Drewstang's 3rd row swap thread

[Drewstang]

We've had our truck for a little over 4 years and lately we wished we had bought one with the 3rd row option. I searched around for a while and found a somewhat local salvage yard with decent inventory. I read a thread from a while back in the Stock 2002-05 section about how to do the swap and started researching everything involved. Here's my progress and pics:

Step 1, pull everything out of the back of the truck including the cargo covers, plastic tray, jack mount, plastic trim, and carpet below the cargo area.


If your truck is anything like mine, it will be dirty under the covers so get a vac ready.



You'll need to pull the back seats next. Most of the bolts and nuts were 15mm with a few T-50 torx and 17mm bolts mixed in. Pull the carpet back and grab some reverse torx bits because some of the studs need to be moved from one hole to another. All the studs need to be at the forward most holes so the 2nd row can be mounted.





Next post.......

[Drewstang]

All of the unused holes in the floor are covered with squares of dynamat like material. They peel up easy and can be reused or you can get aluminum tape from the hardware store and cover them. You also need to install 2 studs in the cargo area for the 3rd row to mount to.

After flipping the carpet back and forth a few times, I got all the holes figured out and I trimmed the carpet as well.



Now the second row is mounted and complete. End of day 1.



Day 2. I figured out which holes will be needed in the cargo area buy setting the seat in and marking the holes with a marker. I pulled the seat back out, and opened the needed holes, and covered the un-needed ones. I mounted the seat back up, then began to pull the passenger side quarter trim. This is the only large panel that needs to be changed to clear the 3rd row seatbelt retractors.





Next post.....

[Sams01XplrSprt]

looks good so far keep up good work

[Drewstang]

All the holes for the 3rd row seat belt retractors are already in the body and just need the threads cut by the bolts as you tighten them. The passenger side quarter trim needs to come out to be swapped, so take this chance to mount the seat belt retractor and loop above it.





Onto the driver's side. This panel is harder to remove with the seat back already in place, so I'd probably do this side before mounting the seat. My trusty T-50 Torx bit that has been with me for 15 years finally lost the battle on the seatbelt bolt for the second row. The bolt needs to come out, and allow the panel to come completely out.



Here's the seatbelt retractor I had to mount.



After you mount the seatbelts and button everthing back up, you can go ahead and drop the bottom of the 3rd row into place. The seat bottom is secured to the floor with a couple of latches that just pop into the floor. Remove the grommets, drop in the latches and you're good to go.

I gave everything a good cleaning and shampooing because the seat backs got grease and rust on them.



The last thing to mount is the metal bracket that the cargo cover latches onto, and you're done.

My next thread will be about how to swap out the class 2 hitch for the class 3 with the towing package plug.

[02explorereddieb]

nice write up.good job.

[Drewstang]

Thanks. My wife has been really excited about having the third row now. I will be happy to pull something larger than a garden trailer after I install a locking diff and this hitch.

[Drewstang]

With the third row done, and me with a ton more time on my hands after being laid off, on to the next project.

I've never towed anything with this truck because of the weak Class 2 hitch that uses the 1.25" receiver. I've had friends that need something moved or a car pulled for a short distance and I couldn't do it. I got a very good deal on a Class 3 at a local salvage yard and decided to swap them out while I had the bumper off for paint.

[Drewstang]

I'm in the process of painting the lower plastic trim with Krylon Fusion Flat Black. I like the look that it gives the truck. It makes the truck look newer and cleaner in my opinion, instead of having the faded grey trim.

[alexk]

damn I wish I was that good with cars. nice job

[Drewstang]

Thanks. I'm used to building Mustangs so these trucks are fairly easy to work on. I've still got a long way to go, including a 4.6 DOHC swap later this year and a RB 2" lift.

[Drewstang]

Been busy this week so I didn't get as much done as I wanted. I did paint the driver's side fender, and cut in the passenger side fender to replace the corroded one. The color is very close, but just a little dark. I think I might not have got enough base on the fender, so I'll wait to see how the passenger side turns out before deciding on blending the hood, bumper, and doors.

I'm going to the salvage yard today to grab some 06+ taillights, an Avaitor engine harness, a headlight switch with fog light switch, and the mounting hardware for the running boards.

Here's some pics:

[Limited02]

Looks like someone's been busy Why didn't you paint the entire bumper one color like a Limited? If I could I would go nuts and repaint the entire explorer. All the little scratches and tiny paint chips annoy me. And being black, they really stand out when you clean it You are doing a good job. Keep it up.

[Drewstang]

Originally Posted by Limited02

Looks like someone's been busy Why didn't you paint the entire bumper one color like a Limited? If I could I would go nuts and repaint the entire explorer. All the little scratches and tiny paint chips annoy me. And being black, they really stand out when you clean it You are doing a good job. Keep it up.

I like the blacked out trim of the XLT and it would take forever to sand the trim smooth enough for body color paint. I've got some scratches on the hood and some scuffs on the bumper, so I'm probably going to blend everything together.

I'm also going to fix the C pillars. I rushed them, and I haven't been happy with the results. I'm going to sand them down and redo the lines, then clear with regular clear coat instead of spray bombs.

[Drewstang]

So this project got sidetracked a little. Turns out what I thought were my struts going bad was in reality my ball joints saying they've had enough. The rears are bad and the fronts are not much better.

Ford does not sell just the ball joint for the rear, but the whole control arm must be purchased. But, the control arm is on backorder until next month. So I went to a local salvage yard and found 30K mile CA's for $50 each, but they tore up the passenger side ball joint getting the CA out. They're going to pull another one in the morning, and hopefully more careful this time. This week has been hell and this whole thing is FML worthy.

[Curtis]

Originally Posted by Drewstang

So this project got sidetracked a little. Turns out what I thought were my struts going bad was in reality my ball joints saying they've had enough. The rears are bad and the fronts are not much better.

Ford does not sell just the ball joint for the rear, but the whole control arm must be purchased. But, the control arm is on backorder until next month. So I went to a local salvage yard and found 30K mile CA's for $50 each, but they tore up the passenger side ball joint getting the CA out. They're going to pull another one in the morning, and hopefully more careful this time. This week has been hell and this whole thing is FML worthy.

Running into the same problem...
It turns out that Ford was using the same supplier that made some GM and Chrysler parts. They are shifting to a new supplier now in the event that the supplier might not make it. So my Dads explorer is still sitting on old rear upper ball joints. I too plan to get used ones.

[Av8tor]

Have any tips for removing the passenger side rear panels? I want to pull out the factory amp and sub, and mount a new amp in there but havent had a chance to see how hard it will be to pull it all out.

[Drewstang]

Originally Posted by Av8tor

Have any tips for removing the passenger side rear panels? I want to pull out the factory amp and sub, and mount a new amp in there but havent had a chance to see how hard it will be to pull it all out.

Take the top panels off first, then the second row seat belt bolt. The whole panel just pulls out.

Curtis, I just found out that O'Reilly Auto Parts has an aftermarket upper rear control arm which lists for $180. I'm ordering both sides today.

[Curtis]

Originally Posted by Drewstang

Curtis, I just found out that O'Reilly Auto Parts has an aftermarket upper rear control arm which lists for $180. I'm ordering both sides today.

You are the man!
I ordered yesterday - got shipping confirmation email today with tracking number.

But I think I got the last 2 as the site how says "out of stock"

http://www.oreillyauto.com/EW3/Displ...ycleCount=1313

[Drewstang]

Cool, glad I could help out. Mine should be here in the morning, and a day long Exploder suspension fest will begin. My RB lift will go in, along with new upper and lower ball joints in the front, and new struts all the way around.

[Drewstang]

I made some progress this weekend. I hope to get the passenger fender completed tomorrow if the weather holds out. I finished the trim with Fusion satin black and while I was at it, I debadged the truck completely. I tried a new wheel cleaner, but didn't get any good pics of the results. Today, I tackled the right rear control arm and ball joint issue and battled with a seized bolt for an hour and a half. Here's a few pics.