Looking to buy 3L for 2000 Ford Ranger

[sfishman59]

Hey y'all, looking to buy an engine for a 2000 Ranger, the part number I got from the dealership with the VIN is:

YL5Z6006BRM

I'm helping a friend out with this one, not my truck--not sure if other part numbers for 3.0 Ford Rangers will work too? Just looking to get her the best engine I can that'll work.

Know I probly just need to go to a junkyard but thought I'd ask around.
Cheers,
Sam

 

[Blmpkn]

Hey y'all, looking to buy an engine for a 2000 Ranger, the part number I got from the dealership with the VIN is:

YL5Z6006BRM

I'm helping a friend out with this one, not my truck--not sure if other part numbers for 3.0 Ford Rangers will work too? Just looking to get her the best engine I can that'll work.

Know I probly just need to go to a junkyard but thought I'd ask around.
Cheers,
Sam

I'm not sure what other year motors would be a direct swap.. but there are more options than personally heading to a junkyard.

Car-part.com, ebay, any number of remanufacuring places.. finding one to fit her budget shouldn't be hard.

Speaking of budget... what is it? A top-to-bottom remanufactured 3.0 looks to be anywhere from 1300-2000$ on the interwebs. Not a small chunk of change.. but considering it's level of importance.. more than reasonable IMO.

 

[sfishman59]

Makes sense thanks Blmpkn, I'm waiting to hear a number from her but I let her know it'll be in the 1-2k range most likely.

What Im confused by is the engines on Ebay I see for a 2000 ranger say they fit Rangers with a U in the 8th digit of the VIN:

Engine 3.0L VIN U 8th Digit Gasoline 6-183 Fits 99-00 RANGER 609334 | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Engine 3.0L VIN U 8th Digit Gasoline 6-183 Fits 99-00 RANGER 609334 at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

Engine 3.0L VIN U 8th Digit Gasoline 6-183 Fits 99-00 RANGER 24277 | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Engine 3.0L VIN U 8th Digit Gasoline 6-183 Fits 99-00 RANGER 24277 at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

But my friend's car has a V in the 8th digit and is also a 2000 3.0L Ford Ranger.

I havent seen one with the part number I sent above, but I have found ones that say 2000 Ford Ranger 3.0 L

 

[sfishman59]

It looks like U vs V is gasoline (U) vs. Flex fuel (V). Could I buy a gasoline engine instead and put it in with no modifications required?

 

[Blmpkn]

It looks like U vs V is gasoline (U) vs. Flex fuel (V). Could I buy a gasoline engine instead and put it in with no modifications required?

.. I'll give you an extremely confident 'mabey' to that one lol. I'm not entirely sure..


@Ron D probably knows. Now that I've beckoned him.. perhaps he'll share some of his infinite wisdom.

 

[pjtoledo]

fuel injectors for sure, they are sized larger on the flex fuel engines.
the USA is a big place, can you narrow down your location a bit?
who will be doing the install?

 

[sfishman59]

She's in New Hampshire and her mechanic would be doing the install

 

[RonD]

Yes, you can use a 3.0l "U" or 3.0l "V" engine as replacement, 1992 thru 2008 Ranger or Mazda B3000


You will need to swap over the upper and lower intakes from old engine to replacement engine
That's to match fuel system and sensor wiring

1998-2003 3.0l Rangers could be gas only(U) or Flex Fuel(V)
Different computers and 1998-2000 Flex Fuel had larger injectors
1998-2000 Flex also have a $650 Fuel Type sensor by the fuel filter, most replace this with a fuel type emulator if this sensor fails and run gas only after that, lol

The base 3.0l engine itself was the same over the years, Flex fuel had a slightly different head cavity shape, but it turns out it didn't matter, so you can used either
1999/2000 will be closest match but not required at all

 

[pjtoledo]

since she has a 24 year old truck in a rust prone location it would be highly recommended to crawl under and do a thorough rust inspection.
use a hammer and bang on the frame everywhere.
wear goggles

what's wrong with the existing engine?

 

[RonD]

She's in New Hampshire and her mechanic would be doing the install

If she has a mechanic then he should probably get the engine as he will need to warranty the work, so there is no "finger pointing" if there is a problem

You can give her prices on what you find, engine-wise
Shop time to R&R(remove and replace) an engine runs 6 to 8 hours
Shops can charge up to $150/hour
There would also be a few hours to swap over parts, new or used engine, allow for 3 hours
Coolant, oil and filter, $150
AC recharge, $75
In my opinion "shop materials" should be included in hourly rate, but some places charge extra, BS in my opinion, $20-$50
Also recycling fees for oil, coolant, AC "freon"

 

[sfishman59]

Yes, you can use a 3.0l "U" or 3.0l "V" engine as replacement, 1992 thru 2008 Ranger or Mazda B3000


You will need to swap over the upper and lower intakes from old engine to replacement engine
That's to match fuel system and sensor wiring

1998-2003 3.0l Rangers could be gas only(U) or Flex Fuel(V)
Different computers and 1998-2000 Flex Fuel had larger injectors
1998-2000 Flex also have a $650 Fuel Type sensor by the fuel filter, most replace this with a fuel type emulator if this sensor fails and run gas only after that, lol

The base 3.0l engine itself was the same over the years, Flex fuel had a slightly different head cavity shape, but it turns out it didn't matter, so you can used either
1999/2000 will be closest match but not required at all

Wow thanks Ron this is really helpful.

Basically what she's looking for is the most reliable engine with the least cost, you know? So if we save 1k on the engine but need to pay the mechanic 1.5k in labor getting a different type of engine to fit in the bay w/ whatever fab work done then it'd be better to go with the most plug and play option possible.

From what I understand the mechanic says it’s a compression issue with the valves, and not the manifold, so he said best bet is to put in a new motor as it will save her on labor for taking apart her motor. He replaced the gaskets previously but it didn't fix the issue.

So basically I'm just trying to find the simplest, most reliable solution here that's most cost effective for my friend. I know a little about cars but nothing about Rangers so all this is new to me.

Given everything I've said, do you think replacing the engine with another 3.0 L Flex Fuel between 98 and 03 is the way to go? Open to other options just trying to keep this as simple as possible since she's paying for labor.

Really appreciate y'all, grateful for the insights.

 

[RonD]

3.0l with burnt exhaust valves is not uncommon, this causes misfires in cylinders with a burnt valve, and lower compression in that cylinder

But you just replace the heads or have local machine shop do a "Valve Job" on the old heads
Replacing the engine seems excessive if the engine/vehicle has less that 300k miles
But mechanic is there I am not, so best to follow his/her advice

 

[stmitch]

The only meaningful hardware difference between a gasoline 3.0 (Vin 'U') and a flex fuel 3.0 (Vin 'V') are the fuel injectors. As long as you use the FFV injectors that are in the truck now, you can use any Vulcan 3.0 from the appropriate year range.

The fastest and easiest swap would be another 98-00 3.0 Flex Fuel (Vin 'V'). If you're willing to swap the fuel injectors, or you aren't buying a complete engine, than I'd search for a more common gas 3.0 and just use the injectors that are in the truck now.

You can also consider using the more common Taurus 3.0 (Vulcan only, no DOHC Duratec). They tend to be more common than the Ranger engines, and thus cheaper up front. But you have to swap more parts because they're setup to run transverse in the Taurus instead of longitudinal in the Ranger. This includes intake and exhaust manifold changes, front cover, and potentially oilpan.

It might also be worth pricing out just replacing the cylinder heads with freshly rebuilt parts. I'm seeing rebuilt heads from the local parts stores for around $250 per side (plus core charge). You'd need to buy new gaskets and head bolts, so it may be a wash with labor. Still worth pricing out I'd think.

 

[RonD]

Just to clarify a bit
1998-2000 3.0l Flex fuel used different computer, larger injectors and a Fuel Sensor
2001-2003 3.0l Flex fuel use different computer, but same injectors as gas only and no fuel sensor
1991-2000 gas only used 14lbs/hr injectors
1998-2000 Flex fuel used 24lbs/hr injectors
2001-2008 3.0l all use 21lbs/hr injectors

The 2001-2003 Flex computer allowed for a wider open time for injectors without setting a lean or rich code when running E85 or Gas Only

Swapping upper and lower intakes also swaps injectors and sensors, and also matters for fuel system type(return/returnless) and EGR or no EGR match up

 

[sfishman59]

Thanks so much guys this is more info than I ever expected