Larger injectors and a pump might fit in the budget?

Suggestions / speculation / advice are encouraged.

*I mostly had "no replacement for displacement" cars. A 455 / 4 speed 68 Firebird, a built 400 / powerglide 67 Firebird etc.

I haven't forgot about your instrument cluster...sitting in my truck, trying to get it sent via work's UPS account to save $$$.

@jmabarone - no worries mate! -- Yeah, I know my accent is horrible.

As I drifted off to sleep I realized that I had dumped everything into the total but some brake parts used to be exempt.

I'll check the rules later today but a rough figure for Challenge purposes is that I have $1100 to get the engine turbo'ed which might actually work.

This morning I am trying to get an inspection, and some more sleep before my shift tonight. Also talk to Pyro aand see if this (Challenge idea) will work, some of our other travel plans got moved around.

All these shiny tools:

What is bad is the threads are messed up on the pull cylinder I was going to use.

One serious dent, backing plate and an attachment, a chain, nothing to pull with:

So I go medieval on it, instead of using the tractor for an anchor, I just use those hydraulics:

And fail to remove the dent.

I guess I'ma gonna have to chain the truck to a tree instead of pulling it all over the parking lot. Then pull on the dent.

I did get the bed pulled out closer to normal. Thats those big holes, a 1/2 bolt and backing plate to move the whole panel out a bit.

I just got the extra set of pull cylinders today. One of the threads is messed up on the big cylinder so I will take it back tomorrow and see if they will exchange it.

Bent-Valve said:

The other direction includes the 12 inch brakes, and rear disc conversion, some 16 inch pre 2002 Panther rims. A mild turbo setup, about 5 psi to keep things simple. Query Accordianfolder for details, he put that thought in my head. Voice of reason, he is.

Add 10 more psi with some drop beams and an axle flip; shake vigorously. The result will be very similar to my old '93(which I used to develop the 12" brake kit). I'm on my 8th Ranger. Of the six I no longer own, the '93 is the most missed.