I have been seeing conflicting information about where the 5R55E interchanges, with regard to years and engines. Target vehicle is a 2008 Ranger 4X2 with a 2.3L four. I would be looking for a used trans but, I checked the rebuilder websites to try to find interchange information Some rebuilders seem to be saying that 2005 -2011 are drop-in interchangeable. Others say 2007-2011.
I get the impression from this forum that the 4 cylinder bell housing is different from the 3.0L and 4.0L bell housings. But, are the internals the same? It seems like it would be easy enough to unbolt and swap bell housings. Is the Explorer 5R55E usable in a Ranger with a bell housing swap?

One rebuilder refers to the Keep Alive Memory Tag. What is that and how is it used? Is the tag different between engines? Can it programmed to a replacement trans using a scan tool? (Or does all of the intelligence live in the PCM and not in the trans?)