Lastly, since you live in PA, where the roads are salted heavily, have the vehicle treated with a rust preventative like Fluid Film or something similar every other fall of the year. If you don't rust will eventually eat it alive. Doing this will keep it on the road for a very long time and prevent doing things like brake line replacements etc. from excessive rusting.
I would reiterate this point as it may have more impact on how long your truck lasts than the mechanical issues. Rust cares about time, moisture, and salt, not about miles. Like the earlier generations of explorers, the rocker panels, lower door frames, and door panels of the G3 tend to rot out. My guess is that it is important to make sure that the door seals stay in good shape and to make sure that water isn't being retained anywhere near the bottom of the door. There is likely some vulnerability from underneath as well. I would be interested to know if anyone has takes steps to guard against rust in this area and found them to be successful. At any rate, I would be very aggressive in going after any rust spots that appear.
Carefully check the steel brake lines for any sign of rust. The brake lines should be a product called poly-armor which is a plain steel that has been coated with poly-vinyl fluorine to protect against rust. If you can see rust anywhere on one of the lines, it means that the coating has been damaged (probably by road debris) and the exposed steel has started to rust. I would replace any sections of line where this is seen. I would also check the metal sections of the power steering pressure hoses and the metal sections of the brake flex lines. Look for signs of leaking and any obvious damage. You can also
gently squeeze the metal part of the lines with a pair of pliers. There should be no collapse or crunching sounds when you squeeze.
I like to get the bottom sprayed off, and then I’ll wire brush/wire wheel off anything loose. Then I use a rust conversion spray on anything metal underneath. This will turn the rust into black oxide, which works well as a primer. After this top coat it with whatever flavor undercoating you like. I like Por15 and fluid film. Different ends of the spectrum on type of rustproofing, but both are great products.
I would plan on painting the entire frame and the lower control arms. As suggested, POR-15 is a great product for this. I also use POR-15 on any metal bracket, etc, that I take off of the truck. They all get painted before they go back on. I have never used the rust conversion compound. If you do use such a compound, do you still etch the surface with metal prep or is this no longer necessary? The frame can be painted in sections, there is no need to tackle the entire thing at once. I would apply something to the entire bottom of the bottom as well. There are allot of options for this including the suggested fluid film, rubberized paint sprays, etc. I would also appreciated knowing what users here have tried and found to work well.
I would remove the brake dust shields from the front wheel knuckles and grind off the "paint" with a poly disk. Then I would etch them with POR-15 metal prep and apply 2 coats of rust inhibitor and 2 coats of caliper paint. These dust shields rust out quickly and they don't make then anymore. Let me know if you are going to do this as there is a trick to removing the front shields without damaging the push pins they are installed with. You could do the same with the rear dust shields but you can still buy them from either Ford or Dorman so it's not as urgent an issue.
I’d also plan several hundred for repairs. Even in pristine condition it’s still still 20years old. Struts and shocks, sway bar bushings, brake fluid flush, power steering fluid change, differentials, transfer case. All are going to need service. These vehicles can go long service, but doing all of the above is god insurance that’ll happen.
If you bought this from a dealer, they will probably have installed new brake pads and rotors. I have found in the past that these look nice and new but are often the cheapest possible parts that will fit. Brakes are important on these trucks as they are relatively large and heavy and have rotors and calipers that are more car-like than truck-like (meaning they are on the small-ish side for a vehicle of this weight). Unless you can confirm that quality parts have been installed I would plan on installing new pads and rotors.
Here are some brake parts that have been widely recommended here,
Coated Rotors:
2x
RAYBESTOS 680026FZN Element3 Coated Rear Brake Rotor ($28.79)
2x
RAYBESTOS 680014FZN Element3 Coated Front Brake Rotor ($34.99)
2x
WAGNER BD125759E Black E-Coat Rear Brake Rotor ($41.79)
2x
WAGNER BD125758E Black E-Coat Front Brake Rotor ($54.79)
2x
RAYBESTOS 680026 Specialty Truck High Carbon Coated Rear Brake Rotor ($46.79)
2x
RAYBESTOS 680014 Specialty Truck High Carbon Coated Rear Brake Rotor ($61.79)
2x
BREMBO 08897411 Premium UV Coated Rear Brake Rotor ($58.79)
2x
BREMBO 09897211 Premium UV Coated Rear Brake Rotor ($77.79)
Hybrid Pads:
RAYBESTOS EHT881H Element3 Hybrid Rear Brake Pads ($29.99)
RAYBESTOS EHT833H Element3 Hybrid Front Brake Pads ($33.79)
Semi-Metallic Pads:
BENDIX MKD881FM Fleet Metlok Semi-Metallic Rear Brake Pads ($19.27)
BENDIX MKD833FM Fleet Metlok Semi-Metallic Front Brake Pads ($25.99)
WAGNER SX881 SevereDuty Semi-Metallic Rear Brake Pads ($27.79)
WAGNER SX833 SevereDuty Semi-Metallic Front Brake Pads ($39.79)
RAYBESTOS SP833TRH Specialty Truck Metallic Front Brake Pads ($40.79)
RAYBESTOS SP881PSH Specialty Police Metallic Rear Brake Pads ($40.79)
When I change out the brakes, I tend to stick with getting all the brake parts from the same manufacturer when possible. Whether or not you are towing will affect what you need for brakes. It wouldn't hurt to check the caliper slide pins and mounting bolts and such. A mini rebuild and paint job on the calipers is a good idea if they are looking like the rust is getting to them at all. Calipers are pretty reasonable ($25-$65 each) to replace if you don't want to deal with that. I even paint new calipers since they only stay new for a few weeks around here.
LMHmedchem
