2020 FX4 Salvage Rebuild

XionUAV

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Hello Ranger family. I recently picked up a 2020 FX4, 35k miles with front driver damage I’ll be repairing. This is a vehicle I plan to keep and use primarily for mild off-roading, mainly desert roads/trails and fire roads.

I’m a 60-year-old “garage” mechanic and have done engine, transmission and clutch replacements, engine and suspension work, minor body work, electrical diagnostics and so forth mainly on Audi and VW, although I do own and work on a ‘95 F250 460. When there are questions about this Ranger, I’m hoping some of you might share answers or offer advice. This will be a several month project.

It appears to have been hit by something from the front of the fender angled forward. The body mount assembly on the frame rail has been sheared off and the body mount is about 4 inches forward. The inner-fender sheet metal forward of the upper control arm is split. Once pieces are repositioned, the split will be reinforced and welded. There was no airbag deployment.

The frame rail doesn’t appear to be bent but once everything is removed, the vehicle will be taken to a frame shop to have it inspected, brought back into spec if necessary and the body mount welded back in place. I have a wire-feed but would prefer a pro to weld the frame pieces.

The radiator support is mangled under the headlight. Structurally I don’t think there would be any harm in leaving it as is but I’ll replace it anyway to ensure all other connecting pieces will line up properly. Plus it’s the professional thing to do.

Next step is visiting salvage yards in the area to see if some of the small parts can be sourced. Taking lots of pictures of a normal Ranger is also on the list. A new intercooler has been ordered and I’ll likely order a prepainted fender and upper bumper facia. There is no engine damage other than the intercooler, which oddly isn’t damaged but was separated from the plastic side pieces still attached to the inlet and outlet. It was lying in the bed with everything else that was swept up from the accident scene.

The hood has a nasty imprint and is slightly tweaked at the corner. Getting another hood would be preferred but this is supposed to be a “budget” repair so I’ll clean up and straighten the damaged area and keep the hood for now. The AC condenser and radiator are slightly bent but don’t appear to be leaking. I’ll replace them both at some point anyway

Moving the vehicle revealed that the brake pedal is hard to push. When sufficient pressure is applied it will drop and activate both the brakes and ABS. There are some shredded wires under the headlight but obviously there is more damage to wiring than is immediately apparent. Once getting into it I’ll reference a wiring diagram and figure out what’s what.

One thing that’s curious is there are parking sensors in the rear bumper but not in the mangled front bumper that was in the bed when the truck arrived. At this point I also have no idea if it has adaptive cruise or not.

I like the look of the OEM bumper but sourcing one would be substantially more work and likely more cost than aftermarket. The Rough Country bumper looks the nicest to me out of the zillions of options out there. I’d remove the center LED bar to allow for a little more airflow.

This is a vehicle that begs for flares and fat tires. But I will refrane . . . for now.

Thank you for taking a look. I’ll post as progress is made.

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TomC

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One thing that’s curious is there are parking sensors in the rear bumper but not in the mangled front bumper that was in the bed when the truck arrived. At this point I also have no idea if it has adaptive cruise or not.
Looks like you have a midlevel XLT trim. If no technology package then no front sensors, and no adaptive cruise control.

If you have adaptive cruise control your steering wheel would look like this:

1678658794604.png
 


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XionUAV

XionUAV

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Looks like minor damage. If the purchase price was attractive this may turn out to be a great truck for your intended use.
Keep us informed of the progress of repairs.
It was less than half of average resale so if I can keep the repair costs reasonable then it should be worth the effort.
 
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XionUAV

XionUAV

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Looks like you have a midlevel XLT trim. If no technology package then no front sensors, and no adaptive cruise control.

If you have adaptive cruise control your steering wheel would look like this:

1678658794604.png
Thank you for that. Based on your pic, I do not have adaptive cruise. One less thing to deal with.
 

TomC

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TXRangerTim

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The damper salesman of the yr will be along shortly. It goes on the tailgate to assist in lowering without the slamming down. There are 2 crowds here, those with dampers and those without.
Team Damperless
 
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XionUAV

XionUAV

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read this thread. Hope it helps. Welcome to the forum, and buy all your parts at once if you are married. Saves time w/excuses.

(1) My Ranger’s Frontal Offset Collision | 2019+ Ford Ranger and Raptor Forum (5th Generation) - Ranger5G.com
Thanks for that link. Yeah lots of reading and research to do.

Fortunately my wife is very used to deliveries and was involved in the decision to purchase so we're good there. She's excited to drive it when it's ready. I have some 285's for it so side steps will be in order. Neither of us is exactly tall.
 
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XionUAV

XionUAV

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The damper salesman of the yr will be along shortly. It goes on the tailgate to assist in lowering without the slamming down. There are 2 crowds here, those with dampers and those without.
Team Damperless
Ha. Gotcha. Yeah no need for that.

Plans for the back-end are Rhino lining and possibly rail cargo anchors. Previous to this Ranger I had a 2002 manual Xterra that was a fantastic off-roader, but it had a range of about 250 miles without carrying extra fuel and the motorcycle hitch carrier was sketchy on rough roads. It was time to upgrade since I want to take my CRF250F on many of the planned trips. I also have a lifted Audi Q5 with Nitto Nomad Grapplers but it's hardly a true off-roader. I'm still waiting for ECS Tuning to release a skid plate for it.

When I first found this Ranger it already had a non-refundable deposit on it, so I moved on. Looked at a 2006 Tacoma but the clutch was weak and I just didn't feel good about it.

Found a 2012 manual Frontier that was really nice with new clutch so I gave the guy a deposit with the plan for my wife to go back with me to pick it up. The day before we were scheduled to go get it, I got an email that the hold had been lifted on the Ranger and it was up for sale again. So I jumped on it and still honored the purchase of the Frontier.

For some bizarre reason the Frontier has 225 size snow tires that are out of balance and the camber looks off on the driver side. It has a mild lift. So 265 tires are on the way with new TPMS sensors and I'll get the suspension sorted then pass it along to the next person. It does have Rhino lining and the side cargo-hook rails that are really nice

I'm a manual guy all the way but at 35k miles I think this Ranger will be a really nice change and last for a long time since I take very good care of my vehicles and don't abuse them. The occasional 80MPH sprints down desert roads aren't really abuse, just fun.
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