79 Mustang, new daily driver?

[Lacky01]

I finally got it to idle nicely!!!!

between moving the distributor, setting the air mix screw, and setting the idle screw, I was able to get it to idle smooth at a bit under 1K. It was running REALLY hot cuz when I shut it off it dieseled for almost a minute I checked the radiator and I have coolant, although it needs to be topped off. I also dont have a working temp guage. I'm thinking my thermostat is not working? I know that its running way too hot and don't want to run it without knowing the temp

 

[Lacky01]

current laundry list:

replace thermostat DONE!!!
replace Instrument Voltage regulator PENDING
scrub built up oil off of engine and transmission so I can check for leaks and stop the smoke from the hot exhaust. DONE!!!!
double check that the vacuum system is setup correctly so I can set my timing and be done with it!
repair wastegate assembly to cure overboost condition
pull trim off, clean, spray bomb, and reinstall using new clips.
pull off body moulding and store in a safe place
address minor rust issues to prevent actual catastrophic rusty mayhem!!!!
wire up my original stereo and see if I can get retro tunes
figure out why my windshield wipers aren't working
pull out interior for full detail cleaning. may include fixing wiring if necessary. will get new carpet when this happens. may even get POR-15 for rust prevention depending on budget at the time.
new shocks
flush cooling sytem

 

[Lacky01]

so today degreased the engine and transmission. It was absolutely filthy!! my guess is the motor was rebuilt due to a main bearing or something cuz there was oil everywhere. It was never cleaned and probably got worse as is sat, all leaking everywhere

I tried Engine-Brite for the first time. It sucked. It got the dirt off without scrubbing, but any sort of oil or grease stayed put, which was 90% of the mess I was cleaning up. the best method was a scratch pad and generous amounts of purple degreaser. even with thick rubber gloves it was hard on my hands. but it took the oil right off, and the sludge was no match for the scrubby pad. all in all I spent an hour and a half cleaning and about an hour gettin stuff set up and cleaning up afterward. Oddly enough I had a blast doing it! seeing how clean it was getting gave me lots of motivation while I worked!

I will post some pics as soon as I have time to take them. Its a night and day difference! I had no idea the whole engine block was painted blue! :

and I currently have the thermostat w/ gasket, and Jeff is sending me an Instrument Voltage regulator soon. that should fix my non working guages. I'll also be able to to pull the dash apart some more and find a good spot to get power to my stereo, assuming it still works.

 

[SVO]

Purple Power is my favorite, I use it undiluted, (besure to wear latex gloves) spray is on, let it sit and repeat about four times pending how nasty it is.

Then pressure wash, also if the oaint on the fenders are good, besure to cover with wet towels before spraying PP in there.

After it has soaked, and before it dries, take a pressure washer and get after it.

Engine blocks were Ford Dark blue till 1983, then they were painted Ford Engine Gray, in the 60's it was light Ford Blue.




Dr. SVO phd


Some examples:

 

[Lacky01]

Nice dude!!! does that hurt any of the electronics or anything? I guess if you let it dry for a few days it couldn't really hurt anything. I'll have to try that on the rest of the engine bay

So this evening, My girl and I replaced the thermostat. actually, she did the work and I instructed. she wanted to feel helpful. while she did that I got to work putting the vacuum stuff back on from all the recent work, and I started to pull the instrument cluster so I can replace the IVR. how do I disconnect the cable that runs to the speedo?

oh, the thermostat was a breeze. we pulled it out, and she cleaned the housing replaced the part and put it back together. after I got the air cleaner and rubber squid put back together we fired it up. it ran very different than it did without the vacuum system. It would BARELY run, and I had to hold my foot into it. I turned the distributor counter-clockwise a little bit and it would run without my foot in the throttle. it was shaking a little bit at idle. I pulled the air mix screw out a little cuz it was smoking. after a little while it started to warm up and the revs bumped up. I backed the timing down a bit to bring the RPMs to a good idle. I put the air mix screw back where it was and the idle was very similar to the idle I had with the air cleaner off. I definitely need to work out the choke. Im pretty sure I have a good understanding of how it works, I just need to know it in practice.

I shut it down when we started getting misted with water. the thermostat housing was leaking. I never double checked the tightness of the housing bolts and it obviously wasn't enough. we shut down and I retightened. but what concerned me was that the hoses to the firewall were really hot, but the hose going to the radiator was still cold. the radiator was cold. is the thermostat not working?

 

[Lacky01]

today I got the thermostat tightened down, and got it fired up again. I was out of fuel again so I put six gallons of 92 octane. I think im gonna run premium all the time. I need to get that IVR replaced, I'm sick of not having all my guages. It still seemed to run hot, but not NEARLY as bad. the upper radiator hose got hot, and the lower one wasn't as hot as the top. I need to learn how to flush the radiator, its not very clean inside although the coolant itself is clean looking.
The exhaust started smoking again after a while, its around the cat. I'm pretty sure its caked in oil too, so thats gonna have to come off next week and that whole area will need to be degreased. If the weather is good enough, I'm gonna scour underneath the whole car.
Lotsa stuff to do, but its keeping me off the streets... literally

 

[SVO]

Alec, you need to PM me your addy, thought I had it, well I guess I lost it.

Anyways get that to me so I can send this voltage regulator to you.


Thanx,


Dr. SVO phd

 

[Lacky01]

I am in the process of cleaning the entire underside of the Cobra. I'm using the concentrate purple cleaner, and its taking some of the paint with it. I have some cans of Under-coat to go on after its clean, but what should I use as a rust inhibitor before I spray it?

 

[Lacky01]

some progress!!!

this was a few weeks ago, after I got the engine cleaned up a bit.

I got done with that and it was still smoking. so I pulled off the exhaust to get that really clean. once that was off I had easy access to the dirty belly, so i decided Id clean all of that. I started with the wheel wells and it was difficult and slow due to the suspension components. and as I scrubbed it took a little of the paint. and near the rear there is a lot of surface rust. SO, I'm currently dropping the suspension components, and the whole underside will get degreased and cleaned, then treated with Naval Jelly and Undercoating.

I'm not sure when this process will get done, but it should be well worth the effort my girlfriend is coming over tomorrow to help me clean and degrease. after that, its clean and paint the suspension

:shifty_ey


I forgot some details:

I would really like to freshen up some of the components. I will get new tie-rod ends. POSSIBLY new control arms, simply for the new ball joints. replace rag joint(s) in steering shaft. maybe new poly bushings all around. and theres a lot of oil around the pinion seal on my rearend. is this something I can replace myself?

 

[SVO]

Ok, first of all, I'm horrible, I have not sent the part out yet

Second,pending on your array of tools yes you can do all of it.

Th poly busing kit LRS sells is actully for 1985 an up, most of the bushings inthis kit will work, except fr the oval rear lower control arm bushigs which you do no have.

If ou go poy you will need a torch to burn out the old rubber bushings so ou etain the steel cup for he new poly bushng, the cup will need to be cleaned with a wire brush o a drill.

If you go bak with rubber bushings/stock, you will need an air hammer to get the bushing/cups out, this is more labor intensive.

There ar trade offs though:

Poly: last longer, more responsive suspension, but noise, harshness, and vibration are more previlant, and mus be lubed with special poly lube or the will squeek.

Stock rubber: the oppisite of above.


You can still get the shock towers super clean, dilute the Purple Power and use a cloth and water, you may want to remove the parts and start scrubbing/washing
This would be the same for the underside of the car too.


Your the first person since I was a kid that has used or even mentioned Naval Jelly, that's cool "Old School" rust remover

Once you have done that hit it with some POR15 to complete the job or rust prevention.

If you have access to media/sand blasting cabinet this will mke quik cleaning of small parts such as the control arms.

The ball joints can be done by you but you wil need a balljoint tool, and impact gun.



To give you an idea, I have done all most 90% of what your looking at recently to my 1985:

Inner and outter tie rod, from Autozone/Duralast just under $100 all four

Ball Joints, from Autozone $50 both

Poly Bushng Kit Complete, from LRS $200

Front Struts high end gas, from O'Rielly's $120 both

Spring Kit $99 front and rear (upper/lower & frt/rear isolators are in the poly kit)

Baised on the paint color of the rack and pinion, plus the power steering pump, those look to have been replaced at some time before.

Fuel Pump has also never been replaced seeing asthough it still has the steel shroud around it, that's rare.




Jeff

 

[vroomzoomboom]

nuts! i just re-did my front control arms with brand new spicer ball joints and poly bushings, sandblasted them and painted them chassis mat black, only now thanks to svo, i wont be using them now. i would have sold them to you for the cost of the ball joints, and bushings, but the shipping would have killed the price!

 

[1Aauto]

Jeff if you need anything we carry let me know. After all I'm a foxbody guy

 

[1Aauto]

Purple Power is my favorite, I use it undiluted, (besure to wear latex gloves) spray is on, let it sit and repeat about four times pending how nasty it is.

Then pressure wash, also if the oaint on the fenders are good, besure to cover with wet towels before spraying PP in there.

After it has soaked, and before it dries, take a pressure washer and get after it.

Engine blocks were Ford Dark blue till 1983, then they were painted Ford Engine Gray, in the 60's it was light Ford Blue.




Dr. SVO phd


Some examples:

That's what is use too to clean my motors.works pretty good.

 

[Lacky01]

thanks for the help guys! I think I'll be going poly as I havent found rubber bushings anywhere. would the parts store be able to get them?

I was planning on having the whole front end stripped down and ready for cleaning today, but I only got the passenger side down to just the control arm. That stupid spring!!! the rears I just chained to the torque box and lowered the control arm. for the front, it didn't seem like I could do that safely. I went to Harbor Freight and got the only spring compressor that would work in the limited space. naturally it was the most expensive and it took me a good hour to get the spring off. that includes wrestling with the stupid ball joint. I wont be reusing it, as I cut it in half with a die grinder. I wasted $6.99 on that worthless pickle fork. and the tie rod ends were easy so if I feel I need to save some cash in the process, those can wait. and when I finally got that spring outta there, I wasn't able to get the fricken compressor off of it!!! I was pretty tired at that point. sometime next week I'll try to get the rest of the front torn down, and after that spend my free time cleaning. I still need to drop the gas tank which will also need a bath and some paint. If I can get a hold of some bushings, that will be a good time to burn those out

for now, one day at a time.

 

[Lacky01]

Ok, first of all, I'm horrible, I have not sent the part out yet

If it makes you feel any better, the car wont move again under its own power for a couple months at least.

come to think of it, It may not rest on its wheels for at least a couple months *sigh*

 

[SVO]

I went to Harbor Freight and got the only spring compressor that would work in the limited space. naturally it was the most expensive and it took me a good hour to get the spring off. that includes wrestling with the stupid ball joint.

I wont be reusing it, as I cut it in half with a die grinder.

and when I finally got that spring outta there, I wasn't able to get the fricken compressor off of it!!!

So you must have gotten the spring compressor that goes through the INSIDE of the spring???

And what did you cut in half???

Pickle forks only work in very few cases, and they tear stuff up.




Jeff

 

[Lacky01]

I got this one:
http://www.harborfreightusa.com/usa...o?itemid=43753&CategoryName=&SubCategoryName=

this is the other one they had, but there wouldn't have been any room around the spring to make it work.
http://www.harborfreightusa.com/usa...arch.keyword=spring+compressor&submit=find+it


and I cut the ball joint in half, between the arm and the spindle. the reason I cut it was I already destroyed the dust boot with the pickle fork. the plan was to order some new ones and have my local machine shop press em in and out, but my Haynes manual clearly states the control arm needs to be replaced as a whole. I see in LMRS there are individual ball joints available. clarification please?!? :scratch:


Here are some better pics of where I currently sit:

and this is the paint I'll be using on the underside:

I'm using this stuff because its cheap, and I saw the finish on a '40 Dodge pickup and it looked pretty good. that and I also dont need to mix it, which severely adds to the cost. I have some single stage black paint that would've looked KILLER! however, the stuff to mix up a quart of it was $84 and the gallon of chassis paint is $44. I hate not having a budget for this project!

I'll be shooting on my back beneath the car, using the pressure pot to ensure good coverage despite being inverted. I have yet to tackle the drivers side front suspension, but I should have time next week for that. after thats off I start cleaning. I may also drop the tranny to make it THAT much easier to clean and paint. While its out, I have a fresh clutch/pressure plate to go in and I'll replace the fluid too.

go big or go home. I'm already home, so my only option is to go big

 

[Lacky01]

and youll notice in the second pic in the above post, the frame-rail I replaced is holding the weight of the car on the jackstand


success!!!

 

[SVO]

Yes the balljoints press out and press back in:

 

[Lacky01]

sweet thanks! 'bout to commit to the drivers side now