I just purchased a '97 5-speed manual Ranger with the basic instrument package, but I'd really like to replace it with the uprated one that has a tachometer. Provided I can find one, is this an easy swap? Or will I need a completely different wiring harness and/or connectors? Anyone?

 

i believe it's a pretty straightforward swap. if the tach is all you want though, it might be easier to just by aftermarket and hook it up-only need to connect 4 wires and presto!

lc

 

Thanks for the quick reply. My only objection to an aftermarket tach (other than the mismatched looks of the thing) is that there's really no good place to install one, from what I can see. Of course, this may prove easier than finding a reasonably priced gauge pod from a wrecked Ranger or Explorer that I can use for the swap.

 

I believe on the newer Rangers, the 4x4's are the only ones that came with tach. You can go to salvage yard and get the dash from the exployer of the same year and swap it out. Most exployers had the tach. You have to take the dash from a vehicle that has the same engine. 4 cylinder to 4 cylinder, 6 to 6. Also remove the speedo cable. I have heard you have to use the cable from the doner car.

 

Well, I located a suitable donor from an Explorer of the same year, but I understand that no Explorers were four cylinder like my Ranger is, so it looks like I may run into some problems. Crud. Why does the donor pod have to be a match regarding cylinders? Something to do with the tach calibration? And, can that calibration be adjusted or modified in some way to accomodate my four cylinder engine? Also, why would I need to use a different speedometer cable? Wouldn't they be the same length, fit, etc? I sure hope I don't have to turn around and re-sell the gauge pod that I've already paid for that's being shipped to me!

 

Yes, the tachs are calibrated for 4 or 6 or 8. If you buy an aftermarket tach there is a switch on the back and you can change it from 4, 6, 8. The tachs that come from the factory do not have that. I believe the reason for using the donar cable is because the connector is differnt. I am only guessing on that one.

 

I'm not exactly sure of this, but I don't believe that the clusters have to be from the same engine types. The tach measures a pulse given by a sensor on the motor that tells the tach when one full revolution has completed. So therefore, one revolution on a four cyl would still be one revolution on a V8, regardless of how many cylinders there are. If your vehicle didn't come with the option of having a tach though, you might be pressed to find a location to hook the tach up to. Just my $.02.

Matt

 

The instrument cluster with tach was an upgrade option when the truck was new and according to my local Ford service manager, all the necessary connections are already built into the wiring harness, so it's just a matter of identifying that part and plugging in, I believe. I'll be sure to let everyone here know how it goes. Thanks for all the feedback.

 

My Ranger is a 97 with the 4 cyl. I took the instrument gauges out of a 99 Explorer with an 8 cyl. It does'nt matter if the engine size is the same or not it's all run by the computer anyway. I did mine a year ago. Zero problems so far. Your truck is already wired fir the tach and everything, so all you do is unplug yours and pug in the new one. That's all there is to it.

 

This is excellent news! Thanks! I received my "donor" instrument pod last week and it appears to be in excellent condition with 38k on the clock. I need to figure out how to ratchet up the mileage on the odometer, though, because my actual vehicle mileage is 50k and I do NOT want to violate federal law by "rolling back" my odometer. It's tempting to leave it alone, I know, but morally, I just can't justify doing that sort of thing. I wouldn't feel right about it even if it wasn't against the law. If anyone can offer me suggestions on adjusting the numbers UP, I'd appreciate it. Otherwise, I'll probably attempt to simply swap my current speedo with the donor speedo. That might be the easiest way to go about it, regardless, though I would prefer not to completely disassemble the pod assembly if I can get away with it.

I DO have just a couple of additional questions, please. Looking at the back side of the donor pod, I can't for the life of me figure out where the speedometer cable attaches!! All I see directly behind the speedo is a small little hole where I suppose the cable itself could plug into, but there doesn't appear to be anything else there for the cable housing to attach to to prevent the cable from falling out. What am I missing here? I can't seem to find the answer in my Haynes manual.

Also, is it really necessary to pull the radio and steering wheel to remove the instrument cluster? The steering wheel (or at least the shroud) I can understand. That makes sense, but why the radio?? My Haynes manual isn't very clear about this.

TIA

Jeff

 

Hi folks, got the job done today -- and the new gauge pod works like a champ. I was able to answer at least one of my own questions above. Wherever the speedometer cable attaches, it isn't to the gauge cluster itself -- at least not on the '97 models. It's all electronic, I guess.

There were just three wire clusters to remove and replace on the back, and all the instruments seem to be reading just fine, including my new tachometer! Hooray! The gas gauge seems a little different to me... When I pulled the old pod, I thought I had between a quarter and a half a tank left -- now it's reading a flat 1/4. I have no problem with that. If it's going to err, better that it's showing too little fuel left than too much, I suppose. I was able to swap my original speedo for the new speedo, so the mileage is accurate. All done -- and very pleased. I took the opportunity to replace the burnt out light indicators on the dash while I was at it.