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I have always wanted to lower and V8 swap my original 04 Edge, (Build log for that here: https://www.ranger-forums.com/projec...-build-145288/ ) but the more I researched it, the more I found out how next to impossible it would be. A few months ago I found this beauty for sale! A 2004 Ford Ranger Edge 4 door.
Other than the bed style and the rear window this truck was an exact twin from the factory as my current truck. However this truck had just finished a 4 year build of getting V8 swapped and professionally repainted. I had to have it! After months of chatting with the owner/builder, I talked him down to a reasonable price and I took the 3 hour trip to go get it. Here she is, officially mine!
Here is a rundown of the truck as I purchased it.
The truck is a 2004 Ranger edge model 4 door. Was originally a 3.0 which blew up a little after 170k miles. The V8 is out of a 1998 Explorer which had around 130k miles. The motor was torn completely down. An E303 cam was installed along with adjustable 1.7 rockers, larger throttle body, air intake and tune. Transmission is the 4r70W from the Explorer. However it too was rebuilt, with a Boss Hog stall converter, Transgo shift kit and Transgo rebuild kit. Exhaust are OBX headers back to flow master 40's and dumped over the rear axle. Here is a sound clip for you of the truck:
Few things that needed to be finished on the truck: The Tachometer and the Temperature gauge did not work properly.
Slight power steering leak.
Fuel leak.
Coolant leak somewhere on the front of the motor.
Cruise control needs to be sorted out.
Reverse lights need to be wired.
Retune do to the shift kit creating too much pressure in the trans.
Open rear diff with 4.10 gears.
My wants: Needs to be lowered!
The 20's need to go!
Clean up the engine bay
Swap to a solid rear glass
So far in the few months I have had it I have gotten a few things done. First off was a custom plate, because I just had to!
Fixed the fuel leak. I plan to redo this entire return line with hard line at some point, but for now some proper clamps fixed the issue. This picture was before I fixed it.
Picked up a pair of never mounted 18" wheels and tires for the ranger from Sean AKA Fordzilla here on the forum. They are going to look awesome on the ranger once I get them all mounted up. Have to get another pair for the front when I get a chance. The offset is perfect for this truck!
After a lot more tweaking, tearing down the gauge cluster many times, soldering, wiring and a converter box later, I finally have all of the gauges working! I couldn't be happier with this!
Happened to stumble across a roll up bed cover for a step side and the price just happened to be right! I picked it up for almost a 1/5th of what it would have been new! This was such a great surprise and I couldn't pass it up.
Got the reverse lights wired up to the sensor on the 4R70W. Now they work like factory! Defenintly going to need to put some LEDs in there.
Currently the 8.8 is out of the truck and off to get its new gears (3.55 Limited Slip) set. Im excited to no longer be one wheel drive and to have a little better gearing for daily driving. These brakes look like they haven't been touched since the factory 180K miles ago. Going to redo everything in the rear. Bearings, seals, brakes and new aluminum diff cover. Also have a flip kit and notch from Rick Moore to throw in the rear to lower the truck an extra 3" from where it is now!
The new truck is fitting in well in the family and I am excited to keep getting it to exactly where I want it. I will post updates on here every few months. For more up to date progress follow me on Instagram. @thatv8ranger
What has already been done and/or what are you planning to do to lower the front? I'm seriously considering pulling my BL off and going lower.
It's really not worth it unless you HATE lifted trucks like Jordan. About all you can do for bolt and go is to put drop keys in it. And that makes the front end super sketchy.
The only other option is custom fab work via coilovers, bags, Mustang II front stuff, Toyota front clip, etc.
It's really not worth it unless you HATE lifted trucks like Jordan. About all you can do for bolt and go is to put drop keys in it. And that makes the front end super sketchy.
The only other option is custom fab work via coilovers, bags, Mustang II front stuff, Toyota front clip, etc.
I had a feeling the answer would be something along those lines.
I wouldn't drop without switching to coilovers. I don't want to go too low, just a few inches lower than stock.
What has already been done and/or what are you planning to do to lower the front? I'm seriously considering pulling my BL off and going lower.
This one has DJM flip keys and the bump stop and brackets completely cut off. It actually rides better then my daily. I plan on evenutally converting them to coil overs and cutting off the stock UCA mounts and putting in Rick Moore's UCA relocation brackets.
It's really not worth it unless you HATE lifted trucks like Jordan. About all you can do for bolt and go is to put drop keys in it. And that makes the front end super sketchy.
The only other option is custom fab work via coilovers, bags, Mustang II front stuff, Toyota front clip, etc.
I don't hate lifted trucks! I love lifted 4wd truck... but not a fan of lifting 2wd trucks.
I got the axle back from getting the gears set! Like I said before I went from a 4.10 open gearing to 3.55 limited slip.
While the axle was out I basically replaced everything on it. Did new pinion seal and bearings, wheel bearings and seals, new brake pads and springs, along with sanding the axle down and spraying it with some self etching primer and a few coats of black paint.
When reinstalling the axle back into the truck I also installed Rick Moore's flip kit. I decided to go cheap with the rear shocks for now and got some shocks from a Nissan Quest. Much shorter then the stock Edge model shocks, but work really well! So far I have been really happy with them. I also threw on a Ford Racing 8.8 diff cover.
At the last Florida Ford Ranger's meet that I sadly didnt have this truck ready for, I picked up a little tow hook for the back. I didnt even know for made this part but its a pretty cool little piece.
After I got everything back together I decided to start it up and let it just idle in 1st gear to just make sure there were no weird noises. I found out that my passenger side axle shaft was bent and my wheel was wobbling quite a bit. Luckily I still had the axle shaft from my donor axle. I got that all swapped out and the truck was good to go!
Few more things! Swapped out my sliding back glass for a solid piece. I think the solids just look a lot cleaner and less prone to leaks.
Got some JDMAstar LED headlights and fog lights to help me try to see at night through these smoked housings. They help, but i see some HID retrofits coming eventually.
Met up with my buddy Keith at a local show and he took a few awesome photos of the truck!
Finally gave the truck a much needed wash and wax. Also got the new rear glass and the side windows tinted. Threw on a few decals while I was at it.
If you want to follow the build process as it happens and see some more photos follow me on Instagram.
I started working on doing a transmission cooler upgrade. Have all new lines to run along with a new pan and temp sensor. Got the cooler mounted up so far. Still deciding on if I'm going to remove the original transmission cooler or re-purpose it as a power steering cooler.
Lastly, I finally had a run in with a little dip in the road and caught one of my torsion bolts. Went and got some shorter grade 5 bolts and threw them in there to give me just a little more clearance. These torsion bars gotta go!
Just a little photo of my two trucks together to close it out.
Last edited by Goofs04Edge; 01-01-2018 at 06:18 PM.
Right now its pretty far down the list. Want to get the other pair of 18s and tires as my next large purchase. I also have about a $350 amazon wish list that keeps growing.
Goof, I just read through your original 04 Edge Build, and then this one. Awesome work!
Thanks! These trucks are a lot of fun to mess around with! If I ever end up selling them I plan on trying to find a 4.0 4x4 truck and having some fun with that.
10-17-2017
