Cleaning up the old girl...

[Redraptor]

Hello all!

Ok, here is my story: around age 15 (9 years ago....damn feeling old) my dad decided to be a great father and get me my first car. That was a 1999 ford explorer XLT v8. It wasn't the most amazing thing on the face of the earth but it was "cool enough" anyway, I loved it all through high school and got many the happy times out of the vehicle.

Well two years ago I hit a patch of ice that sent me rolling right into a tree less than a mile from where I lived. It wasn't a bad crash. The car still ran fine, but the hood got pretty smashed up as well as the front left head lamp and grille. As far as I could see, it was mostly cosmetic. But regardless, it wasn't drivable without cops getting a bit crazy. I was able to drive it back to the house no problem, but it has been sitting there for the last 2 years. I've been meaning to get it fixed up, but money and other things seemed to get in the way.

Well now my current car is on its last legs, and I'm looking to sell both it and the explorer and get into something a bit more recent and fun!

So here I am. I have worked on cars VERY little but am anxious to learn more. My plan is to retrieve the truck from my old home and transport it about a mile down the road to my new residence, replace the parts that are damaged and sell the thing off. My biggest dilemma is money. I'm hoping to keep all this below 1k worth of repairs. So, even with my little knowledge of cars, I would like to do this myself (for the learning experience and cost savings).

Now I know I need pictures, information, ect. On the damaged parts, but I want to start with getting it over to my house first. SO WHAT DO I NEED TO DO?! The car has been sitting for 2 years and doesn't start. I believe it just needs a jump to get it going, but I'm afraid there might be more that I need to take care of first. So what should I do? Like I said, it's a very small distance I'm going but I don't want to do more harm than good, just to move it.

Thanks for the reading!!

 

[llamaking122]

I would start by changing the oil and other fluids hook up a good battery too it and crank it for a little while with the fuel pump relay off or the coils unplugged. what you want to do is prime the oil pump and get some oil in the engine. do not start it until you have cranked it and pressurized lifters gotten oil to the top end

 

[2000StreetRod]

fuel stabilizer?

Did you add fuel stabilizer to the tank when you decided to let it sit for two years? If not, your fuel may have deteriorated into noncombustable lacquer. You may have to drain the tank of the old fuel.

 

[Redraptor]

Ok when I mentioned I was a noob. I wasn't kidding. Lol I haven't even changed my own oil. I've been wanting too and I suppose this is a good time to learn. How do I turn the fuel pump relay off?

 

[anyexcuse]

Ok when I mentioned I was a noob. I wasn't kidding. Lol I haven't even changed my own oil. I've been wanting too and I suppose this is a good time to learn. How do I turn the fuel pump relay off?

You may be in over your head, to say the least, but good luck and hopfully the good people here can help you.

 

[pricetag2]

You might want to look at your brakes as well. I let mine (98 EB) sit for seven months and not only were the rotors very rusty, the rear calipers (both) had seized and had to be replaced.

 

[shadowless127]

Go to your local auto parts store and get a Haynes manual.

Also, you may want to take it to a body shop and just get an estimate done to see how much they'd charge you so you can at least get an idea of what needs to be done. If you're a n00b this will help a lot.

Also, Junk Yards and the For Sale forum on this site will save you $$