Stringer's 2002 Ford Ranger V2.0

Stringer · #1 01-20-2020, 10:48 AM

Well after 8 years of being away, I am back and with the identical twin to my first Ranger:

1st Ranger from 2010-2012:

The Twin:

2002
XLT Super Cab
4X4 Off-Road
4.0 SOHC
4.10 Gears

I was able to find this one on Facebook Marketplace about 30 miles from my house with about 140k miles on it. The truck is in exceptionally good condition given that it is now 18 years old. The previous owner did the following:

New 265/75/16 tires
New Fluids (Oil, Trans, Diff)
Rockers professionally repaired & painted
Remote Start

The truck does have some severe rot on the rear frame but the front section is solid. Because of this, I was able to negotiate the price of the truck to $2,000 and take a slight gamble on the frame.

First up I will be tackling the Rear Frame swap. I was able to locate a completely rust free section that has been sitting in a garage since the guy bought it from Ford - it still has the factory black paint with no surface rust. So what is the best part of this deal? I got it for $100. Tear down begins this coming weekend and I anticipate having the new frame section bolted up and the truck back together by the end of the weekend.

Pictures to come!

After this is completed, the real fun starts with some customization. I am currently planning on the following:

Black Headlights
Smoked 06-11 Tails
Smoked Cab LED Lights
Smoked LED Third Brake Light
Smoked Vent Visors
Tinted Windows - 20% Front Sides, 5% Brow Strip, 20% Over Factory Rear Glass
All Exterior Bulbs converted to LED
Putco Luminix LED Ford Emblem (Modified for grill mount)
Custom Seat Covers - Driver seat has a tear
Double DIN Headunit - Apple CarPlay & Backup Camera Compatible
Dual Flush Mount USB Dash Ports (For Apple CarPlay)
Pioneer Replacement Speakers
Pioneer Powered Subwoofer
New Chrome Front Bumper Face Bar - Original is starting to rust
Cat-back Exhaust (Flowmaster 40 or Equivalent)
Torsion Bar Crank
1" Lift Shackles - To compensate for Weatherguard Rat Pack or Towing
3" PA Body Lift
285/75/16 A/T
Rancho RS5000X Shocks

I will be updating this build thread as I go along.

Scrambler82 · #2 01-20-2020, 11:43 AM

Stringer,

Truck looks good, but the frame... there are still good frame out there, have considered a complete change over ?

Have you contacted Ford, with pictures and asked about replacement frames... maybe a Safety ReCall thing ?

My '03 is rusty, not sure if there is any cracking yet but need to do a complete check.

Your earlier Ranger looked great, I like the black out look, the white truck really pops.

Anyway, good list of Projects, I am in the process of Project Headlights (Jordan will do), and Audio System. My Audio is similar to yours, I am using all Pioneer Speakers, Amp, and a 10" Sub, that may be a little too big, I'm not into the BIG BASS thing.
I asked around with a few friends, that own Audio Shops, and they are saying Alpine is the best bet right now. Less of them come back for repairs, they sound good, and they play Apple Car Play really well.
I haven't received the Head Unit yet so I can't say for sure on the Apple Car Play but we will see.
I ordered an Alpine iLX-207 with backup Camera and XM Radio from one of my buddies, hoping for the best.
Apple Play is a big one for me.
Might even look for a good shop to install the whole package.

Good Luck on the list, keep the pictures coming !

Ltr

p.s.
Audio System, USB ports.
You probably already know but... there are two types of USB ports, one is Data Connect - Apple Play Connect, and the other is just charging.
You can't run more than one Data Port with the iLX-207, but you can run all of the Charging ports you want.

Stringer · #3 01-20-2020, 01:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scrambler82

Stringer,

Truck looks good, but the frame... there are still good frame out there, have considered a complete change over ?

Have you contacted Ford, with pictures and asked about replacement frames... maybe a Safety ReCall thing ?

My '03 is rusty, not sure if there is any cracking yet but need to do a complete check.

I had someone offer me a complete frame with both sections but I don't think that is something I want to tackle just yet. I don't have the time, tools/shop or skills to tear the entire truck from the frame. I had a shop look over the frame after I bought it and they told me my frame from the front of the rear wheels forward is solid. I have been talking with someone who replaced the rear frame section and it seems pretty straight forward and can easily be done with basic tools & knowledge.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scrambler82

Your earlier Ranger looked great, I like the black out look, the white truck really pops.

Thanks, I always said that I wish I never sold the first one or could get it back. When I saw this one for sale, it was hard for me to pass it up.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scrambler82

Anyway, good list of Projects, I am in the process of Project Headlights (Jordan will do), and Audio System. My Audio is similar to yours, I am using all Pioneer Speakers, Amp, and a 10" Sub, that may be a little too big, I'm not into the BIG BASS thing.
I asked around with a few friends, that own Audio Shops, and they are saying Alpine is the best bet right now. Less of them come back for repairs, they sound good, and they play Apple Car Play really well.
I haven't received the Head Unit yet so I can't say for sure on the Apple Car Play but we will see.
I ordered an Alpine iLX-207 with backup Camera and XM Radio from one of my buddies, hoping for the best.
Apple Play is a big one for me.
Might even look for a good shop to install the whole package.

The head unit I am looking at comes with (2) USB ports off of the back of it that are to be used for Apple Car Play. I found a flush mount USB port with two extension pig tails that would plug into the supplied USBs from the head unit to give it a nice clean finished look.

As for the Sub, I am looking at the Pioneer TS-WX130DA Compact Powered Subwoofer. It has a built in Amp with an 8" Sub in one slim unit - it is only 2 3/4" tall. Ideally I'd like to mount it under one of the seats if space allows. If not, it would go on the floor in back.

Subwoofer Specs:
https://www.pioneerelectronics.com/P...-WX130DA#specs

Stringer · #4 01-27-2020, 08:33 AM

1st Update:

Well, I had planned on completing the rear frame swap this past weekend but, like everything seems to go in my life, I ran into a couple setbacks lol.

It started with the removal of the bedliner and spraying all the bolts with PB Blaster Friday night. When I looked at this truck before buying it, I lifted the bed liner up from the rear and from what I could see at that point looked pretty decent. There was some dirt under it but nothing that gave me concern - that attitude changed pretty quick when I pulled the whole liner out:

The following morning I began the bed removal. I was supposed to have help but at the last minute that person backed out so I was on my own. I quickly learned that only 1 of the 2 bed bolts in the front of the bed was actually holding due to the rust. Thankfully I took the time the night before to heavily soak all the hardware with PB Blaster - this helped tremendously with the bolt removal. Unfortunately I did end up snapping the 2 middle bed bolts while attempting to remove them though. Once I had all of the bed bolts removed, I unbolted the gas filler neck from the bed and replaced the cap to keep it free from any dirt and debris entering the gas tank. I tried to remove the rear bumper but ran into an issue with the last bolt being stripped off. After fighting with it for a while, I decided to leave the bumper attached and attempt to lift the bed above it for removal. After A LOT of time & careful work, I finally had the bed off of the truck. Remember I was on my own for this - I'm a very small guy - 5' - 6" and about 140lbs on a good day lol. It took me about 4 hours of work to get to this point:

With the bed finally off, I could now get a good look at the state my frame was in. It is almost unbelievable that from the tire back the frame is pretty much nonexistent yet from the tire forward the frame is rock solid. At this point I did realize I forgot to check something when taking a look at the condition off my leaf mounts & shack mounts - the shocks and their mounts. At this point I knew I needed to order new ones and that I would not have them in my hands any time soon:

I decided that I would take this opportunity to check over everything with the bed off and take an inventory list of everything I will want to replace while I am doing this job. About this time, my friend who let me use his garage to do this but couldn't be there in the morning showed up. Together we put the bed back on and cranked the 3 bed bolts I had left down as much as possible without blowing the steel out. We then used a ratchet strap to help secure the front of the bed to the good portion of the frame as a temporary fix.

If I am able to get all of the parts in by this coming weekend, I plan on making attempt #2 at this project... and with a friend to lift the bed off. 2 days later and I still feel like I got hit by a Mack truck going 80 MPH lol.

Parts List:
(2) Rear Shocks
(2) Rear Shock Mounts
(1) Brake Line
Bed Bolts

I am starting my search for a bed as well. I will probably attempt a quick fix on my current one and run with it until I find a new one. If anyone has a lead on a solid Oxford White bed in the Pittsburgh, PA/Wheeling, WV/Morgantown, WV area, let me know. I'll consider any color if the price is right and it is solid.

Stringer · #5 01-31-2020, 12:34 PM

2nd Update:

I have placed an order for the following parts:

(2) Front KYB Gas-A-Just Shocks (RockAuto $34.79ea)
(2) Rear KYB Gas-A-Just Shocks (eBay $20.00ea)
(2) Rear Shock Mounts (RockAuto $33.89ea)
Bed Bolt Hardware (RockAuto $34.89)

I've also come up with an idea to try to save my current truck bed a little longer - at least until I can get my hands on a new one... or have one built but that's just an idea I am toying with at the moment. I am thinking of using a 2' X 12' sheet of Corrugated Metal Roofing from Lowe's and cutting it in half for (2) 2' x 6' pieces. Together they would span the length of my bed and fit between the wheel wells with some overlap. I could then drill the holes out where the bed bolts would be and secure the corrugated down to the bed floor - allowing me to use a 6 of the bed bolts to secure the bed instead of just the 4 rear bolts. Since the corrugated would span the entire length of the bed, I would assume it would also provide additional support for the bed floor in the front where the rust has taken a toll. Once secured, I could put the drop in bed liner back in the truck and you wouldn't be able to tell the difference.

The idea sounds good on paper but I know all to well how it goes in reality lol. I just hope it does work out for a temporary fix for the next 6 - 12 months.

Scrambler82 · #6 02-01-2020, 02:19 PM

Hows the frame rebuild project going ?