where to jack on engine on a 88 ranger to remove oil pan?

[rangerkumlien]

i had problems with the truck blowing alot of white smoke out the exhaust so i toke the engine apart and found out that the first piston had a small hole in it but looks like it burned up instead of a crack. there was metal on the wall of the piston but no scoring. i think a ring went bad and caused the damage. i can fix the piston by putting in a new one but i need to jack the engine to remove the oil pan in order to do so. anyone know where to place the jack? will it crush the oil pan if i put a block of wood between the jack and the pan and jack the engine that way?

 

[jcm]

On the oil pan would not be good. It can be done without jacking on the oil pan. You should probably try something like this

1. remove the distributor
2. remove the engine to frame bolts (2) (Mine were strangely shaped, so a wrench will fit on only one way, open end. They are not stop sign shaped, two sides are elongated. They are not too hard to get to.)

Depending on what else gets in the way as far as the firewall, and exhaust goes, you should be ready to lift the whole thing up from the front of your transmission. When it is up high enough, if it gets high enough, you can place spacers (2x4 blocks of wood) in between the engine to frame brackets and the frame to hold it up.

I would try that, hopefully you don't have to disconnect any exhaust components.

While your down there you should replace the pan gasket, and if you love your truck the oil pump too.

 

[rangerkumlien]

ok, i've already got the distributor off the truck because i had to take the passenger side head off to see what the problem was because when i did the compression test every cylinder was good except number 1. so what your saying is to place the jack behind the oil pan where the trany meets the engine and bolts up to it? is the engine going to cause to much torque on where the trany bolts to it or is it strong enough to lift the engine until i get the blocks under the motor mounts? thanks for the help though, this is the first time i've had any of my trucks this torn apart so i'm greatly thankful for any help.

 

[MAKG]

I'd hand tighten the heads, old head gaskets, and exhaust manifolds back on, and lift the engine normally. This work really, really, REALLY should be done on a stand. The point of the heads and gaskets is to protect the deck.

And it sounds like preignition damage, not a ring.

 

[gotmudd]

+1, if you are gonna do the job, do it right the first time. you could have the motor out and on a stand in a couple of hours with plenty of room to work on it . DON'T cheap out and take the chance of hurting yourself or screwing up your motorbut since it is your project do it your way. myself i'd as soon pull the motor and get a better gander at everything else, just my0.02

 

[jcm]

I think lifting the engine normally is using an engine lift, they can be rented from autozone/checker. Remember you dont actually need to remove the engine from the compartment to get the oil pan off. (it is a pain to remove all hoses and wires and put them back on after) If you go as far to remove the engine you might as well rebuild the whole thing since removing the engine is (I think) the worst part. And if you remove the engine, removing the tranny is a few more simple steps and you could replace the clutch as well.

I had bought another BII for 500 bucks and swapped the motors + I have a bunch of spare parts for the body too. That has worked out pretty well for me so far. In my opinion, these motors are not the greatest things and the whole vehicles are not worth much even in great shape. So remember that for all of this work, you are just going to have a cool good running 88 ranger. New/rebuilt engines cost about $2000-$3000. You could check on how much a rebuild kit is if you want to do it yourself.

The tranny to engine bolts will be fine from the stress from lifting it a few inches if you want to try to do it without a lift.

 

[grnrngr]

I wouldn't try to lift it either way with the radiator hoses attached, that's a good way to ruin your radiator. drain it and pull it out.

 

[jcm]

any luck?

 

[grnrngr]

If you go as far to remove the engine you might as well rebuild the whole thing since removing the engine is (I think) the worst part. And if you remove the engine, removing the tranny is a few more simple steps and you could replace the clutch as well.

Before I started hanging out on this site, I had always pulled motors and trannies as a unit, the only exception would be with automatics. I dedcided to give the engine only method a try with the motor I just swapped into my 5spd 90 Ranger, it went smoother than I was expecting. You don't need to pull the trans to change the clutch, once you get the engine out, the clutch is right there on the back of the motor. Definitely sounds like a rebuild or replacement is in order...and +1 on the pre-ignition situation....be sure to check the condition of your harmonic balancer.

 

[AllanD]

The oil pan cannot be removed from a 2.9 engine "in the chassis"
unless the transmission is removed first.
and even then you need someone with small hands that can reach up inside the gap between the oil pan and the block to unbolt the oil pump and "drop it" into the pan otherwise the pan will not come down.

Reassembly requires reversing the proceedure...
trust me this is pretty ugly and involves much cursing and screaming and a probable visit from the police when a
neighbor calls about the insane raving the fourteenth and seventeenth time you have to unbolt the one bolt you got started after you dropped the second into the oil pan.
OR if the police are having a busy night they might arrive just in time to arrest you for arson after pouring gasoline over your truck and setting it on fire.


disassembling a 2.9 engine EXCEPT for doing the automotive
equivelent of an autopsy is.... I'm trying to be polite but I'm
about to fail... Prompts me to ask: Are you phucking nuts?

Continuing to disassemble an engine in the chassis after you
have found a hole burned in a piston
suggests a need for a 72hour involuntary commitment to a
mental health facility near you... or at minimum some
electroshock therapy

I can only believe you must be phucking nuts.

You have reached the point were you should pull the engine
and deliver it to to a commercial recycling facility near you,
collect your $0.12-$0.14/lb

after which you should go to a junkyard and buy another engine.

Your hole is most likely the result of coolant consumption
or "lean ping" detonation

I think you'll discover that a headgasket set and the REQUIRED
set of ONE-USE headbolts cost MORE than another engine will.

Hey, I had five or six different 2.9's in my truck in the time I owned it. And aside from the one I U-boated and not only
bent a connecting rod, but jammed the wrist pin bosses
into a crank counterweight I only disassembled one other one
and that was to keep th GOOD (I.E. uncracked) head because someone asked me for it.

As a parting comment might I suggest that now might be the ideal
time to consider a 4.0 swap?

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