Would you buy a 2003 Level II with 207,000 miles

[rubydist]

The level II t-case was manual shift only if it was a manual transmission truck in 02 and 03. The automatic trucks always had electric shift t-case even in the level II.

The level II never came with a flareside, so if you are concerned about "correctness" of the truck you will not want to do that.

I would have no problem with a 210k mile Ranger, but I would not buy such a truck from a rust belt location.

 

[fastpakr]

As far as I know, there's no problem swapping a flareside to styleside bed, but you do have to swap the bumper with it.

 

[tarheelpwr]

The level II t-case was manual shift only if it was a manual transmission truck in 02 and 03. The automatic trucks always had electric shift t-case even in the level II.

The level II never came with a flareside, so if you are concerned about "correctness" of the truck you will not want to do that.

I would have no problem with a 210k mile Ranger, but I would not buy such a truck from a rust belt location.

Being stuck in the rust belt, what is the best way to combat rust underneath? Several guys don't like the rubber "undercoating" which I always thought was recommended. What's the best coating?

 

[Roert42]

I swapped a flare side onto mine when I bought it. Fits fine.

You will want the bumper from the original truck if you can get it, and the wiring harness for the taillights. The taillights from a style side will fit fine, but the plugs for the lights are clocked differently and don't fit too good. Plus you would have to modify the hose for the filler neck to be shorter.


The big thing for the flareside is the cap. If you want a cap I would stick with the style side. It's hard to find a cap for a flareside ranger, and when you do they are usually a lot more money. Plus with the styleside you will have more room under your cap for your stuff.

 

[Dirtman]

Being stuck in the rust belt, what is the best way to combat rust underneath? Several guys don't like the rubber "undercoating" which I always thought was recommended. What's the best coating?

Wash salt off whenever you can during the winter, constantly look out for rust starting and clean and repair it immediately, do a really good cleaning every spring, and do a really good prep every fall including using products like fluid film or krown to coat the undercarriage and into cracks and crevices in body panels.

Rust prevention should be just part of regular maintenance when you live in the North. There is no product or coating you can just use once and then forget about it.

 

[tarheelpwr]

I swapped a flare side onto mine when I bought it. Fits fine.

You will want the bumper from the original truck if you can get it, and the wiring harness for the taillights. The taillights from a style side will fit fine, but the plugs for the lights are clocked differently and don't fit too good. Plus you would have to modify the hose for the filler neck to be shorter.


The big thing for the flareside is the cap. If you want a cap I would stick with the style side. It's hard to find a cap for a flareside ranger, and when you do they are usually a lot more money. Plus with the styleside you will have more room under your cap for your stuff.

I hadn't thought about actually finding a capper top for the flareside. I guess the $80 steps that fit over a wheel would achieve the same result and provide a better overall solution.

 

[Roert42]

The big perk about the flareside is that the bedsides are made of fiberglass, so it is easier to find one in good shape, less stuff to rust.

 

[tarheelpwr]

I saw a flareside today with a cap. I didn’t realize how much smaller the bed is. I’ll be sleeping in there at times, so I don’t think it makes sense.

 

[gw33gp]

My 2002 FX4 has 263K miles on it and still has the original wheel bearings. It is not the tall tires that is hard on the wheel bearings, it is the wheels that have a different offset than stock. I have run 31", 32" and currently 33" tires with the stock Alcoa wheels. I have replaced the ball joints and tie rods in the 150K to 255K miles range, so that is something you may need to do if not done already. I replaced the original Ford tuned Bilstein shocks at around 100K with Bilstein tuned shocks. The fronts have not been replaced since then but I did replace the rear shocks with Bilstein again at around 230 K miles. They were still working but one was starting to seep a little oil. It was still working well and the nitrogen gas pressure was still good but I go on long off-road trip is isolated areas and did not want to deal with a failure there.

I had the transmission checked at around 240K miles and was told 5th gear was worn and needed replacement. Everything else was in good condition, including the synchros. I had them install new bearings and seals along with 5th gear and slider. They unfortunately missed checking the shifter bushings and the bottom one was bad. It eventually failed and caused the 5th gear to wear resulting in it popping out of 5th gear. They did repair it under warranty. So, I suggest you check out the shifter bushings and replace if they show any signs of wear. They are accessible inside the cab without removing the transmission.

I also took the transfer case apart when I had the transmission rebuilt. Everything looked good so I just replaced all the seals. The bearings were still in excellent condition. About 15K miles later the shifter fork broke. It is made of plastic and I may have used too much force shifting it into gear a few times. I don't know if this is a common failure, but I have not heard anyone talk about it.

At 251K miles, one of the precats broke up inside and clogged the first main cat. I ended up replacing the entire catalytic converter system, which was expensive because I need CARB compliant since I live in CA.

I rebuilt the cam timing chain system at around 255K miles. I was not have any problems but wanted to make sure I would not have any problems knowing the guides are suspect. The timing chain guide and tensioner were still in good condition but the mechanical tensioner for the chain between the crank and jackshaft was broken. This seems the be a rarity because I have never heard anyone talk about this tensioner breaking.

Everything else that I have replaced is what I consider normal maintenance.

When I bought my 02 FX4, I intended to keep it 300K miles. It is running so well now that I may keep it longer. I think parts availability will dictate how long I keep it.

 

[bobbywalter]

I would buy a 400k unit for the right price.

 

[Blmpkn]

Replacement floorpans are not even made for the 98+ trucks either...

Really? That seems wild to me

 

[Roert42]

They don't sell shock towers for NewEdge or Foxbody mustangs either, which is weird because 75% of them are rusty.

 

[rubydist]

Being stuck in the rust belt, what is the best way to combat rust underneath? Several guys don't like the rubber "undercoating" which I always thought was recommended. What's the best coating?

The rubber undercoating is the only stuff that has a chance to really last, but it had to be put on when the truck was new or else there was already rust under it which will keep growing.

The Rangers of that era did not have good paint on the frames, so whatever paint there was is long gone. That means that the steel is rusty. You need to know how bad that rust is. The Ranger frame was not particularly strong to begin with, so if there is significant rust, then its a safety issue to me.

If you think it is still okay structurally, then there is some "rust converter" type of paint that you can put on it. Basically, you have to wire brush the entire frame to get all the loose rust off, then brush or spray the frame with this special paint that reacts to the rust and slows it from growing. This paint is not uv resistant, so then you need to paint the frame with some primer and paint that will hold up to the elements and sun. If that sounds like a bunch of work, it is. I have done this on parts of the frame of some vehicles with light rust and it does help reduce the growth of the rust, but only if you paint over it with regular paint because the sun will destroy this stuff.

 

[Dirtman]

The rubber stuff even when put on a brand new frame does not adhere well to the metal. Over time little scratches get through the coating and salt/moisture get underneath and eat away at the frame. Everything will still look beautiful until one day you go to grab a piece of the frame and realize the only thing left is a shell made of rubber undercoating with rotten chunks of metal inside it...

Take an hour once every fall and crawl under there with a case of fluid film or other non permanent coating and it'll never rust. Or if you're lazy like me, just pay a place $125 bucks to do a complete undercarriage cleaning and coating every year before winter. After winter get under there with some soapy water or better yet a salt neutralizer and give the underside a good bath. Repeat every fall and spring until you die. Or move someplace where they don't coat the roads in metal eating death goo...

 

[Blmpkn]

I've heard of this rust product (forget the name) that's a wax. It requires a special gun that will heat the wax into a liquid so it'll actually spray.. but (obviously) when it's dried its miles more resilient than any of the fluid options. Apparently the first application is around 800$ for a full size truck, but yearly touch ups cost about the same as one done with fluid film or rust check etc.. around 150$.

I really like the sounds of it. Keep meaning to find a place locally that does it.