hey just picked up an 85 bii and I have been informed that there are some conversions i can do for some extra lift/width/power. This truck is my beater but I wouldn't be opposed to picking up a wrecked explorer if I come across one somewhere, do you guys have any experience with what will work or maybe can point me in the right directions as in sites/magazines/books

 

i know not of any books or mags but i know that yes its is definately possible and surprisingly easy i herd a guy did it in 5 hours with the engine running 1st time you can convert any bronco II but ones with manual trans and efi are easest i wouldnt spend alot of time looking for an explorer that is manual if you prefer that trans cuase face it manual explorers are very rare period but if you could find a 4.0 ranger thats even easier being that they are not rare at all there prolly more manual then auto rangers you will need to get pics of the engine compart of the donor car your taking the motor from (only if you dont have full time accese to it)you most take the exuast ecu (engine control unit) wireing harness ( for engine function only for lights and charging system use the one in your bronoc already) and anything else in your bronco you dont think will work with the new 4.0 remember label ALL wires ive herd this makes it all the easier if your b II has a good tranny in it you dont need to worrie about that cuase it fits right to the tranny good luck im doing the same once my 2.9 go's out and the way its looking i want need to that soon

 

one more thing since yours is an 85 youll need to grab the fuel system of the donor car by all means ive heard you need the gas tank too with the high pressure lines and high pressure pump the carb pump dosent generat nearly enough pressure to power an efi engine which is what the 4.0 is

 

It's almost easier to run a carburated 5.0 in an 85 BII then a 4.0l. The 4.0 will need everything! Engine, ALL wiring, computer, fuel system and then you'll have a decent amount of splicing to do to. The 4.0 will bolt up to the trans you have but plan on blowing it up in short time. The later BII's are easier for the swap due to updated electronics but still not perfect. I'd be willing to bet you could 5.0 it cheaper then the 4.0

 

ive herd the trannys lasts i mean if you think about it the trannys is pushing roughly the same amount of vehicle so how would it blow up maybe if you abuse it yes you will need a tranny in no time but driving as much as the vehicle can handle is fine i bet you could even red line every gear and not blow it up unless you drop it in 1st to spin the tires then yeh it will blow with the wireing can someone explain what needs to be spliced?? cant you take out the entire engine wiring harness and replace it?? as far as im conserned theres 2 main wirering harnesses engine ecu related and non engine harness (for blickers a/c brake light head lights and even the charging system) the only splicing my be the check engine light for older model that lacked it please post back as i will mopst likley be doing this in the future for my bII also the 5.0 v8 needs a trans no matter what and reqiures major modding to engine mounts also youll have no hood space to work on the engine!

 

i was mostly wondering about explorer suspension as this perked my interest a little, so if i could find a wrecked or cheap as dirt explorer and throw it in the bii, the 302 swap is doable as from a few friends i have known

 

just by better shock sure its a little investment but buying an explorer for just the suspendstion is like buying a tv to see one movie then trowing it out

 

It's not what it's pushing, it's how much harder it's pushing it. Think about it, that's why there are stronger trans on bigger engines even within the same models lines. With that stock trans you wouldn't even be able to up your towing without worrying about it failing. What I really fail to see is why would you even do the swap if you weren’t going to use the extra power?

Wiring, well I used to think it was that easy too. This is a great site here but its VERY lacking on the subject. I'd give you a link to a site chocked full of this kind of info but that's against the rules.

You do change the whole harness back to the computer but it doesn't end there. You have wires that plug into the firewall on the drivers and you have wires that route on that passenger. The trick is that the two are different harnesses that work together. You won't find a 4.0 harness that will plug into your 85 with no hitches. At a minimum you'll be splitting the two harnesses that run together from each vehicle, laying them out where you can work on them, comparing wiring diagrams to find out how to connect the different leads and then splicing the new EEC harness into the old non-EEC harness. Things included in this reattachment are EEC power, gauges, and separating ALL of your lights. Wiring diagrams for both vehicles are a must. The only wiring that is pretty easy that I know of is if you have a 90 BII and a 90-91 4.0L. 99% of that will just plug and play. The only thing on that swap left over is running power to your power windows if you have them because on the BII they ran the plugs out under the hood.

Most shops cut the harness when they pull motors so you'll need to find a shop that either doesn't do that and actually pulls them and shelves them or a shop that still had the engine in the donor vehicle. The 4.0 is serpentine so you'll need all the accessories with the engine, harness and EEC. Also you'll need the 4.0 starter (expensive bugger!) and flywheel if you’re doing this to a M/T. The 2.9 stuff won't work. Then if you don’t do it now plan on getting a trans to match in the near future.

At the end of my work on this subject I decided that if I was going to do that much work for a swap I might as well do a 5.0L. The mounts and exhaust are pricey but available. Finding an older 5.0 donor truck seems to be easier then finding a donor 4.0, at least in my area, Chicago-Milwaukee. What my final conclusion was is that I'm just going to freshen up and lightly mod the 2.9 I already have. There's a few cams to choose from and plenty of sweet exhaust systems. I already have the good heads on my 2.9 so they should be good for another round and who knows, maybe they’ll get a little porting too. After all, it is a BII not and Excursion.

 

They explorer drive trian is a little stronger then yours.
Front- The D35 will hold up better during hard use. It is a direct swap. The down fall is you will have to shorted your front drive shaft about 1" - 1 1/2. The shock mounts the d35 is weaker then the ones on the d28. The d28 uses a bolt to hole the shock on where the d35 has a stud. (the stud tends to break if used offraod in rough areas.) What I did when I swaped was cut the stud out and replaced it with a bolt. THe d35 axle shafts are thicker then the 28s and the d35 uses the same u-joints as a d44. Here is a link to the swap I did D28 to D35 swap It was done on a ranger but is the same as a BII.

Rear- the 8.8 is stronger but you will have to remount the spring perches. If you get a rear from under a 96 explorer you can get disc rear breaks. It takes a bit more to hook it all up but I feel it is worth it.

My combination is a 1980 302 carbed, T-18 4 speed transmission, advance adoptor was used so I could retian my orginal t-case (BW 1350) I have a locked D35 out of a 93 explorer and the stock 7.5 rear welded. 4:10 gears. 3" body lift and 3" suspension lift.

As far as a 4.0 vs 302, I have a 302 in my ranger love it. It was not that hard to do. If you look around you can find most the parts needed to do the swap of older fords. A body lift will make this swap fit better. Only problem I have is there no one around me that will inspect it to make it street legal. Due to the fact that ranger has never offered a v8 so it is illegal by fed law. I am doing a 4.0 conversion in a 89 BII. the wiring looks like a nightmare but take your time and research it. There are a few sites that give very good detail on how to hook up the wires. It will all depend on how much patients you have. The fuel system can be a pain but then again take your time. As far as the transmission behind the 4.0 its luck of the draw. I have a friend that is running a FM145 and has had no problems then I have another friend that has replaced 2 FM146's.

 

pretty much agree with 87ford my new project is a bronco2 with a 5.8 supercharged
has right now front d28 being changed to d35 some parts. and a 95 explorer rear 8.8 with 4.10s locked with disc brakes 95-99 is the best axle to replace since they have the best rear disc brake setup.right now i have a 8in lift on that one with 35's

on my daily driver which is a 210hp bronco2 with the 2.9L i have an explorer suspension
front and back front coils are heavier duty and will give you a 1-2inch lift and for the rear explorer leaf springs. a mild lift.

 

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