First of all Hello everybody

I recently purchased my first truck a 97' ford ranger. So far the truck is everything I've needed. Decent economy with a lift and of course all the benefits of a truck. However I seem to be severely lacking power. I have read up on a few things such as headers, k&n intake, Freeflow exhaust and underdrive pulleys. Are these things really going to give me a boost? Right now the truck looks cool but i can't climb hills for S*** and going down the freeway against the wind I top out at sixty in 4th gear, 5th gear is of no use. Where is the best/cheapest place to buy these parts for my car specifically the underdrive pulley and header. Which exhaust is the best? Although my car is a 97' it runs a 98 2.5 motor which im thinking is the mazda motor. Are these any good? Sorry I know lots of questions but looking for answers from people who are experienced with these trucks. Looking to get more power fast!

THANKS!!!!

and have a great week.

 

tuner

 

Ranger Power Programmer, Ford Ranger Tuners, Ranger Programmers - 1996 - 2010

 

what size tires? if they are over 33s then you might have a gearing problems. for tires that big you need to have factory 4.10 gears or better. like 4.55 or 4.88

 

They are 31 inch tires. I do have some problems stalling in first the clutch seems to catch really high. Maybe a stronger clutch or maybe an adjustment. How do these tuner things work. How much HP can I expect to gain. Any ideas for exhaust or intake?

 

Gears

 

4.0

 

dude somethings wrong with your motor if youre topping out at 60, either that or some dumbass threw 3.55's in there

i have a 99 xcab with the 2.5 (and its a ford motor) and i dont have a problem on the highway unless its super windy.

edit: 31's .... thats exactly why its so weak, get smaller tires or regear. ... if your trucks a stick like mine it comes with 3.73;s

 

yeah it was super effing windy coming from joshua tree. My truck is stick. Not sure what the gears are but where do I get them from?

 

Randy's Ring & Pinion. The Differential Experts. Auto Parts & Services.

 

Definitely gears. Mine's got 4.10 gears (with the 2.3 though not 2.5) with stock 26.4" tires (I believe thats what I calculated, theyre 225-70-R14's) and even then you gotta wind it out to get it going from a stop if you're on a hill or running the A/C and downshift for a decent number of hills (like 2000 rpms sometimes). Like others said, 4.55's or 4.88's are what you'd want, but going by the tire ratio you'd probably be better off with 4.88's. (the 4 cylinders seem to do decent fuel economy even when winding out the rpms)

If you're curious to see what you have you can check the gear code on the differential cover and inside of the door and compare it to the codes at The Ranger Station - Your Ultimate Ranger Resource

 

Thanks everybody :) although my new problem is a cracked cylinder head.

 

that might have been your problem all along

 

lmao

 

I know...more like 5.0

 

I don't need or want a 4.0 or a 5.0 I use this car as a daily driver for some type of decent mileage. I was looking to improve it since Sometimes I do some offroading when I go camping. My 65 chevy has all the horsepower I need if I wanted to smoke a ranger. 0_o

 

All those photos and no details?!??!

 

327 original motor rebuilt. Radical cam, 202 high performance heads, rebuilt holley 4150 corvette carbeurator, muncy 4 speed, hurst shifter, T-202 tranny, Did the rebuild myself.

I have always been a chevy man but for these economy trucks I liked The ford better than the s10. Plus the engine is super easy to work on lots of space. The El Camino Was a gift given to me when I was 18 for graduating. When I got it it looked like this.

 

Here are some pics of the cylider head after I took it out of the ranger. Having it rebuilt today.

 

Looks good, nice gloves (had to say it), Does the truck have a 98 front clip on it? It looks like a 98-2000

 

I'm not entirely sure, I just bought it. The paperwork says its a 97 but the call tag for parts says 98. I called ford up and they were like...Yeah ford did a lot of weird **** back then. At any rate here are some pics maybe you can tell me.

 

4.56 gears are gonna be the only thing to get you back with 31's and a 4 banger, you could always put a 2.3 tube header on it since they bolt up but nothings gonna bolt on and fix your problem

 

I do mostly all the mechanical work myself Apart from rebuilding the heads that is just time consuming and a pain in the ***. For almost the same price as the valve kit I can have it done at cost through a friend. At any rate how difficult is a regear. I checked alldata and job time says 6 hours which is usually doubled with hand tools. Anybody done this themselves?

 

It's a 98. Since the engine, clip, parts, and the fact you have IFS it means you have a 1998 Ranger. Pre-98 Rangers had a twin i-beam suspension. Yours does not.

 

allright thanks.