Many questions and willing to listen

[Michael Mullin]

Hi I was on here about a month ago. I have a 1997 Ford Ranger (now I know its a 2WD Regular Cab 6 Ft Box XL Rear Wheel Drive). Slowly but surely this truck has been showing more and more signs that it hasn’t been taken care of. I have this rattle (which I think it’s coming from a bad motor mount or both are bad), I have an A/C system that leaks and I can’t find where the leak is ( I’ve done the dye and haven’t found the leak I think its the compressor because every time I turn the air on the truck runs super hard) some guy on here tried to help and recomended I look at the sensors and I replaced all that I could find and look up and still didn’t fix the problem. The transmission leaks ( I think it’s coming from the seal where the pan is but I’m not sure). All the fluids need to be replaced because they are all black. Now my question is where should I begin with all the issues that I have mentioned?

also side note/ question
The truck is 21 years old, the plastic piece where the windshield wiper hoses connect to broke. The plastic piece broke off inside the hose. Do you guys have any way of removing the plastic piece so I can install the new piece so I can use the water function on the windshield wipers?

Topic

[Richard Kirshy]

With a vehicle that old, I would suggest you start and detailed inspection of the body, frame and interior, then do a compression and leak down test to see if your time and efforts are even worth it.
If the vehicle is pristine, then you have a solid platform to work off of.
If there are issues with the body, frame… they will only get worse if not addressed.
If it were me and the vehicle was mint.
I would first address the faulty mount(s)
After that, I would look at a spill and fill on the transmission including a new filter and pan gasket.
The issue with the fluids needing replacing is a “do as you find the time” but don’t wait too long.
What I have listed so far shouldn’t take more than a weekend to do providing you have the parts, supplies and tooling.

As to the AC issue.
Unless you have experience servicing automotive AC, it might be wise to invest in having it professional trouble shot.
Then determine if it is worth repairing.

[Kevin Criswell]

if the hose is long enough, trim past the broken part and reattach. If not you can try crushing the old one so the pieces fall out

[Michael Mullin]

Nightflyr thank you so much for your input. some notes…
I have inspected the body and there only seems to be a bit of rust in the door jams where the first seal is. I have bought the sandpaper and the paint to remove the rust and touch up the metal to prevent rust.
When my grandfather had it he did use it as a truck and there are minor issues with the paint that I intend on doing a tempory fix until I can afford to have the entire truck stripped and all the imperfections fixed and painted.
As to the AC, I live in Miami and it’s absolutely necessary to have AC. I wonder if it’s cheaper to replace all the parts myself or to have a technician look at it and replace the parts that are bad. Keep in mind this truck is 22y/o and the rest of the AC is bound to need servicing. I have watched extensive videos on how to replace all the parts to the AC and I feel that I could replace all the components.

[Michael Mullin]

should I flush the line to make sure the pieces are all out before installing the new piece?

[Richard Kirshy]

Nightflyr thank you so much for your input. some notes…
I have inspected the body and there only seems to be a bit of rust in the door jams where the first seal is. I have bought the sandpaper and the paint to remove the rust and touch up the metal to prevent rust.
Surface rust is easily repaired, you should be looking for rotting of the main chassis and components.

When my grandfather had it he did use it as a truck and there are minor issues with the paint that I intend on doing a tempory fix until I can afford to have the entire truck stripped and all the imperfections fixed and painted.
Those are cosmetic, concern yourself with structural issues if any.

As to the AC, I live in Miami and it’s absolutely necessary to have AC. I wonder if it’s cheaper to replace all the parts myself or to have a technician look at it and replace the parts that are bad. Keep in mind this truck is 22y/o and the rest of the AC is bound to need servicing. I have watched extensive videos on how to replace all the parts to the AC and I feel that I could replace all the components.
Most of the AC hardware is fairly easy to replace from under the hood.
The evaporator will require some more extensive work to remove it from behind the dash.
You are correct in saying this truck is 22y/o and the rest of the AC is bound to need servicing.
Your riding the edge of a razor here.
The issue is if you go ahead and replace all the components, the only way to know if everything was done correctly and the replacement parts are functional is to have the system evacuated and charged.
If all is good then great, but if something is defective, or installed incorrectly you’ll have to repair that issue and pay the costs of the evacuation and charging again.
If you go the route of having it done over by a professional, you may pay more, but if there are any issues it falls to the shop that performed the repair.
Just pick a quality shop.
The choice is your to make.

[Author]

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