sweet new old ranger

[link040188]

hey guys I just picked up a 1998 ranger xlt 4dr 2.5l 5speed i'll be posting pics soon but wanted to know what kind of maintenance I should check up on its got 186k the previous owner was the first owner!!! he has been changing the oil every 3000 and replaced all 8 plugs at 100k no major work so im thinking a timing belt plugs again trans drain and fill and diff drain and fill what else am I missing.

 

[HAPPY+RANGER+GUY]

cooling system

Water pump and new radiator hoses would be cheap insurance. If the alternator is original, you can buy a brush kit to replace the carbon brushes that should be getting toward end of life. Be sure you get a good inspection of the brakes too.

 

[HAPPY+RANGER+GUY]

clutch and hydraulics

If it hasn't had a clutch or slave cylinder change...that will probably be coming at some point down the road here in not too distance future.

 

[link040188]

thanks for the advice I have felt the clutch pop up and hit my foot once or twice returning up so I think that will be my first order of business i want to put a clutch assembly from a 4.0

 

[link040188]

never mind i just took another glance at the article on the tech page its a 2.9 not a 2.5 lol. i suppose a oem clutch will be enough anyway since its not going to be a drag truck.

 

[HAPPY+RANGER+GUY]

Water pump and new radiator hoses would be cheap insurance.

If you do refresh the cooling system, certainly good idea to replace the T-stat also and reverse flush the heater core, checking condition of heater hoses.

 

[killj0y]

Just inspect and replace as needed. All the usual suspects. When I got my truck I did a full tune up, oil change, new belts, new trans/diff/radiator fluid, inspect the alternator and battery visually and with a meter and under load, check pulleys and tensioners, check driveline in case it has grease fittings. Check wheels and tires to make sure they are road worthy (rotate if needed), check brakes and pads/shoes, inspect brake fluid and change if dirty/old, new air filter, clean maf, inspect vacuum hoses, clean IAC valve, clean throttle body, run fuel system cleaner through it, check to make sure AC works properly, same for heater, aaaaand theres plenty more i'm sure but most of these are essential and most are very cheap or free to do. I didn't knock all this out on day one but I did most if not all of it within the first month of ownership.

No sense in throwing parts at it when they aren't broken where theres plenty to repair/replace/refresh already.

 

[Insanejughead]

Killjoy, you're not such a kill-joy when you go and start saving people money...


Could you be my personal automotive assistant? Pretty please!?

 

[modelageek]

A power steering pump out. I would do a cooling system flush with a new MC tstat. If you are doing the TB you can do the flush then. My hunch is the TB was replaced.

 

[modelageek]

Also use autolite or MC plugs and wires.

 

[link040188]

this is it!! I didn't even get a pic up before I changed something. I ended up putting an alternator in it and found these awesome halo projectors with matching clear black corners and turn signals.

 

[link040188]

the valve cover is leaking should I use a gasket. I work for Chrysler and we use this crazy good silicone for our timing covers and oil pans.

 

[scotts90ranger]

Get the Felpro blue gasket, you would have to use about a gasket's worth in price of silicone to seal up the gap for the cover...

 

[tomw]

In general, the way to test for clutch wear and life left is to note where in its travel does the clutch start to 'grab'. As you ease the pedal up from the floor, the closer to the floor that it starts to grab, the better. That means that there is more 'lining' left on the faces of the clutch disk, so it is thicker, and the pressure plate will start to squeeze it earlier in the travel stroke.
OTOH, if it only starts to grab up near the 'at rest' position, then the facing is likely pretty thin and worn. Be on the lookout for a set of replacement parts to go on sale in the near future.
As far as all the fluids and stuff, I would be inspecting ALL coolant hoses for cracking and weakness. You have to remove the large hoses and look for internal cracking on the inner wall as the outer may look fine, but deterioration takes place internally also.
tom

 

[scotts90ranger]

with the hydraulic clutch used in the Rangers, that method of clutch checking doesn't work too well until the clutch is completely toast, it should disengage at about 1/2" or so of clutch pedal movement throughout the lifespan of the clutch, when it's completely toast it will barely take any pedal travel to disengage if it will even hold at all.