97 2.3 turbo swap need help

[caliber]

so i have a 97 ford ranger manual trans and i got a 88 mustang svo turbo motor with wiring harness and computer what all would i need to do to make it work properly? the man thing im worried about is how the wiring is going to work

 

[RonD]

Welcome to the forum

Shouldn't to tough
1997 is OBD2 so pretty much all of the current engine wiring harness will come out, and the 1988 wiring will go in
Much easier with a 1994 or earlier Ranger(OBD1)

Some wiring info here: https://www.therangerstation.com/tech_library/turbo_swap_wiring.shtml

The Mustang and T-bird will be the same as far as I know

Just one wire at a time, don't look at the over all amount of wires or it will freak you out, lol

Ford did all the hard work, you will usually just be hooking up 12volt power and Ground wires to 1988 harness

The 1997 will have 1 wire from engine temp SENDER into dash board temp gauge, you will need that to stay
Also 1 wire from Oil Pressure switch on engine to dash oil gauge

There will be a Key on 12volt wire for current Coil pack, you also need that for turbos coil and spark module

 

[Dirtman]

So sayeth Ron!

 

[caliber]

Welcome to the forum

Shouldn't to tough
1997 is OBD2 so pretty much all of the current engine wiring harness will come out, and the 1988 wiring will go in
Much easier with a 1994 or earlier Ranger(OBD1)

Some wiring info here: https://www.therangerstation.com/tech_library/turbo_swap_wiring.shtml

The Mustang and T-bird will be the same as far as I know

Just one wire at a time, don't look at the over all amount of wires or it will freak you out, lol

Ford did all the hard work, you will usually just be hooking up 12volt power and Ground wires to 1988 harness

The 1997 will have 1 wire from engine temp SENDER into dash board temp gauge, you will need that to stay
Also 1 wire from Oil Pressure switch on engine to dash oil gauge

There will be a Key on 12volt wire for current Coil pack, you also need that for turbos coil and spark module

Welcome to the forum

Shouldn't to tough
1997 is OBD2 so pretty much all of the current engine wiring harness will come out, and the 1988 wiring will go in
Much easier with a 1994 or earlier Ranger(OBD1)

Some wiring info here: https://www.therangerstation.com/tech_library/turbo_swap_wiring.shtml

The Mustang and T-bird will be the same as far as I know

Just one wire at a time, don't look at the over all amount of wires or it will freak you out, lol

Ford did all the hard work, you will usually just be hooking up 12volt power and Ground wires to 1988 harness

The 1997 will have 1 wire from engine temp SENDER into dash board temp gauge, you will need that to stay
Also 1 wire from Oil Pressure switch on engine to dash oil gauge

There will be a Key on 12volt wire for current Coil pack, you also need that for turbos coil and spark module

ok cool thank you

 

[pwrshft99]

Checking in for an update. Have a 96 Ranger with 88 2.3t and kept OBD2. Curious how OP addressed cam sensor

 

[RonD]

Checking in for an update. Have a 96 Ranger with 88 2.3t and kept OBD2. Curious how OP addressed cam sensor

Cam sensor?
I would like to know how you addressed the CRANK SENSOR, lol, that would be the hard one with 2.3l OBD2 since it needed a VR AC volt signal not the 12volt hall effect signal used on 1994 and earlier 2.3ls

Cam sensor was always VR AC volts so wouldn't be hard to add, bracket and maybe new AUX gear

 

[pwrshft99]

Cam sensor?
I would like to know how you addressed the CRANK SENSOR, lol, that would be the hard one with 2.3l OBD2 since it needed a VR AC volt signal not the 12volt hall effect signal used on 1994 and earlier 2.3ls

Cam sensor was always VR AC volts so wouldn't be hard to add, bracket and maybe new AUX gear

The crank sensor was easy. Basically the mounting bracket from OBD Rangers bolts in, minus a hole or two. Need ranger sensor and balancer with trigger wheel too.

There IS a Hall Effect cam sensor that came on certain 93-95 2.3 rangers. It fit in the distributor hole. My 96 uses a VR type, which i have mounted to the valve cover.


My swap has been complete for years. It runs and drives great! The problem is its extremely rich at idle. The only notable code i get is for my half assed attempt to mount the cam sensor

 

[RonD]

So you replaced the front engine cover and the later model crank pulley fit the 1988 crank?
cool

Not sure what the factory cam sensor reads on the AUX gear so can't say if cam gear would have the same timing sync where you have it, but I wouldn't think that would be the cause rich running at idle, idle is rich and O2s are ignored at idle
Did you put in higher lbs/hr injectors?

 

[pwrshft99]

So you replaced the front engine cover and the later model crank pulley fit the 1988 crank?
cool

Not sure what the factory cam sensor reads on the AUX gear so can't say if cam gear would have the same timing sync where you have it, but I wouldn't think that would be the cause rich running at idle, idle is rich and O2s are ignored at idle
Did you put in higher lbs/hr injectors?

I followed what a member on turborangerforums.com did with his truck. Sadly that site seems to be gone forever. On the OBD2 trucks, the cam and aux gears are identical.

I have 42# injectors and have tried tuning with both a TwEECer and SCT Advantage. I can adjust A/F anywhere else is the power band, but it idles around 12 to 1 on my wide band no matter what.

 

[RonD]

Yes, Cam and AUX are the same, just didn't know if the cam sensor is reading a vane on the back as its #1 marker so position of cam sensor mattered, i.e. cam sensor is mounted at 3:00 on stock 2.3l engine when AUX gears at 12:00 for #1 TDC

 

[pwrshft99]

Yes, Cam and AUX are the same, just didn't know if the cam sensor is reading a vane on the back as its #1 marker so position of cam sensor mattered, i.e. cam sensor is mounted at 3:00 on stock 2.3l engine when AUX gears at 12:00 for #1 TDC

The picture i attached is how it is orientated at TDC. I had to cut the trigger wheel off and have it tacked back on in a position that made it easier to have a place to mount the sensor.

Best guess, my issue is due to the gap between the wheel and the sensor or, the welds are triggering a false reading.

 

[scotts90ranger]

I would imagine you would have more issues with the splices on your cam sensor than anything else, those quick splices are junk and should never be used on anything let alone a VR sensor that is a sketchy sensor signal to begin with... Why Ford and others use V/R is beyond me, apparently they have their electric filters figured out. I know VR saves a wire in the harness for every sensor used, and saves 1/3 on sensors, but still I would rather trust a 5V square wave signal than a peaky random 0-1V signal...

 

[pwrshft99]

I would imagine you would have more issues with the splices on your cam sensor than anything else, those quick splices are junk and should never be used on anything let alone a VR sensor that is a sketchy sensor signal to begin with... Why Ford and others use V/R is beyond me, apparently they have their electric filters figured out. I know VR saves a wire in the harness for every sensor used, and saves 1/3 on sensors, but still I would rather trust a 5V square wave signal than a peaky random 0-1V signal...

They are only in place to attach my voltmeter while i was hand cranking the motor

 

[scotts90ranger]

Fair enough, that's a reasonable use . The air gap should likely be .005-.040"

Not that I'm nitpicking, but you'd be better off using the original block and swapping in the pistons/rods from a turbo engine as that and the oil drainback port are the only differences between turbo and N/A... I SO wish I'd done that... but first time around I was afraid of ripping apart an engine and now I'm stuck unless I get my hands on a twin plug engine for a good price... annoyingly I scrapped 2...

 

[pwrshft99]

Fair enough, that's a reasonable use . The air gap should likely be .005-.040"

Not that I'm nitpicking, but you'd be better off using the original block and swapping in the pistons/rods from a turbo engine as that and the oil drainback port are the only differences between turbo and N/A... I SO wish I'd done that... but first time around I was afraid of ripping apart an engine and now I'm stuck unless I get my hands on a twin plug engine for a good price... annoyingly I scrapped 2...

People told me that years ago and i just wouldn't listen, now i know why. Atleast two guys on turborangerforums got this setup to work, did my homework and thought i could accomplish the same thing. If it wasnt for a rich idle, i wouldn't give a damn about the cam sensor. Truck actually drives great!! But i feel if its throwing codes, im not getting optimal performance.

Thanks for tip on gap, working on it today.