1997 Sport (Came with Rust at no Extra Charge) | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

  • Register Today It's free!

1997 Sport (Came with Rust at no Extra Charge)

Red Delta

Member
Joined
July 24, 2011
Messages
23
Reaction score
0
City, State
SW Ontario
Year, Model & Trim Level
97 Sport
Hello all. I recently picked up a 97 Sport with a five speed for $800. It currently shows 265,000 KM (165,000 MI). I had to replace my poor old 95 Chrysler Concorde (I had it for ten years) which met it's demise while I was conducting a left turn. Since my wife has the late model Town and Country, I was able to shop around for a beater of my choice.

My requirements for the new addition;

1. Has to be a stick shift.
2. See number 1.

After trolling Kijiji for a couple of weeks, I went out to look at this 97. It was rusty around the edges but the main body was solid. It didn't look completely hashed so I bought it.

It needs the usual list of things to be certified in Ontario. E-brake, brakes and exhaust. Happily, the county I live in doesn't require an emissions test, so, no problems there.

I'm thinking about doing the clutch and possibly the steering rack. Hard shifting and hard steering that doesn't return to center on its own. I look forward to using this site to help me along in those projects.

Today, I was looking at the brakes to see what kind of nightmare I would have to deal with back there. Conveniently, the truck decided that it didn't want to start anymore so I had my first experience in 'bump' starting.

After running many tests, I decided to remove the starter. After a little fighting, I got it out and discovered a bad wire. I have a new starter on order to pick up tomorrow. The truck has been undercoated over the years, which caused a real mess on my arms and face. I suppose that I shouldn't expect anything to be easy for $800

My new beast.

scaled.php


I need these actuating levers, one is broken, to get my parking brake working again. Is there a source that isn't Ford? They want $60 a side.

scaled.php


I removed the running boards. The rust around the rockers was bad enough that they were not really attached anyways. I think it looks better without them.

scaled.php


Successfully removed starter.

scaled.php


This wire that runs from the solenoid to the starter seems to be the culprit of my no start.

scaled.php


Undercoating sticks like glue.

scaled.php



My other car is an Oldsmobile. A 1966 Delta 88 two door. I've had it since I was 15 and it ain't going no where. :)

scaled.php


Recently, one of my friends who works for the same company as I do, inherited some cash. She used my automotive knowledge to pick out a new vehicle. She settled on a '11 Explorer Limited. As a way of saying thanks for my help, she allowed me to borrow it for an entire weekend. Sweet ride and the auto park feature is truly astonishing. Congrats to Ford for building an amazing vehicle.

scaled.php
 






welcome to this site fellow canuck, and sport owner. what ever you do, dont take off the plastic ground effects on the rockers. you will be in for a horrible surprise, especially with you living in ontario and all. as for your parts, rockauto.com is a really good vender on here, and will ship to canada with no problems (i have bought somethings from them and normally it gets here within 5-7 day to your door) as well as if you do a search on here, they normally put up a discount code.
 






Yeah, removing the running boards is definitely an improvement. First thing I did to mine.
 












Back
Top