302 and c4 swap question

[hddave1]

getting things ready to do a 2.8v6 to 302v8 in my 85 2wd 5speed ranger..im looking at a good running 302 with a c4 trans. out of a 70's model ford van..im not worried about motor mounts or the engine install .. i am struggleing with whats needed to install the c4 tranny thats bolted to the engine now..i can buy both motor and trans. together for 200bucks off my uncle.. as far as the c4, what do i need to buy to install it? will i need to change anything in the ranger so i can bolt this tranny in place of my 5speed manual trans.can i use my drve shaft or would i be better off buying one out of a doner truck or car...thanks guys for any help

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Check out my build thread, I am putting a 302 and a tranny that is similar to a C4 (it is a C5) into a '85 Ranger. Depending how your engine is placed you might be able to run C5 Ranger driveshafts... if you can find them. They didn't make a whole lot of them.

 

[hddave1]

will the trans. mount location stay the same with the c4 or will i need to mod somthing...

 

[cammeddrz]

will the trans. mount location stay the same with the c4 or will i need to mod somthing...

most of the time with v8 swaps the engine gets moved forward to clear the firewall, or back to clear the radiator. if the engine moves, the trans does too.
modifying the trans x-member is usually a given in just about any v8 swap

 

[hddave1]

im just thinking outloud.. im a sheetmetal worker by trade so working with metal and welding would be easy so my question is could the firewall be cut out and rewelded to make room for the trans bell housing .. ohh and the donor truck that im getting the trans and engine is a 83 f150

 

[cammeddrz]

im just thinking outloud.. im a sheetmetal worker by trade so working with metal and welding would be easy so my question is could the firewall be cut out and rewelded to make room for the trans bell housing .. ohh and the donor truck that im getting the trans and engine is a 83 f150

i hacked the be-jesus out of my firewall to clear my distributor, and valve covers.....

 

[COPPERHEAD85]

Let the trans locate your engine it will save you drive shaft trouble.
A body lift will help clearing the pass side valve cover and heater box issue's.You may have to notch the bottom of the box
I used a C-4 with a c-5 output shaft 1350 Ranger T-Case combo and it was easy.The engine will sit a little high but it will work.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

i hacked the be-jesus out of my firewall to clear my distributor, and valve covers.....

That is where that rear dizzy GM stuff will get you.

Let the trans locate your engine it will save you drive shaft trouble.
A body lift will help clearing the pass side valve cover and heater box issue's.You may have to notch the bottom of the box
I used a C-4 with a c-5 output shaft 1350 Ranger T-Case combo and it was easy.The engine will sit a little high but it will work.

What trans did you have to start with?

I did notice while I was working my fuel pump last night there are three sets of holes in the frame for different transmixers.

 

[COPPERHEAD85]

Toyo kogo 5 speed with a 2.8

 

[cammeddrz]

Let the trans locate your engine it will save you drive shaft trouble.

you know i actually disagree, why let the driveshafts determine everything else? odds are they'll need modifying if he uses a f/s t-case and even if he doesn't all they'd need is a $30/shaft shorten job, and a $30/shaft balance job. i got my rear shaft shortened both slip yokes replaced, and all new u-joints installed by the shop for $120

it is a delicate balance of just seeing what fits best with your combination of engine, trans, t-case, coupled with the amount of body lift, and whether or not you want to hack your core support up to fit the radiator inside/in front of it.

not to mention all of those things need to be balanced with your choice of headers. why let your driveshafts determine that you need some crazy custom header setup

and if the trans is too far forward that severely limits the options for suspension lift because the further forward it is the steeper the front d/s angle is. some guys painted themselves into a corner this way with just 6" of lift and literally needed to cut a section out of their x-member and drop it down, and you guessed it serious driveshaft mods were needed just to cope with the steep angle
like this

just get it all loosely sitting in there and form a gameplan from there, don't let any 1 thing determine the others

 

[baddad457]

getting things ready to do a 2.8v6 to 302v8 in my 85 2wd 5speed ranger..im looking at a good running 302 with a c4 trans. out of a 70's model ford van..im not worried about motor mounts or the engine install .. i am struggleing with whats needed to install the c4 tranny thats bolted to the engine now..i can buy both motor and trans. together for 200bucks off my uncle.. as far as the c4, what do i need to buy to install it? will i need to change anything in the ranger so i can bolt this tranny in place of my 5speed manual trans.can i use my drve shaft or would i be better off buying one out of a doner truck or car...thanks guys for any help

With my first motor/trans combo,(302 and C-4) the driveshaft length stayed the same. Transmission crossmember needed to be moved, so I just fabricated one that fit up inside the framerails, it's easier to relocate it if need be later for different transmissions. Nothing needs to be done to the driveshaft tunnel, other than to bend the body seam flat in the tunnel.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

you know i actually disagree, why let the driveshafts determine everything else? odds are they'll need modifying if he uses a f/s t-case and even if he doesn't all they'd need is a $30/shaft shorten job, and a $30/shaft balance job. i got my rear shaft shortened both slip yokes replaced, and all new u-joints installed by the shop for $120

it is a delicate balance of just seeing what fits best with your combination of engine, trans, t-case, coupled with the amount of body lift, and whether or not you want to hack your core support up to fit the radiator inside/in front of it.

not to mention all of those things need to be balanced with your choice of headers. why let your driveshafts determine that you need some crazy custom header setup

and if the trans is too far forward that severely limits the options for suspension lift because the further forward it is the steeper the front d/s angle is. some guys painted themselves into a corner this way with just 6" of lift and literally needed to cut a section out of their x-member and drop it down, and you guessed it serious driveshaft mods were needed just to cope with the steep angle
like this

just get it all loosely sitting in there and form a gameplan from there, don't let any 1 thing determine the others

2wd kinda takes the front driveshaft clearance issues out of the picture.

I vote scoochie the engine as far back as possible and still be able to get at the bellhousing bolts so you can still pull just the engine or transmission down the road so you have have radiator clearance.

Shelby tri-y headers are a sharp looking header, they need a little tweeking to fit with a 164t bellhousing (which a van probably would have) and foxbody convertable/SN-95 Mustang engine mounts work nice.

 

[COPPERHEAD85]

you know i actually disagree, why let the driveshafts determine everything else? odds are they'll need modifying if he uses a f/s t-case and even if he doesn't all they'd need is a $30/shaft shorten job, and a $30/shaft balance job. i got my rear shaft shortened both slip yokes replaced, and all new u-joints installed by the shop for $120

it is a delicate balance of just seeing what fits best with your combination of engine, trans, t-case, coupled with the amount of body lift, and whether or not you want to hack your core support up to fit the radiator inside/in front of it.

not to mention all of those things need to be balanced with your choice of headers. why let your driveshafts determine that you need some crazy custom header setup

and if the trans is too far forward that severely limits the options for suspension lift because the further forward it is the steeper the front d/s angle is. some guys painted themselves into a corner this way with just 6" of lift and literally needed to cut a section out of their x-member and drop it down, and you guessed it serious driveshaft mods were needed just to cope with the steep angle
like this

just get it all loosely sitting in there and form a gameplan from there, don't let any 1 thing determine the others

If you read what he said ......he had a C-4 out of a Ford van....He can swap the output shaft out of a C-5 Ranger 4X4 trans to his C-4 and use his 1350 Tcase with no trouble with with drive shaft clearence and the engine mounts will sit at the very back of the crossmember up front.
Mine before I put it in..

 

[cammeddrz]

oh yeah, i totally forgot that this v8/c4 thread was 2wd, i have been posting on this one and another one, the other one was the 4wd......i got mixed up (the other thread was this one: http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=100920) my bad

 

[COPPERHEAD85]

oh yeah, i totally forgot that this v8/c4 thread was 2wd, i have been posting on this one and another one, the other one was the 4wd......i got mixed up (the other thread was this one: http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=100920) my bad

Nope its me thats mixed up......this is for a 2 wheel drive...........sorry to jack man.

cammeddrz...