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Well, I agree that the bottom end on the 4.0L's are pretty much bulletproof. Changing oil regularly is always a good idea, but IDK that the later Ford timing kits were ever improved in later years (not saying they weren't, but I've never read anything definitive on that subject). My '97 had the...

In my experience of dealing with the Ford 4.0L SOHC engines, around 200K is their typical milage without replacing timing chain components (which in the case of the rear TC set is an engine out job). Many here say that changing the oil often will allow longer engine life, but as the typical...

I have also had my Simmons T-Stat housing for 2 years without any issues. It's beautifully made and should last forever. I would not put a Dorman part on any vehicle I own unless there was no other choice available. Dorman's stuff is almost always junk. Even when their parts work the fit is...

My driver's seat cushion and foam were in rough condition when I bought my '01 ST in 2015. The leather was in shreds and the foam was torn and missing on the outside bolster. I'd looked into getting new replacement foam and leather from theseatshop.com. They had the leather, but the foam is...

Yeah, still kicking. Most of my wrench turning these days is on my daughter's Fusion and my tractor (not that I'm complaining).

Sorry to hear your '01 ST is having timing chain/tensioner problems. At 189,000 miles that seems to be about the average life expectancy for the 4.0L SOHC engines. Since I rebuilt my SOHC about 4 years ago it's been doing great. The engine rebuild was not difficult once the engine was out of the...

Same here on my 2001 ST. Worth every penny. You get what you pay for.

Yep, you were right about the key donalds. I asked my daughter (she works at Home Depot) if she could cut it, but she said that she doesn't think that their machine will cut a chipped key. IDK, that doesn't make sense to me. I'll call my Ace Hardware on Friday and see what they say. If worse...

Update (hopefully final update): The weather was nice today in GA (60+ F) so I decided to dive into the removal of whatever it was installed in my dash. Quite the job. Removed 3 black boxes, 6 relays a ton of wiring with in-line fuses. When I was done, I was left with 4 small-gauge mystery wires...

IDK they're both rather large for being a place just to put a key in them. I guess I'll know more when I take all this stuff off the truck. If the weather wasn't nasty through the weekend, I'd take a pic of what I'm seeing and post it. I could use a second key for this vehicle. It only came with...

Yeah, I'll see how it goes when I have the time to dig into it.

Update: I had a few minutes to look more closely at the aftermarket security system wiring today (pending its removal) and OMG! there seem to be 2 other components the wiring goes to. In addition to the large black box under the steering column, there's a smaller black box attached to the dash...

My guess is that the device interrupts the ignition switch signal to the starter and maybe disables the coils or the CKPS. When the engine stalled it just stopped dead like you turned the key off and not like it ran out of fuel. I have no idea why the device requires sooo many wire connections...

Hello fellows. I haven't posted here in a while. I haven't had to fix anything on my Explorers in a couple of years as near as I can remember. Some History: When I first got my '01 Sport Trac back in 2015 I recall posting about having some weird electrical gremlins and thinking they were...

Not starting on cold mornings is a classic sign of a worn-out fuel pump (I know, I've replaced 6 or 7 of them on various Explorers over the years and a worn fuel pump was the problem 99% of the time). I've found that the fuel pumps typically start giving cold-start issues at around 175k-200k...

If you want some really good wiper blades at a bargain price, these can't be beat! They last almost as long as Bosh Evolution blades (same design) for under $17 for a pair. I've been using a set for over 13 months (in GA) on my ST and they're still working very well. I've since ordered extra...

Detroit Axle are probably the worst suspension parts on the market. Buy cheap. get cheap. If you want the parts you install to last I suggest Motorcraft, Moog or Mevotech.

The real test of the supports is on a super cold day.

Regarding the hood/lift supports, I've replaced the lift supports on all my Explorers/Mountaineers and ST with some I found on eBay. They were $16 a pair brand new. They've been on there for years now and are still working great. I think the brand name was "WAS". If anyone is interested, I can...

Other than the time it takes to disconnect the trans cooler lines, rad hoses and removing the plastic "wind defector" under the radiator to make draining the rad easier/neater, removing/replacing the V6 rad really couldn't be easier. Here's what the old thread indicated was necessary to do the...

IDK why Ford made radiator replacement so difficult on the 5.0L's. I've replaced 3 of them to-date. Some were more difficult than others for some reason, but none were what I'd call easy to replace (requiring lots of swearing). The V6 radiators, by comparison, are super simple to replace. This...

I'm coming up on 2 years with my Simmons Autosport aluminum t-stat housing. Still working perfectly. Not cheap, but you get what you pay for. I would never install a plastic housing again (especially not Dorman or cheap Chinese junk). The quality of the Simmons parts are top notch. Call Simmons...

Yep. Time to buy a new vehicle. Your engine is now trash. It can be fixed, but it's going to be very expensive. I pulled my engine and replaced all my timing chain components. It was a lot of work (with my free labor) and quality parts are expense. Honestly probably not worth it, but I took an...

My PEX striker bushing repairs (done back in March 2017) are still working great showing no or minimal wear.

Yes, you can get a junk yard actuator and take it apart to remove the blend door crescent shaped gear (it doesn't matter if you find a manual or automatic actuator because the crescent shaped gears are the same). This gear is the only thing needed to test that the blend door's movement is not...