THE HEAT WILL NOT TURN OFF IN MY 1989 RANGER XLT. THE SLIDE CONTROL STAYS IN THE MIDDLE.

i had the same problame in my 1989 ranger xlt 4x4 i speed shifted a trans that wasent ment to and my trans got stuck in second and wouldent come out had to take it somewhere to get the forks in the trans replaced turns out i bent the forks and it wouldent come out of second

Check for a Thick Film Integrated (TFI) Module attached to the outside of the distrfibutor with about an 8 wire plug on it. That is Ford's ignition module. My recollection is the two screws attaching it to the distributor are odd-ball 7/32 in. size. If the module is taken off, use special ford di-electric grease on the base before re-attaching. For heat dissipation.

Hello,

To remove the front head light please follow the steps below:

1. Place the Ford Ranger in "Park." Turn the engine off. Turn the headlights off. Remove the key from the ignition. Allow the truck to cool for about 20 minutes.
2. Open the hood of the vehicle. Locate the two retainer pins on the headlight assembly of the light that needs to be replaced. Pry the retainer pins open with your finger. This releases the headlight assembly from the Ranger.
3. Pull the headlight assembly forward. Unplug the electrical connector from the back of the assembly by hand. Rotate the retaining ring counterclockwise and slide it off the plastic bulb base.
4. Pull the burned out bulb straight out of the headlight assembly. Discard the used bulb. Insert a replacement bulb into the headlight assembly and push it straight into the socket until it clicks into place. Slide the retaining ring around the bulb and rotate it clockwise to secure it.
5. Plug the electrical connector into the back of the unit. Slide the headlight assembly back into the Ranger. Push the retaining pins back down to secure the headlight assembly.

Hope this helped. thank You for using FixYa!!!

Don't waste your money on unnecessary sources and unwanted repairs. Get this manual online under $10-15 and get complete guide on whether to repair or not, service it, and how to repair etc
Best Manuals

The "Inline Spout Connector" is used to control the engine timing by dis-connecting the timing control from the timing control unit, and you must remove the inline spout connector before you can change or set the ignition timing, and if the inline spout connector is missing, then the engine timing will not be controlled by the dura-spark control unit, the check engine light should be on, and the engine will perform poorly. Usually it is located out by the distributor or over by the dura spark control unit.

It is normally a small squared looking grey plastic thing that should be in the end of a wire connector, and that is the only thing that will on the end of that wire connector, and it is basically just a jumper plug. Here is a similar image of what you should be looking for.

Your truck has a A4LD transmission. The older ones had major problems. What i believe is happening with yours is the converter is locking up intermittently. 1st-4th are actual gears for 5th(overdrive) the converter locks. I had the same problem as well as did alot of people I spoke with. I solved it by getting a used A4LD out of a '92 ranger with a 3.0L motor (these transmissions had some upgrades to deal with a number of problems including the one you are talking about.) You will need to swap bell-housings (this requires the pump to be shimmed properly,I paid a shop $100 to install the pump ,with is attached to the back of the bell-housing) There are only 2 kinds of A4LD one for floor shift and 1 for column shift,make sure you get the right one.Good luck.

There is a transmission ID tag located on the trans with the type engraved on it.

sounds like a bad thermostat

Study up on what an Idle Air Control Valve does then make your decision. They can be expensive.
Search fault symptoms

I believe it should be in the passenger side kick panel or somewhere around there