2.3L ('83-'97) 94 to 89 swap

[Sawyer101]

I have a 1989 Ranger with a 2.3l and a 1994 Mazda b2300 with 2.3l. I wonder how hard it is to swap the 94 engine into the 89?

 

[scotts90ranger]

They should be pretty interchangeable, keep as much '89 stuff as you can, might even need to keep the original exhaust manifold as the EGR system changed in '93, other than that it should be fine as the mechanical system between '89-94 was the same crank sensor and everything...

 

[JoshT]

They are practically the same engine. It'll pretty much be a bolt in swap. Easiest way to do it would be to transfer all the electronics and acessories from the 89 engine on the 94 engine when you swap it in.

My question is how come you need to ask on here if you're an ASE Certified Technician?

 

[scotts90ranger]

Because almost no one but us knows Rangers as well as the people here... sometimes there's hidden things like the crank or cam sensors...

 

[tinman_72]

They are practically the same engine. It'll pretty much be a bolt in swap. Easiest way to do it would be to transfer all the electronics and acessories from the 89 engine on the 94 engine when you swap it in.

My question is how come you need to ask on here if you're an ASE Certified Technician?

Because in ASE Certification School they don't teach engine interchange compatibility.

 

[JoshT]

Sure, but he should has two eyes and should have some mechanical knowledge. If he pops the hood and looks at them he'll see that the engine bays are nearly identical. His training and background should also clue him into the various interchange databases/methods out there, likely some that I done even know about.

Also these days I don't trust new members to not be spambots, scammers, etc until they're a little established. They've gotten too good at hiding who they are. Posts like this are an example. Not saying that Sawyer101 is, but lots ask seemingly legitimate questions to get started then come back with the spam and scam later. Granted most claim the TRS banner flag in addition to any other that they can select, not just this ASE flag.

 

[scotts90ranger]

Actually a fair number of things changed between '89 and '94, the alternator moved to the other side of the engine, coil mount brackets are completely moved around, '89 has a MAP sensor where the '94 has a MAF, '89 has a EGR position sensor at most where the '94 has a DPFE sensor to check the flow rate... so while the intake manifold is the same there's a bunch of small differences...

 

[Sawyer101]

They should be pretty interchangeable, keep as much '89 stuff as you can, might even need to keep the original exhaust manifold as the EGR system changed in '93, other than that it should be fine as the mechanical system between '89-94 was the same crank sensor and everything...

Thank you for your reply, as far as the wiring goes how hard is it to connect to the cab wiring harness?

 

[Sawyer101]

Sure, but he should has two eyes and should have some mechanical knowledge. If he pops the hood and looks at them he'll see that the engine bays are nearly identical. His training and background should also clue him into the various interchange databases/methods out there, likely some that I done even know about.

Also these days I don't trust new members to not be spambots, scammers, etc until they're a little established. They've gotten too good at hiding who they are. Posts like this are an example. Not saying that Sawyer101 is, but lots ask seemingly legitimate questions to get started then come back with the spam and scam later. Granted most claim the TRS banner flag in addition to any other that they can select, not just this ASE flag.

Don’t worry I’m not a scammer or spam, i’m more of a dodge guy just want to fix the truck for my sister. Also i went to school to be a diesel mechanic and that wasn’t an option when i joined.

 

[scotts90ranger]

Use everything from the '89, wire colors and even ECM location changed, the engine wiring is dead simple though, I used the stock '90 harness on the turbo engine in mine and just moved the wires in the ECM that needed it (turbo engine problems, you don't have to worry about that). That part should be plug and play, crank sensor should be same connector and so should everything else so just use the '89 harness on the newer engine... On the engine the only connections should be EGR position, throttle position, IAC, 4 injectors, two coil packs, crank sensor, coolant temp sensor in the middle of the intake manifold by the injectors then the oil pressure and coolant temp gauge senders by the oil filter... take pictures of random stuff like vacuum lines before you take it apart, might have to change some things like the throttle body or upper intake to get the vacuum ports right... You can use either accessory setup, both are the same belt spacing but the wiring for the alternator is set up for the drivers side so no use changing that...

You probably know, but might as well do a timing belt at that point, get one for a '94 as that's different too, round tooth instead of square (changed in '92), it's non interference but might as well...

 

[Sawyer101]

Use everything from the '89, wire colors and even ECM location changed, the engine wiring is dead simple though, I used the stock '90 harness on the turbo engine in mine and just moved the wires in the ECM that needed it (turbo engine problems, you don't have to worry about that). That part should be plug and play, crank sensor should be same connector and so should everything else so just use the '89 harness on the newer engine... On the engine the only connections should be EGR position, throttle position, IAC, 4 injectors, two coil packs, crank sensor, coolant temp sensor in the middle of the intake manifold by the injectors then the oil pressure and coolant temp gauge senders by the oil filter... take pictures of random stuff like vacuum lines before you take it apart, might have to change some things like the throttle body or upper intake to get the vacuum ports right... You can use either accessory setup, both are the same belt spacing but the wiring for the alternator is set up for the drivers side so no use changing that...

You probably know, but might as well do a timing belt at that point, get one for a '94 as that's different too, round tooth instead of square (changed in '92), it's non interference but might as well...

I knew this was the right place to ask thank you a lot!! One more thing i have another engine sitting in my barn that came with the truck the guy said it was from a mercury and it has a turbo. I was told by one guy if i want to use the turbo in the ranger i have to change the internals to handle it and another guy said they all had the same internals. Which guy was right?

 

[scotts90ranger]

First off it would have been a Merkur (it was the 80's, odd stuff out there... even Yugoslavia had a car on the market in the states...) not Mercury, the model would be XR4Ti... that block is mostly the same as the N/A engines aside from a few key things, the turbo engines have 8.0:1 forges pistons compared to the 9.2:1 cast stock N/A pistons (same crank and rods, it should be newer than '86 so would be small main bearing as well), the other differences are the turbo oil drainback port on the passenger side is only on the turbo engines, and the crank sensor and front seal housing bolt holes are different, I've drilled 2 blocks now for the '89-94 crank sensor and modified at least two front crank seal housings to work... I'm running a '86 block now. The forged pistons can handle a LOT more abuse than the higher compression cast pistons but they'll fit in a stock block. The turbo compters were pinned different (I think 10 wires different) and they're designed to run the low impedance injectors that came on the turbo engines, the stock Ranger computers won't run them since they were designed for high impedance injectors, going to microsquirt fixes that issue though so I'm told (I'm running all random stock parts right now, mix of Ranger and thunderbird). I think the Merkur engines were '87-88 but had a less desirable tune in the computer with the less desirable turbo (since most were auto with the infamous A4LD transmission that they detuned the engine so the trans would survive) but that info is out there if you look in the right place...

So, to shorten it up, ALL of the internals are the same between turbo and N/A beside the pistons, some say you can run around 5psi on stock pistons safely, the crank and rods are good to about 350hp so no real worry there...

 

[Sawyer101]

First off it would have been a Merkur (it was the 80's, odd stuff out there... even Yugoslavia had a car on the market in the states...) not Mercury, the model would be XR4Ti... that block is mostly the same as the N/A engines aside from a few key things, the turbo engines have 8.0:1 forges pistons compared to the 9.2:1 cast stock N/A pistons (same crank and rods, it should be newer than '86 so would be small main bearing as well), the other differences are the turbo oil drainback port on the passenger side is only on the turbo engines, and the crank sensor and front seal housing bolt holes are different, I've drilled 2 blocks now for the '89-94 crank sensor and modified at least two front crank seal housings to work... I'm running a '86 block now. The forged pistons can handle a LOT more abuse than the higher compression cast pistons but they'll fit in a stock block. The turbo compters were pinned different (I think 10 wires different) and they're designed to run the low impedance injectors that came on the turbo engines, the stock Ranger computers won't run them since they were designed for high impedance injectors, going to microsquirt fixes that issue though so I'm told (I'm running all random stock parts right now, mix of Ranger and thunderbird). I think the Merkur engines were '87-88 but had a less desirable tune in the computer with the less desirable turbo (since most were auto with the infamous A4LD transmission that they detuned the engine so the trans would survive) but that info is out there if you look in the right place...

So, to shorten it up, ALL of the internals are the same between turbo and N/A beside the pistons, some say you can run around 5psi on stock pistons safely, the crank and rods are good to about 350hp so no real worry there...

Mercury/Merkur my bad, thanks for the help.

 

[JoshT]

Well...

(a) you returned and
(b) you actually took the effort to post a legitimate question in the correct section of the site, something that many members with a higher post count can't be bothered with (and it drives me nuts)

So... I'll give you a pass for not being a scammer/spammer. Welcome to the club.

First off it would have been a Merkur (it was the 80's, odd stuff out there... even Yugoslavia had a car on the market in the states...) not Mercury, the model would be XR4Ti...

Actually... The Mercury Capri and Cougar both could be purchased with the 2.3L turbo. They were the Mercury brand versions of the Mustang and Thunderbird respectively and had pretty much the same engine options. So what he has could be a Mercury 2.3 turbo. Still the same basic engine as the Ford 2.3L and Merkur 2.3L and Scott covered the differences prety well.

If staying stockish and N/A I don't think you'll find much better help than you can here. If you were interested in building a performance ranger with a 2.3 turbo, you might consider searching out some of the various turbo Ford groups. Also if interested in going that route or building a performance N/A engine, it might be in your interest to research some of the aftermarket engine control options like the PiMP ECU since these trucks are basically unsupported for tuning these days.

If I stick with and build the 2.3L in my '85, the PiMPxshift is the route I intend to take. Basically Megasquirt 3 in a pretty much plug and play box, some tuning required.

 

[tinman_72]

Don’t worry I’m not a scammer or spam

That's exactly what a scammer or spammer would say