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350 in a ranger


ranger man'02

Member
Joined
Sep 10, 2025
Messages
13
City
Jacksonville
State - Country
FL - USA
Other
Ford Ranger
Vehicle Year
2002
Vehicle
Ford Ranger
Drive
2WD
Engine
4.0 V6
Transmission
Automatic
So could i put a 350 (carberated) with a muncie 4-speed in a 2002 ford ranger, replies are appreciated.
 
So could i put a 350 (carberated) with a muncie 4-speed in a 2002 ford ranger, replies are appreciated.
Yes.

As long as you dont have emission testing...and can get around the PATS system and all the other electronics thatll be like wtf
 
We don't do emissions testing and it's carberated, just want to at least use the old electric fuel pump.
 
We don't do emissions testing and it's carberated, just want to at least use the old electric fuel pump.

In this case carbureted doesn't really mean simple...

Because your truck is going to expect to see things from the engine that your carbureted engine won't tell it. You can do it but it is not common because it is a big PITA.

Snag a EVTM off ebay for your year of truck and figure out the mess of wiring you will have to deal with. :icon_thumby:
 
In this case carbureted doesn't really mean simple...

Because your truck is going to expect to see things from the engine that your carbureted engine won't tell it. You can do it but it is not common because it is a big PITA.

Snag a EVTM off ebay for your year of truck and figure out the mess of wiring you will have to deal with. :icon_thumby:
thanks
 
I'd put it in the bed for ballast myself. Seriously though, mixing brands will complicate the build and the rear distributor will require firewall modification or locating the engine further ahead.
 
I'd put it in the bed for ballast myself. Seriously though, mixing brands will complicate the build and the rear distributor will require firewall modification or locating the engine further ahead.

With the age disparity the engine might as well be out of a Romulan Warbird.

There will be no meaningful relationship between a carbed powerplant of any brand and that truck anyway.
 
Can you, sure, it's been done. You will need to rewire a lot of stuff in the dash and steering column and it will probably be easier to use aftermarket gauges. A lot of work but it could be cool. If you are totally confident in your wiring and fabrication abilities, then I would say go for it... if you're not then maybe it would be best not to attempt something like this, very easy to get yourself into an unfixable disaster that nobody wants to work on.

SM420 would not be my first choice by a long shot in a 2wd truck. A V8 in a Ranger is fun... but driving one with a V8 that shifts like a school bus and has no overdrive gear is not really ideal. Is the intention here to make a cool street rod type truck or are you just trying to make a dead truck run & drive because you have the parts already?
 
if you can find a dead cj or 87-90 wrangler, that 350 will go in really easily. that a very common and easy swap into those types of jeeps
 
Can you, sure, it's been done. You will need to rewire a lot of stuff in the dash and steering column and it will probably be easier to use aftermarket gauges. A lot of work but it could be cool. If you are totally confident in your wiring and fabrication abilities, then I would say go for it... if you're not then maybe it would be best not to attempt something like this, very easy to get yourself into an unfixable disaster that nobody wants to work on.

SM420 would not be my first choice by a long shot in a 2wd truck. A V8 in a Ranger is fun... but driving one with a V8 that shifts like a school bus and has no overdrive gear is not really ideal. Is the intention here to make a cool street rod type truck or are you just trying to make a dead truck run & drive because you have the parts already?
What trans do you suggest? I'm open to suggestions here.
 
What trans do you suggest? I'm open to suggestions here.

I think you can use a T5 fairly easily. Not sure what donor you'd use - maybe a Camaro, Firebird, S10 perhaps.

One of the old 4 speeds from a car would be good too, I am not a GM guy but I know there's at least a few options there if you don't mind not having an overdrive gear.

Tere is a NV3500 5 speed that was available starting sometime in the late 90's. I had one in a 2000 Silverado. That might be a good option too - it felt a lot like a truck transmission but the shifts were a lot smoother and shorter than an old 4 speed.

I just drove a mid 80's one ton dually Chevy about 50 miles last week and it had an SM465 in it... similar to the SM420... definitely a lot like driving a school bus. The gears are a mile apart.
 
pretty easy swap.


i suggest a 5 speed from 4.3 s10 or the 1/2 ton if the ranger is already a manual. otherwise an auto. the shifter for the granny tranny will be in the dashboard.
 

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