A question that won't stop nagging....

[Tader82]

james86

i run about under 2000 at 60, im pushing 31 with a 3.73 rear end its all fine till i hit the hill country, but i live on the coast it flat as a board here so its great

 

[triumphrider-1]

Tader82, is your's a manual? I was just curious because I wish I got 27mpg with mine. At least its nice to know I'm not the only one with a 3.0 getting well above 20mpg. I drove my father in law's 3.0 1998 with a 5spd and it really only seemed about 200rpm lower at 60mph than mine with an auto. Also, I imagine it helps a little bit that with the vacuum hubs im not turning anything really for the front part of the 4x4 system when I'm driving along.

The other thing is that I have a fiberglass topper that actually streamlines pretty well with the cab and my friend with his Ranger has the step side (which has fiberglass sides, not steel-I've seen them break before) and a tonneau cover. A lot of people may be on the fence about the aerodynamic effects of a tonneu or a topper, but even Ford put tonneus on the EV Rangers for aerodynamics. Plus, every vehicle is different too.....

I think a person can do some things here and there to make a 3.0 more responsive and feel like they got their money's worth.

...but I really don't think anytime a person asks about doing things to their 3.0 they should be shouted down all the time.

The average fuel economy for my truck over the two years I've been keeping records is 21.5mpg.

Not positive about the caps, but low profile covers can improve aerodynamics.

See Gotta_gofast's quote below for improvements to the 3.0L.

James86: Believe me, I've wasted plenty of money on the 3.0L to know that its not worth the effort or money. Generally, as performance parts and "gofast goodies" are added, fuel economy will suffer.

Point is, a drivetrain swap is what you want it to be. As for your original post, you live in an apartment with no place to work besides a parking lot. Its not the place to be pulling an engine and fitting a new one. Best bet is to love your truck, or sell it.... The only worthwhile parts for the 3.0L are JBA headers, 1.7 roller rockers, gears, and a good 91-93 octane tune. But don't expect miracles.

^What he said.^

To attempt to answer your original question:
Costs of swap will vary a lot on where you got the motor, tranny, computer and all associated electrical goodies. Around here, I'd figure $800-$1000 just for picking up the pieces. I could run them as-is, but couldn't bring myself to do that. The motor would get rebuilt so that could be another $800-$2000, depending on the condition of the parts, boring, and what all would need to be replaced. Transmission would also get redone, and I can't do that myself so thats another $1200-$2200. Then the down time of my DD, so I'd need a second vehicle plus insurance.

For me, the 3.0L is good enough until it dies.

 

[James86]

Thank you.... thats the best explanation I've gotten. I've considered the JBA headers and after reading up on Rogue Performance, I got the impression that it made a huge difference, and honestly, thats probably about the only thing left I'm considering. I do love my truck and I plan on running the thing into the ground (it was my first auto loan so interest sorta raped me... I got a $6,400 truck for well over $10,000 so I plan on getting every penny's worth).