Built Ford Tough!

[Freight_Train]

Last weekend we cooked our Race car engine.2.5L with a 2.3L pan and gasket.The rear section pinched inside the pan when we were installing it and didn't get noticed.Blew all teh oil out the back and burned the bearings out.So,today we decided to pull the engine out of the Super Ford.The Super Ford is a 1988 Ford ranger 2.3L with 300K plus on it.The engine is a used replacement that was installed about 200K ago.Unknown miles on the engine when installed.To paint a picture here......Truck caught more air than a 747,Had oil put in the radiator by accident(Don't ask me...don't know how you could misstaken the Radiator for the engine...)Redlined constantly,had so many people in the bed once the bumper was dragging,(Got truck at 14YO,at 18 he wanted it dead so he could get help to get another vehicle.He was 26 when he sold it to me!!!)The truck never had its oil changed....would leak out so fast that the PO would just re fill it every month or so.There is not a straight body pannel anywhere.The bed is held on by one bolt,the tranny has burned out bearings,the exhaust fell off after the Cat.Ok,back to the engine.We pulled it out today.Spent an hour pressure washing it.When we got it on a stand and pulled all the junk off(Intake,Exhaust,Valve cover) we found a Roller Double D port Head.....Hmmmm,I think I just came out way ahead on my $100 purchase price of this truck(Which was running ok for a TOTALLY thrashed truck!).Cylinder walls looked dang near perfect.Went to pull the pan(funky Cast aluminum jobber!) and noticed that there were 5 or 6 broke bolts on one side(only 3 holding it on) and about 4 on the other side broken.....hmmm,not good.Drop the pan and first thing I see are 2 large chunks of something......OH crap....Pick it up and it is aluminum about the size of a quarter each.....Look inside and see the skirt is missing on one piston.....hmmmm,Really not good.Pull it out and find a piece from the lower ring about a 1/4 way around totally missing.Cylinder wall not even damaged.Pull the Piston next to it and it has a 3" crack in about the same spot but no missing chunks.All the bearings were also toast.Worn down into the base metal.All this and this truck was Driven daily until I parked it in the field....it was even driven a couple times after it was parked to the store until I tire blew out and we needed the upper radiator hose for the race car.Talk about built Ford Tough.This truck was used,Abused,neglected,and flat out deliberatly tried to kill but it would not give up.

 

[adrianspeeder]

Nice! Those early rangers were purdy bomb proof. Put in a junkyard 302.

Adrianspeeder

 

[Freight_Train]

nah,Truck is going to the crusher now.Got the engine out and that is all I wanted.RIP Super Ford!

 

[sle2115]

Yeah, there are all kinds of stories like that. I had a Nova that I think I bounced off everything. Had a 250 six cylinder with 150,000 and we ran it about 40 miles with no oil, drained it to see if we could kill it, couldn't!!! Ended up running it with no radiator, still wouldn't die, but we never left the yard. Took it out running. And no, it wasn't built Ford tough, it was built by the good guys!

Ended up restored with a 283 stroker that was about the funnest sleeper you have seen. Countless stangs and camaros alike lost money to my buddy and I in that thing.

 

[Freight_Train]

If I had a title for this truck I would save it.But I bought it with no title.I want to build one of our dirt track engines and drop into a truck or a pinto.Instant Throttle response,8000RPM for a 2.3L/2.5L or 10,000RPM for a 2.0L.Put some real quite exhaust on it maybe drill a hole in it before the muffler to give it that POS exhaust leak tick sound.Hee hee hee,Here ricer ricer ricer.Amazing what I have learned building this little Pinto.Take a 2.3L SOHC engine and make 200-300HP.Near Stock bottom end(stock crank and rods but Ultra Light pistons),shave the head 100-150 thousands,510 lift isky with stock size valve all stuff in a Double D port open chamber head.500CFM 2 barrel carb sitting on a modified Fuel injected intake manifold with a 1" adapter plate and a stock distributor(even though I have a MSD on the shelf with a 6AL box we can't figure out how to wire up).Just imagine what you could do to one of these little 4 bangers if you really got wild with a bunch of either Racer Walsh or Esslinger parts.....stroke it out to a 2.8L plus engine with a MONSTER lift cam big heads maybe even some form of air stuffer......Oh I could have some massive fun in a $500 early 80s beat up ranger and about 3-5K worth of racing parts......

 

[sle2115]

We actually built quite a few engines for the 4 banger dirt track guys. 2.3 were a hot item as well as GM 2.5's that I never really cared for, well, at least until you bolt a SBC 2.02/1.64 head on one with all the SBC goodies! Then they come alive and stop busting cylinder heads!

 

[Freight_Train]

hmmmm,A 350 head will bolt down on a 2.5L 4 banger.....hee hee hee...now where can I get a Vega!Muh ha ha ha....Evil mind at work!!!!

 

[sle2115]

hmmmm,A 350 head will bolt down on a 2.5L 4 banger.....hee hee hee...now where can I get a Vega!Muh ha ha ha....Evil mind at work!!!!

Well, it's not like it will just "bolt on" but it doesn't take all that much work either.

 

[Freight_Train]

well,Fill me in.....Come on!!!!

 

[sle2115]

IIRC, all you have to do is redrill and tap the head bolts. Use a small block head gasket, then of course fab up intake and exhaust. There used to be some companies that made them as this is really not all that uncommon of a conversion. We welded the old holes and resurfaced the block. The great thing about it is that they are pushrod motors, so you don't have to worry about timing belt length.