Engine swap

[Ranger850]

Thank you all for your thoughts on this. I’m guessing it would be easier to tune the engine I have and maybe beef up the trans

What engine do you have?

 

[stmitch]

If you simply try googling 'ranger 2jz swap' you'll find some videos and links.
One of the links, will even direct you to this very site (which also has a search function that you could've used to find good info).

http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=52664

 

[19Walt93]

A Toyota engine? No more men's clothing for you.

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

The biggest problem you may encounter with an engine swap is your vintage of Ranger, I believe the cluster, anti-theft and ECU all got integrated and it makes for swap headaches.

That said, any swap is possible with enough time and money. The big problem with any straight 6 (or worse, straight 8) is the length. Ford actually went through the trouble to re-design the timing chain cover and accessories to cram the 302/5.0 into the Explorer which at the time used the same engine bay size and layout as the Ranger. These modifications shaved a few inches off the length which improved the fit. Even at that, the 302 pretty well fills every bit of space. I’m currently working on my second swap of this nature. And if you’re looking to build power, it’s a good swap. Eventually I plan to build a 302 into a 331 stroker for it, just because.

 

[atomsquirrel96]

What engine do you have?

The 2.3 L 4 cyl. Although, I did see it had a V6 option. Must have been a small V6 if a 2JZ can’t fit in it

 

[atomsquirrel96]

The biggest problem you may encounter with an engine swap is your vintage of Ranger, I believe the cluster, anti-theft and ECU all got integrated and it makes for swap headaches.

That said, any swap is possible with enough time and money. The big problem with any straight 6 (or worse, straight 8) is the length. Ford actually went through the trouble to re-design the timing chain cover and accessories to cram the 302/5.0 into the Explorer which at the time used the same engine bay size and layout as the Ranger. These modifications shaved a few inches off the length which improved the fit. Even at that, the 302 pretty well fills every bit of space. I’m currently working on my second swap of this nature. And if you’re looking to build power, it’s a good swap. Eventually I plan to build a 302 into a 331 stroker for it, just because.

Probably not relevant, but my truck doesn’t have anti theft. It doesn’t have power door locks or even a key fob. It’s the stripped down model probably a fleet truck

 

[stmitch]

Probably not relevant, but my truck doesn’t have anti theft. It doesn’t have power door locks or even a key fob. It’s the stripped down model probably a fleet truck

Many Rangers have an anti theft system from the factory known as Passive Anti Theft System (PATS for short). There's a small chip built into the key that's paired to the PCM and steering column. It's kind of like an RFID system if you're familiar with those. Anyway, PATS is always working, so it's not something that you would have to turn on/off and it's pretty likely that you have it without knowing it's there.

In 2004, Rangers adopted a digital instrument cluster that's tied to the PCM. An engine swap will require retuning the factory PCM, or using a different one altogether, which means you'd lose the factory gauge functionality. This is a potential problem for swaps whether you have PATS or not.

 

[RonD]

The 2.3 L 4 cyl. Although, I did see it had a V6 option. Must have been a small V6 if a 2JZ can’t fit in it

A V6 is only 3 cylinders long, V8 4 cylinders, actually 3.5 long and 4.5 long
So 4 cylinder length is longer than V6 but shorter than V8

2JZ is a Straight 6, so is 6 cylinders long, much longer than a V8

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

The 2.3 L 4 cyl. Although, I did see it had a V6 option. Must have been a small V6 if a 2JZ can’t fit in it

The V-6 option for your year was an SOHC 4.0L, so not exactly small, but shorter than an inline 6 like the 2JZ.

Probably not relevant, but my truck doesn’t have anti theft. It doesn’t have power door locks or even a key fob. It’s the stripped down model probably a fleet truck

Pretty sure all Rangers after 2000 had the PATs anti-theft. It’s a chip in the key and most people don’t know they have it. I know the 4 cyl fleet trucks I’ve been in all had it. My blue 2000 Ranger was manual locks, no key fob and it had the PATs.

 

[RonD]

PATS(transponder keys) was a pay extra option in 1998 V6 Rangers
1999 and up Rangers with V6 engines all had PATS as standard equipment
In mid 2001 with new 2.3l Duratec 4cyl engine all Rangers had PATS, previous 2.5l Rangers(1998-2001) did not

In 2005 model year no Rangers had PATS, dispute with supplier

In 2004 to 2011 Rangers got the HEC, a new Digital Dash
Digital dash was "married" to Engine computer, so they were a "matched set", this was to prevent swapping in lower mile odometers, common issue in all vehicles with analog dash(clusters)
If 2004-2011 cluster or engine computer should fail, either can be swapped out but you need Ford Software to "remarry" them

PATS or HEC just adds an extra layer of work when swapping engine size, doesn't prevent it just adds extra work

 

[atomsquirrel96]

Don’t know why I didn’t think of that. Of course an in-line 6 would be longer. Anywho, this was all just food for thought. I did see where someone LS swapped a ranger, but it was heavily modified to fit that engine. I’ve thought of theoretical ways to fit a JZ, but they’d all be impossible at my skill and time level, as you can tell from me not understanding that a V6 is shorter in length than an inline 6. I thank you all for entertaining this idea though

 

[Henry2016]

I have a 97 XLT rwd 5 speed 7.5 3.73 2.3
My question is, if I snag a 98-2000 2.5 complete rebuild it and put it in my 97 will I need to change anything? Will the computer and things know the difference or will I have to program anything?

 

[RonD]

Welcome to TRS

You should start your own thread, its free, lol

Yes, you can swap a 1998-2001 2.5l Lima in to a 1995-1997 Ranger/Mazda that has a 2.3l Lima
You will need to swap over the 2.3l intake to the 2.5l to get fuel system and wiring to match, they used the same heads so not a big deal

 

[JoshT]

Don’t know why I didn’t think of that. Of course an in-line 6 would be longer.

Don't sweat it, we all have moments like that. Another possible issue that I don't think was mentioned is height. I'm thinking that the 2JZ was taller than any engine used in the Ranger, 4 cylinder included. Might be an issue trying to fit one between the engine crossmember and hood.

The 2.3 L 4 cyl.

2011 2.3L? That would be the Duratec and from what I understand those are pretty agreeable to forced induction. Might be a good alternative to an engine swap. If you't able to tackle a swap like you were entertaining, you should be able to pull off a turbo install with little issue.