Are bellhouse dimensions identical?
 

Well, guys, I guess I had it coming. I have a Ranger with the 3.0L V-6 and although it has survived many "moves" in the past, I fear that it is no more.

The "moves" I mention are in the vicinity of 1,000 miles long...from the Houston, TX area all the way up to the very SW corner of Kansas. Included in that drive is a large area in which there are many valleys and "hills". In the past I towed a smaller trailer, but this time I needed to move a BUNCH of stuff so I rented a covered 6'X12' U-Haul and loaded it to the gills.

Yep...you guessed it! The combination of the heavier trailer and the LONG uphills killed that little 3.0L V-6, so I had to make a choice to either spend $5K on getting the engine replaced or buy a VERY well maintained 1999 Ford Expedition for $2K less. The Expedition won.

Now I have a '98 Ranger with a blown 3.0 V-6 (I think it is a Modular design) and in this agrarian society it's handy to have a pickup, so I'm scheming.

I also have a wrecked Cobra with a 5.0HO engine, so the mind started working and I came up with this harebrained scheme:

What are the chances that the 3.0 Mod V-6 and the 5.0HO share the same bellhousing mounting pattern? Would it be possible to mount the 5.0HO to the existing transmission? I realize the Mod engine is computer controlled and the 5.0HO is NOT, so there would be some adaptations that would surely be required (I'd let others who are more knowledgable than I am get those things out of the way), but if the 5.0HO would mount without adaptation to the automatic transmission in the Ranger, I think the Ranger could be usable again.

This MAY just be a harebrained scheme, or it might be a great way to turn a pickup with a burned up engine into a working pickup again.

Opinions? Suggestions? Warnings?

Thanks!

Doug

I would take a look at car-part.com (Hot-line database for junkyards) for a used or reman engine. Used there avg $600 @ approx 100,000+ miles, Remans are $1600 with warranty.

The swap can be done. This site will give you an idea of the all the required items. I wouldn't say its real cost effective.
Swapping An Explorer 5.0L In To A 1998-Up Ranger

Sounds like a WOFTAM.

Get another V6, fit the correct engine cheap, then fix the Cobra. :)

Gary

none
 

Somewhere deep in the bowels of my digital life I have an extensive how-to that covers just what you're asking. I paid $35 for it but never got around to using it. It goes all the way down to part numbers and wiring modifications. I'll look around and if I can find it I'll get back to you.
Bill

Thanks, Bill! I hope you can find it.

Cheers!

Doug

I'm back. I couldn't find the manual itself but I found a named website on an old laptop:
It's Harwood Performance Engineering. Google it and look around. He has a V-8 Ranger sleeper that he calls Frankenranger that really impressed me. I've always wondered if the end-to-end drive-train from a supercharged T-Bird would fit in my Ranger. Anyway, if you go this route, be prepared to upgrade everything. The Haynes manual for my truck says I have a 8.8 rear but the tag on the rear says it's a 7.5, which won't stand up to much in the way of HP. Good luck with yours.
Bill

Doug,

The Modmotor and the 5.0 have different bellhousing bolt patterns with one exception. At the beginning of the 1991production runs for the Modmotor, there were a small number of the 4.6L engines that came with a 5.0L bellhousing bolt pattern. After that brief transition period all the Modmotors used a unique bellhousing bolt pattern providing no 5.0 interchange capability, precluding the use of the earlier 5.0 engine bellhousings.

If you are set on using the V6 transmission and it is a manual you might be able to find a Lakewood or Quicktime can that can be used to marry the two together.

You might want to consider rethinking the use of the V6 trans. Like the 7.5 rear axle, the transmission was also a lightweight and will most likely not survive the torque of the larger engine — especially when pulling a load.


Ed