ok so i got this truck from my fauther in law because my old car took a crap on me. the conditions of me using is that i will be fixing the couple problems that it has (minor work).

so i noticed that the valve cover gaskets are leaking quite a bit of oil so thats first on the list. i got the gasgets and a new oil cap for good measure. i noticed tho that it seems you have to take qutie a bit of stuff off of the motor to even get to the valve covers

Question: what all will i have to remove to get to the valve covers? basically what all will this project entail?

i do have a good knowlege of vehicles but i always like to ask before i start on something just to find out if there's anything special i will have to do

If it's not equipped with A/C, it is fairly easy. There's a secret to this, but you must have patience. Once you have the valve covers loose, you can usually find enough slack to sneak them out from under everything. But obviously anything that is being pushed too far, remove. But I think I was able to get them out with out removing much. Be sure to make sure the edges are strait, I use a very small dab of sealant where the lower intake meets the head, install in sequence and torque accordinging. Warm the truck up and do one more round in sequence once installed.

yea it has a/c. it seems like its gonna be hell. theres a big box thing right in the way and it looks like that is covering the back bolts. ill have to look at it better tomorrow. it starting to leak a lot of oil so its gotta get done this weekend

The worst part is just trying to maneuver the damn things in and out with out effin up the gaskets. Done them a few times. Even more so on my 2.8 to adjust valve clearances

__________________
89 Ranger- front and rear bagd on drop ibeams and custom 2 link.

85 Ranger- 4x4 31" tires. Soon to be V8 swapped with D35s and 8.8.

Be sure to check the head when you have the valve cover off. I thought my mine was just a bad gasket but it was a cracked head, look on the drivers side near the back in line with the rocker arm bolt, right where the gasket seals.

__________________
1989 Super cab, 4X4, 5.0 v8, c4 transmission.
2" leveling kit in front and 2" add-a-leaf in rear
- 3" Body lift - 3" or 4" suspension lift - 33-12.50 r15 Mud terrains - Explorer OHC, seats and center console - custom hood - 9000# BadLands winch

any engine made in 89 or newer has the cylinder head problem fixed look where you rockers are and if its a square base your good if its an oval shape look for cracks and if it does have cracks i got a 2.9l donor truck i can grab some heads off of for yah but my 90 had a bad gasket because it was cork and basically petrified after being on there for so long so i got new rubber ones and painted my covers while i was at it

__________________
1990 Ranger Extended Cab
2.9L V6 5 Speed Transmission
Planning to put a 347 and a T-5 in it eventually

Well, on my 1989 I had 2 cracked heads and on a 1990 donor engine I had 1 cracked head. It doesn't take long to check if you already have your vavle covers off. Here's a couple of pics of my bad heads.



And here's one that I maged to see how far the crack went.

that gray line is the crack.
I'm not saying that it is a cracked head, I'm just saying it was on mine.

__________________
1989 Super cab, 4X4, 5.0 v8, c4 transmission.
2" leveling kit in front and 2" add-a-leaf in rear
- 3" Body lift - 3" or 4" suspension lift - 33-12.50 r15 Mud terrains - Explorer OHC, seats and center console - custom hood - 9000# BadLands winch

so nobody really has any easy way of taking these off?

thanks for all the info guys. i really do appreciate it

Mark where everything went, and have at it, it is what it is..

well i got the go from the guy im actually borrowing the truck from to just rip out the ac. so i got annother question that ill post in another thread

If you think remembering how things go back together may be a problem, take photographs. Digital cameras are great for this.

__________________
1989 XLT 4x4
5 speed Mitsubishi
2.9L

I just recently got mine changed and it took me about all day cuz it was the first time adn everything went fine but i still leaked on one of the gasket so i had to take it off and re adjust it and now it pretty good now

__________________
88 Ranger 2.9 2wd.
Jeep Wheels
10" & 12" Sub

Youtube Account:
Name-300exTyler01

thanks for the replys guys. i haven't had the truck for a long while now and i have no idea what the condition of it is now because it hasn't been driven in forever but i took a better look at it and the head was cracked so i left it. i wasn't about to get in over my head on the thing. all in all i was very unimpressed with the truck. it was slow, guzzled gas and had a bunch of problems. the one good thing i will say though is that it started first couple of cranks every time and the 4wd worked which was what i needed at the time.

Going through same thing with my 88 ranger. It has AC so its a pain. Thanks for the thread its helped some.

__________________
1988 Ford Ranger 2.9L Manual Transmission