Betty's "I want to be a mule" progress log thread

The new turd mobile. 2000 Mountaineer v8 awd.



The bad:

Was living it's prior life on a dusty road. Must tear out interior and deep clean.
Driver window off track "or something" and will not roll down. It tries but the rear part wants to stay up.

3 out of 4 door handles have issues. I have 4 new outer handles on order.
Cracked passenger side tail light housing. ( Ebay for some cool tail lights)

Compass-Thermometer thingy lit up and went out--idunno bout that yet

Door locks seem sticky, probably has to do with the handles.
It has a funky purple color trim with red metallic ( you'll have that every now and then)

The good
Gas tank was full
109k miles
I am the 2nd owner!!
Is from the local area, which means no salt!
The undercarriage is fairly clean
No dents to underside panels
Good rubber
Camber shims already installed
Looks like good service records, all recalls were completed.
Clean carfax believe it or not.

The "maybe" bad

The original owner, told the dealership it had a bad "heater core" however I have run it for several cycles, over an hour each idling in the driveay and see no leaks.
However, there was evidence of a windshield leak or the like,I saw condensation on the inside of the windows this AM. The moisture smell is that of water only-no anti freeze smell. I am thinking it could also be a cowl drain which is clogged???? but she did say the passenger carpet got wet.

I tried to get heat, however it is an auto climate control. Being 90 degrees outside, I doubt it would have given me heat.The heater core hoses were hot, and the coolant bypass valve does operate. AC blows Ice cold.

Maybe she meant to say "heater door"???

Anyway--here are the pics.



My intent is to drive this and use it as a tow rig for a light weight off road toy. Mods will be minimal. Edit: This plan did not work out so on to plan "b"

Current visual status

Progress pictures

Now, let's clean it up a little


Herculine'rd rocker panels. Rock sliders installed

BW 4406 True 4x4 Manual transfer case ( AKA Mouse entry point) installed 8-27-2012
Installed newer Tcase from a 2003 11-14-15

Saw a rainbow in Colorado so yeah, time for a picture

And here she is, on top of the highest pass road in North America. Careful tire placement a must!!!

2-2-2013

Changed "color scheme" of the Dick Cepek DC1 wheels. New Falken Wildpeak AT 31x1050x15

Then I decided Maroon washer on the wheels would look better

Update 6-6-2013

New bumpers, winch and Pro LED light . Front Bumper from RLC, Skid plate from RCI, rear bumper from Kert307

Rear anti sway disconnects

Update 9-2-2014
A cracked radiator at 70mph led to engine failure. Replaced with a freshened up a bit 80k mile engine starting on page 23

Found another rainbow in Kansas.

 

[traveler]

I'd trim the plastic thingys so it doesn't cover the herculiner, or use trim paint (or even herculiner) to make the plastic thingys match up. I still like the herculiner. Thinking of doing it to my truck just to help the looks and endurance.

 

[CDW6212R]

That's too easy, ... make him take them off and then cut/paint them.

 

[Turdle]

Still have the tupperware, although I did get a whizzy wheel for the glue. I just have a lot of other things going on now, kinda overwhelmed. Bathroom all tore up, I have to replace story posts on our front porch, yard work , and, Nigel. My 17 1/2 year old puppy buddy is now an invalid, and I have to provide care for him. Had to order a custom vent for our main bathroom and I can't seem to get an answer when it will get here other than "by june 4th" . Crap. I can't put up the ceiling sheetrock until it gets here, so everything else is at a standstill.


Friday night Betty towed my neighbor's car home ( dead fuel pump) and the trans never even got to 150 degrees. Saturday she pulled 50 year old lillac roots out with her bumper and tow strap.I gave that bush 15 years of various treatments but root fungus had firm grip on it.

 

[gmanpaint]

That's the one good thing about having an older rig. We aren't afraid to put them to work on the farm.

 

[Turdle]

Today I did this out of stuff I had laying around. If it looks interesting to you guys I
will do a write up.

Store trail repair hub, 4 way tire tool and spare tire with one assembly

 

[traveler]

Cool! Any thought to security, ya know In case someone dishonest wants the spare?

 

[Turdle]

I am not too worried but open to ideas. 2 more bolts stacked on top to slow em down?

 

[traveler]

Was thinking of a lock lug like folks use on fancy wheels...

 

[delexploder]

I was thinking a fence charger

 

[gmanpaint]

Weld a couple of loops to the 4 way, run a bike cable/chain lock thru the tire to the basket.

Now to help you muscle it down. .

You can get a set of locking 500 lb drawer sliders, weld pivot points in the middle, and slide off the back, then let it pivot downward far enough, to grab it while standing on the ground. Could use 3" angle iron on both sides for the sliders to bolt too. That's the set up used for heavy large 12v overland fridges.

 

[Turdle]

Weld a couple of loops to the 4 way, run a bike cable/chain lock thru the tire to the basket.

Now to help you muscle it down. .

You can get a set of locking 500 lb drawer sliders, weld pivot points in the middle, and slide off the back, then let it pivot downward far enough, to grab it while standing on the ground. Could use 3" angle iron on both sides for the sliders to bolt too. That's the set up used for heavy large 12v overland fridges.

Thinking of a telescoping ( articulating?) boom with swivel base.

 

[GLOCKer]

This Ex makes me wish my new-to-me project was a 4x4!

 

[CDW6212R]

Nice, ingenuity to get the parts hidden out of the way.

How about charging the rack , it'll take care of the birds also.

 

[gmanpaint]

Thinking of a telescoping ( articulating?) boom with swivel base.

But then you have to fabricate a mount strong enough to handle the forces in one spot, and most likely have to go thru the roof down a pillar.

Just for grins, hear me out before you shoot me down.

Full extension 500 lb slides go up to 60" in closed length, and extend to double the length out. Say you used a 36" slider....the tire will sit within the closed 36", and extend outward 36". Basically this allows you to slide the tire effortlessly 3 feet back, off the back of the rig. Add the swivel hing bolt at the outside end of the mounted sliders, and it will angle downward when the tire is moved back 18". That's half the tire and wheel below the roof line.

Those 36" 500 lb sliders are extremely strong, and are also expensive at $125 set. These have the thumb locks built in them tho. 250 lb 36" sliders (max L ) are only $50 set, but have no locks. Well, might be able to find some made in AUS, but yeah.... Heck with that.

Where I get mine from. There others to choose from, once there.
http://drawerslidesinc.com/drawer-s...full-extension-lock-in-lock-out-drawer-slide/

 

[Turdle]

But then you have to fabricate a mount strong enough to handle the forces in one spot, and most likely have to go thru the roof down a pillar.

Just for grins, hear me out before you shoot me down.

Full extension 500 lb slides go up to 60" in closed length, and extend to double the length out. Say you used a 36" slider....the tire will sit within the closed 36", and extend outward 36". Basically this allows you to slide the tire effortlessly 3 feet back, off the back of the rig. Add the swivel hing bolt at the outside end of the mounted sliders, and it will angle downward when the tire is moved back 18". That's half the tire and wheel below the roof line.

Those 36" 500 lb sliders are extremely strong, and are also expensive at $125 set. These have the thumb locks built in them tho. 250 lb 36" sliders (max L ) are only $50 set, but have no locks. Well, might be able to find some made in AUS, but yeah.... Heck with that.

Where I get mine from. There others to choose from, once there.
http://drawerslidesinc.com/drawer-s...full-extension-lock-in-lock-out-drawer-slide/

drawer slides sound good, but what gets the tire up and over the side rails of roof rack?

 

[Turdle]

For those with " non working display mach radio RDS button compact disc changer "

I finally found a vendor on ebay who had "certified repaired by ford service" display power supplies for Mach head units with the RDS button. I bought the last one.

It arrived today to my great joy. I have been living with a dead display for quite a while now. Tried repairing it myself and it didn't work .

So, I excitedly tore into the radio and got the new board in , back together, stuck it in the hole and no dice. No display. Bummed, I sent a note to the ebayer telling them the part did not work. The response was "read description"

In the wording it stated if this did not bring the display back something else was wrong. Ok,
Opened it back up, and decided to look the face plate display board itself over real good. Look what I found. I mean just look at it.

Hope you can tell by these pics where the 2 bad solder joints are. I resoldered them with the result of bliss, and joy. All is right with the world now.

Betty also got some fresh Mobile 1 and filter.
My front skid plate mount was not to my liking, so I welded some anchoring nuts to the frame to hold it more securely. Painted it black. No pictures of my nuts

 

[CDW6212R]

Excellent, good save on the radio. Do you have one of the Dorman display boards, that you might compare it to the Mach board? I have one but haven't had time to open up my spare Mach to dig into it.

 

[gmanpaint]

Yeah... about that rack.... Going to have to cut the top tube off in the back for the slider idea. lol

 

[Dan Whitaker]

For those with " non working display mach radio RDS button compact disc changer "

I finally found a vendor on ebay who had "certified repaired by ford service" display power supplies for Mach head units with the RDS button. I bought the last one.

It arrived today to my great joy. I have been living with a dead display for quite a while now. Tried repairing it myself and it didn't work .

So, I excitedly tore into the radio and got the new board in , back together, stuck it in the hole and no dice. No display. Bummed, I sent a note to the ebayer telling them the part did not work. The response was "read description"

In the wording it stated if this did not bring the display back something else was wrong. Ok,
Opened it back up, and decided to look the face plate display board itself over real good. Look what I found. I mean just look at it.

View attachment 158701 View attachment 158702

Hope you can tell by these pics where the 2 bad solder joints are. I resoldered them with the result of bliss, and joy. All is right with the world now.

Betty also got some fresh Mobile 1 and filter.
My front skid plate mount was not to my liking, so I welded some anchoring nuts to the frame to hold it more securely. Painted it black. No pictures of my nuts

Thank goodness for that

No Amsoil? Must be getting cheap like me. I went Valvoline synthetic my last change. Saved me $3 as opposed to going with Mobil 1.

 

[Spudhut]

great ideas here. I like the tire carrier and handle assembly. you could drill the hold down bolt and run a small master lock through it (If im seeing it correctly)