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Ford ranger engine in an LR3?

42K views 62 replies 15 participants last post by  Shookone 
#1 ·
Hi All, Newbie here.

So here's the scoop.

We bought a 2006 4.0 LR3 about a month ago. Spent money on new tires (Copper discoverer H/T Plus. Very good) and bought a whole set of controls arms front and back (sitting in the garden, waiting to go on)

Then the engine blew! In the middle of absolutely nowhere in BC Canada... at midnight... in the bear infested bit... on a long weekend.

After a $2000 towing bill to get it 14 hours home, it turns out the engine is toast. Limping it 160km to the nearest one horse town means the engine is full of the camchain cassette filings and done for.

Landrover Canada wants $11,500 for a new engine... plus tax... plus shipping FROM THE UK! :)
Ford wants $4400 for a new Ranger 4.0 engine

I can't find a second hand engine in Canada.

I can however, find a very lightly used 2007 Ford ranger 4.0 that is technically the same engine (except lower compression and different timing, the differences I've found so far) for $650. meaning the computer is going to give a big "Nope" if I put it in.
... saving a gazzillion dollars!

So, to the help part. :) I need a Guru. someone that can tell me what the differenced are between a Ford ranger 2007 4.0 V6 and an 2006 LR3 so we can canibalise the different buys into the new engine.

Has anyone ever attempted this? Did anyone find software issues and fixes? If its not possible, where do I find an engine in Canada nd any other useful information anyone has.

*Someone, *somewhere* must have the information of the differences between engine part code 300AABB (or 300AABC) with a ford part number of 6006 or 6007 and a Ranger engine part number 6006AARW

So, over to you guys :)...
 
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#2 ·
Majority of LR3 buyers go for the 4.4 V8 its a known reliable engine that can move the 5K pound LR3 and do over 300K with out issues. The V6 LR3 was a lower end model that Ford pushed for a short period. That said, those V6 engines are known for its issues. It's possible that you can replace it with a used V8 4.4 instead of the 4.0 V6. or sell the current in parts and get a proper V8 LR3.
Dave
 
#3 ·
#5 ·
Just a quick update to say that it finally got sorted out. I had to import a used engine from the US as Land Rover have discontinued the LR3 Engine. Had it checked and the camchain tensioners were already snapped at 90,000km so had them replaced and the engine fitted the the LR3

Total cost $12,000

... for a car we bought 3 weeks before for $10,000

We'll own this car until it dies now.. and I'll never buy another Land Rover as long as I live. ;-)
 
#6 · (Edited)
Thanks for the update.
Maybe I missed something or maybe I didn't
But
When you bought this 11 /12 year old vehicle
- did you have it inspected by a professional who knows Land Rovers?
- did you ensure that all previous maintenance and preventative maintenance had been performed and performed correctly.
- did you buy it expecting a low cost , low maintenance vehicle?

Time will tell whether you love it , sounds like right now not so much

Sounds like the used motor you sourced was likely poorly maintained as well (darn yuppie soccer moms) good for you in having it checked out before the install.
 
#12 ·
Who cares if it's 11/12 years old? The fact the engine blew up on him after ONLY being 11/12 years old just verify's it's a POS. Was he supposed to know what he was getting into. What kind of engine blows at 11/12 years old? It's garbage. My friend had a 69 Mustang. Same engine. Still drove accordingly. Engines have been around for 100+ years. It should be a standard item for all humans to produce - with no problems or defects.

How is Land Rover considered a luxury brand when the cars are this unreliable? I would be furious. He should send the towing bill to LR Canada take the refusal to pay letter he will receive - pay a publisher to spam it all online. Get hundreds of thousands of views and lost sales. That's what LR CA deserves.
 
#8 ·
Sorry to hear about your Issues. Wish I was on this forum sooner to help you trouble shoot your LR3.
-From my research I believe the long block is the same engine in an LR3 as a ford ranger and explorer 4x4. It’s has to be a 4x4 v6 from a ford because it needs a balance shaft installed.
- Engine compression ration in the Land Rover Data shows 9.75:1 + or - .5 for the V6. Some literature even says 9.7:1.
- Ford lists all 4.0 sohc at 9.7:1
- Now as for the power output. Ford lists all the horse powers between 205-210hp on regular 87. Land Rover clams 216 hp on premium. Also the lr3 has dual factory exhaust which I believe is the exact same as the v8 as the catalyst are the same from after market part number cross examination. The lr3 v6 basically also has shorty, dual wall, stainless steel headers from the factory which most likely flow way better than the cast iron manifolds Ford installed on the 4.0. This all can explain the extra 6 hp easily along with a premium fuel tune.

- To explain the extra torque output of the LR3. I must say this is the one thing this engine does well. Basically all Ford 4.0 sohc engines are rated at 240 ft/lbs except those with either a active intake manifold, like the lr3 and 1997-98 explorer, or long runner intake, like the 2002-2009 explorer. With the better intake manifolds the Ford Explorer pumps out 254ft/lbs@ 3500 RPM. The lr3 with its beautifully designed aluminum active intake manifold puts out 269ft/lbs @ 3000 RPM. With one ignition coil per spark plug and premium fuel tune,which can advance the spark sooner, I think this accounts for the better torque output at lower RPM.

- I have repaired my 2008 lr3 a few time. Most parts fitted to the v6 are stamped Ford Mo Co. I have even used the map sensor off a junk yard 2006 Explorer sports track to fix mine. Same part number and all.
- I don’t think Land Rover had the budget to reengineer the 4.0 SOHC from Ford. If they had I’m sure it would be pushing out bigger numbers. The 4.0 is limited by its cylinder head air flow because it’s only 2 V per cylinder, this explains the great torque but how it runs out of breath by 4500 RPM. Land Rover would have to spend a great deal to improve the 4.0 sohc over its explorer roots and since this was to be a lower range engine I think they changed as much out side the long block as they could and strapped it to the sweet ZF 6 speed and called it a day.
- I plan to use a used or rebuilt ford engine when mine goes. I will compare all internal part numbers on the cams, heads and pistons but I’m 95% sure everything will be identical from all the research I have done.


- The timing components I believe are failing on these engines, especially on the LR3, because of long oil change intervals. The chain guides are not the best, especially on the passenger side, but if you keep up on your oil changes and use a great filter these engines will last a long time.
- My oil service reminds me every 12,000 km on my LR3 which I believe leads to the tentioners plugging up and then comes chain rattle on cold starts. Eventually causing timing chain guide failure. I only go 5000km on synthetic with an FL80 motorcraft filter in order to get the best life out of my 4.0 sohc.

I hope This research I have come across can help those with future problems.

-Brahm
 
#11 ·
Where did this guy come from;)

Bam! ... I mean Brahm!
Hey welcome to the forum Brahm
 
#10 ·
Good info Brahmco.
Dave
 
#13 ·
I doesn’t matter if it’s a Toyota or Land Rover if maintenance isn’t done a vehicle will fail. That’s the point I believe is being made. The more gadgets and computers any machine has the more chances for Problems. I have had a few problems with my LR3 but I don’t consider bad engineering. I personally think the LR3 is reasonably reliable considering it’s capabilities.
I have driven from Canada to the Southern California Desert with my Entire family, then 4 wheeled through Joshua Tree national park in 100 F and driven back home to Canada all without one problem. My LR3 has taken my family to places they would never see in a minivan. A little extra maintenance is okay by me.
 
#14 ·
Land Rovers don't seem to require a little extra maintenance. They seem to require full time extra maintenance to the point of obsession where I would never own this car if I needed it as a daily driver AKA dependable normal car.

If you change the oil on a Toyota and Land Rover every 15,000 miles there will be a pronounced effect on the Land Rover vs. the Toyota when there should not be. That is what makes LR junk.

I am saying this because I am suspecting my LR engine is going to blow up soon. At only 120k miles....I've pampered this money pit with bathtubs of Benjamin Franklin's. I should be getting 500k miles out of this thing. Not 120k miles.
 
#15 · (Edited)
Hi all, am new here also and in the same situation as the OP, just picking up my LR3 4.0 (2007) with dead engine this weekend, but am planning on installing a 4x4 Ford 4.0 SOHC as it's replacement. At least as much of the Ford that will play nice with the Land Rover ECU and accessories. The engine had a timing chain incident where at highway speed the rear chain decided to slip or break, consequently causing a catastrophic internal collision of rapidly moving parts. A lot of research on paper indicates that this is optimistic, but I'll find out when I start disassembly on Monday or Tuesday next week...

Edited to add photo, retrieved the dead machine on Saturday May 18...
 

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#17 ·
Unfortunately this can't have a nice happy end eventually some ugly botch cos no other engine will comply with the original management nor a different engine's ECU will be compatible with the other ECUs on the vehicle especially that it's CAN-BUS and all the ECU's are interdependent and set for the original ECU inputs... nothing will work as it was conceived on the dash unless all the enhancements and warnings will be disabled also the diagnostic capabilities will be lost as well. The engine transplant is not the main issue but to set up the electronics a real genius is needed IMO
 
#18 ·
Hi @sierrafery... Happy endings are usually only in the movies, but since I plan on using all the LR3 ancillary bolt ons and sensors, I don't think there will be any insurmountable problems. If there are, then it will be a giant "parts sale" vehicle. However, since I am an electronics "witch doctor" (granddaughter's name for me) I only fear losing the "magic smoke". I will definitely post from time to time on my progress, and will inform all of any problems encountered and solved...
 
#19 ·
It's not about sensors IMO, what i meant was that the Ranger engine has it's own ECM which is different than the LR3's ECM so how will you pair that ECM through CANbus with all the other ECUs on the vehicle as they are all mapped to work only with the original ECM while the Ranger ECM also needs particular inputs to work which are different on the LR3 for example the driver demand (electronic throttle unit)

download this https://docdro.id/EqVtonW then figure out how would you "introduce" a different ECM in that scheme, and even if you manage to wire it in it's inputs will not be compatible with the other units. I wish you good luck and watching this with interest

PS in addition i attach just a ''flavour'' of what kind of circuitry you are dealing with
 

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#20 · (Edited)
Hi back...
I'll be using the Land Rover ECM because these engines are allegedly the exact same engine. I do have a factory Land Rover maintenance manual and a (don't laugh) Haynes manual for the Explorer/Ranger, plus have a few pieces of electronic test equipment to help me with any confusing parts. Essentially, in theory anyway, I'm replacing a Land Rover Cologne V6 with a Ford Ranger Cologne V6 of allegedly the same displacement, cams, crankshaft, pistons, heads, valves and on and on, so allegedly same for same. The only difference (apparently) is that Land Rover wants a barrel of cash for the engine, while Ford is more reasonable, so to find out for real, I'll take a leap here and use a decent used Ranger engine to replace the Land Rover's. If I'm successful, I'll create history and become rich and famous, if I'm wrong, then I'll be the goat and be blamed for the rise of Communism and a million other evil deeds. Seriously, the odds are pretty good that this will be a successful project, in Australia there is a Land Rover diesel engine swap that is pretty common using the same methodology, so it is not like I'm doing something outrageously difficult. There is also someone in Texas(?) who put a Chev LS2 engine into I believe a LR3 but didn't have all the ECU stuff sorted out, not too sure. Anyway, we will all find out what is up with this engine swap, am pretty confident that the basic balance shaft equipped Ford Cologne 4.0L V6 SOHC engines are exactly the same. I seem to use a lot of "allegeds" and "apparents" though... :smile
 
#21 ·
As long as the engine is the same and it will run well with the LR3's ECM you are sorted without probs
 
#22 ·
Hi @sierrafery, am heading out to the shop tomorrow to do some final testing on the Ranger engine prior to moving the whole Land Rover from my house to the shop. Just verifying the location of sensors, compression, rechecking oil pressure with a proper gauge, those little things that can stop a plan from becoming a project.

I'm also wondering if anyone reading along knows offhand if the CKP (crankshaft position sensor) on the Land Rover 4.0L Cologne is a reluctor (2 wire) type or a Hall effect (3 wire) type? The wiring diagram I have shows a 3 wire but when I attempt to look up the part, it looks like a 2 wire type. I'll find out when we tear out the LR3 engine, but it would be nice to be prepared. Only reason I'm wondering is that it would be nice to be able to use the Ranger CKP because it is on the harmonic balancer (front of engine), whereas the LR3 has it on the transmission bell housing (rear of engine). An interface using an inexpensive microprocessor could be used to change the CKP angle to whatever the LR3 ECM wants to see, just wondering, not planning...
 
#23 ·
I gave you a link with the official wiring diagrams for LR3 in post #19 and it's certain for me based on it that it's 2 wire crank sensor
 
#24 ·
It is amazing how a person can confuse a DV6 and a PV6 labelled drawing, thanks for the heads up, you are correct. I see that both the gasoline (Petrol) engines have 2 wire sensors and the diesels are 3 wire, that is good to know, getting ready to head out to the shop (85 miles away) for some final Ranger Cologne engine checks. First have to figure out what happened to my Nest Hello doorbell/camera last night, looks like something shorted out, the 27 VAC at the transformer has dropped to 10.5 VAC at the camera/doorbell, causing the thing to lose wifi and video/audio functions.
 
#25 ·
Fixed Nest (shorted chime coil), engine oil pressure is 55 lbs/sq in. and compression is appx 190 psi in all cylinders, getting ready for the big move, just trying to figure out how to put an oil temperature sensor into the Ranger engine without using the Land Rover oil pan, thinking of some kind of manifold off the oil pressure gauge fitting (engine block 1/4" NPT), same place we are going to use to fill/drain the Moroso pre-oiler...
 
#26 ·
#27 ·
Thanks for the link, we'll be thinking hard on our methodology because want the final product to be as close to OEM as possible, likely that means using the stock LR3 ladder frame part of the oil pan, just have to buy another gasket. We are moving the machine out to the shop this weekend, have played with the replacement engine as much as we can, so am satisfied that it is as good as we are ever going to get for a used engine out of a wreck. Will keep everyone posted!
 
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