83-88 Ranger owners, need your assistance with tape measurer

CZ Eddie · May 13, 2018

Hi, I'm a potential Ranger buyer.
I'm into car audio & Android computers as head unit.
Could someone please walk out to their 83-88 Ranger with a tape measurer and measure the height/width of the indents indicated in the picture below?
I'm trying to figure out how large of an LCD screen can be modded into this section of the dash.
Thanks!

85_Ranger4x4 · May 13, 2018

I am an hour away from mine... are you willing to trade the heater an A/C for an LCD screen?

CZ Eddie · May 13, 2018

85_Ranger4x4 said:
I am an hour away from mine... are you willing to trade the heater an A/C for an LCD screen?

No rush, I'm sure someone will help out. :icon_thumby:

No Sir, not willing to give up HVAC!
The HVAC controls will just be dropped down to a custom center console location.
The cables will be extended down to make the reach.

CZ Eddie · May 13, 2018

The LCD screen needs to be up top so I can easily view Google Maps without needing to take my eyes off the road/trail.

rusty ol ranger · May 13, 2018

I can measure tomorrow afternoon if no one beats me to it.

Shran · May 14, 2018

Roughly 7" high and 9" wide.

It is going to be tough to get anything bigger than a single DIN device in there. What you see is the outer trim - under that is another hole with supports for the factory radio. Any higher up is the top of the dash, and you can't go much lower without running into the HVAC controls.

Keep in mind too that the dash in 83-85 trucks is different than 86-88. Ealier ones used the two post knob style radio and 86-88 had a more standard size hole.

There is a big open spot right above the glove box in these trucks. If I were mounting things, this would be the first spot I'd use... although it's not really within your range of reach from the drivers seat.

CZ Eddie · May 14, 2018

Many thanks, Shran!
From eyeballing the pic I figured about 9.5" wide so I was close.
The air vent stuff would all be dropped down to a center console section so I wouldn't have been worried about that.
9" is a tad smaller than I was wanting.
I guess I'll have to mull it over vs. an '87-'91 F150 which is my other choice right now.

Shran · May 15, 2018

No prob. One other thing to consider with the Ranger dash is that top pad (red part in your pic) hangs over the instrument cluster/radio/HVAC area about 1.5" so it could create clearance issues if the screen on your device goes up towards the pad.

I don't think an 87-91 F150 would be any easier, there's really not much more room if any, and it's on two levels - the HVAC controls stick out further than the radio does. At least the Ranger area is flat.

85_Ranger4x4 · May 15, 2018

Shran said:
No prob. One other thing to consider with the Ranger dash is that top pad (red part in your pic) hangs over the instrument cluster/radio/HVAC area about 1.5" so it could create clearance issues if the screen on your device goes up towards the pad.

But that could be the base of a mounting point and letting the ipad or whatever hang down in front of where the radio and HVAC controls used to be...

Shran · May 15, 2018

Yeah. Totally possible. I was thinking of the radios with the screen that pops out and slides upward.

85_Ranger4x4 · May 15, 2018

Shran said:
Yeah. Totally possible. I was thinking of the radios with the screen that pops out and slides upward.

Flipout woulnd't be so bad, I took at is he wanting to actually mount a screen in the dash itself.

CZ Eddie · May 15, 2018

On the F150 I'd actually build a fiberglass "pod" that fits over the car stereo location and it would be large enough to fit my tall LCD screen (which is only like 1/2" thick).
Tons of room there without interfering with any air vents.

83-88 Ranger owners, need your assistance with tape measurer

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