So, I did a thing. I bought a REEEEALLY messed up 2000 Ranger 3.0 4x4 for $100. A 99 Ranger was my first truck, and I loved it. I think the nostalgia of the whole thing is what made me do it LOL. Anyway, this thing needs a whole lotta work. The catch? I have only ever changed oil, tires, and spark plugs...thats it! I want to learn to do more things mechanically, and I thought this would be a good way to learn. We will see if I stand by that statement later down the road. So the things she told me that were wrong with it (I haven't confirmed all of these yet) are: Transmission gone, brake lines snapped, exhaust shot, and the bed has come separated from the frame on one corner. However, it does run, albeit very loudly (see shot exhaust). Was I crazy for buying this with no mechanical experience? The answer, come to find out is yes. The tires look good, and the body is in ok condition.

Now, I am not going to go ***** to the wall and start rebuilding a transmission LOL. That I will leave to the pros, which will come to cost me somewhere between $1,500 and $2k. After that, I plan to do all the other stuff with the help of my brother-in-law (who is very mechanically inclined), YouTube, and a Haynes manual. I will document the journey here and hope that I can learn stuff along the way and maybe help motivate someone else to give this mechanic thing a try!

So the first thing Im working on until I get the money for the transmission is the cab and engine compartment. The battery was from 2015, so the first thing I bought was a new battery and put that in. I have done that before, so it was pretty easy...and rewarding. Nothing like being successful on your first repair! I am going to power wash the engine and compartment hopefully tomorrow.

Next, I am working on the interior....gross. This thing is filthy! So, I am going to take out the bucket seats and sweep/clean the floor and the cab. I noticed that I can see the ground through the floor in a couple of places about the size of a quarter, so it looks like at some point, I will need to weld in a patch or two.

Ew.

So, this is the beginning of the looooong journey to driving this lil dude around town. I will document the before and afters and will most likely need LOTS of help so please feel free to throw any suggestions/helpful hints/experiences my way and hopefully we all can learn something together!

 

Looks like a good body from the pictures

You have 60/40 seats not bucket seats, just FYI

2000 Ranger has a wiring connector under drivers seat that goes thru the floor, C309, which can get corrosion inside, known issue on 2000 and 2001 Rangers
You should unplug it from under side and have a look
Ford issued a TSB for this, seen here: Technical Service Bulletin 2000-2001 Ranger electrical connector - Ford Ranger Forum

2000 Ranger 4x4 can have PVH(pulse vacuum hubs) on the front wheels, these never worked well, but it looks like you may have "Live axles" so no PVH, Ford started switching to live axles in 2000, but some 2000's can still have PVH, all 2001 and up had Live Axle
Pictures here of Live Axle and PVH hub difference so pretty easy to see what you have: https://www.therangerstation.com/tec...a_35_sla.shtml

Heater core is pretty hard to change on the 1995 and up Rangers, have to pull the whole dash out, so I would back flush the heater core when you have a chance
You disconnect Both heater hoses at the firewall and then use a garden hose to flush out the core in BOTH directions
You can make a solution of CLR(or Vinegar) and warm/hot water, and use a short hose to pour it in to the heater core, let it sit for 20mins then flush again, BOTH directions
Repeat as you see fit
Then refill with coolant, coolant has anti-corrosive chemicals to protect metal parts of cooling system, problem is if a metal section gets any build up of debris then coolant doesn't touch the METAL part any more, so no protection and it can corrode and then leak
Green coolant needs to be changed every 2 years, yellow or gold every 5 years, do not use red/pink coolant
If you have red/pink coolant in any vehicle you can only switch to yellow/gold, can't use green


The electric shift 4WD systems main failing was the electric shift motor on the back of transfer case, it would fail from disuse, the electric motors brushes and rotor would corrode from sitting for 10 months at a time, lol
So shift the transfer case in to 4high and then 4 low, and then back to 2WD once a month, you don't need to drive it, just shift it to keep shift motor clean and working

 

Wow, thanks so much for all the info Ron! LOL, see I told you I know nothing. I don't know a bucket seat from a split bench :) I almost got the seats out last night. The driver's side is out, but there is one bolt that I cannot get to budge even with PB blaster/WD-40 and a breaker bar! I literally cracked my good Craftsman 15mm socket. Im going to try again this afternoon and see if I can get it. I'm also going to be pressure washing the engine and compartment today to try and clean it up a bit under there.

 

"Was I crazy for buying this with no mechanical experience? The answer, come to find out is yes."

I disagree with that statement. Would your rather learn to fix things on a $20,000 vehicle, or a $100 vehicle? Older vehicles have tons of info from
experienced owners.
When you look to YouTube for help, search Chris Fix. He has a lot of repair videos for different vehicles, but also quite a few for his
Ranger 4x4.

 

For a hundred bucks it's a good buy. I just replaced my exhaust and you should definitely pick up a stainless steel system. I picked up the Walker Dynomax Ultra Flo SS system, part# 39315 for less then $200. It's a vary easy install that you shouldn't have any problems with the install, really only two bolts and the hangers. Most shop will do an install for around the same price but they will use aluminized crap that will rust out in two or three years, believe me I've gone though this in the past your better off to spend the same amount and do the work yourself. You may have to pick up a new bolt and spring kit that connects the pipe coming from the catalylic converter to the pipe going to the muffler, mine were rusted out but they were only ten dollars at the parts store.

 

Hey Jason, you are totally right...definitely would rather fail on a $100 vehicle LOL! I just don't have a lot of confidence in doing stuff like this myself. I suppose that is what it is all about!
Ok, thanks. I will take a look for him. I also found a whole play list of 100+ Ranger videos on 1A Auto's channel.

 

Sweet, thanks Holt!

 

You won't fail, we're here for you.

 

Thanks! Weve had some pretty crappy weather the past couple of days, so I haven't been able to go out and try to get that last bolt out of the passenger seat. However, I did go pick up a new 24V Kobalt Brushless Impact Driver the other day, so Im sure that bolt won't stand a chance :)

 

The seats are now out!! That rusty old bolt was no match for my impact driver. Next, I will remove all trim and then the cab floor liner and then give the cab a good cleaning.

 

When I was working one of my jobs was rebuilding peoples sofa's and to get at the frame and suspension I had to remove the cover _ and the things I found, yuk !
Do people even know what a vacuum cleaner is, many were years old and I don't think it was ever vacuumed !?

Looks like the previous owner of your truck had a dog.

 

[QUOTE=Jeff R 1;2171807]Looks like the previous owner of your truck had a dog.[/QUOTE.;

Yep they sure did! Yeah, the seats are pretty much beyond help. They smell like wet dog LOL. I am going to try and find a decent set and put them in. As long as they don't stink, I don't really care about how they look bc I am going to buy seat covers

 

Yeah... Dog smell, bah ! There isn't enough Febreze on the planet for that !

 

ROFL!!

 

So, I am at a loss. I bought a Haynes manual for help, and it isn't listed in there either...how do you get the $!#&@ seat belts out of the floor? You can see in the picture above, that there is a plastic cover with a star bit. I went and bought the star bits needed, and it just turns and turns and never comes out. I have also tried to find something on youtube, but have failed there as well. Any help would be much appreciated!!

 

I think you need a helper to hold the nut underside.