Greetings! (again!) and some questions.

[rctech]

Hey folks! I'm back. Used to be here way back in the day as "linuxman2003". Anyway, I just bought a 1997 ranger splash, 3.0 5-speed, 116k miles. And I got a few questions! It's in pretty decent shape overall, but it has a few quirks as to be expected for a used truck. The ones that I'm most curious about:

I filled the truck up today for the first time, aaaaand after the pump clicked off, I could hear gas pouring onto the ground from under the truck. Wtf. I haven't had a chance to climb under and inspect it yet, anybody got any ideas for what to look for when I do?

Another minor quirk that I think I know what it is, but I'll ask anyway: The AC and heat work great, but only on the highest blower setting. I'm guessing this is the resistor pack. If there's something else I should check, I'd love to know.

The trans (m5od-R1) whines quite a bit in every gear under acceleration except for 4th, so I'm guessing countershaft bearings are shot... could be something else I guess, but again, no time to inspect just yet.

There also appears to be an oil leak right where the bellhousing meets the engine. I suppose, given the condition of the trans (not super) could it be gear oil leaking from the input shaft? If not that, I'm going to assume it is the rear main seal.

The only other thing I have a bit of a gripe about is the ride - my previous two rangers were both 98+ with the spindle front suspension and the ride was infinitely better in those. Not sure if this is how I-beam rangers are supposed to ride, or if the shocks/springs are shot, but MAN this thing rides rough. Anyway, thanks for the info guys, glad to be back after a few years in hiatus!

 

[mp3deviant721]

Check your filler neck, seems to be a common issue with these trucks. You blower motor only working on high is very likely the resistor. Common issue on anything. The manuals use ATF, so if the fluid is red, or dark red, then yes, you may have a transmission issue. Otherwise it probably is an engine oil leak. Bad shocks can cause a crappy ride but so can add a leafs. Check for bad shocks and check to see if the previous owner added add a leafs. As for the transmission whine the only thing I can tell you is to check the fluid level in the transmission. I'm don't have much experience diagnosing manual transmissions as I'm fresh out of tech school.

 

[rctech]

Check your filler neck, seems to be a common issue with these trucks. You blower motor only working on high is very likely the resistor. Common issue on anything. The manuals use ATF, so if the fluid is red, or dark red, then yes, you may have a transmission issue. Otherwise it probably is an engine oil leak. Bad shocks can cause a crappy ride but so can add a leafs. Check for bad shocks and check to see if the previous owner added add a leafs. As for the transmission whine the only thing I can tell you is to check the fluid level in the transmission. I'm don't have much experience diagnosing manual transmissions as I'm fresh out of tech school.

Thanks! I don't suppose you would know if the splash stepside bed uses a different filler neck than the fleetside bed?

*edit*
Never mind, it does indeed have a different filler neck.