As the title says, I bought an old '96 Ranger with a 4 L V6 on craigslist. I don't know the exact mileage that this truck has because the odometer stopped working at 188,000 miles. It runs well and the 5 speed manual transmission feels solid, but it's clear that the last owner didn't take great care of it. There's lots of cosmetic issues inside and out, there's some jury rigging under the hood, and the radiator seems to have a lot of rust on it. Anyway, I'm super excited to own a Ranger and I was just wondering what I should do to make sure I get the most mileage out of this truck. Aside from the obvious tune-up advice (change the oil, fuel filter, spark plugs, plug wires, diff fluid, etc...) does anyone have advice that is specific to this truck (for example types/brands of oil that work best, particular issues at high mileage to look out for, preventative maintenance steps) that may not be obvious?

Thanks in advance for the help!

 

Welcome to the forum

You got a good year with good engine and trans

4.0l OHV was used from 1990 to 2000 in a few Ford models, very reliable engine with one weakness, it can NOT be allowed to over heat, or you WILL have to replace the heads, period, no "well it only overheated a little", if temp gauge starts to head to 3/4 on gauge PULL OVER, you can limp home in short trips, letting engine cool off between
So keep cooling system in tip-top shape

Change the oil and filter and it will last 400k miles.......at least, probably 10W-40 would be best on high mile engine
Change PCV Valve every 3 oil changes, and no, shaking a PCV Valve doesn't mean is "good" lol

Clean MAF sensor once a year, add a can of Seafoam(injector cleaner) once a year to gas tank
Use regular copper spark plugs or Double coating spark plugs, single coating are a waste of money on Fords Waste Spark system
The 4.0l will be best with Motorcraft or autolite brand spark plugs they will last the longest, NGK also work but not as long lasting

Reverse Heater hoses at the firewall, applies to all vehicles, every 2 years, this will help heater core last longer

You have an M5OD-R1 manual transmission, almost bullet-proof, it does used ATF, NOT Gear Oil, yes automatic transmission fluid in a Manual Trans
It only holds 2.8 QUARTS bone dry so not at all expensive to change the fluid
Usually takes just under 2 quarts to refill, Mercon V is spec'ed

In a 1996 Ranger if the Odometer doesn't work, but speedometer does, it means the Worm Gear in the dash is broken, a common issue, you can Google: Ranger odometer worm gear
Quite a few How-tos out there, WITH Pictures, lol

Ball joints need to be replace usually, when miles get high, tell-tale is front tires wearing on the inside

You can download your 1996 owners manual here: https://www.ranger-forums.com/genera...1-models-3747/

You can get the 1996 Ranger brochure here: https://www.therangerstation.com/art...ger-brochures/
See what options you have or don't have, lol

 

Thanks for the info and the literature! I'm taking this truck to the desert, so my first instinct was to change out the radiator and make sure that the cooling system is in top shape.

 

Get a Dual core radiator if it doesn't have one now
Manuals came with single core usually, but in 1996 it may have dual core

If you have a single core now, you will need to stop by a wrecking yard first and pick up a fan shroud from an automatic, they were always dual core
The single core shroud would hit the engine with dual core rad because its to deep

Easy to see the different between single and dual core, seen here: https://i.ytimg.com/vi/IqCX1RPAH2w/maxresdefault.jpg
Front single, back double