1988 Ranger 351 TT

[Jimmie]

Well I have been away for a while. I have owned my Ranger since about 1996. As it sits now it is a 351W/C6 SWB EFI 9 inch and twin turbo. I have lots of the work done just need to finish it off. I was making great progress until I got a call to go to work the other day. So things have slowed down a little. I plan to drive it this summer. In the mean time, since I was last on the board I have moved from Alberta, Canada to New Brunswick, Canada. That took up most of last year. So I plan to get the little Ranger on the road and use it hard! Should be fun.

JimmieA.

[MalcolmV8]

Sounds like a beast. Any under hood pics?

[Jimmie]

Here are three pictures. Motor is dusty. The rear end is 9 inch and under sprung now. It has a locker in it and 3.0:1 gears. That is a fuel cell in the back.[attachment=0]100_0373 (Medium).jpg[attachment=2]100_0371 (Medium).jpg[/attachment][attachment=1]100_0372 (Medium).jpg[/attachment]

Hope this works.

JimmieA.

[fordmike]

Nice project. I bet that thing is going to be ALOT of FUN.

[Teddyzee]

Very cool!

[MalcolmV8]

Wow fuel injected too. I noticed the intake points to the driver's side instead of passengers like on most Mustangs etc. Is that F150 intake? Awesome project.

[Jimmie]

I tried a F150 intake, too high hood would not close. This is a Mustang Edelbrock Performer II intake EFI. Also bigger trottle body as well. Programable EFI called SDS EFI. Worked on the truck for about 8 hours today. Those log headers are going to give me more gray hairs!

JimmieA.

[Dave]

Headers for a 351 in any Ranger are always a problem, that's why a lot go with a 331 or 347. Adam McL********** is running a 351 out in CA but really can't remember what headers he's running. Watching the Green Bay game right now so maybe in the morning I'll take a look.
Dave

[cgrey8]

Adam's running the cast iron manifolds that came on the engine. Since there are no CARB approved headers for a 351 that will fit in a Ranger, he's forced to use the cast irons. He's got AFR185s on that thing and has to bottleneck the works with cast iron manifolds. It's sad really. Just another reason IMO, it just makes sense to go with a stroked 302 if you are trying to get near-351 displacements and performance. Now if you are aiming for larger than 351 displacement, such as a 408w stroker, then of course you are stuck running a 351w block. But IMO in a Ranger, 351w is simply not necessary. From a 302 block, you can get anything from a budget stock engine with decent power, a 300hp modified engine that will still work well as a daily driver (what I'm doing for my 331 build), or build for big boost and get into the 600HP range which is far more than the average Ranger, even with tire and suspension mods, can plant to the ground at 70 MPH. And anything you build from a 302 is going to be lighter than a 351w.

For all these reasons it seems the only reason people start Ranger projects with a 351w is purely because it's an engine they had laying around and available for a project. So that's what they move forward with. And that's not a bad reason as long as they realize the added difficulties that a 351w will introduce that a 302 block buys you out of. The one thing putting a 351w into a Ranger does give is an even greater uniqueness. Because they are more difficult to do right, you get more recognition for your efforts from those that know how much more difficult the 351w is to deal with in a Ranger. Although one of the things I've come to learn over the years is the average person doesn't know that Rangers didn't come with a V8 option from the factory. So even some performance enthusiasts that I talk to about my truck are somewhat unimpressed just because they don't know what a project an EFI 302 in a Ranger is. I've had a few people ask me If you wanted a V8, why didn't you just buy a Mustang? It'd have been a lot easier. They just don't understand. The whole purpose of a project like this is not just to have a V8 Ranger. It's to have it as well as have the satisfaction that you did it.

[Teddyzee]

So even some performance enthusiasts that I talk to about my truck are somewhat unimpressed just because they don't know what a project an EFI 302 in a Ranger is. I've had a few people ask me If you wanted a V8, why didn't you just buy a Mustang? It'd have been a lot easier. They just don't understand. The whole purpose of a project like this is not just to have a V8 Ranger. It's to have it as well as have the satisfaction that you did it.

That's why many of us have a Mustang, also!

[Jimmie]

I have a 1993 Mustang LX Notch Back sitting in my garage. It isn't a beauty but is the last year of the Fox Mustang. My plan was to restore it and dump the 351WTT into it. That may happen sometime. The car is an Alberta, dry western car, and origional paint. It must have been a father son project car. Sonny boy wanted a honking big sterio player. Fryed the battery and it showed up for sale. It sits in my heated garage looking for a mission.

JimmieA.