Hello from NOVA

[bjm403]

Happy to be here, I picked up my 2011 XLT, 2.3, 5spd, RWD, 91k miles in January and so far I love it. It's from Akron, OH so it has seen some salt and winters. Are you on here, original owner? That would be wild, Carfax says it was a one owner who bought it new, drove until last year, then traded it in at the dealership he bought it from. Maybe traded on a new one?

I started with the basic new-to-me maintenance stuff; changed/flushed all fluids & new filters. Found oil in two of the spark plug tubes, so I pulled the intake and valve cover off and replaced the valve cover gasket, seems to be good now. New coil pack, spark plugs/wires, and exhaust from the cat back because of rust. Shortly after finishing that is when the bug bit me I think. I filled up a shopping cart on Rock Auto 'just to see' how much it would cost, and ended up overhauling most of the suspension! All new upper and lower control arms, bushings, ball joints, inner and outer tie rod ends with new baffles, sway bar links and bushings, 4x Rancho shocks, rear leaf spring mounts and shackles (rust!). I even took the leaf springs off and completely apart to put in polyurethane bushings, grind off surface rust, treat with rust reformer and paint. Had to replace the OE spring clip and plastic insulators and I took the opportunity to add-a-leaf for good measure.

I found during the first oil change that the drain bolt was over-torqued and it must have been done by the dealer right before listing it on their used lot because the thread pieces came out with it. Anyone had any luck with the carbide drill bits that can cut in new threads? I picked one up off Amazon which will then convert the plug to an M15 instead of M14, but I haven’t tried it yet, any opinions on that would be appreciated.

Cheers!

 

[sgtsandman]

Welcome! Both of my current Rangers were new, off the lot. That is not the norm here though.

As far as the oil pan, good luck. In theory, it should be easy enough. I would want to do the work with the pan off the truck to make sure all the metal shavings are removed before refilling the engine with oil.

If the pan is aluminum, keep the tool speed low and the bit well lubed to prevent gauling. Cutting fluid is preferred but any oil will work in a pinch.

 

[bjm403]

Welcome! Both of my current Rangers were new, off the lot. That is not the norm here though.

As far as the oil pan, good luck. In theory, it should be easy enough. I would want to do the work with the pan off the truck to make sure all the metal shavings are removed before refilling the engine with oil.

If the pan is aluminum, keep the tool speed low and the bit well lubed to prevent gauling. Cutting fluid is preferred but any oil will work in a pinch.

Thanks!

Anyone on here know if the oil pans on these are all steel or aluminum? Or, maybe steel with a softer aluminum insert around the drain plug for just this issue? I've seen that on some vehicles, but it's not in my Haynes manual, lol...

I'll have to make a closer inspection, but I want to get a few more miles out of this oil before I drain it and repair the threads

 

[sgtsandman]

Thanks!

Anyone on here know if the oil pans on these are all steel or aluminum? Or, maybe steel with a softer aluminum insert around the drain plug for just this issue? I've seen that on some vehicles, but it's not in my Haynes manual, lol...

I'll have to make a closer inspection, but I want to get a few more miles out of this oil before I drain it and repair the threads

It depends on the engine. Some four cylinders have a steel pan and others, an aluminum pan. My 1998 had a solid aluminum pan.

 

[Curious Hound]

Im pretty sure that in the past I have purchased over-sized self-tapping drain plugs for just this purpose. Very easy to use.

 

[MaicoDoug]

Welcome!

What a sweetheart truck you ended up with. That's why we love these things. Man she's a looker.

Your front end rebuild will go easy, the only thing is that I would take notes, maybe clean & mark the camber adjusters so you can see how they re-assemble when that time comes. Also pull a string from the rear tires and measure what your toe in looks like, that will get you close when the time comes to do those final adjustments. Buy a new little tub of grease, I like the red synthetic Mobil 1.

Looks like the T-bars are cranked a little? Is that a 4x4? If so, you may consider including a set of new CV axles for the front end rebuild. Only 91Kmi, just broke in. The 5000 series Rancho shocks are adjustable if you got those.

I painted my spindles & sway bar. I had time because my truck was a garage queen for a week while I converted to coil overs. Easy to do. Let us know how it's going. Mine drives with a fingernail, so nice like a new truck. Well worth the time & effort at 138kmi, ball joints weren't that bad but it handled like they were. The steering rod ends were where the bad mojo was.

 

[superj]

that is a great looking truck.

an easy fix on that drain plug is to tap and install one of these.

EZ Oil Drain Valve- The Easiest Oil Change! - Home

no more mess or fuss when changing the oil

 

[bjm403]

Welcome!

What a sweetheart truck you ended up with. That's why we love these things. Man she's a looker.

Your front end rebuild will go easy, the only thing is that I would take notes, maybe clean & mark the camber adjusters so you can see how they re-assemble when that time comes. Also pull a string from the rear tires and measure what your toe in looks like, that will get you close when the time comes to do those final adjustments. Buy a new little tub of grease, I like the red synthetic Mobil 1.

Looks like the T-bars are cranked a little? Is that a 4x4? If so, you may consider including a set of new CV axles for the front end rebuild. Only 91Kmi, just broke in. The 5000 series Rancho shocks are adjustable if you got those.

I painted my spindles & sway bar. I had time because my truck was a garage queen for a week while I converted to coil overs. Easy to do. Let us know how it's going. Mine drives with a fingernail, so nice like a new truck. Well worth the time & effort at 138kmi, ball joints weren't that bad but it handled like they were. The steering rod ends were where the bad mojo was.

I learned so much. I've already completed all the suspension stuff I wanted to do for now; didn't know the string trick for the toe, but I took many pictures while taking it apart which helped greatly with getting it back together, including those camber adjuster plates. Lower ball joints especially were shot. I got the whole thing straight enough to make it to the alignment shop first thing, rides like a dream now.

RWD with no torsion bars, I do think the add-a-leaf lifted up the rear, but I didn't think to measure it before starting to see how much, it's minimal. 235/75r15 tires are a bit wider than stock, came on it and the original rims were in the bed included.

Here's some of what I pulled off the front end. I hit everything i could reach with a wire brush and some rust reformer/paint, looks solid but next project might be removing the bed for better frame access and a chance to really clean it all up, it's fully undercoated and has years of woolwax or fluid film or whatever down there. I think the grease I had on hand was Lucas heavy duty, I know it was green. Thx for the advice, always appreciated!

 

[MaicoDoug]

Congrats on a new front end! Nothing like driving down the center of the lane!