Betty's "I want to be a mule" progress log thread | Page 71 | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

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Betty's "I want to be a mule" progress log thread

The new turd mobile. 2000 Mountaineer v8 awd.



The bad:

Was living it's prior life on a dusty road. Must tear out interior and deep clean.
Driver window off track "or something" and will not roll down. It tries but the rear part wants to stay up.

3 out of 4 door handles have issues. I have 4 new outer handles on order.
Cracked passenger side tail light housing. ( Ebay for some cool tail lights)

Compass-Thermometer thingy lit up and went out--idunno bout that yet

Door locks seem sticky, probably has to do with the handles.
It has a funky purple color trim with red metallic ( you'll have that every now and then) :(

The good
Gas tank was full
109k miles
I am the 2nd owner!!
Is from the local area, which means no salt!
The undercarriage is fairly clean
No dents to underside panels
Good rubber
Camber shims already installed
Looks like good service records, all recalls were completed.
Clean carfax believe it or not.

The "maybe" bad

The original owner, told the dealership it had a bad "heater core" however I have run it for several cycles, over an hour each idling in the driveay and see no leaks.
However, there was evidence of a windshield leak or the like,I saw condensation on the inside of the windows this AM. The moisture smell is that of water only-no anti freeze smell. I am thinking it could also be a cowl drain which is clogged???? but she did say the passenger carpet got wet.

I tried to get heat, however it is an auto climate control. Being 90 degrees outside, I doubt it would have given me heat.The heater core hoses were hot, and the coolant bypass valve does operate. AC blows Ice cold.

Maybe she meant to say "heater door"???

Anyway--here are the pics.



My intent is to drive this and use it as a tow rig for a light weight off road toy. Mods will be minimal. Edit: This plan did not work out so on to plan "b"

Current visual status

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Progress pictures
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042.jpg

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Now, let's clean it up a little


Herculine'rd rocker panels. Rock sliders installed

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BW 4406 True 4x4 Manual transfer case ( AKA Mouse entry point) installed 8-27-2012
Installed newer Tcase from a 2003 11-14-15

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Saw a rainbow in Colorado so yeah, time for a picture
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And here she is, on top of the highest pass road in North America. Careful tire placement a must!!!
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2-2-2013

Changed "color scheme" of the Dick Cepek DC1 wheels. New Falken Wildpeak AT 31x1050x15

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Then I decided Maroon washer on the wheels would look better

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Update 6-6-2013

New bumpers, winch and Pro LED light . Front Bumper from RLC, Skid plate from RCI, rear bumper from Kert307


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Rear anti sway disconnects

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Update 9-2-2014
A cracked radiator at 70mph led to engine failure. Replaced with a freshened up a bit 80k mile engine starting on page 23

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Found another rainbow in Kansas.

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Whats your plan to solve that?
Maybe stainless aftermarket lines could be routed away from the coil?
 






Ahh. Now I see. I haven't ever used lines that shape at the calipers.

The lines I just replaced was the same as the ones I installed. I have them turned up to gain length for full droop. Just have to turn them over when doing this, so they seat right against the caliper.

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Sorry, thought the lower coils was touching themselves like the song. :D
 






well, on one hand all of the brake lines I have hoarded are wrong. On the other hand none of them are right. Funny, a rear right brake hose matches one of the fronts.
Wife and I Put about 60 miles on it like that and we almost died. Compared to my hoards these have bent inward a bunch.

Out to the parts store for hoses tomorrow. Thanks for the picture gman.
 












Rock auto has the element 3 (raybestos) at a steal of a deal. That's where I got all 4 of mine, except the napa line extension for the rear left.

Application, or part number please?
 












@gmanpaint Raybestos BH380358 have the elbow fitting like I have already.
below is on rockauto site. These look like what I already have. Are you sure these are what you are using?
BH380358_CON__ra_p.jpg


Your picture shows a straight fitting. I'm confused.

Dont want to spend 28 bux on a brake best brand at oriellys but I did find one that looks the part. By looks I mean I see a picture that resembles your brake hoses.

 






Well, I have to apologize here for the mis info.

I completely spaced out on those fronts. I ordered them, and they are indeed the same style as yours. I still have them, and forgot about returning them. Been crazy busy this week with the holiday, and catching up from work/life after a vacation, my brains not firing correctly tonight. Sorry about that.

I had another set of new Raybesto's lines in my spare trail parts that I used. I have since thrown the boxes out. Tomorrow in the day light, I will grab the PN off the lines themselves. I might have them listed in the rigs registry somewhere too. I need to search that monster of a thread out for it.
 












Found the info on the raybestos lines I used. Sometimes it pays to be OCD on this stuff.

More Information for RAYBESTOS BH38178

 






I found a cheap dorman brand for a test fit, and it fits beautifully. So I have a nice Raybestos Pro Grade set being delivered from Rockauto.com to use permanently.

Part # BH38178 (right front)is for a 84-96 Buick Century and can be used for both sides. This has the right fittings, and is 6" longer to use for those that have lifted, and need more travel out of their hoses.

Raybestos Pro Grade
Brake Hose End Type : Banjo & Female - M10 x 1.0
Brake Hose Length : Right front= 16.875"
Cost today on Rockauto=$7.04! :thumbsup:


Thanks for doing the work on this, found it.
 












Well. I think I have enough to build a "how to" for the coilover install but it really turned to sheetshow with buick brake lines requiring adapters because my factory lines were not fitted with deep enough fittings, weird noises in the suspension bushings even though they are all new,
-city wide garage sale, broken dishwasher,forum goes down, grandkids requires a birthday party, Highway patrol officer using betty for a driver test, you know, normal stuff.

but here ya go for now.

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she does want to be a mule
 









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Who won?
 






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