I do want to say beforehand that I know there is a full write up when it comes to 2.3l SVO turbo swapping a Ranger, but when it comes down to Transmission specifics the write up is pretty vague.

I am currently swapping a 2.3L Turbo SVO Mustang engine out of a 1985 Mustang into a 1984 Bronco II. The reason why I chose the Ranger forums is due the fact I am wanting to use a Ford ranger M5ODR1 4WD 5 Speed Transmission for this swap since I am not planning on pushing any extra power out of this Motor, also as far as what I can find the 2.3l SVO motor is pretty identical to the 2.3L motors found in your Ford Rangers.

What I am currently running into is the ability to keep 4WD, I am not sure what years this 1985 2.3l motor can adapt to in terms of M5ODR1 4WD 5 speed manual Ranger transmissions (Example: 1985 2.3l Motor into a 1996 M5ODR1 from a 2.3l Ranger) (I also know that the bell housings and "assemblies" are different on the 2.9L, 3.0L, AND 4.0L transmissions).

I am not sure if Ford made the early to late 80's rangers with a 2.3L motor and a 4wd option (I found a small amount old forums arguing over this), and if they did, I am unable to find these Transmissions, whether that is re-manufactured, used, or at any of my local salvage yards. I am however able to find a mid 90's (95-97) 2.3l ranger M5ODR1 Transmissions with 4wd for sale online, I am aware that Ford did way with the Cable driven speedometer on these, which is NOT a problem. I am not sure if the slave/master cylinders/mounting points changed in the mid 90's 2.3l rangers either.

I also have heard that you can take a late 80s ranger 2.3L 2WD M5ODR1 Transmission and swap the Tail housing and output shaft to make it into a 4WD transmission, now I'm not sure if that is true or not, and if it is, I'm not sure what output shaft I would need. Also if I do get a late 80's (88-92) M5ODR1 transmission do I need a 85 2.3l Engine clutch or an 88-92 Clutch.


My other question is, if an 85 2.3l motor can adapt to a 95-97 2.3l 4WD transmission, do I need a 95-97 Spec 23 Spline Clutch, or would a 1985-88 Spec 23 Spline clutch work? Another option I have is to use a 2.3l Non SVO mustang T5 transmission and adapt a T5 to Chevy S15 adapter which allows me to use a Chevy Transfer case, which is where things start getting kind of complicated (and Ford/Chevy guys begin to get angry lol jk).

Then whole thing is sort of making my head spin and I've spent hours researching this and the best I can get for the majority of this are basically just "assumptions" from 10-20 year old forum posts, one person saying "Yeah that will work" with a post right behind saying no it wont.

I do want to say that while I have a bit of mechanic experience, a swap like this is new to me, I've got time, I've got tools, and any bit of help/ideas is greatly appreciated. :)

 

Welcome to the forum

The 2.3l SVO is a 4cyl Lima engine, same engine used in Rangers 1983 thru 1997, non-turbo of course
1990-1997 4x4 Ranger 2.3l M5OD-R1(M5R1) transmission will work fine although will be hard to find, not many 4cyl 2.3ls 4x4s were made, most were V6s, no 4cyl 4x4s after 1997

You always use the Clutch kit for the transmission you use, i.e. if you get a 1995 Ranger 2.3l M5R1 4x4 trans then you use a 1995 Ranger 4cyl clutch

The 2WD 2.3l M5R1s are easier to find, 1988 thru 2001(2.5l 1998-2001)
If you get desperate...................you can get any 1990-1997 M5R1 4x4 trans to take parts from, and partially disassemble the 2.3l 2WD trans and install the shorter 4x4 output shaft and shorter tail shaft housing to make it a 4x4 trans, M5R1s were all the same in that respect

Ranger transfer cases were BW1350 before 1990, and 1990 and up BW1354 thru 2011
They are interchangeable and bolt to any year Ranger 4x4 transmission, manual or auto
1998 and up no longer have speedometer cable hookup, just a heads up, because you probably want that feature in a 1985, lol

 

Thank you so much for the response and the clarifications. I actually managed to find a few companies that re manufacture the 1988-1994 4X4 2.3L M5ODR1 Transmissions not long after posting this, typing into google 1988 Ranger 4x4 2.3l M5OD Transmission does not give you proper results, that and for whatever reason every listing uses a stock photo of a 2.9L m5odR1 Transmission.

Just in case someone else decides to do this swap, here is the proper transmission code for a 1988-1994 Ranger 4x4 2.3l Transmission : RMTM5R1F-2SN
Also thanks for clarifying which clutch I needed, this alone is a huge help.