Buying my first ranger, question about high mileage chassis.

[adsm08]

I hate to say it, but ranger frames are kind of chinsy. I was a little disturbed when I couldnt get my doors to open and close well while the truck was on the lift. Then that afternoon I pulled in a post 2000 ranger that did the same thing. Its because the frames are so thin and not boxed well enough.

Postin' from teh Galaxy

 

[Captain Ledd]

My doors and my friends doors open fine on my lift? And he's got an extended cab with a topper.

 

[Boomers13]

Ok, the truck has me stumped. I can't find the diagnostic port for anything. I looked for about 20 min and searched the internet and checked everywhere people said. I found a plug by the hood release but not sure if that's it, it doesn't look like any plug I've messed with before. I deciphered the vin and found it'd a 94, mfg 02/94.

 

[Captain Ledd]

It should OBD 1, 95+ Rangers got OBD2.

it's for a 4.0L, but hopefully it's the same. I think it's some weird trapezoid shape...

 

[Boomers13]

That's where I thought it should be, same as my mustang and almost every other obd-I ford I've messed with. Its not there though. I've traced every group of wires in the harness to see of maybe it had fallen down under something but its nowhere to be found.

 

[Captain Ledd]

Now that I've mulled this over a bit I think I recall it being under some sort of cover. It had an E in it, but I can't remember what it said.

 

[Boomers13]

The wrecked 4.0 that's sitting has it on the driver's side fender and it had an eec-iv on a cap but the only thing I have it the big fuse box and nothing else. There isn't even a place where there is loose cut wires like it had been cut off. Either its in a different place or some how it doesn't have one. I'll try to post a few pictures in a minute if I can figure out how to do it from my phone.

 

[Boomers13]

 

[Boomers13]

Its kind of hard to see but there isn't even a spot in the harness for it.

 

[Captain Ledd]

That looks an awful lot like my '97's setup. Is '94 what the guy told you?

http://www.therangerstation.com/tech_library/VIN_Codes.html

I have a feeling he bought it in '94 but it might be a '95 model year.

Edit: Grab a pic of the dashboard. 94 and lower had a pretty squared off dash panel, 95+ got a sweeping, more rounded dashboard.

 

[Boomers13]

It has a 97 manual in the glove box but the sticker on the door says the mfg date was 02/94. I ran the vin on the door because I couldn't see the one on the dash, too much debris. The radio is the same style as the one my moms 04 explorer had. Another thing I noticed today is the intake manifold is different from the one my mustang and the rangers I've seen. Its got 4 even spaced runners instead of two groups of two that are connected and had a big square with a bunch of wires bolted to it.

 

[Captain Ledd]

The door might have been replaced. Really sounds like you've got a 95+ model, which would be OBDII. I think you may have found the connector at the bottom of the dash already.

But juuuust in case:

Middle panel just above the brake pedal, between the hood release and E-brake release.

 

[Boomers13]

Yup that's it. Guess I need to go buy a code reader. Did the odometer change with the interior makeover?

 

[Captain Ledd]

Who knows. If the part # year date roughly corresponds to the VIN on the cab then it's probably original.

If you have a smart phone I highly recommend the "Torque" app, and a bluetooth reader (This is the one I baught). It's worked well for me even with the Free version of Torque. Can't beat this setup for only $24.

 

[Boomers13]

I'll probably just buy one from auto zone just because its a 2 minute drive away and I can keep it in my tool box since I don't always have my phone on me. I found a maintenance log from a previous owner and he had mileage down as 35x,xxx so the truck does have high miles. Since I plan on rebuilding/replacing the whole drive train, as long as the chassis checks out I should be good to go. Here's some more pictures of the truck. Its not pretty right now but coat of paint on the bumper and a few hours of good cleaning inside and out and it should look decent. Inside will be easy since it has the rubber floor.