Mounty71's Elite Registry--'91 Explorer

After saying goodbye to my 1992 Explorer in 2004, i've always wanted to get another 1st gen. Yesterday it actually happened when i took ownership of The Black Goblin, a 1991 Explorer 4x4. IT currently has less than 88,000 miles on the odometer, with the original engine and a replaced/rebuilt auto trans.

Here's a list of the modifications that I know of:

I believe it's a 4" rough country lift, with upper shock mount from '78 bronco and limit straps
the rear consists of add-a-leaf and autozone lift shackles
32" mud tires
15" American Racing 8 hole wheels
4:56 gears w/ factory rear trac-lock
open-air filter not currently installed
cherrybomb turbo muffler
big red front bumper and skidplate with 4 light mounts (Sold)
billet grill
aftermarket headunit and 2 subs inbox (subs gone)
center console from 92-94 explorer
CB radio under dash
hi-lift jack

Also, James, the previous owner, has gone through the vehicle and replaced just about every accessory in the engine bay.

COMING SOON:
35" M/Ts
locker (powertrax no-slip in the rear)
new front tube bumper and skidplate
electric driver seat

COMING LATER:
manual hubs
rear bumper w/ tire carrier
fiberglass front fenders (maybe)
deaver leaf springs
BTF cut and turned beams
KMC Enduro wheels
clear corners
...and one day, painted to match my green mountaineer

Here are some pictures the day after i brought it home.

 

[R.J.]

yes, its the door from the flipped explorer. its making my back yard look redneck sitting out there

 

[NYMount21]

congrats, adding to the fams

 

[mounty71]

Ok, i know everyone here (as well as me) are picture ******, so i will update this later today with pictures of the new additions and modifications, as soon as my roommate comes back with the digi cam.

But in the meantime, i thought i'd write down some issues that i have noticed, and would like some input on:

1) The truck makes a popping or puttering sound, it doesn't happen all the time, but it happens most of the time. Most of the time it makes this noise it is pretty quiet and can barely be heard over the truck running, but occasionally it gets pretty loud. It doesn't seem to follow a consistent beat either, in other words, the sound is heard at random intervals. It sounds like it's coming more from the exhaust or muffler than the engine. Any thoughts as to the cause of this?

2) The truck seems to idle a bit rough, the tach will jump a bit between 700 and 900 rpms idling.

3) It doesn't accelerate really smoothly. Randomly, it will go between feeling-like-it-is-working-hard-to-get-up-to-speed and a-surge-of-power-with-the-engine-revving. I hope that makes sense to you . Any thoughts on that?

4) The transfer case shakes a lot. Is there an acceptable amount of shaking that our trucks' transfer cases have?

As you all can probably tell, being able to diagnose mechanical problems is not my forte. Any suggestions will be much appreciated.

 

[Glen4X4]

I don't think there should be any shaking (play) with the transfer case.

 

[mounty71]

I saw this thread just now and it seems like he's having similar problems to me. The sound of popcorn that he described is exactly what i'm hearing. http://www.explorerforum.com/forums//showthread.php?t=213449

And thanks for the comment x92.

 

[Glen4X4]

Yeah no prob. I had 2 first gens and they never done that. And haven't seen others like it either.

 

[R.J.]

my dd explorer has a rough idle too. i don't pay to much attention to it cause i like to pretend my car drives perfect but sometime when i start up the car, the engine jumps around the rpm's a lot, like surging. don't know what it is

 

[mounty71]

Hmm, something in my gut tells me there's a better solution than ignoring potential problems.

 

[R.J.]

Hmm, something in my gut tells me there's a better solution than ignoring potential problems.

then i've been dealing with all my problems the wrong way :

 

[R.J.]

(p.s. mounty's "black widow" looks real aggressive now. looks like its ready for some mean business )

 

[mounty71]

Thanks RJ, you're right it does look like a beast, my roommate says the tires are monstrous. But without that red bumper, black widow doesn't really fit anymore. And the Goblin sticker is gone too, so a new name is in order.

Anyway, here are the long awaited pictures.

Navajo Taillights

Army Green B and D pillars, and you can see all of the window tint on the whole truck is gone.

Trimmed fender behind front tires (i know i got overspray )

New Adjustable buckets and dual shocks, still needs a little adjusting and fine tuning.

And i need suggestions for taking off the rest of the pinstriping, it's all cracked and flaky.

Coming next are RJ's superlift leaf springs to raise the back a little, and maybe warrior shackles too. Also i'll be putting on RJ's stock navajo bumpers which are black. I also said i wanted new wheels, but i think the current ones look pretty good with the new tires.

Enjoy!!

 

[FROADER]

Nice work. It looks real good, Matt.

 

[Tbars4]

...^^^ditto...i can't wait to see it in person...

...are you going to re-tint the truck before it gets hot???

 

[mounty71]

Thanks guys. I wasnt planning to re-tint it, that's just more money that i could spend elsewhere or save. I've always kinda liked the non-tinted look, i just hope it doesn't get too hot.

 

[mounty71]

And please look at Post #63 and try to help me figure some of those problems out.

 

[Tbars4]

...from what you stated the popcorn sound would be misfires...:scratch:...could be several things...have you checked/changed the plugs, wires, air filter yet???...have you already smogged this???

 

[mounty71]

James smogged it right before i got it and it passed. From what i recall he also changed the plugs and wires too, but i'll check with him on that. The air filter looks pretty new to me, and not very dirty.

 

[Tbars4]

...next question would then be, was the vehicle doing this when you first got it or did it start after you went mobbin'???...beatin' on the trucks require after run checks...most of my problems show up about a week after a run...or i should say that's when i figure out what new sounds i have recently aquired...

 

[mounty71]

It started the second day out at glamis. Along with a few other rattles and whatnot.

EDIT: James replaced the plugs and wires at 60k, it's now at 89k.

 

[Tbars4]

...so what did you do to it the first day and night at glamis???..:..j/k...it could also be your cat but a number of other things too...if it was your cat, your power would be like zilch and your mpg would be single digits...but the misfiring is what you are suggesting, not zilch in power and a gas beast...:scratch: