i am registered at fordtrucks.com and i think many people have done this. i know you need to get the headers, motor mounts and you have to bang the firewall in some for the motor and tranny to go in. then if you want the heater you have to cut the box in half and patch it back up to that the valve cover will clear. i can post to see how many have done this. you need to also change the 7.5 to an 8.8.
ok i forgot to add but my friends at FTE reminded me about www.therangerstation.com. lots of dudes have done this. the hardest part is getting the tranny in where you want it. are you going carbed or efi. carbed would be a lot cheaper and easier. the efi intake may need a cowl hood too. you also need a bigger radiator, i forgot to add
i built one a few months ago. i converted a 2.3 5 speed 2 wheel drive ranger over to a 5.0 carbed c4 automatic 4x4. therangerstation.com is really helpful, but i did a lot of it my own way. once its in there, it looks like it belongs. you need an oil filter relocator, but it has to be the kind that comes RIGHT OFF the block and makes an immediate 90* turn, then put the filter anywhere you want it. for motor mounts i bought some 1990 4.0 ranger mounts and put them on the opposite sides they were intended for and drilled new holes in the crossmember for them. seems i drilled a hole 3/4 inch lower than the factory hole on the drivers side and 3/4 higher on the pass side. then i made some flat steel adapters that were about 3"x5", drilled holes in it to bolt it to the block and sat it down on the mounts and marked where the mount studs hit the plates and drilled a hole in it there too. that was all there was to the mounts. exhaust is easiest to get some 72 mustang 302 manifolds like i did. fit like they belong there. dont get the 65 style, they dont quite fit. the drivers side has to dump at about a 45* angle downward, and the 65 style has both sides dumping straight out the rear. transmission choices are widely varied depending on 2 wheel drive or 4. if its a 2 wheeler, you can use practically anything if you just make your own crossmember modifications. if its a 4x4, its best to take a c4 and put the tailshaft and its housing from a c5 4x4 ranger or bronco2 onto the c4. thats it. the v8 leaves no room for a fan though. they tell you that you have to modify the core support to tuck the radiator under it, but i didnt want to do away with my a/c so i did it another way. I notched the back side of my grille and put a 12" by 3" electric fan in front of the a/c condenser. no problems overheating, but i am putting a 7" on the engine side next week just to make sure for the summer. the 7" will only fit in the upper pass corner of the radiator on the engine side though. i wired in a duraspark ignition too and the factory 4 cyl fuel injected in tank pump puts out right at 6 psi stock, so i ran it right to the carb with no regulator, ,and have no problems there either. any questions, email me at independence@insightbb.com.
Swapping in a 2.3turbo would be a hell of a lot easier, and cheaper. They make 190-210hp bone stock, and making 250hp is easy as getting a descent exhaust and turning up the boost.
No banging in the fire wall, no different motor mounts, nothing, it is just easy because the ranger came from the factory with an NA 2.3. The hardest part would be relocating the AC compressor IF you even want to keep the AC. :LOL:
thats definately another good option. we had a customers car in the shop a few weeks ago who had done the 2.3 turbo swap. i imagine if you get the motor, computer, exhaust and wiring harness from a turbocoupe t-bird, its a straight swap. I've had several turbocoupes and they were all fun. but, if its a 4x4 he is building, i wouldnt trade my 5.0 4x4 ranger for any turbo 4 cyl 4x4. turbocoupes have the horsepower, but not the torque for offroading. plus, my last turbocoupe, an 88 intercooled car, got 35 mpg going from louisville to indy, no 5.0 is gonna do that!