2004 Ranger #53

Update your progress on your various car projects.

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Basement Paul
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2004 Ranger #53

Post by Basement Paul »

So I picked it up and drove it home tonight with no issues. I'll try to spend a little time this weekend learning more about what I really have. In the meantime, here's a few pictures.

BTW, it's a 2004 Ranger with just over 107K miles. And it's paid for.

-BP
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Ranger3 3-28-18.jpg
Ranger2 3-28-18.jpg
Ranger1 3-28-18.jpg
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TheRookie
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Location: Charlotte

Re: 2004 Ranger #53

Post by TheRookie »

Looks fantastic for age and mileage.
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GMJohnny
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Re: 2004 Ranger #53

Post by GMJohnny »

Looks like a more modern day "Sanford & Son" truck. Mint! I also like the
white Chevy truck photo bomb in the bottom pic. Happy motoring!

GM
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Basement Paul
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Re: 2004 Ranger #53

Post by Basement Paul »

So far what I know:

-It needs a new tailgate handle, but I can still open it with a screwdriver if necessary
-It was well over 2 1/2 qts low on oil, and it takes 5W-20 (better keep an eye on that)
-All the tires were at 25psi (now at 37psi) which I'm sure made it feel a little splashy
-The heater fan works on high only, but the A/C does work
-There's two big holes in the original muffler, the rest of the exhaust looks nice with at least one new O2 sensor
-The Cruise and wipers work

Tonight I filled the bed up with crap to take in for consignment at HGR tomorrow, and then I thought, maybe I should check a few things before I haul 500 lbs for 50 miles in a vehicle I know absolutely nothing about. Good thing I checked.

Funny, but my first Ranger was a white '84 2wd that was also a regular cab with a 7' bed on it. And I believe it was 14 years old when I got it too. Funny how things start to cycle. Or, with 52 other vehicles, it was bound to happen.

-BP
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MostMint
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Re: 2004 Ranger #53

Post by MostMint »

It needs a hemi, 8) or a turbo
[quote="Basement Paul"]Is that a mint rocketship on the hood?? :shock:
-BP[/quote]
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Basement Paul
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Re: 2004 Ranger #53

Post by Basement Paul »

I'm just happy it made it work today! And at 66mph with the cruise on, it seems pretty happy buzzing along at 2250 RPMs. I'll be surprised if this ever gets over 75mph.

-BP
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Basement Paul
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Re: 2004 Ranger #53

Post by Basement Paul »

I got up to 73mph today hauling a bunch of inventory from my place to Hinkley. With 32V and a full truck load of crap, I made the round trip no problem. My back is getting more used to the weird seat too. Today I also bought the heater resistor and tailgate handle. Hopefully tomorrow morning I can knock those two things out.

-BP
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Ranger Full 3-31-18.jpg
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Basement Paul
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Re: 2004 Ranger #53

Post by Basement Paul »

This morning I got the new tailgate handle installed and the new blower motor resistor hooked up. What sucked about that is that once I got it apart, I found the connector was melted. Good part about it was that AutoZone stocked the connector so it was only a short drive in the S10 away.
I also left the tailgate portion of the bedliner off so I can sell it with the bedliner ( takes up too much space ). I was also able to remove the remnants of the old tonneau cover and spray some undercoating stuff inside the gate and around all the seams.
I also checked the oil after about 250 miles of driving and it doesn't seem to have used any, so I'm not sure what the deal with the low oil was. I'll be doing a high mileage oil change in the next few weeks.

-BP
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Basement Paul
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Re: 2004 Ranger #53

Post by Basement Paul »

Today the Ranger got a new S/S turbo muffler and new front shocks. It definitely handles better and is WAY quieter. I have the air shocks for the rear in my possession, but it will get an oil change first. I won't be putting the air shocks in until I pull the bedliner out, and the bed is currently full of scrap until Monday after work. I got a used K&N air filter (yeah K&N) and installed it earlier in the week too.

I haven't posted any pictures because these are relatively boring upgrades which don't provide much visual satisfaction.

-BP
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Basement Paul
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Re: 2004 Ranger #53

Post by Basement Paul »

The oil change is now done and the bedliner is out. The bed is in decent used shape. I sucked a bunch of rocks and mulch up that were stuck between the bed and the liner. I'll probably start cutting the bedliner up so it will fit in the trash. I had it on craigslist for a week and a half for $50 and didn't get a call, so it's now time to go as it takes up LOTS of space in my garage that I don't have.

By removing the plastic liner, I gained almost an inch and a half between the wheel wells and all that space up under the bed rails. When you're hauling smaller parts, that extra space will help more than you think.

I think at Carlisle I'll look for a cheap spray or roll-in bedliner kit and some bed caps that will still protect the tops of the bed and allow me to use my top holes to tie things to.

-BP
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bed.jpg
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Basement Paul
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Re: 2004 Ranger #53

Post by Basement Paul »

New air shocks and fresh synthetic rear differential fluid. It got it's first bath too, just before the rain hit.

-BP
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ranger 4-14-18a.jpg
air shocks 4-14-18.jpg
rear diff fluid 4-14-18.jpg
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Basement Paul
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Re: 2004 Ranger #53

Post by Basement Paul »

As I've driven it more, I started to notice that over 3000 rpms (which almost never happens) the battery light would come on and the lights would flicker, then when the RPMS drop below that, everything went back to normal. I initially leaned towards a slipping belt since the one on there was original and looked kind of dry. It was an easy replacement, but didn't cure the problem. So on to the internet.... which tells me this is a common Ford problem and the alternator is the problem.
Today I bought a new, not reman alternator for the Ranger and the problem has gone away. For the first time, I flatfooted first gear to redline around 5500 rpms. It probably is good enough to get solidly into the 17's, but I won't be doing that often, or even ever again. It's not very exciting.
Now I have a slight creaking from the LF suspension. Since none of the suspension is grease-able, I'll be getting the grease needle out and putting grease in there anyway.

-BP
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Basement Paul
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Re: 2004 Ranger #53

Post by Basement Paul »

Upon further inspection, the rubber around the lower ball joints was gone. So off to Paul Carson for new lower ball joints and a driver's side upper control arm. I was supposed to put a new upper on the passenger's side too, but Moog boxed that one incorrectly and the on that was on there was still in good shape, so he put it back on. He also recommended front brake pads so I replaced those this past weekend with Duralast Gold ones from Autozone.
Why is it that NOBODY can make a brake pad that just fits any more without having to grind the tabs down? The last five or six brake jobs I've done, ALL of the pads needed to be ground down a little bit to fit. Seems crazy to me.
Next up is a front end alignment and I think I'll be done fixing for awhile and I can focus on making it a little prettier (but not too much).

-BP
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Basement Paul
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Re: 2004 Ranger #53

Post by Basement Paul »

This weekend the Ranger received a much needed detail job. I rubbed out the tops of the bed where the bedliner had been rubbing. I also used rusty metal primer and then painted the lower half of the bed with Rust Oleum Professional white paint. It looks much better and it's protected a lot more. I laid it on thick so I probably won't be putting anything in it this week.
I also gave it a complete wax job and scrubbed the seats. I pulled all the wheels off, gave them the same primer job, and brushed them with a similar Rust Oleum product, but in Aluminum color. During the wax job, I also removed the bug guard. I always liked the hood on this vintage Ranger and thought the bug guard got in the way.
In the next week or so I'm going to finally buy a decent tonneau cover for it and I'll call it done. So far I've put a couple thousand miles on it and it's been nothing but a good workhorse.

Here's a couple crappy pictures (it was too sunny out for good shots).

-BP
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7-8-18.jpg
7-8-18a.jpg
7-8-18b.jpg
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Basement Paul
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Re: 2004 Ranger #53

Post by Basement Paul »

With the magic of price matching, I was able to get this (https://www.summitracing.com/parts/trx-250601) for $237.01 because Amazon sells stuff cheap. Then, I had another $20 off coupon Summit sent me last week, so I was able to get it cheaper still. I should have it by Wed.

-BP
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