2002 ranger 2.3l manual, swap for 2.3 ecoboost?

[GhostRanger]

Okay so first off would it be better to turbo my stock 2.3 or just swap it with an ecoboost motor? And does anyone know what I need to buy to remove my 90mph speed limiter, I can't find a tuner or chip, that fits and will remove the governor? I was racing a civic and was winning till I hit the governor... At 90 mph.. Was very disappointed because not a fan of Honda's. But any suggestions would be great, thank you

 

[stmitch]

First of all, the speed limiter is there for a reason. There are things on your truck like tires and driveshaft U Joints that aren't designed to safely spin faster than that. If something like that lets go at those speeds, it's really bad news for you and anybody unlucky enough to be nearby at that time. I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume that this racing only happens on racetracks, but if you're doing it on the street then that's a whole other level of carelessness. If you want to go fast in a Ranger, there's more to doing it safely than just removing the limiter, punching the gas pedal, and trying to keep it on the road.

Now that the disclaimer is out of the way, this is the only completed ecoboost Ranger that I've seen:

2002 Ecoboost swapped Ranger build thread

When I did this swap my original 2.3 duratec motor did have AC, but before the swap I had a turbo on the 2.3, which required deleting the AC to fit it in there. Even with my current swap the heater blend door gets in the way. I am currently using a little heater core thats meant for utility...

www.therangerstation.com

The Ecoboost has a high pressure fuel pump on the back of the cylinder head that requires modding your firewall and eliminating the heat/AC plenum, or doing custom engine mounts and moving the entire engine/trans forward and getting a custom driveshaft made. You'll also have to figure out steering, as the ecoboost never had a power steering pump, and you'll have to buy the Ford Controls pack since the regular Ranger PCM can't control the direct injection, even with a tune.

In my opinion (which you can probably gather from reading that thread), you could have 90% of the ecoboost gains for way less work and a much cleaner install by just boosting the stock Duratec, getting bigger injectors, and a $400 PCM tune. But it's a free country.

 

[adsm08]

The Ecoboost has a high pressure fuel pump on the back of the cylinder head

Actually the high pressure fuel pump is in the middle of the valve cover. The cam-driven vacuum pump is what's bolted to the back of the head.

I can't see how it would be 100% necessary to have it there. I can't see why you couldn't make a block-off plate to hold the oil in and then use an electric vacuum pump like the turbo F-150s do.

 

[stmitch]

It's both isn't it? Check 0:44-1:08 and then 1:40ish in this vid. Looks like the vacuum pump is driven by the intake cam and the HPFP is driven by the exhaust cam

If you zoom in enough on these pics, you can actually see where Ford has labeled the HPFP on this 2.3L cutaway

The 2.0 is the same concepts as far as I can tell:

 

[adsm08]

Yup, that is the fuel pump. I must have been thinking of the 3.5L

They appear to use the same pump, but the 3.5 has it in the middle of the one valve cover and driven directly off a square lobe on the cam. It looks like the L series engine have it on the back of the exhaust cam.

 

[rusty ol ranger]

Can a 2.3 even hit 90?

 

[adsm08]

Can a 2.3 even hit 90?

Yes. The 2.3 Duratec rivals the 2.9 for power.

2001-2003 Ranger 2.3L Duratec 135 hp (101 kW; 137 PS) @ 5050 RPM 153 lb⋅ft (207 N⋅m) @ 3750 RPM

140 hp (104 kW; 142 PS) @ 4600 rpm and 170 lb⋅ft (230 N⋅m) @ 2600 rpm

I'm sure the difference in weight between an 87 and an 01 makes the power to weight ratios of these two almost identical. Sure the 2.3 is rev-happy, but most 4-cyl engines are.

 

[rusty ol ranger]

Yes. The 2.3 Duratec rivals the 2.9 for power.

2001-2003 Ranger 2.3L Duratec 135 hp (101 kW; 137 PS) @ 5050 RPM 153 lb⋅ft (207 N⋅m) @ 3750 RPM

140 hp (104 kW; 142 PS) @ 4600 rpm and 170 lb⋅ft (230 N⋅m) @ 2600 rpm

I'm sure the difference in weight between an 87 and an 01 makes the power to weight ratios of these two almost identical. Sure the 2.3 is rev-happy, but most 4-cyl engines are.

Oh i misread the 02 as 92.

This thread makes more sense now.

 

[pjtoledo]

Can a 2.3 even hit 90?

definitely, and in 3rd. its also an aluminum block making it a very light engine.

 

[Nez'sRanger]

I can't get my 2.9 to go 80 unless I'm going downhill, and even then... It shakes so bad I don't push it! If I tried that in 3rd, I think my ol girl would throw a rod! Ha!

 

[8thTon]

My Ranger Edge at 90 would have about as much control as one of those kiddy rides at the amusement park where the fake steering wheel is just bolted to the dash.

 

[rusty ol ranger]

Ive only had 2 vehicles unable to bury an 85mph speedo...

1- 83 F150 300/T18/4.10- Top speed 75mph.
2- 78 F350 dually 400/T18/4.30 - Top speed 68mph.

Power wasnt the issue, it was gearing.