Lurking for a long time, and have found this forum invaluable over the last 15 years of Ranger ownership.

I am asking my very first question for all Ranger users. And it is a BIG one.

I own a 2005 Ford Ranger Edge 4WD automatic which I purchased new. It has been remarkably reliable, but with 150K on the clock I started to get the dreaded timing chain clatter. I have Ford Hydraulic chain tensioners on order and hope that it will clear the problem up, but I have my doubts. And pulling the engine to replace only the timing gears and tensioners seems counter productive. I was quoted 24 hours of labor by a dealership. So I am considering two options.

Option 1
Order a remanufactured long block and auto trans from Jasper and have it professionally installed. And while I am having that work done also replace the front axles and wheel bearings, check and replace if necessary any suspension parts, u joints, EGR valve, all belts and hoses, PVC valve, Clean and test injectors, the replace xfer case input shaft seal, and anything else that a truck with 150K miles might need to bring it up to snuff for another 150K run. I priced out the cost to be 10K, and maybe 11K depending on what else if found. The truck in in excellent condition and we like it. I have already recently replaced the alternator, tensioner pulley, idler pulley, and thermostat. Going to have the same shop do the brakes and all fluids at the same time. Would I be wise to replace the transfer case input shaft bearing (if it is constantly turning even while not engaged. Also thinking about the fuel pump while I have it all apart.

If I go this route what other areas might I also need to be looking at? The goal here is the maintain the trucks reliability and long term use. If I was certain this could be done I would quite happily go this route. The truck is very clean and solid with no rust or damage. We reside outside the rust belt in the south. It is in excellent condition other than this issue. But I do not wish to be "nickel and dimed" to death. I'd rather reset the clock on all wear parts and go another 150K without major hiccups.

Warranty on engine and trannie are 3 years 100K miles - parts and labor.

Option 2
Repair the front tensioner and sell the truck... and purchase a 2020 Toyota Tacoma SR 4WD for $35K

I don't trust the complexity of the Ford Ecotec / EcoBoost engines for long term endurance. The 5.0 V8 would be OK, but I don't know if that is offered in the Ranger... and the a new Ranger appears to be just as expensive as an F150. And I really don't want all the electronics on the new Fords, more toys to break. And expensive to repair. I have an I/T engineering background and I understand the reliability issues with electronics. The more complicated the plumbing the easier it is to clog it up.

So with all this said, any and all comments and assistance will be very much appreciated. I am hoping that the group knowledge is much greater than my own and can fill in any holes that I may be overlooking.

Thanks in advance for any and all advice.

Tony

 

If I were in your position I would buy the Toyota you know it will be reliable for at least 250k miles if not more I mean you're planning on paying 1/3 of a new truck to fix a 15 year old one. As far as the new rangers and new Ford electronics. Our company switched from GM vehicles to Ford and the quality of the new Fords is astonishingly low. Three of the 2014 escapes transmissions failed around 35k miles. The backup cameras stopped working and we had rust on cars that were only 4-6 years old among other problems.

 

If you hear a rattle new tensioners won't fix it, the rattle means a chain guide is broken, tensioner may help, and some say synthetic oil helps reduce the noise
But 2005 shouldn't have had the problem in the first place, it was a 1997-2003 4.0l SOHC issue, but I often recommend changing the long chain tensioners every 100k on these engines regardless of the year

What is the "as is" value of your Ranger in your area?

I would just price out the engine only swap and leave trans as is unless you know of a problem, trans can be good to 250-300k, depends on use and service
And IMO I would just do the timing chains, the bottom ends last 350k
You put on 10k a year so with engine only repair you should get at least 10 more years on existing drive train

Obviously a new car is more attractive, lol
But that's not an economic choice, if you don't do your own mechanic work then best to sell a 15 year old vehicle regardless of its current condition, 15 years old is past the end of trouble free life for any vehicle, 10 years old is when even a good vehicle will start to have some issues

The Taco is a good choice, but I would go for 3 year old models, has had all the recalls done(hopefully, lol) and most of the larger depreciation in value has happened, also any Lease Returns will also be for sale which drives the price down just a bit, i.e. supply and demand
And you can still get remaining drive train warranty or add it

 

I have always done my own maintenance on my vehicles, and even have a lift in my detached garage. But I am now 65 and slowing down some. Light maintenance is still within my ability, but heavy long hours of work are much tougher now. I can do heavy long work in the winter when it is cool, but summer heat plays hell with my electrolytes and causes serious issues.

So health issues are starting to show themselves.

Reliability is important.

Edmunds has the Ranger in great condition listed as

Tradein $2850
Private Sell $4800
Dealer Retail $7200

And it won't sell for very much in the shape that it is in. It is worth more to me just from functionality than from economic value. But repair work for me is only going to get harder as I age. If I was 20 years younger this would be an easy decision. We still take a couple of long road trips (~700 miles one way) a year and we use the truck to do it.

Thanks for the input.

Tony

 

Throw an oil catch can on the new ranger and it will last a long time.

Imo sell it for what you can and move on.

I'm going to be pulling my motor later this summer and do the chains. But I have the means to do so, so the total price of parts will be <$1000.