So my 2000 Ranger XLT with the 4.0 OHV engine just recently gave up the ghost at 133K miles last week. What happened is I had to have it towed into the current shop I normally go to as the engine would stall after being started. Unfortunately I am in a bit of a spot with this vehicle as it was diagnosed as having cracked heads. They along with another shop I called quoted me 4-6K for a head job or $7,500 for a new motor. Luckily I was able to call around and get it down to just under $2k. Does that sound more reasonable? The problem is the truck itself is only worth about $3,600 value wise. I'm almost not even sure its worth fixing and I might be better off buying a new vehicle. But at the same having an emotional attachment I just cant bring myself to junk it or send to a salvage yard. I'm also thinking it I may get more value out of it if have it fixed for the purpose of potentially selling if I don't keep it myself.

The problem actually started quite some time ago, around 9 years or 85K miles I began mysteriously loosing coolant. I would have to refill the plastic reservoir every 3-4 months. No one shop could really figure out why. Then around 6 years ago @ 98K miles I started fowling spark plugs on an occasional basis. I would probably say every 7,000 miles on average. Also the #3 cylinder seemed to be worse than #4. More recently I was up to having to refill coolant about 1-2 months. Also I would get an occasional P0153 Slow response bank 2 sensor 1 lean error code, I actually had my oxygen sensors replaced not that long ago. That code has now become permanent.

It was just diagnosed as having low compression in both the #3 and #4 cylinder. They also used a Boroscope and could see coolant intrusion into cylinder #3.


Obviously I'm not that mechanically inclined to do the job myself. My limit is electrical stuff. Does it sound like cracked heads? What are some of the pitfalls of having a head job done? is re-machined ok or would be new heads be best? Also do valve cover gaskets usually get replaced in the process as mine also has a minor leak?

 

Yes, the $2,000 quote sounds like a good deal, $2,000-$3,000 would be the range
A set of new heads is about $500-$600 complete
Other parts needed, bolts and gaskets, fluids, ect..........$300-$400
Its an 8-10hour job

The 1990-2000 4.0l OHV engine heads did crack but only if overheated, no, if cracked they are not repairable
If one head cracks its best to replace both because the other one may have started to crack and even a little overheating will cause it to crack

Yes, it would have new intake, valve cover and exhaust gaskets installed
And new oil and coolant
Since you don't do your own mechanic work I would ask about the cost of a new water pump and thermostat installed at the same time
Shouldn't be more than $200, maybe less

Yes, costly repairs on an older vehicle can be a tough call, but its not the value of the vehicle you should be considering
Its the monthly cost over the time YOU think the vehicle will last after the repair
If you think it will last, without any other major issues, 3 more years, 36months, and head repair costs is $2,500, then monthly cost is $69.44/month to have a reliable vehicle to drive
If it lasts 5 years, 60 months, then $41.66/month

Then its how much would a newer vehicle cost per month for reliable transportation over that same 3 or 5 years

 

Man Kind of disappeared for awhile haha. Sorry for the late response. So I actually bit the bullet and bought a new vehicle(2015 Subaru Outback). The truck became last priority lately. Anyways yeah I knew it would be needing some other upcoming repairs thinks like shocks, front brakes, ball joints, etc. Plus the gas millage was killing me. Its a fortune to be constantly be filling it up in CA. It was time to move on.

Whats weird about the whole situation. I owned the vehicle since it was about 5 years old(previous owner was an old guy who took great care of it) with only 50,000 miles on it. I've never had it overheat on me in that I noticeable know of. Even though its not a good measure, I don't recall the dash gauge ever really going between slightly over halfway or 2/3rds at most. I really had to push it hard to get there . I did have to have the thermostat sensor replaced twice though. Believe both times it was stuck open. Who knows.

Now I gotta figure out if I can get more money out of it by fixing and selling it or salving it. My luck I just had expensive brand new quality tires put on it 8 months ago. Doh!

 

So I've been doing some thinking...
What the truck does if I haven't mentioned already, is it suffers from a low idle leading to a stall unless I keep my foot on the gas during and after startup. I'm really suspecting something else is going on, maybe I'm wrong but two bad cylinders doesn't seem like it would cause an outright stall. It's never been a major coolant leak, and doesn't show up in the exhaust or oil.

Ironically my weakening battery failed at the same time which in of itself can cause a cold start idle problem I found out. Then I was also going to replace the spark plugs in both cylinders(although I don't have a torque wrench atm), and maybe give some BlueDevil head sealer a shot before I commit to full on head job. I've also heard the IAC can be problematic.

It just seems a little odd both reputable local auto shops I've it into are a little quick to blame heads, stating cracked heads are widely known issue on the 2000 Ranger.

 

Crack heads were an issue on the 2.9l OHV and its big brother the 4.0l OHV, so not a 2000 Ranger issue
Rangers used the 4.0l OHV from 1990-2000

But engine had to be overheated FIRST, so not a chicken or egg thing, if engine was ever overheated, above 3/4 on the gauge then yes, a head probably cracked
And it gets worse over time, misfires and white exhaust smoke(steam) at startup

If idle doesn't go high on cold start then you replace the ECT sensor first, common failure, and not expensive

If idle still doesn't go high on cold start then probably IAC Valve, can only be replace with Motorcraft or Hitachi brand, if they cost to much then hit wrecking yards, take a picture of yours, Ford used the same IAC valve on many many engines, 4cyl to V8s

 

Yeah there's No smoke or steam out of the exhaust. Actually I'm getting that overwhelming rich smell of unspent fuel out the exhaust from cylinder(s) not properly combusting.

If I understand the diagram correctly cylinder #4 should be at the front of the driver side. I did recently discover one of the shops I've had the vehicle to at some point replaced the plug in this cylinder with an NGK Platinum
while the rest are AutoLite. I've heard the 4.0 engines can be picky on spark plugs. Also a friend of mine suggested the #1 cylinder plug could be bad as its also involved in the idle since its first in the firing order.

 

I think I may be onto something. It's very well likely a stuck IAC Valve. I did the basic diagnostic test of taking the valve off and turning the key on. While it seemed clean enough I couldn't see the vale moving at all.

The truck doesn't need to be running for the valve to open correct? Only in the on position with dash check engine and other lights illuminated? Removing the wires while in the on position did nothing.

 

Yes, it should move a bit with key on, when you unplug and plug back in the 2 wire connector

You can only use Motorcraft or Hitachi brand IAC Valve as replacements, a used Motorcraft IAC Valve from wrecking yard is better than new 3rd party brand

 

Time double check. I picked up some throttle body cleaner to see if that helps any. But its most likely off to a wrecking yard.

I'm probably going to end up replacing the ECT while at it even though it looks a little more involved. From what I have seen the correct 2-wire sensor is kind of wedged up under the edge of the throttle body and intake hose. There's a video tutorial showing the unbolting of that stuff to get to it.

Would any OE brand work as I can one from NapaAuto for about $15 or does it need to be Motorcraft as well?

 

ECT sensor can be any brand, but just FYI, parts are no longer tested before being shipped, so YOU are the quality control department for the brand you buy

The reason Motorcraft or AC Delco(GM) parts are more expensive is because they have to be tested before being shipped, Ford or GM can't afford to be replacing untested parts, bad for the Rep and bad for the budget, lol

But ECT is not all that hard to replace so save the money and get a 3rd party brand, and keep the receipt

For a fuel pump I would always get Motorcraft, just because its a pain to swap out if new one fails

IAC Valve is different, other brands are solenoid/stepper units not straight solenoid units, so Fords computer has a hard time controlling them

 

stuff like this I always do OEM if I can. I had an MPV that needed an IAC and I put in an aftermarket one. It hunted and stumbled. Got a motocraft one and never had a problem until the day I wrecked it. Still ran and drove great after the accident too.

I also had a VW Routan (Chrysler Town and Country with VW badging). Had a stalling issue that we traced to the EGR. Replaced it with an echlin from NAPA (about half the price of the OEM Chrysler) and the thing set codes all the time for EGR Valve performance out of range. Bit the bullet and bought the OEM and that never had a problem.

I will use aftermarket stuff for a lot of things but I have found that for engine and emission control stuff, I will make out better in the long term by getting the OEM part if it is available.

 

I can agree on that as well. Even though not expensive part a very important one.

Well uhh good news and bad news...
First the good news I was able to find a suitable replacement IAC at a salvage yard today, popped it in and truck fired right back up like it used to.
Bad news I now show that telltale death sentence white steam coming out the exhaust.

I guess at least now I know for sure :/

 

Depending on local Humidity there should be white smoke(steam) out the tail pipe on startup/warm up of exhaust system
Loss of coolant and continued white smoke would be a bad sign

 

Yes well on a sunny 75 degree day about with 35% humidity I'm thinking it was pretty bad sign lol.

It sure went from not showing anything visible to having white steam/smoke pouring out the exhaust quickly.
I know this is as I kept checking after having driven it back home from the shop that I had it towed into for not being able to idle on startup . They had found coolant in the #4 cylinder with a borescope at the time and I now suspect they also cleaned the IAC valve which helped bring the truck back to life for a day or two. That is until the valve got stuck again.

Interesting too because it only took leaving the truck sit a couple of weeks.

 

Just to add I'll most likely end up getting the truck fixed. Heavily leaning that way anyways. Hey its only money right

I guess another compression test will be in order first since I got conflicting results previously from two different auto shops.
Plus I kind of wonder about the lower intake gasket. My upper(Plenum) went about 3-4 years ago at which time it was suggested I replace both. Also after more research last night I found out it could leak internally in such a way that coolant finds its way into the cylinder through the port from above. I saw mention of a common failure point in the gasket near the #4 cylinder on OHVs.

will follow up here with whatever it ends up being

 

PUT A COUPLE BOTTLES OF K-SEAL IN THE RADIATOR AND HOPE FOR THE BEST....probably too late...works when caught early...and unlike the other "fixers in a can" ...it does NOT clog your cooling system.
This has worked on other ohv's that had this issue when caught early....not usually a fan of seemingly snake oil products but I've read other ohv's go a couple more years + after adding it.
It gave my heater core another year in Grand Cherokee.....nightmare job to replace ...so......
Just noticed they have a more advanced version... "K-SEAL Ultimate"

 

please don't do this.... adding any type of crap from a bottle to your coolant hoping for it to fix a blown gasket is simply half assing a job that should be done correctly to begin with... You may as well say you have cracked heads. I'm going thru the exact same thing right now with my 2000 Ranger. Both heads were cracked between the valves on cylinders 1,4 and 6. I didn't have any signs of this at all except the power was terribly low. I bought the truck with 215k miles on it and it ran good,didn't smoke or make any noises but it was really REALLY low on power compared to other 4.0 Rangers I have had..I NEVER overheated the truck but the previous owners may have I'll never know.. I went with brand new aftermarket heads from Promaxx I got them from Jeggs for I believe $560 shipped. Aftermarket heads are a thicker casting than OE ford heads and I would never rebuild or use a junk OE ford head that will just crack again..I'm gonna port them before I install them also. You will.need new head bolts I went with new Cat (Caterpillar) replacement head bolts that are NOT torque to yield bolts and can be reused..

This job isn't that hard at all if you have tools there's no way I'd pay someone 2k to do this when I can do it myself.