New Truck! Needs work. Where to start?

[Murphys_ghost]

Hello everybody, this is my first post!

This week, I bought a 1994 Ranger with what appears to be a 4.0 V6. Not much was known about this truck by the previous owner, except that it did not run. What I was told was that the head gasket had blown...

Upon further inspection, the truck has seen some very unsightly modifications and repairs, unfortunately several were to the wiring. I also noticed that there are globs of (RTV?) around the valve covers and timing cover. The front driver’s side was a spaghetti mess and it looked like the fuse box was missing basically everything. I could not even figure out how to hook a battery up to it.

My first order of business is to gut and clean the little beastie THOROUGHLY. So far, I’ve pulled the wiring harness before the engine and back to the firewall and removed the dash to inspect that wiring as well, and that was when a skinny, glass pipe fell out from inside the dash. It’s a mess but I have a clean title and I’m determined to make this thing run.

This is my first Ford, and my first truck. Got a decent deal for it and the suspension and frame are straight. Does anyone have any pointers on where to start?

 

[Murphys_ghost]

So far, my plan is to restore any wiring issues to stock condition, rebuild the engine, and replace any broken pieces I find along the way. I would also like advice on identifying this truck and its trim level, so far I believe it to be a XLT however the badges are all missing (this will be rectified in due time and as paychecks allow). I am not familiar with Fords but have lusted after a Ranger for years. Any and all advice is appreciated!

 

[Ranger850]

Good Luck and Welcome to TRS. There is a lot of info in the "How To Tech" section. - https://www.therangerstation.com/how-to/

 

[Curious Hound]

Sounds like you’re off to a good start. I would probably try to get a wiring harness from a junkyard and straighten up the wiring. Do a compression check to see if the report of bad head gasket is true. If needed, fix that then clean off the etc and install new valve cover gaskets. Same with timing cover. Check timing belt/ tensioners as applicable and maybe water pump. Fix whatever else you find along the way. Then start it up and go from there. Might not hurt to check the brake system. Oh yeah. Fuel filter, air filter and oil change with new filter.

If you want to rebuild the engine, that’s fine. But it may not need that yet.