Hi all. I recently picked up a 99 4wd 4.0 ranger. I've put about 1000 miles on it and it started running badly and tapping. I took it to a buddys shop and he confirmed I have a cracked head. I've read that this is a common problem with these trucks. I've considered a remanned motor as this one has 260k on it but I can't justify $2000+ for just a motor then labor to put it in. I've seen a few in the junkyards but not sure what is be getting there either. My question is is there a more reliable motor maybe built a different year that I could put in it. Maybe just a long block from a different year with my intake and all. Any suggestions?

 

My suggestion is that you get a rebuilt long block. Or if you like Ford like I like Ford, you could go down to the Blue Oval and ask for a part 6007 (about 3 grand).
The justification is that you will get another 260k miles on the truck.
That's a little more than a penny a mile, so that's cheap, right?

 

There are some things to consider, compatibility-wise. A good read on the subject:

Rebuilding The Ford 4.0L Pushrod V6 - Engine Builder Magazine