My new 1983 Ranger Diesel

[joec]

Hi,

I just bought a 1983 Ranger Diesel pickup. I have been on the hunt for a small diesel pickup ever since I went and sold my 84 Isuzu P'up diesel
about 5 years ago (should NOT have sold it and regretted it every day).
Anyway, I just found this truck over the weekend and went to see it this past Sunday morning. I arrived there at 7 AM and it was COLD - probably below 10 degrees. The truck started right up without a block heater connected. That was a good sign.
It is a 4-spd and it is a long bed. It has a/c, p/s, cruise control and dual fuel tanks (of course only the rear one is working). It has almost 170K miles but you wouldn't know it by the way it runs. Also, it has almost no rust - anywhere. The only rust I found, which is typical for these trucks, was a small spot inside the drivers side door jamb, some on the edge of the door bottoms and very little bubbling in the rear wheel wells. The bed, frame, all mounts etc looked brand new. Just to note here the truck is all original and has never been painted. It is blue/white and it has a cap on it.
The only thing I noticed that wasn't working is the Temp Gauge - heat works great,too.
I don't have any pictures as I have not gotten it home yet.

There is one issue that the owner explained to me and I would like to throw it out here to see if any of you experts can shed some light on it.
I was told that if the fuel level gets below 1/2 tank, when you start it up (cold) and drive it a bit it will stall out. It happened to the owner several times in warm and cold weather. He said that when that happened he just bled the water separator under the hood and the truck ran fine after that. He also said that after it stalled if you let the truck sit a few minutes it would start and run fine. He seems to think that it may be getting air into the system and when the tank is full it doesn't happen. He also said that the rubber fuel lines that run along the frame to the engine are old and look dry rotted and cracked and he believes they may be letting air into the system
Any suggestions what to look for would be greatly appreciated.
Anyway, I am excited and cannot wait to get my new "toy" home.

Thanks
Joe

 

[Doofy]

Well, git on home and get those pics posted. Nice find.

 

[joec]

I got the Ranger home Saturday and have it under the Shelter tent out of the weather. Good thing, too, because today it is raining and miserable outside.
It will NEVER see foul weather again!!!!!
Anyway, I took a couple of pics(not the best as it is tight to move around)
The poor truck is dirty now and I just started messing around and cleaned 1/2 the tailgate. Come the Spring I will go over the entire truck, top to bottom, and give it the thorough cleaning it deserves.
I discovered something that turns out to be much better than I was lead to believe. When I called and asked about the truck before I bought it I was told that it had 170K miles on it. Well today I checked the odometer for the mileage to put on the title and it only has 116,926 original miles!!!!!!!
Also, the more I see of the truck I am lead to be in agreement that it was ALWAYS garaged, save for a couple of months before I bought it, and it will now be inside/covered from now on.

I cannot resize the pics so I was unable to post them.
Joe

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

You can resize your pics on your computer.
On my computer I go to "libraries>pictures>
and right click on the pic you want and copy.
Paste the copy in the original folder or a new one.
Double click on the copied picture and photo gallery shows up with the picture.
Go to the upper left and click on "edit, organise or share".
Select the pic you want and double click.
Up top go to "Properties". Click and pick "resize".
Explore the popup until you find a size that works for you, being mindful that some people still have small monitors, medium works.

 

[bobbywalter]

drop the tanks.

clean and inspect. get a good aftermarket filter unit and all new lines.


if its got the gel bypass in the pickup stem that may be an issue...you need to pull it and see what it has...maybe a loose hose or fitting.


i would build all new exactly what i want stuff fuel delivery wise with a diesel pre screen and run a carter pump.

address those issues properly....and you should never have any fuel issues again. and you will know exactly what you have so trouble shooting is a breeze.

 

[joec]

pics

 

[Bird76Mojo]

Wow! She's a looker!



GB

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

Yep, awesome truck!
FYI; the horn is on the turn signal stock. I had same era truck and it took me a long time to figure that out.

 

[rangerenthiusiast]

Oh man, do those pics take me back to my ’83!! She was a shorty with primer grey exterior, but that interior is a dead match, aside from the 4-speed (mine was 4 with OD, which Ford proudly displayed with an ‘OVERDRIVE’ badge on the tailgate back then - lol). Thanks for sharing!

 

[joec]

Thanks for the replies/advice/complements.
When the weather gets nicer in the Spring, or if we get some nice days over the winter, I will pull the truck out and clean it up - the way it deserves to be - and get more pictures taken.
I was so excited when I found this truck as I have wanted to replace my Isuzu P'up diesel for some time. There was another one I had seen before this one and I am certainly glad I was unable to get synched with the seller. It wasn't half the truck this one is and it was more money,too. Sometimes things happen for a reason - a good reason this time.....

Joe

 

[rangerenthiusiast]

That’s so great, Joe. Glad you made such a good find an are excited to care for her the way she deserves. Most people just never see the beauty in an old truck. The journey begins!

Very best wishes to you,

_Casey

 

[joec]

I have been "taking care" of older vehicles (cars, trucks, motorcycles, etc) most of my life. But I still get excited when a new "old" vehicle comes into my possession and even if I don't use them very often I give them good homes.
From what info I have gathered it appears that my truck is an XLT model.


Joe

 

[joec]

It was somewhat nice out today so I pulled out the Ranger and took a few more pics.
I did notice that there has been some work done to the rear wheel arch on the P.S. side. I guess I couldn't expect NO rust as it has been a Northeast truck it's entire life.
I still need to clean it up - too cold right now though

 

[sgtsandman]

Very clean for a rust belt truck. And a diesel to boot. A real unicorn you found there.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Pretty cool truck, darn clean.

'83's are intriguing, they have so many little things that are different than 84-88's.