Looking to swap my 2.5L 4 cylinder for something a little bigger

[TheWillz]

I have a 99 Ranger 5 speed, 2WD 2.5L 4 cylinder, I am not very well versed in mechanical work. So please keep that in mind when reading this
I want to do an engine swap for something bigger, but I am not sure what I can swap it with. Is there a 4.0 or something close that doesnt require mounts to be made or something? Also, any recommendations for how to beef it up pre/post swap?

 

[adsm08]

Being well versed on mechanical work is not a pre-requisite for doing research. This is a topic on which we have literally thousands of pages of information, most of them redundant, due to this question being asked, and answered, at least once a week.

To put any other Ranger engine in you will need engine, trans, computer, and complete vehicle harness, along with possibly fuel lines and other incidentals. It is usually considered the best practice to buy a whole vehicle (something that got T-boned, or is rotted out but has a good power train) and swap everything, lock, stock, and barrel. That way you have all the parts you might need before you even start.

 

[TheWillz]

Okay, so what vehicles would I need to be looking at for something like a 4.0L swap? Are there any Rangers close to a 99, with manual trannies that are 4.0? Also would you mind explaining what the vehicle harness is? And what did you mean by swap everything, lock, stock, and barrel?

 

[planeflyer21]

Plenty of Rangers with that engine and transmission combo.

 

[RonD]

Just sell your 2.5l Ranger and buy a 4.0l Ranger, much better and cheaper in the long run.

If your 2.5l is "mint' then it will sell for more and quickly
Buy a 4.0l Ranger and use the extra money to fix it up as you want


If you want to do a swap then do a V8 swap, same exact work as 4.0l swap but you end up with a Ranger you can't just go out and buy, well unless you look around, people do sell their V8 conversions, lol.

Buy Explorer V8 as donor and get a 1997 to 2003 M5OD-R2 manual transmission for the V8(must be from 4.2l V6 to fit 5.0l V8)

 

[Curious Hound]

Also would you mind explaining what the vehicle harness is? And what did you mean by swap everything, lock, stock, and barrel?

The vehicle harness being referred to is "all of the wiring" in the vehicle. In the manufacturing process, the wiring is all pre-made by a vendor. All the different colored wires are pre-cut to length, terminated in the various plugs, sheathed in tape and wire loom material, labeled and ready to install. Then Ford (or whoever) lays that harness into the vehicle, usually near the beginning of the assembly process so that it is ready for all the components - lights, engine, battery, air conditioning, computer, radio, etc. to be connected as they are installed. Depending on the donor vehicle, and what swap you are doing, you may need various amounts of that wiring for your swap. Most of the time, you will need the entire engine compartment portion at the very least. If swapping from a really old vehicle to a really new vehicle, you may need a lot more because of the changes in vehicle technology over the years.

Swapping "everything, lock, stock, and barrel" means complete engine, transmission, transfer case, wiring harness and ecu. Doing this as a whole set ensures that you have components that are compatible with each other. Just getting any old 2001 4.0L RBV* engine with any old 2001 RBV transmission with any old 2001 RBV transfer case and any old 2001 RBV ECU and wiring harness does not guarantee success, especially concerning the ECU. Different components require different parameters and options to be programmed into the ECU and you need the right wiring configruation for those options. Again, the newer the donor vehicle, the more important this is. And we haven't even mentioned the possibile necessitiy of fabricating special parts that sometimes comes with these projects. Stuff like accessory brackets, engine mounts, different length drive shafts, etc.

I don't want to be negative. I usually like to encourage everyone to try new things. But an engine swap is not a good beginners project. If you are "not very well versed in mechanical work", I would recommend that you buy an older vehicle in running condition that will require you to learn gradually and build your skills, knowledge level and toolbox inventory before tackiling a major project.

* RBV = Range Based Vehicle (Ranger, Bronco II, Explorer and their counterparts in Mazda, Mercury, etc.)

 

[TheWillz]

Thank you very much. I agree that an engine swap is a hefty task for someone as newly found into this as I am. I am mostly asking for the far future, so when I do finally start I will have the info I need to do so. I don't plan on trying the swap until at least a year of steadily working on these kinds of things. I appreciated you helping me learn