This is also posted on another forum.

My dad has been hinting to me that he wants an overhead console in his truck (my old truck) ever since he saw mine up and running. He drives my old '99 Ranger (single cab, 2.5L, 5 speed) that I sold him after I was involved in an accident (damaged the right side of the bed). He's asked at least twice "When are you gonna put one in mine?". My answer was always "no" because I really didn't feel like installing another. He and the rest of my family took off Friday night to spend a few days in Florida, so while I'm here alone with his truck, I decided to go ahead and do the install as a surprise.

Here's his truck (before the bed was damaged):



And the overhead console after installation:



I mounted the temp. sensor in the same location as my truck:



And here's a photo I took of my truck yesterday. You'd be surprised at how many stares it gets. I mean afterall, it's just a Ranger:




I spent most of the day yesterday repairing my truck from the "accident" it was involved in, so today, I decided to spend a little time on his truck.

Tell me what you guys think! :)

 

Nice job. I'm sure he will be surprised.

 

Wirelessly posted

Nice install!

 

Thank you, guys!

It's going to be a saaaddd day when I have to install another one, and I still have two extras! :(

 

Wirelessly posted

Extras? Hook me up! lol

 

Looks good!

 

You definitely can have one if and when we ever have our little meet. They sell them so cheap at my local Pull-a-Part that I buy them whenever I see them.
Thank you!

 

Looks good! I'm sure he's going to like it.

 

Thats great man. Part of my dad's Christmas I got him a gentex mirror for his buick and saturn with the temperature and compass.

 

Looks good but doesnt the sensor go on the frame like the expo?

 

Thank you all! I think that they look neat and classy with the console installed.
Explorers have them mounted to the radiator core support. You can mount them anywhere you want, so long that it's away from a major heat source (the engine). When I did the install on my truck, I found that it fit perfectly in that spot.

 

Don't tell him. See if he notices.

 

That's the plan. :) I even fixed his dome light that didn't turn off whenever the door was closed, which was a big complaint of his. I replaced the original dome light with one from an Explorer either last weekend or the weekend before.

 

How'd you get the temp sensor mounted like that? i.e. did you use glue or silicone? I just have mine zip-tied to the core support right meow...

 

nice! i need to find myself another OHC but i need to wait til spring when the yard opens

 

I kept the original mounting clip on the temp. sensor, so I drilled a hole in the header panel for the mounting clip and another smaller hole for the wires to pass through.
Thank you! Why are yours only open in spring?

 

mthomp1,
Nice thought to surprise your dad.
Let us know when he sees it.

 

looks awesome! I wanna put one in my truck ! :(

 

I definitely will. :) They should be home tonight, but the truck probably won't be driven until tomorrow.
Thank you! I think a few people have made them work in 1st and 2nd gens.

 

He likes it! I'm glad, too, because I didn't really enjoy doing it, but that makes it worth it. :)