1997 Mercury Mountaineer, 5.0L V8

[dersch6221992]

hey man idk if this thread is dead or not! but i finally got around to doing some updates. i am installing the TT/ shackles this weekend hopefully (whenever they come in) and then putting some 31's on it. I am looking at a brush guard just like yours. 149.00 shipped to my house off ebay.
also how do you like your MAC cold air intake? i have a k&n right now and im considering upgrading that... what did you pay for it?
last question is any problems with your transfer case and the bigger tires? a guy once upon a time from a offroad shop said bigger tires will kill my transfer case.

 

[YoungMounty]

Hey man! Not dead, just haven't done much stuff to it lately but I've been collecting parts for a couple big projects soon. I've been working on an Elite Registry and I'll link it here when I'm done. The brush guard is a great addition and good for me because I couldn't find one anywhere else! It's held up well. I love my MAC intake. There's a noticeable growl, especially under heavy acceleration but I also have no stock exhaust. If you just have the K&N filter it's worth the upgrade, IMO. But if you have the K&N cold air kit it probably isn't worth it. I cannot however vouch for any mpg gains (heavy foot). I got mine from explorerexpress for about $189 if I remember correctly. As for the transfer case situation mine is fine, no problems whatsoever. But your CVs will wear out eventually and will continue to have shortened life thanks to the torsion bar adjustments (if you crank them up ~2").

 

[dersch6221992]

Glad to see this isn't dead. Your truck has a lot of stuff I want to do. For the lights on your bumper what did you go with? I want to get about 6 total. 4 on top. And 2-4 on brush guard. But don't want to spend 600 on them. But I want something that will throw light. And throe it far

The k&n I think is just a regular air box with filter. I will look when I get home. If nit I will buy one mountai probably.
Also you should check out my bud registry I started. Its under 2000 mountaineer I could use your advice on parts/ things to do.

 

[YoungMounty]

I went with the KC Daylighters on the brush guard. The spot lights, not the fogs. They'll go as far as you can see. I plan on putting 4 Hella 500s up top since
I got rid of the other lights that were up there. 3 lights on the brush guard would be a tight squeeze, 4 would be impossible unless you mounted some to the side or got smaller lights (smaller than mine at least). Be careful to check state laws about auxiliary lights before you go throwing a bunch on there. That's the good thing about Alabama, virtually no car restrictions... OR INSPECTIONS haha.

I'll check out the registry when I get home from work and see what I can help you with.

 

[dersch6221992]

Yea in Michigan your good to run with 4 plus headlights up front. Plus I'm an emt we get leeway

 

[dersch6221992]

also for the hella 500's are you going with 55w or the 100w?
and are your kc daylites 55w or 100w?

 

[YoungMounty]

I'll probably go with the 55 watt Hellas and I'm pretty sure my KCs are the 130 watt. I have an Optima YellowTop battery for all my accessories; winch, sound system, lights, etc.

On your registry I read through your to-do list. The only thing I can give advice to really are the HIDs. 8000k is really blue. My 6ks are very, very white. I prefer this but it's all in the eyes of the beholder. Just choose wisely.

 

[dersch6221992]

I'll probably go with the 55 watt Hellas and I'm pretty sure my KCs are the 130 watt. I have an Optima YellowTop battery for all my accessories; winch, sound system, lights, etc.

On your registry I read through your to-do list. The only thing I can give advice to really are the HIDs. 8000k is really blue. My 6ks are very, very white. I prefer this but it's all in the eyes of the beholder. Just choose wisely.

Thanks for advice! I like the blue really... I haven't decided if I will actually purchase those or not though.

For your yellow battery... did you add a separate alternator? Or how'd you do that?

 

[YoungMounty]

I kept the stock alt. I believe the Mountaineers came with a higher amperage alternator. Someone correct me if I'm wrong. I do plan on redoing the stock wiring one day (hopefully soon).

 

[TUBJUB]

Nice Mounty

I really like what you've done. I had a question on the shackle though. I looked at tellico4x4.com and only found 1.25in lift shackles so I was wondering if you had a part number for the ones you ordered?

edit: After reading all the posts again i found that you were so kind and included the part number already. I hope to have a truck that looks almost identical to yours.

 

[YoungMounty]

Just saw the edit, I'd been meaning to reply but haven't really had the chance. Just for others though it is Warrior Products part number WAR-153 I'm pretty sure. Thanks for the compliments. I've got some big changes coming up: Torque Monster Headers and 33x12.50s are in the mix right now.

 

[97Mounty97]

That looks great! That's pretty much what I want to do to mine

 

[cwol97401]

Great build I like 99 % of it. I've been looking for a brush guard for my mounty and also a top rack but I don't need a huge one. The daylighters are a much needed upgrade and so are the top lights. Where did you-- or did you-- mount the second battery? I must complain about your hid headlights though. Hid kits are illegal and unsafe. No halogen headlight housing made (ever) is designed to properly throw the light from a hid bulb. Think, using a torch flame to replace a flashlight bulb. The beam does not aim correctly and the glare is uncontrolled. You are blinding literally every driver that goes the opposite direction whether you realize it or not. Take them out and put in a set of silverstars. You will be much happier with the beam pattern and will not be blinding oncoming traffic. If you want to keep the hid lights then spend the money on a good set of reflectors to put inside of your clear housings. They are not legal still but are much safer than a completely uncontrolled light you have now. Don't misunderstand me, I like the idea to hids, when they are done safely. Unfortunately very few people who do these retrofits do it right. Below is a link to the AL law on headlights and to a helpful forum on the dangers of hid light kits.

Federal mumbojumbo

sema.org federal regulation of aftermarket parts

Glare from Headlamps and other Front Mounted Lamps - NHTSA

Alabama Headlight Regulations

Candlepower Forums: Automotive lighting
Go through the threads on this forum. There's tons of information about safe, bright front lighting.

Like I said, love the build.

 

[wingcmdr]

I believe by reflectors he means the projector housings that are made for HID and LED bulbs and correctly aim the light. Also, here's what my Mounty currently looks like

My girlfriend took the picture and wanted me to do this stupid pose lol. it's on 31's with war-153s in the rear and about an inch up front to level the truck out because of it's case of saggy ass before

 

[cwol97401]

I believe by reflectors he means the projector housings that are made for HID and LED bulbs and correctly aim the light.

Therein lies the problem and my point. Companies do not manufacture reflectors or housings to retrofit into vehicles that did not come from the factory with them. The engineering is too cost prohibitive to make any profit, so they will never do it. The only safe way to put HIDs in our trucks is to purchase a set of projector housings originally designed for HIDs, like those out of a BMW or the like. They were engineered from the beginning to use an HID bulb. Anything short of using one of those, fixing it inside of your headlight housing and aiming it properly is simply dangerous.:thumbdwn: No way around it. Even the projector retrofit borders on not legal in many states. The law basically says that the headlight cannot be altered from the manufacturer's design.