OK i am looking for an easy way to take the tranny out and put it back in any one have any comments???? I have done tranny swaps on other cars just not on a truck. Is there a way to lean the motor so it slides out easier or some kind of trick too it?

 

the hardest part youre going to encounted is reaching all the bolts. if you can manage to reach all the bolts to disconnect it from the engine you should be ok. if youre 2wd its pretty simple, remove the driveshaft. remove the dustshield from the trans, turn the flywheel and remove the nuts that hold the flywheel to the torque converter, disconnect all wiring harnesses, hoses, etc from the tranny. get a jack under the tranny, and remove the bolts that hold it to the engine. slide the tranny back far enough to disengage the torque converter from the flywheel, and voila. keep a drain pan near. if you want a longer more detailed version let me know. if you have a 4wd, dont mess with it IMO, i paid a mechanic friend $250 to do a tranny swap on my explorer 4x4, took him a day and a half to do it. money well spent

 

I was able to put a jack under my engine & tilt it when I did mine, but I also had two broken motor mounts. Like SoundPer4mance said, the bolts are probably the hardest part. most of them are in the hardest places to turn a wrench or rachet. If I remember right bleeding the clutch was a little tricky too, but that's on a 94. Not sure how different the 01's are. I also agree about paying someone else to do it for you if it's 4WD. It'll save you some choice words and your knuckles.

 

I havn't looked at the Ranger yet but on my 84 Jimmy I was able to use a 24" extension and a swivel at the end to get the bolts at the top of the bellhousing. Also, isn't the bellhousing a separate piece from the trans?? If so, you could separate the two and it would probably make the job a bit easier.

 

i cant remember if the bellhousing is a separate piece, but youll have to get the bellhousing off too, you have to disconnect the TC from the flywheel, and its unlikely youll get the trans off the bellhousing without damaging something because the TC wont come through the back part of the bellhousing, you will have to yank it loose and let the TC fall off in the bellhousing, and youll have to put it back on the engine assembled with the bellhousing, no way to get the TC back on without installing the bellhousing first

 

on the auto trannies, the bellhousing is part of the tranny, not like a manual where they are seperate.

 

i have a 96 manual and the bell housing is solid one peice