Should I buy a Ranger?

[ThatJeepGuy82]

So here's the quick, fast, and dirty-

I'm a Jeep/Mopar guy and a decent mechanic. I love my old-school 4.0, straight-6, 4x4 Jeeps. Up until recently, I was daily-driving a 1996 Grand Cherokee, 4.0 4x4 with around 190K. It had it quirks and problems (as old Jeeps do), but nothing I couldn't put up with. It was recently stolen (smash and stab, probably with a screwdriver, no transponder key), we've chalked it up to as good as gone.

That got me to thinking about probably the best anti-theft device you can get these days- a stick shift, preferably in something that has some sort of RFID key. But I still want something that's relatively cheap, reliable, easy to work on, not too hard on gas, and has 4x4 because I live at the south pole of the frozen s***hole of hoth, A.K.A. Nebraska.

What I found perusing the internet was a 1998 Ford Ranger, 4x4, Super Cab, Splash, 4.0 NON-SOHC, with a 5-speed stick and 117K miles. Here's the kicker-

I guess this dealership's thing is they buy used, rust-free trucks from out west- Utah, Oregon, Wyoming, places like that, import them into the salt-belt and flip them for a healthy profit. This truck came out of Washington state. Me and my dad looked at the CarFax and the odometer quit working at 117K miles... in 2009. There was three failed emissions tests after that, all about a month apart, but then clean ones in 2013, 2014, 2015 IIRC, when the truck was re-registered.

We didn't have a chance to test drive or even look at it- I guess it had a leaky tire, so the dealership sent it off to the shop for completely new ones and it won't be available for showing until Monday at the earliest. Our biggest concern with it is the broken odometer and the mileage- it could have 130, 140K miles on it... it could have well over 200K, possibly over 300K. I know these things can go well over that, but for how long before stuff starts breaking and you start racking up costly repair bills? Clutch, heads, head gaskets, transmission, etc?

We looked at a few other cars including a 2010 Mercury Milan with a 4-popper and a 6-speed auto with just under 100K (confirmed) that looked pretty clean. I just worry about it not having 4x4 in the winter, transmission problems, and servicing the cooling system.

 

[Curious Hound]

In my opinion, condition trumps odometer. It sounds like you have some car smarts. You can figure out If it's high mileage or not. General condition of body and chassis, condition of engine bay, has the wiring been hacked up? How do the hoses look? How does the upholstery look? Flooring? How bad are the pedals worn? There are signs and you'll get a "gut feeling" about it.

Mileage isn't the only thing that makes stuff break. Machines actually age better if they're used. Lubrication gets moved around and renewed. Fluids move and don't build up sediments in low spots. Sitting idle is bad. I would rather take on a vehicle that has been driven and maintained for 200,000 miles than one with 75,000 miles that sat next to the garage neglected for 10 years.

 

[scotts90ranger]

Yeah, that, the OHV 4.0L is a stout engine similar in reliability to the 4L Jeep engine, if all the normal stuff checks out I wouldn't be too scared of it, apparently it isn't too uncommon for the odometer gear to strip out on those...

 

[ThatJeepGuy82]

In my opinion, condition trumps odometer. It sounds like you have some car smarts. You can figure out If it's high mileage or not. General condition of body and chassis, condition of engine bay, has the wiring been hacked up? How do the hoses look? How does the upholstery look? Flooring? How bad are the pedals worn? There are signs and you'll get a "gut feeling" about it.

Mileage isn't the only thing that makes stuff break. Machines actually age better if they're used. Lubrication gets moved around and renewed. Fluids move and don't build up sediments in low spots. Sitting idle is bad. I would rather take on a vehicle that has been driven and maintained for 200,000 miles than one with 75,000 miles that sat next to the garage neglected for 10 years.

Yeah, that's kinda my thought as well. I've been reading up on these trucks and all their common issues, based on year, engine, transmission, etc (big shout-out to TRS for that) for a few days now. They seem to just on gasoline, regular oil changes, and a bit of preventive maintenance. My biggest worry is the M5OD transmission, especially with it's internal slave cylinder.
As I said, I'm a Jeep/Mopar guy, and those AX-15's and NV3500's, when properly lubricated, could stand up to some abuse... right until your throw-out bearing exploded.

 

[ThatJeepGuy82]

Yeah, that, the OHV 4.0L is a stout engine similar in reliability to the 4L Jeep engine, if all the normal stuff checks out I wouldn't be too scared of it, apparently it isn't too uncommon for the odometer gear to strip out on those...

Yeah, I'll have to see if the speedo on the Ranger works. I had a similar issue on my '96 XJ- Stripped out gear on the VSS in the T-case, speedo and odometer didn't work. It was a pretty easy fix.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

If you keep oil in the trans and don't outright abuse it, it is a pretty good transmission. I have the scaled up version (M5ODR2) behind my 302 and I really like it.

 

[scotts90ranger]

The M5OD is a decent trans, I've abused mine and not sure how but I destroyed a bearing but they're not hard to rebuild and they're super common (other than the 4 cylinder 4x4 version I have), I wouldn't be too afraid of it... the internal slave is scary but dumb reliable until it's not, my daily driver '97 has 220k miles and I don't know if the clutch has been changed (pretty much has to be, but I've put 80k on it...) and it works fine, I had the master cylinder go out on me once but that wasn't too bad to do.

 

[Lefty]

I've driven both Jeeps and Rangers. I've enjoyed them both. Call me crazy, but I didn't really care how old they were. If you find something you like, just go with it. And if the drive train should fail someday, just repair or replace.

This Ranger will probably be my last, but I'm thinking about buying yet another for a teenager. Rangers are reliable and predictable. They hold their value and are easy to flip. The trick is to keep the frame from rusting out.

 

[Roert42]

My brother has a 4.0 ohv, never had to really do anything to it since we got it. 150k ish miles on a ‘96.

The m50d is a good trans. Only thing I don’t like about it, the bell housing is part of the trans. So each different drivetrain variant has its own trans.

The 8.8 is a good rear. Everything on these trucks is fairly easy to work ok. If you can keep an old joop on the road, you can keep one of these on the road.

 

[racsan]

Ive had several rangers, the 4.0/ohv was my favorite one. Most of my rangers have been the 2.3 lima & Ive had one 3.0/auto. Only ever had 1 manual transmission failure, lost 2nd gear in my ‘93 4.0 4x4 supercab, not sure why it happened but it was low on oil when I bought it. Id have another, preferably a pre-‘98 as I prefer the ttb/tib front end & the older style steering box. Never have liked rack & pinion steering. Ive never had a flareside box ranger or a reg cab shortbed. The last ranger I had was rebuilt from several different rangers & served me well for 7 years. The road salt just dissolves vehicles around here and its not easy to find a good used older one. Ive toyed with getting a late ‘80’s/early ‘90’s F150 with a 300 or 302 but they aren’t easy to find in good shape either. For the most part a ranger has been able to do what Ive needed it to over the years, isnt bad to work on and has been very reliable.

 

[19Walt93]

If it's in good shape and you like it that makes it worth buying if you plan to keep it a while. At least in NH, the title would be marked TMU- total mileage unknown and that kills the resale value so it wouldn't be a good one to flip. Maybe the TMU will help you negotiate the price a little, too.

 

[ThatJeepGuy82]

Thanks for the replies, all.

I ended up finding a 2010 Honda CRV. As much as I would have preferred something with a little more ground clearance and a low-range, this thing was just too good to pass up. It has AWD, the upgraded/higher HP/torque K24Z 4-popper (which is just a little cockroach of a motor- aluminum block and head, but with cast-iron liners and an ACTUAL timing chain.) Hell, it even still has hydraulic power steering and an O/D on/off switch. New tires, ZERO underside rust, one-owner, good service records, just under 140K and $11K.

That's what I like to call a sore-d*** deal- you can't f***ing beat it. Sure, it screams "soccer mom!" But sometimes that's exactly what us gearheads need to get from A to B while our 2 or 3 or 17 other "totally runs, just needs..." projects collect even more rust. Now that I have I set of wheels, I still plan on scoping out and test-driving the '98 I was looking at. Could be make a good ride for one of y'all.

Thanks again for all the input and help.

 

[bobbywalter]

those are good buggies.

 

[Roert42]

gross

 

[ThatJeepGuy82]

gross

If you think that it's gross, tell ya what- I'll trade you not one, but TWO "ran when parked" Jeeps with the 4.0 straight-six and 4x4, plus all the spare parts for them, maybe even some specialty tools. In exchange, you can give me a clean, rust-free, '96-or later/OBD2, (preferably with the joke of an anti-theft system they installed on them) Ford Ranger, 4.0 OHV, 4x4, 5-speed with less than A QUARTER of the miles those old Hèeps of mine racked up. Deal?