I have a '98 b3000 that is an "extra" vehicle so it sits alot. It has a fair amount of mileage (approx 140k) but hasn't seen regular duty in years. I just use it for transporting stuff as needed, driving in snow etc..

Well, the clutch has been acting up for a year, and finally got to the point where I thought it may leave me stranded, so I brought it in to have the clutch looked at and replaced if needed. Mechanic (very honest) just bled the hell out of it, and called me and wanted me to stop by.

Basically, he pointed out the oil pan is rusted through, and already starting to leak, the brake lines are rusty as heck, and will fail, in the near term. Reading between the lines, he was saying, sinking a new clutch into this, with additional problems emminent, might not be the best course of action. He basically said maybe you'll be lucky and bleeding it is all the clutch needed (not likely in my opinion, I think the slave is toast). I replaced the clutch master at around 60k miles.

Body has just started to show rust in a few spots in the past 1-2 years also, bottom of doors, back bumber, a little on tailgate etc.. Pretty sure my left front caliper needs to be rebuilt. I rebuilt the rear drums with all new stuff (drums, cylinders springst etc...) a year or so ago, so at least that's done.

I'm just looking for opinions on this thing from guys that have pushed them along. Am I about to take a turn down a ugly rusty road? I've had some bad experiences with an older F150 and rust. I know I could deal with doing the brake lines myself, and maybe the pan (sounds a little like a hassle) but the clutch job is not something I feel I can tackle right now myself. Definitely at a crossroads with this thing.

Any other problem areas I should look for? They said the shackles seem fine. the frame itself, although awfully rusty looking, they said didn't seem too bad. If I keep maybe I'll clean and put some Chassis saver on or something. My 4x4 gets stuck if I put it in low, but after some research i think I know what it is, and can fix it pretty easily.

I actually have become quite attached to this little truck. It's got a lot of personality for what it is. Will take any advice/opinions.

 

My 2 pennies.

Get about $500 (hopefully) out of it now or be prepared to dump $1000 into it. The last 4x4 clutch (toyota) I did cost about $500-$600 and right after I had to do the slave cylinder.

The rear shackles will fail. Some do at the frame and some are the shackle mount itself.
Timing belt condition?

I got rid of my 02 Focus wagon (5sp) a little while ago. Bought for $1600 and ended up putting over $1000 into it I did not plan to before I got rid of it (a year later) needing at least another $700 worth of work done to it. Ironically a clutch was not needed at all.

But ultimately it is up to you. I did not want to part with the wagon but I sold it for $600 and my plow truck for $600. Wanted at least $2000 from both to get a new plow rig. Now I am stuck plowless but less money is coming out of the wallet every month.

 

I feel your agony. Until recently I had a 91, 4 cyl, manual transmission Ranger. In the past year I put new tires on it, replaced the 8 spark plusg and wires, and, most recently, paid over $400 to completely rebuild the rear antilock brake system. I suspected the tranmission was losing a synchronizer. I loved driving the truck with the 5 speed. It just turned 100K miles. The engine was running better than it had during the 7 years I owned it.

What to do??? - the same question you are facing. After thinking about it for a while and looking at alternatives, I decided to get rid of it. The key question is: at what point is this thing going to nickle and dime me to death. Of course, I wished I had come to this decision before the ABS system died for me.

I replaced the 91 Ranger with a 2008 Ranger - see the description below. The more I drive this new to me truck, the better I feel about the decision. Since it is a Ford Certified vehicle, I have some warranry time on it in case some problem should pop up during the next two years.

I was attached to my 91, but I am quickly becoming as attached to its replacement.

The choice is yours, but this is how I solved the dilema.

 

Thanks guys. Thinking parting with it is the smart decision.

I used epoxy on the oil pan leak for now. Not sure if it will hold, but even if it does, I'm sure it'll leak somewhere else before too long. Just reading the procedures for changing the pan, and man it seems like a hassle.