Ford and their "Reverse Engineering"

[tripod808]

Im in the process of swapping my blown 4.0 for another, and I must say, it is very frustrating removing this drivetrain. It seems like Ford went out of their way to make the angles of the exhaust, bellhousing, engine mounts, etc harder for the backyard mechanic to work on the motor.

I want to know what other people out there that have replaced their 4.0's done to eliminate the "reverse engineering" to make the ranger more home mechaniuc friendly.

 

[AllanD]

Body lift.

I did a 1" body lift specifically because it increased wrench clearance when working under the truck.

It also simplified my mounting of my rear aux gas tank.

AD

 

[BlackBII]

I've found working on RBV's is far easier than most cars...like Fiats for example.

 

[Fx4wannabe01]

I swapped my 4.0 a few weeks back in my '01. key to an easy swap: remove the front iner fenders!!!

I'll also add....pulling the seats and the trans inspection cover helped me get to the top two bellhousing bolts when my truck wasnt bodylifted. manifold to Y pipe nuts are a pain period. crazy combo of extentions and universals.

 

[feellnfroggy]

Body lift.

I did a 1" body lift specifically because it increased wrench clearance when working under the truck.

It also simplified my mounting of my rear aux gas tank.

AD

Can you detail a thread about adding the auxilary tank? OR was it factory on your truck? Id love to add some more range to my rbv.

 

[AllanD]

This has been discussed in other posts

No, my truck was not originally a dual tank truck
nor does it completely use factory dual tank parts.

My front tank is from a later (1994) Ranger supercab
my rear tank is from a "dually wheel" F350. (narrower frame spacing in the back)

and while I'm using the selector valve, factory dual-tank
switch and a factory wiring harness.

The primary purpose my selector valve serves is to
control the return fuel

My lines are fabricated because nothing is in a stock location
for an '86-88 supercab Ranger.

AD