Ok- I was homeless for a stint- I was looking EVERYWHERE for a vehicle- I was walking down the street and saw this bitchin Ford Ranger 97(I like dents and bruises) 5 speed- Didn't know how to drive a stick-

Bought it from him- Bottom line

It's a solid truck- Not many vehicles can withstand a beating like a Ford Ranger XLT- I got 118K on her. I got the dome light problem(removed housing and lights) Never had a wiping problem- Damn thing still had the original battery(he drilled 2 holes in it) Probably why I had to replace it after purchase when it died on me(wont ask why the tard drilled two holes in it).

The truck wouldn't pass emissions- pulled up a p something code- Double checked and saw the sensor the purge valve and the charcol filter are the only 3 codes- Replaced sensor wasted my money- It aint the filter because every junkyard I went to has a pulled purge valve- No biggie- It runs fine with a dysfunctional purge valve...

Now I put a bit of strain on this tranny learning to drive her right- But... Iv'e seen worse that drive a stick everyday.

I'm now coming across some transmissions problems- I replaced all four ball joints(thank you for the wishbone arms that hold the tire in place). My tire was movin 30degrees left to right- figured id do em both myself. Used a piece of exhaust pipe to hold her in place- A vice and a impact to take care of problem-

Guy was a jackass and said he went to junkyard for EVERY part he needed... I can understand the junkyard but sometimes you can't replace junk with junk-


Lied to me about springs and shackels(broken from body)- Another thread yes- I had to replace these fvkers by hand in my backyard with no impact- And if you want some tips about how to remove a truck bed and springs/shackels with a 10 foot exhaust pipe for leverage lemme know.

But now comes my question and the fun part- I love this truck- the 2wd 4banger 5 speed HAULS *** man- I'm telling you I have challenged many a car on the line and this bytch can haul *** if you pull 30 in first-


But... Being in the MidWest I'm having severe problems gettin her to shift in the cold- Mornings 9~5. I have to stop in the middle of the road to put her in first- And second gear grinds when I shift her down reguardless if shes warm or not- reguardless of RPM- I try to shift her 1st gear 15mph/ 2nd gear 25mph 3rd gear 35mph- and 4th will drop in without any bogging at 31+mph- I really do try to be easy on her but I like a truck to wine out if I need her- I never take it on the highway unless its necessary so usually she only sees 35.

I'm not a mechanic but I know a bit- I haven't had the oppertunity to check the trans fluid- I hear you can pull the plug and if your pinky gets wet your trans fluid is ok when you finger her.

Still she has mad problems puttin her in first. I have to come to a complete stop to get her in first. And there is no way in gods green earth shes ganna handle second gear at anything less than 10mph. I mean it bogs unless you put her in 2nd at 20- Put her in 2nd at a standstill or at 10mph and she will die.

Also, 2nd gear grinds when shes cold- Even when shes warmed up this winter has been bad- but she doesnt like 2nd base- she skips from 1st base to 3rd and is most satisfied in 4th and overdrive(5th). I also notice she bounces rpm and speed at 1st 2nd and 3rd if your tryin to keep a constant speed- like it constantly jumps from say (25 steady to 27steady). She can't hold a speed in her gear until I'm in 4th- I feel a pulsation when I'm tryin to maintain a 30mph speed in 3rd gear. I feel a pulsation when I'm tryin to maintain any speed other than 40+mph. You can't downshift at this speed because these trans don't like 4th gear unless your going 31+mph for in town driving.


Any advise on how to keep her running strong would be helpful...

 

=Bump=

Can noone offer a suggestion or comment as to what this problem could be?

thanks. .

 

first thing i would do is replace the tranny fluid. pull the filler plug and then the drain plug. replace with a little over 3 quarts of mercon atf. there are plugs called shift rail plugs at the top of the tranny. these are known to crack and leak your fluid out thus trashing your tranny.

 

x2 on replacing the tranny fluid. it solved my 'tough to put into 1st' problem...more or less...
10-1 it's the original fluid in there now. mine was like molasses when it came out after 130k miles

 

if it was my truck i would by the 5 gallons and a couple of quarts. I would change it once and then change it again in a month or 2.

 

Have you checked the clutch Master Cylinder Reservoir to see if its low on fluid?

 

While changing the tranny fluid is a good idea, my guess your problem is more likely related to either the clutch master cylinder or the slave cylinder (or both) is/are going bad. If the clutch does not fully release, the result is hard shifting, especially in cold weather.

 

thxxx- when my wallet isn't empty ill let you know how it goes.

 

you might want to check the clutch/brake pedal pivot points which will cause a hard to shift. Here's a link with pic's of mine. And its cheap to just look at it. https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/9...l-bracket.html