88 Bronco II transmission swap

clayborne · Oct 18, 2011

I have a 1988 bronco II 4x4 and it's A4ld has been given me nothing but problems, so I have been considering installing a 5 speed. I looked long and hard to find a 4x4 one but have had no luck. I found a 2wd M50d at the local jy from a 98 ford ranger and was curious if this could be used if i grabbed the drive shaft also. I know from research that this is not a direct bolt on due to the fact that the transfer case will not be used. I know this is not an ideal solution but I have been asking myself if it is better to have a 4wd lawn ornament or a 2wd daily driver.

trail B2 · Oct 18, 2011

I know your A4LD pain I have walked no less than 20 A4LD miles.It liked to blow a front seal about 8 miles out.If you have a 2.9 the other manual trannies work pretty good too.I would also look into converting your 2WD tranny into a 4x4 model.

John Smith · Oct 18, 2011

if the overall condition works for you

clayborne said:
I have a 1988 bronco II 4x4 and it's A4ld has been given me nothing but problems, so I have been considering installing a 5 speed. I looked long and hard to find a 4x4 one but have had no luck. I found a 2wd M50d at the local jy from a 98 ford ranger and was curious if this could be used if i grabbed the drive shaft also. I know from research that this is not a direct bolt on due to the fact that the transfer case will not be used. I know this is not an ideal solution but I have been asking myself if it is better to have a 4wd lawn ornament or a 2wd daily driver.

Then adding the parts to go with a manual trans should be a reasonable option rather than fiddle with the A4ld.

In 88 the removable floor plate ( where the shifter goes thru the floor) is common to rangers etc thru the early 90's i think..so make sure you get the shifter for the trans and floor-plate and then a peddle assembly. One suggestion is to buy an assembled 4x4 version from one of the tech advisers here if he will do it...( AllanD)..and it will be a direct bolt in and your xfercase will remain..(when you buy your flywheel/clutch get the 4.0 version) you'll be golden

clayborne · Oct 18, 2011

I appreciate your advice, any wisdom on the rear driveshaft situation? I went ahead and picked the M5OD up today 56 bucks and grabbed the flywheel, pressure plate, clutch and starter along with the clutch master cylinder and pedal assembly. For a grand total of 117 bucks thought I got a pretty fair price. I had looked into converting the transmission to 4x4 but the tail shaft is like 200 dollars. If anyone knows of a cheaper source for these let me know.

John Smith · Oct 18, 2011

an excellent buy in my neck of the woods..

clayborne said:
I appreciate your advice, any wisdom on the rear driveshaft situation? I went ahead and picked the M5OD up today 56 bucks and grabbed the flywheel, pressure plate, clutch and starter along with the clutch master cylinder and pedal assembly. For a grand total of 117 bucks thought I got a pretty fair price. I had looked into converting the transmission to 4x4 but the tail shaft is like 200 dollars. If anyone knows of a cheaper source for these let me know.

especially if your used trans is in good condition..

about the D/L, Not sure about that one..i suppose cutting one down from the donor of the 5pseed or similar may work..and hopefully you can get that done well and for cheap..best wishes.

how you solve that problem may be the biggest expense of this swap for you worst case but maybe not...there may exist a shaft that someone here knows about ,,,hang in there..

(don't forget the pilot bearing)...also you may want to replace the rear main seal while ur in there...

clayborne · Oct 19, 2011

Again thank you all for all your help. Found a main shaft for 120 so I guess I will be converting my m5od to a 4wd was hoping for a simpler solution, but when I get the cash up I will just order it find a tail housing install both and be done with it. I just thought that since the ranger and the bronco II were on the same frame I might just be lucky enough to hear a 2.9 ranger drive shaft would fix my problem and I wouldn't have to tear into the transmission. If anyone knows a place to find a cheaper main shaft or has a good bead on a tail piece please let me know.

88 Bronco II transmission swap

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