First Post! Excited to introduce "Penny Merc" a tale of troubleshooting an EBAY no-reserve truck while traveling from PA to TX during COVID19

[z13]

Hi Yall, it's been a long hot day, sorry if I ramble. Today is day 8 of ownership and I've got a lot of the bugs worked out. BUT, it's been a rollercoaster so far.
I put some pictures on here, but not sure how they'll show up for your reading mode so they are all attached, not inserted.

I purchased a 2007 Mountaineer Base v6 sight unseen on a no-reserve eBay auction. I was the winning bid for <$2k. It was a shot in the dark that missed the bullseye but at least hit the target. The truck has given me problems left and right, but they have been straightforward and inexpensively solved.

I'm not sure what my goal is for this vehicle, let me know what you think. It's a blank canvas currently.

So far;
1) Fresh oil change
2) Fresh Fuel filter
3) Coolant flush
4) Check of differential fluids and transmission fluids (look clean, proper levels)
5) Front wheel bearings - blowtorch and heat lube are good for this
6) Brake slide lube/clean up
7) Insulate connectors that had eroded sheathing in engine bay. Exposed wires were touching each other by the connector head, caused by hard plastic tubing physically cutting the heat-eroded wire insulation. This seriously reduced/maybe eliminated my rough idle and sputtering I thought was transfer case during deceleration and slow speeds neighborhood driving. Check your throttle position sensor plug for erosion and cross contacts.
8) Threw away the old 17 base wheels for 2013 20 inch 20" Explorer wheels, made fit with spacer ring. IDK the size, I will report back.
9) Strip interior - the interior was very dirty. I saved all the clips and didn't break any pieces. Used plastic trim tools and took my time. Headliner came down easily. Can I paint the ABS plastic to another color? I would love to do this in dark green or something unique
10) New Battery

To do ASAP;
Decide on what color carpet / headliner would go best.
Rear Bearings /hubs
Inspect rear driveshaft
Transmission pan drop / service
Gas tank baffle finger trick / troubleshoot gas gauge error (digital works fine, Penny can count her drinks)
LED resistor install
TPMS install
Headlight restoration
HID conversion (low/hi/fogs)
Wheel Center cap swap to Merc badge
custom box/storage /Sub install (already have 2xKenwood 10s)
Amp swap
onboard PC
Extra battery? (have 130amp alternator)


Mid term;
Coils - question, will these items work together? see pics
Wires
Plugs
Oil pre-sump
Billet grill
underbody lighting, grille lighting (RGB control via onboard PC)
Door speaker swap

Dream list / Pie in sky;
*Headliner in green suede or green felt
*Carpet in silver
*Paint the moldings? Cover with wood veneer maybe I just need to keep it khaki? Can I sand them down and spray with clear to look new? These things need help
*Aviator steering wheel swap (what others have good wood)
*LED strips in headliner
*Touchscreen monitor /PC in the double DIN area. I can build a micro ATX to run on 12V easily and can mount it where the satellite box was. I want to have a windows car. I like building PCs as a hobby.
*Always-on back-up camera/rear view (so I know when to throw the green shells and bananas)
*King Ranch drivers seat, F150, expedition, F250, whatever. I'd be ok with doing a custom center console to fit it.
*Rear AC vent delete/ extra front seat cooling. I don't really intend on having backseat passengers (and definitely no backseat drivers)
*Filing cabinet / tool box / refrigerator / printer scanner behind driver
*Dual exhaust a-la-Marauder
*Aluminum 4.7 or coyote 5.0 rebadge as Marauder AWD

I've got other wheels to keep me moving while I work on this project.

All comments welcome, thanks for reading.

 

[z13]

And, can I just give a huge thank you to everyone who writes here!

 

[Greg_DonWindsor]

Both those coils are for different applications. The Accel coil pack is for the V6 model, which then uses plug wires to connect to the spark plugs. The V8 is the Motor with the coil-on-plug design. See my recent post for an example of the upgrade available for the V8 model. I used the DUI aftermarket coils and wires on my old 2000 SOHC V6 truck as well with good results. My registry has a post regarding the V6 coil pack upgrade.

 

[z13]

Both those coils are for different applications. The Accel coil pack is for the V6 model, which then uses plug wires to connect to the spark plugs. The V8 is the Motor with the coil-on-plug design. See my recent post for an example of the upgrade available for the V8 model. I used the DUI aftermarket coils and wires on my old 2000 SOHC V6 truck as well with good results. My registry has a post regarding the V6 coil pack upgrade.

Thanks for clearing it up. I will use the ACCEL coil packs since I've got the v6

 

[drakon543]

seems like alot of effort seemingly for something that could have been bought locally with fewer problems also with fewer miles. im in pa aswell and recently purchased my 07 in the 3k range. priced higher than other ones i was looking at due to it having the extra options 120k and nice shape. plus i got to look at it and i only had to drive 45 min. but regardless if your having fun with it the rest doesn't matter. wheels do give it an extra pop but im more for a lifted aggressive look myself.

 

[z13]

seems like alot of effort seemingly for something that could have been bought locally.

I thought of my eBay bid as "low-ball longshot" and really thought someone would scoop it for more than 2k. Trying to make lemonade from lemons. I don't think I could have purchased this SUV for less, anywhere. But I have a track record of being wrong so take that with a grain of salt

 

[drakon543]

meh doesn't matter now your enjoying the project and your really digging in. im just making a comment nothing directly meant by it.