I was driving home from work yesterday and I saw a 93-97 Ford Ranger SuperCab on the side of the road for sale. I went back today and checked it out. It's a nice rig. It has the 3.0L, 5 speed manual transmission, 8.8" rear end, custom 15" alloy rims, etc. etc. There are some hail dents on the hood, but I think that they'll come out. It turned out to be a 1994. I drove it down the road and man, it was a blast!! So much better than my measley 2.3L. It was amazing!! It has 88,500 miles on it and he's asking $2,995. I tried talking him down, but he wouldn't budge. The tires and brakes are also brand new. The engine and all is very clean and ready for the long haul.

I called the finance company to request a loan for it and they're going to process it Monday. Hopefully I'm approved. It've tried the full-size truck route with my current F-150, and I can't afford to put gas in it. I still have my 1992 Ranger, but she'll be leaving as soon as I get this truck.

Let me know if I'm doing the right thing. I've checked it out really well and everything's fine. No problems whatsoever. It could use a good cleaning up and waxing, but other than that, it's 10 years old and it isn't perfect.

BTW, is the 5 speed transmission the M5OD? I'm thinking that it is because it looks identical to the one in my 1992 Ranger.

What were the horsepower and torque specs for the 1994 3.0L engine?

Wish me luck.

Nightrain

 

It sounds almost too good to be true. I payed $4k for my 98 with 85k miles. If everything looks good go for it. You'll get a little fed up with the 3.0 engine lacking a bit of power, but they make more upgrades for it than the 2.3L. Yes, the 5 speed manual is the M5OD. The only time that changes is when you get a 4.0L, then it's the M5OD something else...same tranny just beefed up to handle the extra power. The 3.0L puts out 140-147 HP and 162-170 ft/lbs torque.

 

Nope, it's true . Yeah, there are quite a few upgrades. If I get it, I'm going to start out with the Diablo chip and then maybe a set of headers. I would really like to put on one of those Whipple Superchargers, but they only make them for newer 3.0L's.

BTW, those specs are better than the 2.3L's. I think that they have like 100hp and 135 ft/lbs or so. Pretty weak, but this 3.0L will get up and go!!

Nightrain

 

I called the seller back yesterday and asked him to hold the truck until I heard from those loans on Monday. He agreed, and said that he would be glad to hold it. He's a good 'ol guy who's had a lot of trauma in the past few years of his life. He's easy to get along with though. I should hear something tomorrow on those loan(s). If for some odd reason I'm turned down on two of them that I applied for, I'm going to the bank. I'm pretty sure that I can get one from them with no trouble. My credit is good, I just worry about these things. I want that truck soooooooooooooooooooooo bad .

When I test drove it yesterday, we probably drove a total of 5 miles. All of the gauges read fine. The needle on got temp gauge only got 1/4 of the way over on our drive. That's right where it should be. The speedometer read fine, and it didn't even do that "bobble" thing that I notice a lot of 5 speed Rangers do.

Wish me luck.

Nightrain

 

my dad just sold a 1998 ranger, same thigns as that but it had stock wheels. He sold it for 3,000 had 110xxx miles on it. ran like a champ, but i didn't feel where it was much more powerful than anything else, but at the time i was driving a 4.0 ..

 

Good luck with the purchase. I think hp was 140 on the 3.0.

You'll definitely save $$$ in gas with the Ranger. I do miss my F-150, but luckily, sold it to my dad. So whenever I feel the itch to drive or want to spend $50 worth in gas, I'll just borrow it from him. I do miss the torque of the 4.9 litre though...

 

lol @ Bimmer ese.

Yeah, my dad's putting in for my F-150, so I'll probably sell it to him. I just hope that everything turns up good tomorrow.

I'll get ya'll up to speed as soon as I hear something .

Nightrain

 

Good luck with the purchase, the 3.0 is a little tank of a motor. If it has recieved even the required minimum of maintenence it should have lots of life left. If its a 4x2 you can expect up to 24 mpg on the highway which should save you some $$$ in gas over the F150.