87 Ranger - need help/opinions!

[snider519]

Hey everyone! Picked up a 1987 Ford Ranger this past weekend, trailered it home.. Wasn't running when I bought it(still isn't). Going to be a long journey and a good learning experience for me.. Where to start! I figure I should start up a thread and get some opinions on some things.. definitely going to need some help.. first, some background on the truck..
233,000kms on the body
6 previous owners(yes 6 lol - im lucky #7)
Reg cab, short box, black
1983 2.3 carb motor -- unknown kms(or so im told by P.O.)
Originally a 2.0
5 speed(TK5 AFAIK) - newer clutch(bill for clutch+installation from P.O)
The body is in really fair shape for a canadian truck from the salt belt(the main reason I bought it)
3/4 Drop
The motor swap was a complete hack job.. Lots of jerry rigging(wiring, vacuum hoses plugged with screws.. all that fun stuff)
New starter solenoid, cap, rotor

I have compression tested the engine.. cyl #1 was 100-105psi :/ 2,3,4 were all 140-150
The carb leaks a lot when trying to turn the engine over and of course the tag is missing from it.. Only thing to go by is that its a carter and a "7632S" stamp, a "8509" stamp on the top half, "8603" on the lower
Tested the spark, looks good to me, carb is getting fuel but fuel pours out from somewhere near the top, on the front side only as far as I know.. guessing a rebuild is in line although the previous owner told me it had been rebuilt
I think timing may be off but its on the to-check list

I plan on dropping a freshly rebuilt 2.3 in and hopefully swapping over to efi.. a 87-88 turbocoupe setup would be great, would like to have a fresh motor dropped in and running by next spring/summer, possible T5, may go m5od and a 8.8.. i'm kinda deadset on atleast attempting to get this engine to fire up.. even if it runs rough as hell

I guess for starters
1. Any ideas as to why the fuel is pouring out of the carb? a seal or gasket i'm assuming
2. Will the 7632S stamp be sufficient for ordering a rebuild kit? if thats the best course of action..
3. Even with low compression in the first cylinder it should fire up right? Any guesses as to the reason for lower compression compared to 2,3,4? Rings? Valves? probably getting tired at almost 30 years old
4. Any suggestions for troubleshooting are gladly welcomed.. I'm no professional but I know my way around engines and some basic know how with a bunch of tools close at hand.. I almost feel like this is a lost cause and I should begin looking for a running tbird donor car or engine/harness/ecu and start that venture sooner rather than later but until parts materialize i'll tinker with what i've got

Ready for the trip home

Home!

Minor bruising, no big deal.. 2 fresh fenders included with her, just need paint

Grimey

Current residence... goin nowhere fast but sittin pretty

 

[straycat]

If you are putting another motor in it why bother with this junker motor?? 6 owners before you...what does that tell you about the truck? lol Must be really bad, Bro...lol The carb needs to be rebuilt or replaced for one thing with that fuel leaking and flowing out as you described. How is the frame? Did you check it for damage, rust, repair? How is the suspension? Post photos of it.

 

[jhammel85]

Wow, it's very clean. I like the direction that you want to go with it.

As far as the info, Why not try to get a rebuild kit for the carb based off of the fact that its an 83, 2.3? It cheap and probably returnable.

By the way, 6 owners? Talk about the "village bicycle" lol Just kidding....

 

[doorgunner]

It's already lowered!

Just don't start a forest fire...buy a good carb froma junk yard /check for slop--excessive play in the throttle shaft on the carb before you buy it & rebuild it if needed....

 

[snider519]

Started prepping the motor+trans to be pulled.. doesn't make sense to throw money at a motor I don't plan on holding onto.. I've had a shit week at work so I'll hold off on grabbing a good 2.3 turbo to build up.... gonna have my work cut out for me wiring up a 2.3 turbo having a carbed truck to work with, it'll get done one way or another though. Got most of the stuff out of the way to pull the motor, gonna try to get it out this week. Rusted out donor cars are plentiful in ontario, gotta track a 87-88 tbird down.. I'll grab some underbody pics tomorrow, little surface rust but other than that it looks real good.. no holes, one small patch on the passenger side floor near the cab corner but it's pretty well done, needs a tranny crossmember for sure though.. truck was initially white but had a good fresh spray.. most of the parts were pulled and painted properly.. only thing is the rear window, can see some white if I pull the seal up

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

Really nice looking first gen.
I was going to suggest checking the float level. On something sitting for a while they can stick. Some tapping with a wrench on the outside of the carb where the gas inlet is can sometimes jar it loose so it will work.
Oh well, good luck with the new motor. If you have room, bring the whole donor vehicle and park it beside your truck. You will save a few bucks on little pieces that you won't have.

Richard

 

[snider519]

Donor car is the plan, will help with knowing what goes where and having extra odds and ends that i may not get with just buying an engine.. part out what I can and scrap the rest, hopefully come close to breaking even

 

[Mark_88]

Hmmmm...flooding, essentially...check the float level and that the needle is still where it's supposed to be...don't think of rebuild until you check those...

There have been quite a few carb upgrades on here in the last year...check out some of the things they did...like swapping out a different carb...

Compression on #1 is an issue...block needs to be replaced...if you're going with the same motor (2.3 or 2.5) I would suggest either rebuild this one or get a Turbo...or even rebuild this one with forged pistons and add a turbo...

If you want to keep the carb though I'd definitely look into upgrading...and swap in an M5OD-R1 transmission...from one of the newer Rangers...

Then rear gears if it's running too high...

Many things you can do...and an excellent project for really learning good stuff...

 

[snider519]

Got pretty well everything out of the way to pull the engine.. just have to unbolt the trans, support it with a jack and rent a hoist. Any tips for pulling the engine? Where abouts should I hook up the chains to lift it out? I kinda looked around but there doesn't seem to be an obvious lift point... If I grab an m5od i'm guessing I'll need the driveshaft, I believe I read that it's a little bit longer then the TK5? anything else I should plan on grabbing while I'm at the junkyard in regards to swapping the trans?

I need a good full week at work before I can start picking up parts I need.. I've only got 2 hours so far this week.... usually 50+ hours a week so it's gonna be one hurtin' paycheck lol, but it's kinda got a silver lining because I should have the motor pulled this week.. I appreciate all the help so much, great to have people with experience to help guide me along!