1992 explorer gets a solid axle and v8 5 speed

[410Fortune]

So I was waiting for these oil pan re enforcement rings
They arrived from eBay!! Hooray!!

Whoops! Crap… they are for a 2.3 foxbody mustang.. i thought it was a good deal at $40!
5.0 ones are $65-80

So I ordered the correct set… I can only find one of these off an old donor engine.!? What the heck happened to the other one? Whatever ….that’s what started all this and I had to order some online… so I started cleaning my shop. So many projects coming to an end gave me a chance to clean things up…. And what was the last thing I find after a two day shop re organize fest? The other oil pan re enforcement deal

So they were installed with all new bolts

Now I can finally fill the engine with oil
The Canton oil remote adapter came off and a fl1a filter was filled with oil and fitted. I rotated the engine so I could cleanly thread on a full filter

Time to prime the oil system
By hand is the best way…. Thanks to Brett for the tip
Gives you full control of the oiling and you can feel the oil pressure. Also is quite a good workout for the shoulders and arms… Geesh

 

[410Fortune]

Oil pressure builds

That is a 1/4” 6’sided socket. I taped the extension and socket on so that we don’t drop something into the engine

Fun to watch oil bubble through the lifters rods and into the rocket arms

Finally with the engine at tdc (on compression stroke) I was able to stab the synchronizer
Using alignment tool, this is thr 96-97 style 3 wire sensor to talk with our 97.5 pcm

The rocker covers then installed final with their gaskets. Engine was loaded into the sport trac and sent to the other shop to finally be one with the truck

Doesn’t look it yet with all the clutter but two whole layout tables and all their parts were taken down… there was a 4 gallon used oil spill under my shelves I had to clean up… that was a huge mess. One of my drain pans developed a small crack in it and slowly dripped used oil… 4 or 5 gallons worth underneath my storage shelves until I finally spotted some puddles. A whole bag
Of floor dry was used to clean this up… ahhh the joys of having to deal with assloads of dirty fluids

First day of school
Also the first day the 92 has a v8

 

[BKennedy]

You could get ahold of Brian1 and ask him to fab some of the oil pan reinforcements. Maybe make them little wider. He's fabbed some real nice valve cover reinforcements.

That engine looks so clean and fresh. The washers overhanging the reinforcements would bug me. I'd have to get a punch and bend them all down to match the shape of the metal.

 

[410Fortune]

I wish I could figure out how to rotate the last 3 pages of pictures so up is up and down is down?? I can’t seem to figure it out

Funny about the washers.. I’m ocd for sure but this doesn’t bother me

Of course I’m only seeing these pics on my phone. I logged in from my pc the other night and I couldn’t believe how big they are and the quality!! Hahaha I do not get much pc time these days (thank god! 30 years 40+ hours a week, sitting at a glowing box drawing boxes)

I will snag a bunch of these foxbody oil pan dealios now that I know I will need them and what they get online! Plasma table is not precise enough… I already asked my buddy hahaha
When I have to rob Peter to pay Paul (ie grab parts from some other project engine for this project) I like to just get the replacement part coming… saves times and money in the long run

 

[DintDobbs]

This has been a super great thread to follow! Your tedious documentation and photograph attachment is duly appreciated.

 

[allmyEXes]

When you are taking pics are you rotating your phone between landscape and portrait initially?

 

[410Fortune]

I do rotate the camera but not usually, normally I keep it straight up and down

 

[410Fortune]

This has been a super great thread to follow! Your tedious documentation and photograph attachment is duly appreciated.

Thank you! You are very welcome
I’m hoping to leave a legacy of informative builds and threads for all those who walk in my path

It is also an invaluable tool for the vehicle owners… can you imagine having a truck built custom by a shop and then handed the keys… without being a part of the build? You would have so many questions over the years about what was done and why. With a thread like this and documentation you can easily look back and see what was done and why

Forums and threads are way better for keeping track of the process, video blogs are near impossible to search and so many things get missed… so I’m sticking with forums and will only dabble in producing video content

 

[DintDobbs]

@410Fortune The only right way to do it, for all the right reasons. Big kudos.

 

[dvdswan]

I do rotate the camera but not usually, normally I keep it straight up and down