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Tuner/Programmer for 2.5L Ranger


BWDuty

New Member
Joined
Dec 25, 2014
Messages
26
Reaction score
0
Points
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Vehicle Year
2000
Make / Model
Ford
Engine Size
2.5L
Transmission
Manual
Hope you're having a good day! I appreciate any help that anybody might be able to offer.

I'm having a *hell* of a time finding a tuner or programmer for a 2000 Ranger with a 2.5L engine. This really all started when I gave her a 4" lift (4" spindles in front, 2" shackles and 2" blocks in rear) and 32x11.5R15LT tires for a total of about 6" lift. Actually it ended up being more than that in the back because I replaced both sagging leaf springs too.

Going from the stock P225/70R15 size, this threw the speedometer and odometer off by about 17%. Not a *huge* deal, but I really love my truck and I'm proud of how many miles she's given me (over 202k so far). I've done a *ton* of mods and upgrades. I have everything I need to rebuild the diff and change the stock 3.73 gears to 4.56 to help take advantage of those 119 horses she has under the hood too. With those stock 3.73 gears, I find myself downshifting even at interstate speeds with any kind of incline.

I actually have four pages of mods/upgrades/maintenance (in small print) that I've done in just the last four years, and I've owned her for close to 15 years.

Anyway, I figured correcting the odometer and speedometer would be a $5 gear change. Then I realized that this was in 1997 and earlier Rangers, and from 1998 and up the computer uses the revolutions of the axle (sent from the ABS VSS) to determine speed. Still, hey, no big deal, I can figure something out. Plus that seemed like a positive since changing my gear ratio will have no effect on the speedometer and odometer (they don't care what the rest of the drivetrain does, only how fast the wheels turn).

I found out that Ford's NGS tool with a green card inserted can change the tire size in the computer to realize the tires are turning less per mile, thus correcting the difference. My stock tires turned at about 758 revolutions per mile, the new ones are around 650. Unfortunately the NGS tool can only choose from stock tires sizes offered, and none of them are as big as 32". The closest offered on the 4x4 model would be about 4% off which I could live with, but I'm not sure if my truck would even have that option in it's computer since it's a 4x2. Also, the Ford dealer service center I talked to told me this setting can't even be changed (even though I have step by step instructions from somebody who has done it).

So I figured I'd get some kind of tuner or programmer, you know, the aftermarket type that VIN lock. That way I could program it with the exact revolutions per mile for a completely accurate reading. I know any performance gains from the 2.5L Lima engine would be marginal at best. I'm not looking to drag race.

I can't find one! I've looked for hours! Every single one from every name brand manufacturer only lists 3.0 and 4.0 engines in their compatibility charts.

Would these still work with a 2.5? If not, does *anybody* make one that does?

Thanks for any input! I keep getting notifications from Therangerstation that my post(s) have helped thousands of people, I'm really hoping for some help myself on this one!

2000 Ford Ranger Regular Cab 112" WB XL 4x2 2.5L Lima engine 5 speed manual transmission

EDIT: I didn't notice the "rare" in this section of the forum, so I posted this in the "4 banger" section as well. I would have deleted this but I don't see that option. Sorry for posting in the wrong place, but I guess my situation is a bit rare anyway!
 
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