2.3L ('83-'97) 2.3 the good and bad

[wvfarmer]

89 2.3 ranger whats the good and whats the bad about these motors, what problems should i look for?? how many miles are thay good for//? thanks

 

[scotts90ranger]

They're pretty solid, that year is pretty simple, the most common issues of that era is oil pan seal material working it's way into the oil pump pickup screen and losing oil pressure, otherwise they're just a semi gutless econobox... lifespan kinda depends on how it's driven and luck but 200-400k miles is well within reason...

 

[RustyShackleford94]

Drove my 95 like the throttle was an on off switch. Never changed the oil in 65,000+ miles, never checked the oil, when it got low enough the oil psi gauge would flicker to zero at a stop and thats when i knew it was time to add about 4qts. I was extremely hard on that truck and the engine never missed a beat. Ended up losing all forward gears so i drove it a couple miles home in reverse (through rural roads mostly foot to the floor lol). By the time i got home the temp gauge was pegged and it was running like it was no big deal. Not alot of power but its gotta be the toughest dam engine ive ever seen.

 

[xsaylr]

Just recently picked up a '97. Finished swapping plugs n wires today, and it's stunning how perfectly it starts/runs. It was running decent when I got it, but figured it needed a tune up just n case. Old plugs were rough, but all came right out without issue

 

[Bruisedfruit]

The 2.3L seems to be a resilient little motor. Gutless, don't get me wrong, but I have 175k+ on mine (Odo stopped working so prolly closer to 250K,) and still have no issues.
Also I didn't maintain it (at all) early on... so no regular oil changes, taught a bunch of people how to drive stick on it, never changed plugs or wires, ran it out of oil & water a couple of times, and sheered both motor mounts & trans mount (engine kissed the radiator). It still runs like a dream.

 

[RustyShackleford94]

Not totally gutless.

 

[rangerx4]

I had a 1990 with the 2.3l and manual trans that I bought off a salesman with 200k on it. Made it to 365k miles with basic maintenance, a clutch and a radiator. Trans grenanded, sold it for $800 and I bought a brand new 2001 with the 2.5l, with A/C!

 

[Shran]

They are pretty reliable. I've had several... my current '88, a '94, a '96, and a '99 (2.5). The '88 is the only one I've had major issues with and it needed an engine rebuild but it was just worn out and probably had a ton of miles on it.

Heads seem to be the weak part. They crack fairly easily and you may not even know it...there are a bunch of threads out there about weird idle issues that some people have connected to cracks between the valve guides. May be other issues causing that too, hard to say, it's all just forum hearsay. Mine didn't crack but the machine shop did find a head bolt broke off and loose when they tore it down!

If it doesn't make noise at cold startup and seems to run OK then it's probably in good shape.

 

[racsan]

dual-plug heads are bad about cracking , but other than that its a timex watch, takes a licking & keeps on ticking. (though I never had one that ticked) Ive pulled my 6x10 box trailer many times , 65 mph is not possible, loaded its 50 at best, 4rth gear & foot to the floor. 4.10’s help but its still only 100 hp.

 

[wvfarmer]

nice one, if it pulls all that its a good one, i got one that was going to the crusher wondered if it was worth fixing the motor is partly apart so i wonder thanks

 

[scotts90ranger]

It depends on how roasted the engine is... the 2.3L is a pretty stout engine... The first time I rebuilt my 2.3L turbo engine I took a couple too many shortcuts and a few years after I rebuilt it I lost a rod nut at WOT ~5000rpm and lost the #3 rod which took out the block, piston, rod and crank so I had to start over. Using mostly what I had on hand, some rock auto rings and bearings and a junkyard oil pan I scabbed another together in 2 months and it's been going decent for a while now other than leaking a LOT of oil from random places, like I just threw it together in about 6 square feet of garage space or something... . The other engine ran better but it could be one of the sensors or something going out, whatever, it runs and does it's thing... One time I took the work enclosed trailer with a bunch of pallets and my 3 wheeler in it to the yearly guys trip about 300 miles from home. I think there was just over 7000lb total and it did just fine, but the turbski helps in the power department...

 

[tomw]

The Lima is durable. The 89-up have roller cam followers, which is a good thing, making finding oil with ZDDP a non-issure. The older cam followers put the lube in a shear condition where they rubbed on the lobes. Without the ZDDP, lobe and follower wear is much more noticeable. Cam & follower life is reduced.
If you want to make more power, it will cost $$$$, but you can get a lot from a small engine. Check YT for videos showing mods and what they produce. You can put several $K into a race prepped engine.
If you keep oil in it the bottom end is almost indestructable.
tom

 

[scotts90ranger]

I'm pretty sure roller started in '88, small journal cranks (same strength, less friction) started in '86, fuel injection in '85 and the DIS in '89. The turbo and N/A 2.3L had the same block, crank and rods, only difference was forged pistons, it's said that the stock bottom end can take about 300hp before issues come up.

 

[RustyShackleford94]

Ive pulled my 6x10 box trailer many times , 65 mph is not possible, loaded its 50 at best, 4rth gear & foot to the floor. 4.10’s help but its still only 100 hp.

Seems odd. Mine pulled my bosses 6x12 loaded about 33-3500lbs at 55 in 4th. Not to the floor but pretty deep into the skinny pedal. Same 2.3l m5od and 4.10s but im on 31s

 

[racsan]

maybe you have less miles/more compression? Im at 160K and I dont recall compression #’s (been a few years since I last checked, I think it was around 115/120). Every engine is a little different in my experience. the ‘88 2.3 I had got 28mpg with 3.73’s (2wd supercab) the ‘92 got 18 mpg at best- 3.73 2wd reg cab longbed. Current truck does 21 tops with 4.10’s and is a ‘94 2wd reg cab . Id love to try a turbo but Id need to rebuild the bottom end first.