Ok, after a year of trying to get my brother's Ranger down here, it is now official. I will not be getting it. Several reasons for that. One, he needs the money now more than he needs a second computer (I was going to give him my laptop in exchange) and two, he says it does not have power steering, and no leg room (my right leg does not bend more than 60 degrees, so I have to have a certain amount of leg room in order to operate the pedals)

I have sat in a late 80's Ranger, and had no problem getting to the gas and brake pedal, so I am not worried about that aspect. I was a bit worried about driving it 641 miles after it had been sitting for two years without starting it up every now and then. And I was also a bit concerned about the DMV fees since he has never registered it in Oregon.

So, that one is gone. He will sell it up there locally and get some much needed money. His wife has several medical problems, and the bills never stop coming in.

In comes this '85 4x4 Ranger which the So-Cal chapter President just happens to have sitting in his driveway which he wants to get rid of. He says it to has been sitting for quite some time (6-7 years give or take) however, he starts it up once a month, and has a certificate of non-op on it.

He bought it brand new in Jan of '85, and it has 126,000 miles on it. Everything works, (including the heater!) but it needs tires, and possibly a battery. He states the battery still starts the truck, however it is 8 years old.

I will fly down there in March to pay for it, and he has offered to tow it back up here since he says the tires would not make the 250 mile trip, and with the expired tags, I might attract too much of the wrong attention.

The body is straight but the interior is trashed. I figure once I get it up here, I will peruse the local bone yards and scrounge up what I need to get it going. I am wondering about installing air conditioning in it. It does not have AC, and the summer months are too hot here without it. Has anyone ever installed AC on a vehicle that did not originally come with one? I have checked a little on the internet and found a place that sells a complete aftermarket AC kit for $750. That might be the better way to go since everything will be included, and it will be brand new.

This is going to be my long term project vehicle, but also one I hope to take on camping, and 4x4 trips. Not too mention any upcoming chapter meets.

 

Hey Jim,
You can get a one or two day DMV pass for that truck if you decide to drive it. I think they are free, and that way you wouldn't have to worry about the tow. The only thing would be the tires, if you have the cash to pay for a set, it might be worth it to slap on some new shoes and drive her up home.

Congrats on your new truck! Sounds like you found what you were needing. I'm happy for you. It seems that with patience, eventually things have a way of working themselves out, most of the time. It'll be nice to get back in the driver's seat, after the last tragety with your old 76.

 

I had thought about that. Getting some tires for it. However, I have only seen 3 pictures of it (they are in my gallery now) and don't know if anything else needs immediate attention too. And if the 8 year old battery decides to strand me in Bakersfield I would be up a creek. No, I think I will pay his fuel bill, and rent the U-haul trailer. Once up here, if it strands me, I will be a short bus ride away.

This one and my brother's are essentially the same with the exception of the 4x4 and power steering (even have the same gold wheels). It is the 4x4 that does it for me though. I have wanted another 4x4 ever since my Cherokee. I never got a chance to take that Cherokee anywhere. I did have a S10 Blazer that a previous owner had LOWERED (!?!) and removed the front drive shaft from. (I will never understand the reasoning for that), that I took through Miller's Canyon once (before I found out the driveshaft was missing!!)

I don't know how well the little 2.3 will do as a 4x4, but I am sure I will still have fun in it. Best of all, it is a Ford truck. If it is built half as well as the F-250 I had, it will last a good long time.

This one has a fiberglass camper top on it, however, I have been thinking of possibly buying one of those Jayco pop top camper trailers. It would have to be a small one since the 2.3 is down on torque, but it should still work out just fine for fair weather camping.

 

I bet the Ranger with the 2.3 might get better fuel mileage than the F250. Has it been smogged lately?

 

I'd want to make sure it ran well/drove well/etc, before I'd commit to buying it...better to put in a few hundred now while the truck is in LA, rather than a few grand later.

 

Ya think? I am betting it will get 3 times the fuel mileage of the F250. After putting the camper on it, the F250 went down to 8 mpg. I expect to get 24 out of this one. As for smog, no, it has not been smogged lately. With a Non Op on it, it doesn't need to be smogged. Of course it will need smog in order for me to register it. However, that will not happen until I get it up here. Most likely, I will just pay for a title transfer, and a Non-Op in my name until I get it up and running.

Steve says there is an issue with the EGR valve sticking or not working or something, so I will have to look into that, and he says the interior is trashed. So I will be looking for seats too. I plan on putting used tires on it until I can recover financially from the purchase, then I plan on buying BFG All Terrain KO's. This will be a work in progress. I have quite a few plans for it already, but will need to wait for the funds. Basically a long term project, that I can add to over time and make better.

 

Good advice, and I will be checking it out thoroughly when I get down there, but honestly, I don't think there will be any problems. If there are, I can always say no to the sale. It looks to be in good shape, based on the pictures, but I know that looks can be deceiving. I will run it, and drive it up and down the block or around the block or something before commiting to it.

 

A stick 2.3 Ranger of that vintage with stock gears I'd expect to get 22mpg with the top on and in top running condition. Remember it's a 4x4 and that little motor does labor a bit. You'd limitted to 1500lbs trailer imo. If you regeared her with 4.11's and slightly larger tires....say 29.5 x 9.5 x 15 you might be able to pull 2000lbs with the top on and a couple hundered pounds in the bed or top off and 4-5 hundered pounds in the bed max.

I loved my 2.3 stick. If it's a auto you could pull a little more weight but, the performance is going to be pretty poor for towing imo. They just didn't make good autos for those years imo.

Here's my '92 with 31's and 4.11's. I couldn't pull more than 1500lbs for very long.
It was a 2WD and you can tow more with those.



Man, I miss that truck. She was fun on dunes. The F100 I have reminds me a lot of it and has a bit more power. ;-) And of course only gets 16-17mpg at the best with the 2.73's.

 

Dang, I doubt I could I could get 16-17 mpg even if I was coasting down the hill with the engine OFF. I think it goes against the laws of physics to move that on its wheels without getting any better than 10.5 mpg. The only time I got better than that was when Dan towed it from Elko to Vallejo. That time it got great mileage. Dan only got 9-10 mpg.

 

Are you sure that is a '92? Looks like a '93-up to me. The '89-92 style is my personal fave, and one thing I plan on doing to this '85 is to put a '92 front clip on it.

This one is a 5 speed manual trans and I am told it has 3.73 gears. a bit tall for the 2.3 I know, but I can always change them. One of the upgrades planned for this one is a Detroit Locker. When that is installed, I will put 4.10's in it. I plan on putting BFG's on it, but was going to go with 215-75x15's. I guess I could up that to the 29.5-9.5x15's after the 4.10's are installed. The main reason for going with the pop top style of camper trailer is the low weight. I would get the smallest one I feel comfortable in, and just take it easy.

The ideal Ranger for me would have been a '89-92 4x4 with the 4.0 V6 and 5spd manual trans. However, this one is a low mileage, one owner, and it was cheap enough to make it attractiveso I can get it.

I will keep my eyes open for a '88 Turbo Coupe, and when one comes along that I can afford, I'll buy it and swap out the engine, turbo, intercooler, and computer. That will be down the road a piece, as I have other plans for it in the immediate future. Main priority will be tires, battery, and replacing all the fluids, and filters, and the serpentine belt. Then concentrate on the interior. I know the turbo motor is more comfortable at the higher RPM range, but then, what 4 cylinder isn't? An extra 50-75hp will come in handy.

I will continue to use the Buick as my daily driver, and this one will be parked most the time until I have it ready to go. I have not done much four wheeling, but considering where I live, I would imagine most of it will be trail riding in the local mountains. When the So-Cal chapter has one of their desert GTG's I would take it down there for that too.

Since this will be my fun in the sun, camping, 4 wheeling, maybe take it to work a day or two a week truck, I think the 2.3 will be more than enough for me. Even when I did go four wheeling in the past it was nothing extreme. It was very conservative by most 4x4's standards. The V6 would be nice for sure, but I am sure I can still enjoy the 2.3.

 

Wow - Your right. I had to look it up. I guess I had a '93 Ranger and then a '93 Jeep. I thought it was a '92 Ranger and a '93 Jeep. It must have been one of those late '92 purchases and early '94 purchase on a old model Jeep. The reason I say that is because I bought both new and had the Ranger for more than a year. I thought two. Gosh, maybe I wasn't as happy with that as I thought now. lol ;-(

And yes, you will enjoy the 2.3 especially if your going to do the gear swap. That's a major difference in that truck with that motor imo. ;-)

Personally, I would put a 2.3 turbo in anything. I had one in a '84 Mustang and it was OK. But, it burned a lot of oil and sucked gas imo. 5.0V8 gets better gas mileage than mine did. It was fast. But, for towing with it..... I'm not getting a warm fuzzy. That turbo without intercooler and room really gets hot off those years. Then think about the smog....headache city I would think.

I'd say wait for a good deal on a 4.0 .... even 3.0 would be better if your planning on doing that upgrade or towing anything more than 1500lbs. It's not a tow vehicle really. I think that is one of the reasons I bought the JEEP to tow my sailboat at the time and race car.

 

Right now, I think with the carb / exhaust leaks .... I'm at 12-13mpg.
Funny thing truck was working great yesterday. Today, idle all over the map etc... Think I'll try that carb now. Either the exhaust leaks have made the mixture unmanageable or, that carb is real toast now. We'll see. Wed / Thurs looks like a good day to fix this whole mess. ;-)

 

night Aj is right the ranger is not a good towing truck way under powered for that kind of work but they do run great and forever i love my 99 ranger. It zips in and out of traffic good Lil truck i think you will like The Ranger. and if not just sell it buy bigger the V6 Rangers get worse mpg then a (mid size / full size f150 with the V8) though just some food for thought.
Earl W.

 

I am aware that the 2.3 Ranger is not going to be a good towing vehicle. And with that in mind, I have decided against that 40 foot triple axle 5th wheel I had my eye on.

Seriously though, the trailer I am looking at is well within the capabilities of the truck. Sure it will not win any drag races (or any other kind of race) with the trailer attached, however, it will allow us to go camping, and four wheeling, and still be able to get decent gas mileage in the bargain. Even if I never put the turbo motor in it.

For the time being, if we do go camping, it will be just the Ranger, packed with the tent, sleeping bags, stove, etc in the bed. The trailer will come down the road sometime, if ever. May find a decent V6 of the '92 variety before I get the trailer.

 

Yep, Pop owns a '92 I guess with a shell on it and a 3.0 FLEX auto.



I really can't see towing much more than 2000lbs with that. But, really nice with the rear seating. I'm 6' and can sit in there for short trips around town OK.



I love those seats. You just have to make sure no one tries to open the compartment door before you have gotten up off of the seat though. Lol !!!

The only reason I'm giving you so much info is because I don't want you to be unhappy down the road with your purchase. Really, if you plan on towing I wouldn't go this way. If your not and plan on camping in the back with the shell on.... It a great idea. A four cylinder toyota tows much better than these smaller FORD do..... Really.