My 2wd to 4wd ranger project . . . some pics . . .

treeguy

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• Mar 8, 2010

• #1

Earlier (as in months earlier) I posted a few questions about doing a 2wd into a 4wd using a stock donor ranger and swapping over the 4wd parts. I received mix feedback ranging from no don't, to its a huge project go in with your eyes wide open . . . so here is some pics I happened to snap along the way . . . This is a picture of my dad's last truck. It is the truck I learned to drive a 5-speed in . . .

 

Last edited: Mar 8, 2010

treeguy

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• Mar 8, 2010

• #2

This is the 4wd donor truck. It is a 1988 & had electrical issues that didn't I want to trouble shoot.

 

treeguy

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This is the engine bay after pulling out the blown engine . . . I pulled the dipstick and found lots of metal flakes . . . so I searched for a another 2.9L to put in it . . . as you can see the tranny & drive line removed too . . .

 

Last edited: Mar 8, 2010

treeguy

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This is a picture of what was left after pulling the rear axle on the 4wd donor. The 2wd had a gear ratio of 4.56 and smaller brake drum, according to the tag the donor axle is 3.73 and much beefier brakes!! I decided to work my way from rear axle forward and assemble as I go . . .

 

treeguy

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• #5

Sanding donor axle . . .

 

treeguy

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• #6

Some finer clean up with a wire brush . . . I sanded with my angle grinder with a wire wheel attachment . . . very pleased with the results.

 

treeguy

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• #7

I painted it with my favorite color: Black (High Gloss)! I obviously rattled canned it with a Rustoleum Heavy Rust Primer + the aforementioned black . . . to me things look better shiny . . . Note the rear stock lift blocks painted too and ready to go . . .

 

treeguy

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• #8

A close up of the axle . . . looks way better than before . . .

 

treeguy

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• #9

Axle is now installed using the 4wd leaf springs also since the stock ones were shot . . . note the use of 2x4's to help scoot the axle into place . . . I did this by myself . . . I do hate to remove leaf springs those bushings are a pain . . . . had issues . . . but nothing my angle grinder and I couldn't solve !

 

treeguy

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• #10

This is the new-to-me engine . . . I found this off craigslist for $50 bucks, true story! It had only 95K miles on it so I figured I couldn't lose for that amount. Since it did come out a Merkur there was some components that had to be switched over (engine mounts, air intake, fuel rail, wiring harness etc) and went ahead and put in a new fuel, and water pump . . . new plugs, uhhhhhh . . . . yep . ..

 

treeguy

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• #11

This is the drive shaft I will be using, it looked gross so I thought I would spruce it up a bit with some sandpaper . . . and . . .

 

treeguy

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• #12

. . . yep you guessed it . . . primer . . . and then . . .

 

Last edited: Mar 8, 2010

countryboy

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• Mar 8, 2010

• #13

keep up the good work

 

treeguy

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• #14

. . . a shot of paint . . . I wish all projects were this easy ! But the lack of a challenge would be a little boring.

 

treeguy

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• Mar 8, 2010

• #15

I yanked out the twin-I-Beam front suspension as a unit . . . waaaaaay easier than I thought it would be . . . 1st I jacked up the truck high enough so the front tires are off the ground a bit and some jack stands under the frame in the front (engine is gone so very little weight up front). 2nd, I went to Autozone and picked up a Pitman arm separator ($10) looks like a huge pickle fork because of the clearance issues. After separating the tie-rod assembly from the steering gear I bought a 1&1/8th inch box wrench which fit perfectly on the nut to loosen the front coil springs. I then disconnected all brake fittings that had to do with the front axle with a 9/16 flare nut wrench. I disconnected both sway bars and went back to loosening the coil springs enough so that I could "turn" them out of the upper spring seat. By keeping the tires on it kept the front axle from dangling in the dirt. I then removed the nuts and bolts that bolted each arm to the 2wd crossmember and pulled out the 2wd front suspension as a unit . . .