I’m thing of purchasing a 1996 Mazda b3000 for 750 bucks. It’s a manual they said the engine does make a noise they said it could be a valve. But I think it could be rod nock because old fords have a tendency of doing that. Other than that it runs fine. Do you think this is a worth the purchase?
Drive it and listen to it. The 3.0 was a good engine and the 5 speeds were solid. Drive it and check the oil. May even be other noises.
Old timer trick... Use a ball bat or a 2x4 and put it on the engine running. Listen to the end of the wood. you can find the noise in the engine by listening to the end of that wood. You can hear the bottom end and each of the heads.
I believe those had gear driven timing. No Chain. Listen to the timing cover also if you can.
If the bottom end is quiet you are safe. Other things making noise are easier to fix.
Price sounds good, but that 3.0L can be nothing but problems. The 4.0L had the best reliability ratings, even the 2.3L worked better.
Unless everything else is in showroom condition, I'd walk away.
It has the old-style twin I-beam suspension and 14" tires/wheels, making getting parts and replacements sometimes difficult. There are other recurring issues with those Rangers/Mazdas, but nothing that can't be fixed.
If you have lots of free time, are an experienced mechanic, and have a bunch of money laying around, one of these old beasts can be partially restored for $3,000 - $5,000, but when you're done, it's still only worth a few hundred.
BTW: If you want one of those old rangers, get one 98 or newer.
