Little help with new to me Ranger

[chesster51]

Back story: Recently bought a 94 Ranger 2wd with a 289 swap that appears to be cobbled together and has me correcting many things. It has a c4 trans and speedometer is not functional. Replaced the VSS on the tail shaft of the trans hoping that would take care of it but made no change. I don't know what to look at next, need some help with that. Also it has a 7.5 open diff that I would like to replace with a junkyard LS unit. In an effort to get the truck on the road I had to do a complete brake job on the rear (drums, shoes, wheel cylinders and brake lines which is why I want to stay with direct replacement 7.5 unit. The truck has been lowered and the rear axle in is on top of the leaf springs. Will this be a simple replace with a LS rear end from any gen2 or other years Rangers? Open to any and all suggestions.

 

[Brain75]

is this a carb 289? I would bet the PO replaced the rear axle with an explorer axle (which leads to the flip) in order to get different gears/4" lower.... if they did that it shouldn't be anything more than turning bolts to put a stock axle back in.
tech library - everything about axles:

Axle Tech - The Ranger Station

DISCLAIMER: Activities and vehicle modifications appearing or described at The Ranger Station and it’s pages may be potentially dangerous. We do not endorse any such activity for others or recommend it to any particular person – we simply describe … Continued

www.therangerstation.com

and a how to do the explorer rear axle swap - so you can see what all they did and reverse it:

Explorer 8.8 Rear End Swap – No weld - The Ranger Station

Article by: Rocky T. McKenzie © 2014 This write up is to show how to swap in an Explorer 8.8 rear end into a Ranger without welding. The Explorer rear end swap is pretty common for Ranger enthusiasts, but … Continued

www.therangerstation.com

again this is the most likely if they did the explorer flip.


Auto trans lookup doesn't show any C4 ever used (C3 and C5 in very very early years only) so my guess is they picked a C4 because it has the right bell housing pattern for the 289, don't know if you want to mess with changing it to anything else though, options exist but all mean cost and work....
Auto trans main article with lookup chart:

https://www.therangerstation.com/tech/ford-ranger-automatic-transmissions/#gsc.tab=0

 

[chesster51]

Yes it is carb. It is the stock 7.5 that came in the truck, door sticker code 84. As said I redid the brakes and it was all stock 7.5 parts. The C4 was swapped in along with the motor. Truck was originally the 4 cylinder. I've already invested $300 in the rear brakes, so that's what makes me want to keep a 7.5 to reuse the new parts.

 

[Brain75]

Does it look like they did a re-weld of the spring pads or some much deeper re-factor?
Could re-cut and re-weld the spring pads back to factory, or if you are looking to re-gear and your yard is anything like mine, just find a donor 7.5 with the right LS gears... (my yards want the same price for an axle as they do just the gears)

guide on flipping the 8.8 over by cutting off and re-welding the spring pads (so you can see what it takes to do this flip, not so you can go out and get an 8.8 so much)

Ford Explorer 8.8-Inch Rear Axle - Swap - The Ranger Station

The Ford Explorer 8.8-Inch rear axle has found homes in numerous vehicles besides the Explorer. It has been swapped in to Ford Rangers, Bronco II’s, Jeeps, Chevy S-10’s and even some cars. The 8.8-Inch axle used in the … Continued

www.therangerstation.com

you said gen 2, but you understand your 1994 is gen 3... so your list of exact trades will be different than mine..
here's a list of all the 7.5" door stickers so you know what sticker to look at along with what years have what widths, etc - basically the key to narrowing down your search:

Ford 7.5-Inch Rear Axle History & Specs - The Ranger Station

Usage: The Ford 7.5-Inch axle came in a few different vehicles including the: Ford Aerostar (1985-1997) Ford Bronco II (1984-1990) Ford Mustang (1979-2011) Ford Ranger (1983-2011) For the purpose of this article, we’re only going to discuss the Ford Ranger … Continued

www.therangerstation.com

 

[chesster51]

According to what I've read Gen2 is 93 to 97. I'll have to look more closely to see just what they did with the spring pads, I'll check back in with more info.

 

[Brain75]

Amongst just about everyone in the auto industry, when the sheetmetal changes the generation changes..... somehow when the sheetmetal changed in 1989 a bunch of people didn't get the message.
wiki is too easily modify-able by idiots and all the bloggers/vloggers and any other idiot with a keyboard keep repeating the same stuff.
The true generations based on the industry standards for what defines a generation:

Ford Ranger Generations 1983-Present - The Ranger Station

Introduction: There have been questions concerning what years make up which generation of Ford Rangers. I think the problem came from the re-release of the Ford Ranger. A number of people seizing the opportunity to write about anything they can … Continued

www.therangerstation.com

 

[scotts90ranger]

For the speedometer as I know '94 should still have a speedometer cable, the sensor on the end is just for cruise control or ABS

Going to spring over with a junkyard axle should be simple enough, you'll likely have to flip the center bolt but that should be about it... if you got a Ranger 8.8 which are likely more common with a limited slip if that's what you want your 7.5 brake parts will bolt up, even the backing plates...

 

[chesster51]

Well after getting under the truck I discovered I have another problem. The differential is pointed up 12 degrees as measured with an angle finder. The driveshaft is also running uphill towards the rear but only 1 degree. Explains the vibration I've been having. Also located sensor on top of the diff and the wires feeding have been touching the exhaust and damaged. Cut out the damage and repaired it but have not driven it. Back to the Diff pointing up, I know it should be down about 3 degrees in relation to the DS so it comes in line under torque. There is no perch between the axle tube and the leaf springs (there's only 2). Looks like I'm going to have to get some welded on? I'm regretting my purchase a little more every day. Edit: the other part you can't really tell what it is are slapper traction bars bolted to the axle tube.

 

[chesster51]

For the speedometer as I know '94 should still have a speedometer cable, the sensor on the end is just for cruise control or ABS

Going to spring over with a junkyard axle should be simple enough, you'll likely have to flip the center bolt but that should be about it... if you got a Ranger 8.8 which are likely more common with a limited slip if that's what you want your 7.5 brake parts will bolt up, even the backing plates...

The drums too?

 

[Brain75]

you only mentioned one end (the diff) angle, but how is the other... what that does to phasing and causes vibration is best left to others who have explained it a bunch (see below).... my guess rather than mess with that axle that someone has already fabricobbled on, just go get a 7.5" (if you want the 1/5 mpg better gas mileage) or 8.8" (assuming the brakes do completely change over) that is still factory stock and LS... instead of the 84 look for a B4 (better highway MPG), or one step down (no lockers less than 3.45:1 ratio though - so no 3.08 or 3.27 choices, but 3.55 and 3.73 would be out there).

you really want the input and outputs to be identical opposite angles.

phasing btw:

Excellent driveshaft angles explained video - Ford Truck Enthusiasts Forums

1948 - 1956 F1, F100 & Larger F-Series Trucks - Excellent driveshaft angles explained video - Sometimes you come across something looking for something else. This was one of those times. I was looking for the website to a local custom drive shaft builder (Denny's Driveshafts). I came across this...

www.ford-trucks.com

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

My understanding is the combined angles should be between 1-3° ideally and up to 6° if necessary. Not identical, reason being that some circular motion is good for moving grease for lubrication.

 

[Brain75]

Don't know if my description didn't convey it, but this picture says it exactly... 0 angle (all the way through) is bad (kills your u joints really bad), difference between is bad (both ends should cancel each other out).

I think the OP has scenerio #3 - "wobbly willy" coming from the PO.

 

[scotts90ranger]

I think I see how that happened, someone put a flip kit on the rear axle, they're just pieces that replace the spring perch and move it to the bottom side of the tube that go up and touch the stock spring perch on the top of the tube. They normally have different length legs on one end than the other to account for the driveline angle and I think they put them on backwards... that's fixable for free if that's the case...

Yes, even the drums, the Ranger 8.8 is basically the same as a 7.5" with the same axle shafts and everything but the ring, pinion and carrier...

The sensor on the top of the rear axle is for the rear wheel ABS, it isn't used for the speedometer until '98ish, there should be a speedometer cable from the transmission to the dash, there's a sensor on the transmission end that the cable plugs into

 

[chesster51]

Wow just saw the responses, didn’t get email alerts. Anyhow I was measuring the upward angle of the diff wrong, it’s actually 5 degrees positive. That being said I’ve decided to with the 8.8 from an Explorer that is already setup for axle over spring with the perches on the bottom. I found a 2000 Mountaineer with a D4 axle code (3.73 limited slip). Is this the same as an Explorer and will work for me? Will the DS still work? I’ve learned I need to get two drivers side ubolt plates w/shock mounts from an explorer (mountaineer) and the forward/aft shock orientation will work with no welding. I’ve read that the 8.8 is 1.5” wider than the 7.5, is that true? The things I need from the donor are: parking brake cable, brake lines leaf springs and ubolts. I’ll see what the pinion angle changes to and shim accordingly. Am I missing anything? And thank you for all the responses.

James

 

[Brain75]

I have seen a couple mountaineers in the junkyard, but honestly not been so interested in crawling under and looking... Spec wise the guys over at explorerforum have some postings about the difference between 4x4 and AWD (apparently the Mountaineer always called it AWD but it behaves more like 4x4) differences in sheetmetal obviously but comments about differences in drivetrain too (all postings start centered around transfer case though).... I guess before I say "yes" I would say crawl underneath and measure and check everything... I just don't know for sure.

I also want to point out what it will do to your RPM's at highway speeds, but that also factors in tire size... on my tiny tires in the 2nd gen 75mph is a lot of RPMS for decent MPG with the 3.45:1 rear end, I actually kinda wish I could get a locker in a 3.27 for slightly better highway RPMs. Instead I am going bigger tires and a 3.45 LS. If you move up to the 3.73:1 rear end your highway MPG will only get worse unless you do bigger tires too.

as far as width... well the 8.8 history page has the explorer but not the mountaineer.... if we assume they are the same, your widths are there:

Ford 8.8-Inch Rear Axle History & Specs - The Ranger Station

Usage: The Ford 8.8-Inch axle came in a few different vehicles including the: Ford Mustang (1986-2014) Ford Bronco (1983-1996) Ford F-150 (1983-2012) Ford Ranger (1990-2011 4.0L models) Ford Aerostar (1989-1997) Ford Explorer (1991-2001) (The Ford Explorer Sport still used the … Continued

www.therangerstation.com

• 1990-1992 Ford Ranger 8.8-Inch Axle – 56.50 inches
• 1993-2009 Ford Ranger 8.8-inch Axle – 58.50 inches
• 2010-2011 Ford Ranger 8.8-Inch Axle – 58.50 inches *
• 1991-2003 Ford Explorer 8.8-Inch Axle – 59.625 inches
• 1989-1997 Ford Aerostar 8.8-Inch Axle – 62.50 inches
• 1983-1996 Ford Bronco 8.8-Inch Axle – 65.125 inches
• 1986-1993 Ford Mustang 8.8-Inch Axle – 59.25 inches
• 1994-2004 Ford Mustang 8.8-Inch Axle – 61.25 inches
• 1989-1999 Ford Crown Victoria 8.8-Inch Axle – 62.50 inches

versus your stock 94 should be:

Ford 7.5-Inch Rear Axle History & Specs - The Ranger Station

Usage: The Ford 7.5-Inch axle came in a few different vehicles including the: Ford Aerostar (1985-1997) Ford Bronco II (1984-1990) Ford Mustang (1979-2011) Ford Ranger (1983-2011) For the purpose of this article, we’re only going to discuss the Ford Ranger … Continued

www.therangerstation.com

​	Ranger 1983-1992 7.5-Inch Axle​	Ranger 1993-2009 7.5-Inch Axle​	Bronco II 1984-1990 7.5 Inch Axle (1)​	Ranger 2010-2011 7.5-Inch Axle With Disc brakes​
Width WMS-WMS	56-1/2 inches	58-1/2 inches	58 inches	unk

so 58.5 to 59.625 - but again, take a tape measure.

I took the formula from the RPM/Tire size chart in the tech library and extended it and removed a bunch of chevy gear ratios and put in the gears we actually have to work with in 7.5 and 8.8 land:
(this is assuming 75mph and a 0.79 OD ratio which is what the M5OD-R1 has):