302 v8?

[texasboy92]

im looking into getting a 80's model 2-ao or ranger 4x4, but i want a little more umph for around town or on the trails or out hunting. i'm considering a 302 v8, bu just want to know y'alls opinions on this and any suggestions, or tips.

matt

[headoftheholler]

im looking into getting a 80's model 2-ao or ranger 4x4, but i want a little more umph for around town or on the trails or out hunting. i'm considering a 302 v8, bu just want to know y'alls opinions on this and any suggestions, or tips.

matt
The ranger never came with a v8 from the factory, many of them however have had transplants as have s-10's with 350's. In my own personal opinion if your not willing to spend the extra bucks to do it right (truck never was designed for this kind of power) I would look elsewhere. Especially with the price of gas now. I'm looking to unload my mint 87 K5 blazer now for something more economical. If your still stuck on the v8 look into the early fuel injected late 80's f150s, they can be had cheap in most places.

[jimbires]

I don't know what your state has for vehicle inspections . but if you have emission inspections this will or should cause the vehicle to fail inspection .the mechanic will get the VIN number of the vehicle . usually the eighth digit is the engine code .lets say the engine code is for a V-6 or 4 cylinder, the mechanic sees a V-8 it should fail inspection . Jim

[birdhunter1]

The 302 V8 is a pretty good engine, it was mainly only put in 1/2 ton Fords and some cars but what you are probably going to find the most of is a 300 inline 6 cylinder (used in 1/2-2 ton trucks for years).

The 302 will have a bit more horsepower and use slightly less fuel than a 300 I-6 but the 300 has a boatload of low end torque and towing wise or on trails you will not notice a difference. Either engine is great and if maintained well should go to 200,000 miles pretty easy. The 300's usually have an oil leak at the valve covers or the lifter cover on the side, the 302's are more prone to a leak on the oil pan gasket.

Ford also had a 351 (5.8L) that is another great engine, lots of power but lots of feul usage as well. My dad had a 93 F-150 flareside 4wd with this engine and I think he was looking at 11-12 mpg

Parts are easy to find for all three engines.

I have had 4 trucks with the 300 in them and I never felt underpowered on the farm with them, my first truck was an 83 F-250 4wd with the300 and a 4 speed and my 2nd was an 84 with a 300 and a C6 auto, both were good off road. Each of these truck were carburated engines not fuel injected and I got around 12-15 mpg at best. I had a 92 F-150 4wd supercab with a 5 speed and it was about 17-18 mpg on the highway at 55-60 mph.

Good luck and if you want more info on about any Ford truck from 1980 on just PM me and I'll be glad to chat with ya.

[texasboy92]

alright sounds good, and with a chip added into there, do yall think it would help out fuel consumption? because if not then i may be looking more into the 6's

[birdhunter1]

I have heard mixed reviews on the chips, some say it helps some say it don't, i have no experience with it.
What 6's are you looking into? Ford 4.0 V6's really don't get much better fuel mileage than modern triton series V8's,

I currently have a 2007 Ranger 4wd reg cab with the 3.0 V6 and an automatic trans and I get about 21-22 at best (4.10 rear end ratio).

[texasboy92]

well, i'm not exactly sure at the moment, but will know soon, and with that note of your ranger getting low 20's per mile as an average. thats not to bad, i've also been told that standard gets even a little more miles per gallon, now i dont have any experience with standards, other than a basic understanding of how to drive them, i'm not sure about their fuel consumption...

[birdhunter1]

I had a 95 Ranger 4wd with a 4cyl 5 speed (manual) and a 7 foot bed that got about 25 all the time. Loved that little truck but it had alot of miles on it and I replaced it. I wish Ford still made that particular package as I would have it again.

[winchesterwon]

Sounds like a great idea but it would take alot of work and money. The 300 six would also be nice but the six is longer than the 302 and radiator water pump clearance would be an issue. New motor mounts would have to be installed. The radiator would have to be changed. I dont think the 302 mates to the ranger tranny so an adapter would have to be made. The stock tranny and trasfer case is probably to weak for the additional horsepower of the 302. Differentials would have to be upgraded to handle the extra power. See where Im going here. Have you considered an early model Bronco with a 302?Maybe a full size Bronco with a 351? To bad Ford didnt put the 289 in the ranger. That would have been perfect. You know dodge put a V-8 in the Dakota.

[birdhunter1]

Winchester is right, to put a 300 in a ranger would take alot of modification and your truck woulk look like an old Mac coal truck with the radiator 10' in front of your front wheels. I have sen a 302 in a ranger but it was tight, the guy mated it to a c6 and a borg Warner T-18 transfer case and took a Dana 44 front and 9" rear out of an early model Bronco and it was set up right. Some newer rangers the rear ends would hold up to a 302 as they started putting the Ford 8,8" rear end in them (at least my 2007 does) but I don't know when they started doing that and what they had in them before.

[texasboy92]

i acctually have looked into the bronco's however i like the fact of haveing the bed, and decent gas mileage, like i have a friend who has a fulsize balzer and get 10-12 on a good day, i just dont have the money to be paying for gas every couple days with prices the way they are...

[winchesterwon]

You know they did make a half cab for the early broncos which would give you a short bed. (very short) They also made broncos with the 289, basically the same motor as the 302 but would give you better fuel milage yet. There are several aftermarket companies that sell loads of parts for the early broncos. I built a 66 for my son. I was amazed at all the parts available for them. Finding one in good shape is the hard part. We started out with a 6 cyl, model with a full cab. I changed the motor to a 302, added power steering, power brakes, disks up front, and swapped the cab for a falf cab. Nice rig.

[texasboy92]

haha sounds like a nice rig...and if it saves money for gas i'm all for it, i've even looked into getting a conversion kit for a diesel, because i've heard that they get the same if not better performance with running off vegetable oil (or highly filtered grease from resturants), and with diesel getting to be so expensive, everyone is trying to sell out of the diesel...and you can get some great deals, and if its worth it the i may even go with the diesel, and get free fuel!! i'm still not 100% sure about hat i've heard, and i would like to know what y'all think?

[winchesterwon]

TB it used to be easy to get used grease from resturants but I think they recycle it now for money. Its getting hard to beat high fuel costs these days. Have you considered a horse. LOL