This is my 1989 Ranger. When my older brother passed away, my mom could not stand to junk the truck, or give it to someone who would scrap it. I must admit, it did need it. In truth, it is not a project I would have normally taken on. But I was looking for a Ranger at the time wanting the gas mileage for driving to work each day. Considering who it belonged to, and what it meant, I took it.

It started out as a two wheel drive,and a 2.3 Four Cylinder. I started out picking up a totaled 89 Ranger Long bed 4X4 frame. The Trans and Transfer Case were from a 86 BII. I am currently driving it this way, but as I will relate shortly, this will soon change again.

Once mounted on the frame, I cut and stretched the cab 8 inches to accommodate my long legs. I was looking for an extended cab for this reason, and had to do what I had to do. I molded in the sides before I got pictures, so this is how it looks currently. I do have a full headliner, and will prime it before I install it. I left it bare thinking I would mold it in later as I run out of time to work on it. One foot note here, do not forget to disconnect the computer. I toasted mine. The part that hurts is I knew better.

I bought a 1989 BII XLT as s Donor knowing it had a cracked head.

The Bonus is, it is the XLT Model. This means I now have Air Conditioning, Elect. Windows and locks, Bench seat with arm rest. The Doors, Hood, Fender metal is perfect on it. Typical paint for these, it is peeling bad. The good thing is, all I have to do is strip them, throw on primer, and they are ready to paint. I also get a Chrome grill and bumper.

I pulled the motor, and pressure tested the block. I used sockets and clamps in the hoses, then took out the Temp Sender and put in a fitting for pressure testing the water pipes on Mobil homes. This setup worked well.

It seems the 2.9 is famous for cracking the heads when they over heat. This is due to the casting not being thick enough to withstand the pressure, and expanding. I found the crack on the drivers side rear. It is the white foam you can see running from the spring down to the push rod. I have picked up a used head from the Salvage yard for $50. I have the valves ground, and will be putting it back together new head bolts tonight.

And the Blck just after tear down. Rust and all.

This is an ongoing project, and I have a lot to go, but where it is winter, I have the time to work on it. Also I am very eager to get it done as my oldest son and I will be making a Rockcrawler out of the BII as soon as the Ranger is done. We already have a F250 Donor for engine, trans and axles.

To do list:
Drop in 2.9
Trans and Transfer Case from BII.
Wiring from BII.
Air Cond.
Elect windows and locks.
Bench Seat.
Headliner.

Paint. (Whoo-Hoo) Done.
I will be adding more shortly.