4.0 SOHC removal

[JJMaine]

Picked up a crane, engine stand and load leveler. Just got started today and managed to get the intake off. I spent the first half of the day mowing leaves and trimming branches so I had a good place to park my Ranger out of the way for awhile.

Tomorrow I'm going to attempt to get all of the stuff off the front of the motor, radiator and starter out and hopefully the torque converter bolts out. Any tips on that would be appreciated. I don't have any "special" swivel wrenches or ratchets and no ratcheting wrenches so it's slow going. Definitely will get some ratcheting wrenches before I put the motor back in lol.

Are the torque converter bolts easy to get to once the starter is out? And the other thing I'm worried about is how to reach the top bell housing bolts?

I'm second guessing my decision to buy the 1 ton hoist as it may not extend long enough to easily get the engine out of my ranger. Should I just return it and get the 2 ton of it'll make things a whole lot easier?

Does anyone know of a Ranger 4.0 SOHC engine removal video? I can only find videos on removing the engine from a 4.0 Explorer which are helping but not quite the same as the Ranger. I have the factory service manual but that gives limited info on a lot of things. Thanks guys!

 

[Uncle Gump]

That hoist should work...

Top bell housing bolts... a 3 foot extention over the top of the trans sure helps.

You'll probably use a socket and a short extension for the converter hardware. Bar the engine over to line up the next one.

Many of your worries will fade when ya just get in there and see what ya got.

 

[JJMaine]

Thanks. Yeah it doesn't seem as daunting as I thought it would be. I'm sure I'll get it figured out but these small tips sure do help!

You get all of the bell housing bolts out from under the truck? On the Explorer video I watched he got the top 3 or 4 from reaching down behind the engine in the engine bay but looking at mine it looks damn near impossible to do it that way. I might have 3' worth of 3/8" extensions if I snap em all together. Thanks!

 

[Uncle Gump]

This is where a body lift helps...

It's better if ya have a single extension... but ya have to do what ya have to do.

 

[Uncle Gump]

I forgot...

The long extension... has a swivel impact socket on one end... 1/2 impact on the the other.

 

[JJMaine]

I've got a 1/2 impact but I'll have to improvise on the rest. If need be I don't mind buying tools to get the job done. I can buy a lot of tools and still be less than the $6k estimate I got to do my head gaskets.