86 ranger motor and tranny swap?

[kelowna ranger]

i have an 86 ford ranger 4x4 2.9l and the tranny blew up on me. im having difficulty finding a new tranny (tranny oil pan 12 bolt) the auto wreckers by me charges 100 for a tranny but of coarse they dont have the right one. i located one in chase but its 2 hours away from me and he wants 600 for it and i gotta pull it. the autowreckers by me charges 250 for a complete motor and 100 for a tranny, my question is, is there a diffrent motor and tranny a can drop in that will be an easy drop in? I dont mind doing a little bit of customizing but i really dont want to make it into a big project. any suggestions would be appreciated.

 

[superds]

Where's Chase?

What tranny do you actually have? It's likely you could use an auto up to 1994 (I think) if you have the a4ld. I think in 1995 they went electronically controlled. But I'm no expert on automatic transmissions; I hate 'em.

EDIT: There's some good info in the tech library here: http://www.therangerstation.com/tech_library/a4ld.html, also look in the transmission specific subforum, I'm sure lots of people have discussed similar swaps there.

 

[kelowna ranger]

sorry i didnt realize i didnt say it was a standard. i found a little sticker on the tranny, the model number on the tranny is fm145, bill code 063776, t\m assy number e67a 7003 fa.

 

[superds]

With a manual you have more choices. Probably the best option is to swap in a Mazda M5OD-R1 found in many 88+ RBVs. This would probably be the most durable option without getting into crazy customization.

Some more reading for you:
http://www.therangerstation.com/tech_library/InterchangingTansmissions.html
http://www.therangerstation.com/tech_library/ManualTransmission.html

 

[Surrey]

Yeah, upgrade to the m50d... Although I dont think they were used until like 1990.
You will need to get new (or get a shop to length/shorten) driveshafts, as the m5od is 2" longer or so, I believe.

All the info you need for the swap should be available in the tech section.