Mitch - '91 EXPLR (EB)
Member
- Joined
- July 27, 2020
- Messages
- 17
- Reaction score
- 21
- City, State
- Reno, NV
- Year, Model & Trim Level
- 91-EXPLR-EdBaur4.0/6cyl
Hey guys, I bought a 1991 Explorer (Eddie Bauer) about 4 months ago and have been slowly making progress. I am new to working on cars, but have been learning lots along the way. I have learned so much already about this vehicle picking over numerous threads that have been posted. I will include as many pictures as possible during the process as well. My name is Mitch and I'm currently in my senior year studying GeoPhysics at UNR in Reno, NV.
I am making this thread to display work that I have done with specifics for future builds. I am also going to use this thread to ask questions as I make progress to help the build move along smoothly!
I would also love to hear suggestions or answer any questions I can through messages or on the thread!
Brief Vehicle History:
Bought in August 2020 from a woman who's husband passed away. He was the original owner, and lived in Tahoe for the past 15 years. Due to heavy snowfall and driving on road salt, there were some rust problems on the underbody of the EX. The car had 171,000 miles and didn't have any blaring issues besides some rust and being very dirty from sitting for about a year. Overall it wasn't in the best shape, but pretty decent for a 30 year old SUV. I bought this vehicle for $1800 which seemed to be a good price for something with 4x4 that I could slowly fix up and turn into a reliable off roader.
Goals for the EX
The main goal is to build a reliable off roader that will grant me access to the mountain tops and basins of Nevada. I have no intention of hard core rock crawling or going excessively fast off road. Just want to bullet proof the design and in time upgrade the suspension, and outfit it for overlanding.
Things that I have done so far..
1) The alternator went out shortly after purchasing, pulled one at the PicknPull, works great. ($30)
2) Some of the electronics were not working properly (Rear Window Defrost, Horn). I took them apart and there was corrosion that I cleaned up and since they have worked flawlessly. ($Free)
3) The exhaust and muffler were rusted through. There were holes in both so I had the exhaust done by a shop all the way back from the catalytic converter. ($200)
4) I bought some cheap amber running lights to mount in the grille, similar to what newer Ford Raptor's have. ($25)
5) I was having serious problems with the brakes. The ABS light was on, they were locking prematurely, and I was losing brake fluid like crazy. I finally pinpointed that the culprit was the ABS valve if I remember correctly. It is just above the frame on the driver side I believe and after replacing with a new part have had no further issues with the brakes, and no loss of fluid! ($200)
6) the original tires were 15 years old and on the driver side the sidewalls were beginning to crack. After about 3 months of daily driving I noticed one day that one tire felt very low. I took the vehicle into a tire shop and bought some Kendra Klever 31" Tires. I kept the stock rims. There was slight rub with wheel turned all the way but was easily fixed by filing down the plastic air damn under the bumper. ($600)
7) I removed the plastic air damn under the bumper to allow the tires more room if needed and I like the look more. ($Free)
8) I removed the ball on the rear bumper for towing and replaced with a simple flag mount system. It is easily removed and swapped with the original ball if I need to tow a small trailer one day. ($15)
*** I Apologize in advance if you don't agree with the flags I put on my EX, I drive with them on and don't want to take the time to remove for every picture.. ***
The day I bought the EX
After installing amber grille running lights. (12V)
This was a fairly easy task. I ran the positive and negative lights through a hole I drilled in the firewall just to the upper left of where the brake peddle is. I then ran under the lip of the panel under the steering wheel to the directly under the stereo. I sobered the positive and negative to a cigarette 12V cigarette lighter and when I drive all I do is plug in the cigarette lighter in and they turn on. I taped the headlights with electrical tape to mimic my favorite rally car driver (Ken Block) who exclusively drives fords so it seemed fitting! These amber lights are very bright. The pictures don't do justice but they are far brighter than the amber running lights under the headlights.
After installing new 31" Tires.
Kept the stock rims. The shop warned they would not fit without rubbing. The only rub I experienced was at full rotation with the plastic air dam under the bumper. I cut off about an inch and have not had any further rubbing. I went with Kendra Klevers. Note, these are mud terrain and they will cause your Ex to pull with the angle of the road. I thought at first it was causing the vehicle to pull to the right so I marked with tape to see how much I had to correct with the wheel and then drove on the left side of the road. I marked with tape and they were equal, so not ideal for driving on the street (I don't mind it), however makes all the difference off road.
** I also swapped the front tires and rear tires from side to side to see if it affected the pulling before driving on the other side of the road. No difference whatsoever. They also seem to pull more when slowing down, less when accelerating. Not sure why this is but just something I noticed.
Interior Pics
The interior was in pretty great shape when I bought it, just filthy. I deep cleaned everything and aside from the speakers being **** and the door panels needing a bit of work, it cleaned up great! you can also see the switch that I have put in for the amber running lights in the grille, they are now hooked into a module that has buttons to control what is on or off. I also bought some cheap seat covers just because I'm sometimes pretty dirty after camping or shooting, but the seats underneath are in almost new condition.
Off-road pics so far..
You can see that I'm still getting great movement with the tires with no rub with no lift and 31" tires. Impressed with the capabilities of this EX. It has gotten me virtually everywhere I have taken it. Uphill on loose rock, approx 40 degree inclines with absolutely no problems. I just take it slow, no need to break parts on the trail IMO.
This is a work in progress, so stay tuned and I will add more pictures and descriptions as I go! Most of the stuff I've done so far wasn't too crazy. Upgrading the suspension etc should be much more exciting.
Thanks for any comments and suggestions!!
-Mitch
I am making this thread to display work that I have done with specifics for future builds. I am also going to use this thread to ask questions as I make progress to help the build move along smoothly!
I would also love to hear suggestions or answer any questions I can through messages or on the thread!
Brief Vehicle History:
Bought in August 2020 from a woman who's husband passed away. He was the original owner, and lived in Tahoe for the past 15 years. Due to heavy snowfall and driving on road salt, there were some rust problems on the underbody of the EX. The car had 171,000 miles and didn't have any blaring issues besides some rust and being very dirty from sitting for about a year. Overall it wasn't in the best shape, but pretty decent for a 30 year old SUV. I bought this vehicle for $1800 which seemed to be a good price for something with 4x4 that I could slowly fix up and turn into a reliable off roader.
Goals for the EX
The main goal is to build a reliable off roader that will grant me access to the mountain tops and basins of Nevada. I have no intention of hard core rock crawling or going excessively fast off road. Just want to bullet proof the design and in time upgrade the suspension, and outfit it for overlanding.
Things that I have done so far..
1) The alternator went out shortly after purchasing, pulled one at the PicknPull, works great. ($30)
2) Some of the electronics were not working properly (Rear Window Defrost, Horn). I took them apart and there was corrosion that I cleaned up and since they have worked flawlessly. ($Free)
3) The exhaust and muffler were rusted through. There were holes in both so I had the exhaust done by a shop all the way back from the catalytic converter. ($200)
4) I bought some cheap amber running lights to mount in the grille, similar to what newer Ford Raptor's have. ($25)
5) I was having serious problems with the brakes. The ABS light was on, they were locking prematurely, and I was losing brake fluid like crazy. I finally pinpointed that the culprit was the ABS valve if I remember correctly. It is just above the frame on the driver side I believe and after replacing with a new part have had no further issues with the brakes, and no loss of fluid! ($200)
6) the original tires were 15 years old and on the driver side the sidewalls were beginning to crack. After about 3 months of daily driving I noticed one day that one tire felt very low. I took the vehicle into a tire shop and bought some Kendra Klever 31" Tires. I kept the stock rims. There was slight rub with wheel turned all the way but was easily fixed by filing down the plastic air damn under the bumper. ($600)
7) I removed the plastic air damn under the bumper to allow the tires more room if needed and I like the look more. ($Free)
8) I removed the ball on the rear bumper for towing and replaced with a simple flag mount system. It is easily removed and swapped with the original ball if I need to tow a small trailer one day. ($15)
*** I Apologize in advance if you don't agree with the flags I put on my EX, I drive with them on and don't want to take the time to remove for every picture.. ***
The day I bought the EX
After installing amber grille running lights. (12V)
This was a fairly easy task. I ran the positive and negative lights through a hole I drilled in the firewall just to the upper left of where the brake peddle is. I then ran under the lip of the panel under the steering wheel to the directly under the stereo. I sobered the positive and negative to a cigarette 12V cigarette lighter and when I drive all I do is plug in the cigarette lighter in and they turn on. I taped the headlights with electrical tape to mimic my favorite rally car driver (Ken Block) who exclusively drives fords so it seemed fitting! These amber lights are very bright. The pictures don't do justice but they are far brighter than the amber running lights under the headlights.
After installing new 31" Tires.
Kept the stock rims. The shop warned they would not fit without rubbing. The only rub I experienced was at full rotation with the plastic air dam under the bumper. I cut off about an inch and have not had any further rubbing. I went with Kendra Klevers. Note, these are mud terrain and they will cause your Ex to pull with the angle of the road. I thought at first it was causing the vehicle to pull to the right so I marked with tape to see how much I had to correct with the wheel and then drove on the left side of the road. I marked with tape and they were equal, so not ideal for driving on the street (I don't mind it), however makes all the difference off road.
** I also swapped the front tires and rear tires from side to side to see if it affected the pulling before driving on the other side of the road. No difference whatsoever. They also seem to pull more when slowing down, less when accelerating. Not sure why this is but just something I noticed.
Interior Pics
The interior was in pretty great shape when I bought it, just filthy. I deep cleaned everything and aside from the speakers being **** and the door panels needing a bit of work, it cleaned up great! you can also see the switch that I have put in for the amber running lights in the grille, they are now hooked into a module that has buttons to control what is on or off. I also bought some cheap seat covers just because I'm sometimes pretty dirty after camping or shooting, but the seats underneath are in almost new condition.
Off-road pics so far..
You can see that I'm still getting great movement with the tires with no rub with no lift and 31" tires. Impressed with the capabilities of this EX. It has gotten me virtually everywhere I have taken it. Uphill on loose rock, approx 40 degree inclines with absolutely no problems. I just take it slow, no need to break parts on the trail IMO.
This is a work in progress, so stay tuned and I will add more pictures and descriptions as I go! Most of the stuff I've done so far wasn't too crazy. Upgrading the suspension etc should be much more exciting.
Thanks for any comments and suggestions!!
-Mitch
