Shopping a 2001 3 Litre: what to look for??

[Zapp]

Glad to find you smart guys here.
I am unfamiliar with latter-year Rangers.

I'm looking to make an offer on a base model 2001 Supercab, straight-shift with a 3.0 litre. 91000 miles on the odo. Two owners. I checked it over and the only two things I really noticed [not that I am a trained mechanic] were:
1. At idle, when you flip on the A/C, the motor shakes.... like it needs more idle - But I'm more concerned if it is motor mounts. I've seen a symptom like this on other vehicles and it was worn motor mounts, and really expensive to replace [on that other vehicle]. What do you think?
2. There's definitely an oil leak. I don't know how much since I only saw it for 20 minutes or so. The oil is collecting/dripping right on the motor/bellhousing joint, so it looks from the bottom like Main Seal. Is this common on this truck?

Everyone seems to hate the 3.0L motor - they want either 4 litre for power or the 2.3L for obvious reason. But does the 3 motor break down, or is the criticism mostly due to it being underpowered, buzzy, and a gas hog?

What else do I need to look for?

Can seats be replaced very easily? I'd like to find the upgraded sport seats somewhere [junkyard] and take out the threadbare base-truck seats.

Thank you one and all and happy Thanksgiving !

 

[Ozwynn]

the 3.0 is bullet proof. it take a whole village of village idiots to kill it.

 

[Zapp]

well my village has at least one

how many miles before a real tuneup like coil/wire/cap/plug?? I guesss I ought to do that period, no matter.

that oil leak.... I hope I don't have to pull the motor to do that one.
z

the 3.0 is bullet proof. it take a whole village of village idiots to kill it.

 

[Ozwynn]

you eill need to pull the transmission to change rear main.

as a general rule I change the plugs,wires, oil, transmission filter on every used car I buy so I know when it was done.

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

the 3.0 is disliked because its in the middle of the 4 banger and 4.0. people tend to want as much power as they can get, or as much mileage as they can get. personally, i enjoy being in the middle of that road with my 3.0.

the engine is pretty bulletproof, like BDAB said, but there are a few little things to look out for

rear main seal leaks arent uncommon on this engine. i dont know why. they dont tend to be major leaks...just enough to make a mess of the bellhousing. the seal itself is cheap, but of coarse one has to pull the transmission to replace it...not exactly quick.

ive heard of virtually no motor mount failures on newer rangers. they just dont wear out very fast. if they are the cause of the problem...they can be replaced for about $30 per side. my guess is the shaking isnt motor mounts, but either a sticky IAC solenoid or seizing A/C compressor.

 

[pacodiablo]

Rear main seal leaks can happen.

3.0s are not the smoothest idling engines. Seems to be their nature. My truck has been in the family since it had 15 miles and I can't remember it ever having perfectly smooth idle. Normal idle for the 3.0 is around 650-750 RPM. Mine started to idle at 500 RPM one day...a quick cleaning of the MAF sensor and IAC valve fixed it.

The 3.0 is the most reliable V6 that Ford has offered in the Ranger. Its only real vulnerability is the cam synchronizer. If this fails completely, it might stop the oil pump and take the whole engine with it. The cam synchronizer will give warning before it fails though...chirping noise, reduced power, no oil pressure. Some people just go ahead and replace the cam synchronizer at 100K-120K miles as a precaution. Use Motorcraft or A1-Cardone replacements only! It's a $45-$80 part depending on where you buy it (online vs. local dealer). Do NOT buy the Dorman replacement!

Other than that, the 3.0 doesn't really have any specific or typical problems.

And no, it's not powerful. No Ranger engine is...even the 4.0. It is more than adequate though, especially in a manual transmission truck. Fuel economy isn't that bad if you don't beat the hell out of it. Mine gets between 18-23 MPG depending on the fuel I use and my driving.

 

[Zapp]

great!

thanks much BDAB, Paco, wicked.
my confidence is going up a little.

do any of you know how big a pain it is to upgrade the seats... like find XLT or ? other in the junkyards and replace. this is the base model and really kinda nasty... driver seatback seam is coming loose etc.

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

4 bolts per side. if you can brush your teeth, you probably have the technical skill needed to replace the seats

 

[Ozwynn]

in the tech library is a list of what fits in what as far as seats.

 

[WNY964x4]

Rear main seal leaks can happen.



The 3.0 is the most reliable V6 that Ford has offered in the Ranger. Its only real vulnerability is the cam synchronizer. If this fails completely, it might stop the oil pump and take the whole engine with it. The cam synchronizer will give warning before it fails though...chirping noise, reduced power, no oil pressure. Some people just go ahead and replace the cam synchronizer at 100K-120K miles as a precaution. Use Motorcraft or A1-Cardone replacements only! It's a $45-$80 part depending on where you buy it (online vs. local dealer). Do NOT buy the Dorman replacement!

the second part i had happen to me , i heard what sounded like a lifter tick , and i started losing oil pressure sporraticaly , i pushed my truck a little too far and smoked a bearing , thoug now that i have the engine all apart it does not look like my synchro went bad , but do watch out for that , it is one bolt to change the sycnhro vs. the past 3 weeks i have been waiting for my replacement engine , plus all the time involved in the swap

 

[almostclueless]

When looking for a 3.0, I would keep a sharp eye out for a truck that has a 4.0 in it

 

[Zapp]

what exactly happens to the cam synchronizer?

digesting my too-much T-giving Day meal....

what exactly happens to the cam synchronizer to crater things? does it go out of calibration due to loose/movement??? insecure?

 

[Ozwynn]

it wears out, should be inspected every 3rd oil change after 100,000

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

its a long story:

the cam position sensor sits atop the cam syncro (basically, the bottom half of a distributor). the shaft has plastic bushings along its length to stabilize it. over time, these plastic bushings begin to wear away, allowing the syncro shaft to "wobble". when this happens, the top of the syncro shaft can come into contact with the cam position sensor, thus stopping the shaft suddenly. the sudden jarring motion shears the roll pin that holds the distributor gear to the syncro shaft, thus the syncro is no long being driven by the camshaft. it just so happends that the bottom half of the syncro shaft engages and drives the oil pump...so when the syncro shaft stops, so does the oil pump.

it only takes a few seconds at highway speed and load with no oil circulating to turn an engine into a large, decorative paper weight.

it sounds like a terrible flaw...but its really just a matter of inspecting and/or replacing the syncro shaft ($60) on high mileage engines.

 

[JamesC]

Is that cam syncro still a problem on the newer 3.0? my 99 taurus with a 3.0 never had a problem with it. the cam sensor went but I pulled the syncro and it look great. From what I have heard it was 98 and older 3.0 that were most common for the syncro failure. Just wondering if ford ever improved it over the years, my 05 has a 3.0 so it makes me curious.