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I'm back, with a 97 Mountaineer




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@Metal_Marquis

If I may make one recommendation...

Find some different tires. Those wranglers are one of the cheapest tires made for our rigs. They are noisy and easily hydroplane in the rain due to the tread design and have weak side walls which makes the rig feel wobbly/unstable when hard turning. And then there's the classic indent in the sidewall like your rear drivers side has.

I bought a brand new set once when I was strapped for cash. I ended up changing them out with a set of Michelin's that had around 25,000 miles on them and it was a night and day difference.
 






+1 on the Michelin's. Excellent tire. A bit pricey though. One of our trucks came with the Goodyear's. I got rid of them almost immediately.

BTW - Fuzion tires are very noisy too. Inexpensive and generally okay (I had a set on my '00 XLT and I put a set on my '01 ST) but noisy at 30-40 MPH.
 






Oh I'm late to this one, anyhow, you'll hate those Goodyears, I have a set, I gave $40 on the rims, with half tread, holding air, bolt them on and roll, right? Well yeah I'll give them credit, they ride okay, better than China tires, also look semi decent, but when they get worn, they get LOUD, like not sorta loud, not mud tire loud, LOUD, mine are just above the wear bars and they're screaming, I've done both front wheel bearings because it was them (I thought), wrong, I also found that anything stabs holes in them, I ended up replacing one for a ROCK in the SIDE, and another for a screw in the corner of the tread cap, wasn't even a sharp screw, although the tire didn't leak and I noticed it by hearing a nice popping sound on concrete. Best tires I've ever had were Kuhmo, I have one for a spare that was on the front until it was marble slick back when I got my 2000, that was a flat out amazing tire, I'd buy a whole set in a heartbeat.

As for that dent, looks like the classic "I opened it into a tree limb" dent my 01 XLT I sold had, when I bought it the entire back carpet was covered in glass, but the back glass was there, so I asked the woman why, and that was the reply.

Also, since you have the barrel style air filter, it's a long shot being a 97 Mountaineer but you might have GT40 heads, not GT40Ps like most Explorers/Mountaineers with the 5.0.
 






Good to know, thanks.

So when I had the truck on the lift the other day I noticed something about my AWD Mountaineer...

bgk6srY.jpg


mostly that it's RWD
:D

I had the same experience when I bought my son's current '97 Mountaineer after his first one (that was AWD) got totaled, so you aren't alone.
 






I bought my 99 told it was AWD, wasn't, I snagged a AWD trans for $100 to make it work right with my Eddie Bauer V8 swap I'm undertaking. My white 2000 XLT is AWD, came that way, still is, binds up after sitting a day or two though.
 






Thanks for the input everyone. I agree these Wranglers are cheap and have dry rot, but they hold air and have good tread.
I have a box of easy parts to install but its been too cold to.
I'll agree, I lucked out getting one with RWD. I'm sure 2wd will go better than my Town Cars 1wd in the slick stuff :D

I wiped down the interior and it cleaned up nicely, discovered the sunroof leaks onto the headliner, and added 3 bottles of coolant flush to the radiator.

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Check your antifreeze with a tester, that looks like pure water, judging by the amount of literal rust, which won't work out at all in freezing temps.
 






I hope it's not old corrosion, that would permanently hurt the radiators flow. These radiators aren't that expensive fortunately, I'd buy a new one if it doesn't appear to turn out perfectly clean(down inside at the openings).



FYI, I just learned that Ford raised the price of the rack and pinions for these trucks. They were $150 plus core last year, now they are over $400 and have to be special ordered through Motorcraft(special freight charges added). I was going to get one today, so I guess the Rock Auto $240 version(plus core) is the best deal now.
 






Yeah, I'd replace that radiator, because if you flush it you might remove whatever is keeping it from leaking. Changing the radiator in the V8 is a PITA, because it's attached to the A/C condenser and because its almost exactly as wide as the frame rails. It's a real wrestling match. I've changed 3 of them and the easiest one was the first one I did. Having an extra set of hands helps during installation, but not much. Read Joe Dirt's sticky to take the mystery out of the job.
 






I know the heater core is shot, so likely someone just filled it with water.

Today-
New multifunction switch, sway bar end links, and wiper fuse for the Monti.

FeUtpSM.jpg

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Need to figure out the sunroof leak too, cause I can't keep taking a shower when my truck does.
 






There’s a vent that commonly gets clogged allowing it to ‘overfill’
 






Sunroof leak: There are actually 4 drain tubes located at the corners of the sunroof. the front 2 run down the "A" pillars and the rear 2 run down the "B" pillars. They just push on so they can sometimes come off, or they can become clogged. To get at the drains you have to drop the headliner (at least in the front).

Heater core: Replacing the heater core is a big job. I hope you can do this job yourself as it's a lot of labor to remove the dash. It's a long shot, but I've had very good results with coolant leaks using K-Seal. It wont clog anything and is considered a permanent repair. Might be worth a try.

The truck looks really good. Is it actually blue? It still looks black in your pic. I've never seen a Ford/Mercury blue that dark. We have a 2000 Monti Monterrey and a 2001 Explorer Eddie Bauer and I prefer the Monti's exterior trim over the Explorer, mostly because I don't like the Explorer's fender flares.
 






For these Explorer sunroof leaks, a test; carefully cover only the main seam with tape, leaving the seal-to-glass seam uncovered. Then use a water hose and hit the glass perimeter well for a bit. That shouldn't allow any water in, the tape is covering the normal seam of the roof/sunroof.

If it does leak at all, then the seal is un-bonded from the glass, and it will leak constantly until you do something special. Mine did that, it took me a while to track the leak down to the seal. I have RTV covering the edge of the seal/glass all the way around now. I have another sunroof to put in, they are the same through at least the 3rd gen's.

The drains are the usual cause, but the "pan" which catches the water has seams in it near the front, along the sides. Those seams have a sealant in them, which does get old and harder. Mine seeps a little through those, so I also sealed the roof seams completely, until I can take the sunroof out to reseal those.
 






Another area that can leak (with or w/o a sunroof) is the side cargo area windows. They are held on with a bunch of 10 mm bolts. Over time the bolts can loosen and the the seal around the glass leaks. I've had this happen on several Expl's. In my case, all I had to do was to re-tighten the bolts and the leak stopped. Some here have reported having to add sealant. On level ground this leak will appear on the cargo area floor.
 






Actually, that ends up on the interior trim typically, my new 98 had that leak too. I smeared a line of Ultra Black along the top edge, ugly but the truck is currently black too.
 






If your cargo windows leak, and tightening the nuts does not work to resolve the problem, you can remove the nuts and then remove the cargo windows,... then you can remove the old gasket and replace it. New gaskets are available at auto body shops.

Good luck!
 






The seal for the rear quarter glass is a "caulk" material, 3M makes a very good product for that which used to cost about $15 for the caulk sized tube. I've installed three of those windows before.

It's a project to remove the rear interior trim. If you're ready to do it right, go buy the right sealant, pull it apart, go very slow pushing the glass out. Seal it back up, new sealant will likely last longer than the original. But short term, a little RTV works very well. If the look bothers you for a temporary fix, put some tape along the top just a little away from the window rubber edge. Then the RTV will be nice and even, thin etc. I'll R&R my quarter glass just after I get the truck painted.
 






I obtained the "gasket " material from an auto glass shop. As I recall, it was also a 3M product, and extremely durable and high-quality. The material came in varying thickness, and that was important to use the correct size. But it did not squeeze out like caulk, and instead came in rolls ... like butyl tape. Also, like you said, it appeared likely too far outlast the original material.
 



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I obtained the "gasket " material from an auto glass shop. As I recall, it was also a 3M product, and extremely durable and high-quality. The material came in varying thickness, and that was important to use the correct size. But it did not squeeze out like caulk, and instead came in rolls ... like butyl tape. Also, like you said, it appeared likely too far outlast the original material.

This is what I used. Butyl rope. Bought it at my local NAPA.
 






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