Help:eek: Aussie damsel in distress here:-)

[1991 sploder]

And my advice is you cant fix something that's not broken.. Don't go opening any cans of worms up there.

 

[jmrdv]

Mechanics are like every other trade people. Some are honest and some are crooks. In your situation, the detailed written list of absolutely requried repairs including an estimate of cost and time to repair is first,. If it is as bad as it sounds then be prepared to pay for the time to analyze and build this list with the cost coming off the repairs if and when they are done. Once you have the first list - go somewhere else and get the same checks done again but do not tell them you were elsewhere first. Now compare the two.
Just remember that in the end if they are both telling you expensive things then throwing good money after bad is never a good choice.

 

[Argentimage]

Yea I mean lpg I would say actually is beneficial if it's done correctly and I'm sure it was. You drove it on the highway I'm guessing there's no check engine light. The ticking could even be an exhaust leak. Don't go just yet unplugging and dismantling everything it could cause additional problems. People take these up past 500 thousand miles. Not dismissing what others have stated..early years for that timing chain setup ECT but runs is runs.

LPG was put in these same model years in South America due to the high cost of gasoline and they are still running strong, if, as other have said - you change the oil as it sould be changed.

 

[Jimmy Sport]

First thing first, get them to put the steering wheel on the correct side.

Nice looking truck. I hope everything works out for you.

 

[donalds]

Lol it is on the right side

 

[maxxxx]

First thing first, get them to put the steering wheel on the correct side.

Nice looking truck. I hope everything works out for you.

a few years ago I was backpacking alone around the States. In Lousiana I met some South Africans driving crazily around as WTF wrong side of the road.I joined them but we were all a bit hopeless. We met some fantastic fun toothless old fellas around the bayous though...we were all speaking English but only vaguely understanding one another

 

[maxxxx]

And my advice is you cant fix something that's not broken.. Don't go opening any cans of worms up there.

Yeah, I'm a " hope for the best but prepare for the worst" kinda gal...I just hate surprises when I know I'm gonna be under time pressure with noisy dependants in the car....not so fun and adventurous then.

I'm gonna take the boring route up to QLD for Xmas...along highways where roadside assistance guys are mechanics in small towns and they are really nice guys along that route (I've always bought cheap old cars and have broken down several times!).It's not so much the breaking down which bothers me, I always enjoy meeting nice people in small towns,sitting chatting in localcafes while they fix the car etc ....it's the worry that I've been told this engine doesn't handle LPG well...so I'm concerned deep inner damage has been, and could continue to be done if I don't mitgate it now.

But I discovered the LPG tank is under the car at the back and the filling nozzle for the gas is in the towing bar? Interesting!

Anyway for today it's midday on the 2nd here..my old park mechanic guy was supposed to arrive at 8am and I was gonna start filming all the stages as we added oils, checked bits of engines. Disappointing

 

[Falcon1965]

haha yes I do love the desert.Lots of crazies out there - wild-eyed guys running away from the law/their lives. At uni I worked taking international students away on weekends etc. A group of military guys from West Point one weekend kept exclaiming " wow, WILD [waaarld] man!!" over and over. I asked them what on earth was so wild. "EVERYTHING MAN, EVERYTHING"

It's nice that is running, I just looked at a 2002 they only wanted $500 for it sad part is the rear timing chain is broken and calls for an engine pull then you have to have valves checked to me did not seem worth it so passed the 4liters here are terrible one guy even suggested another motor from a salvege yard still have to pull motor, I hope you get it figured out and an oil change is the remedy

 

[dbredes]

Howdy all. I joined this forum for 2 years as you all seem so knowledeable and kind. But...help

I'm a student who got carried away at an auction last week - fell hopelessly (irrationally) in love with a '1998 Ford Explorer UP 4.0 litre 4D V6 12V SOHC MPFI (153KW). It has done 187km.

Mechanics are doing the "see a smiley slightly nervous young girl" thing & claiming totally exhorbitant lists of repairs needed to register it. One mechanic over the phone even said the LPG officially put in in 2000 would have destroyed the engine (as EVERYONE knows this about Explorers apparently) and the engine won't last me more than 2000 km more so I should junk it (and he has a better one to sell me of course)

I'm in a new area, so have no idea if these mechanics are puling my leg or not.I've been reading all these forums and that doesn't sounds right...but...maybe I am being naive? Now I have information overload! It drives ok and cosmetically is immaculate..But sounds...well...a bit rough. The guy who owned it last died in June so it's been left for months. I am thinking it just needs a whole lot of fluids. But which ones do I start with?

1st Stop, change oil, not sure what "LPG" is, propane?, natural gas? A bit rough? Details please.

 

[maxxxx]

1st Stop, change oil, not sure what "LPG" is, propane?, natural gas? A bit rough? Details please.

LPG is...liquid petroleum gas. I didn't want to say gas (which is what we call it here) as that's what Americans call petrol. Here is an article some might find interesting ...you know everything is upside down and ass-backwards down here.

Petrol vs Diesel vs LPG: Which fuel is best?

We take two 4x4s, crunch the numbers and settle the debate for diesel, petrol and LPG.

www.whichcar.com.au

 

[CDW6212R]

The different fuels each work best with different compression ratios. So a higher compression engine will do better with LPG than a low compression engine. The SOHC was kind of high for a Ford back in the 90's, which is why it performed well and much better than the OHV 4.0 version. The LPG can run very well with compression ratios of 15:1 or more. Typical gasoline engines have ratio's closer to 9:1 to 10.5:1, so any LPG conversion is a compromise, simply not ideal for that fuel. As some countries have really high prices for gasoline, it moves LPG closer to being more feasible. That's why they do it a lot in some places.

 

[German Engineer]

LPG is...liquid petroleum gas. I didn't want to say gas (which is what we call it here) as that's what Americans call petrol. Here is an article some might find interesting ...you know everything is upside down and ass-backwards down here.

Petrol vs Diesel vs LPG: Which fuel is best?

We take two 4x4s, crunch the numbers and settle the debate for diesel, petrol and LPG.

www.whichcar.com.au

Americans just say gas as lazy short form of the word gasoline. Petrol, I believe is short for petroleum, which is what gasoline is derived from.
LPG is liquified petroleum gas also often called autogas. CNG as in compressed natural gas is another somewhat common conversion for car engines, where the gas is actually a gas and not a liquid. What a wonderfully confusing mess of terms.

Buy the way, the German word for gasoline is "Benzin", not to be confused with benzene....

 

[CDW6212R]

...

Buy the way, the German word for gasoline is "Benzin", not to be confused with benzene....

Is that a fancy brand, like a Mercedes?

 

[BigBlueBrick]

What a cool trunk! I had a 1998 SOHC a few years ago but had to let it go due to the timing issue. I got it for free as my first car from a family friend who absolutely thrashed it. I brought it back to life and cleaned it out, but couldn't undo the engine's neglect from the previous owner. Even still, I got almost 50k miles out of it before it quit at 180k. Not too shabby for someone else's beater, but you live and you learn. Now I've got another blue 98 with the 5.0 soon to be 4wd swapped. The thing is an absolute beast.


If taken care of, those SOHC v6's can be hot motors and real work horses. I hope you get yours sorted out without too much trouble! Our explorers are actually really cool underappreciated trucks IMO.

 

[donalds]

What a cool trunk! I had a 1998 SOHC a few years ago but had to let it go due to the timing issue. I got it for free as my first car from a family friend who absolutely thrashed it. I brought it back to life and cleaned it out, but couldn't undo the engine's neglect from the previous owner. Even still, I got almost 50k miles out of it before it quit at 180k. Not too shabby for someone else's beater, but you live and you learn. Now I've got another blue 98 with the 5.0 soon to be 4wd swapped. The thing is an absolute beast.


If taken care of, those SOHC v6's can be hot motors and real work horses. I hope you get yours sorted out without too much trouble! Our explorers are actually really cool underappreciated trucks IMO.

Yep it's always fun to see people's faces when my wife chirps the tires between gears

Take care of it and it will last

 

[9794shmazdaranger]

LPG is...liquid petroleum gas. I didn't want to say gas (which is what we call it here) as that's what Americans call petrol. Here is an article some might find interesting ...you know everything is upside down and ass-backwards down here.

Petrol vs Diesel vs LPG: Which fuel is best?

We take two 4x4s, crunch the numbers and settle the debate for diesel, petrol and LPG.

www.whichcar.com.au

This whole universe is back asswords everywhere. Up is down, down is up, red is blue and vise-versa..

 

[Juanhmi]

Hard to say from what you're telling us. They could be pulling your leg, but it is also possible that the mechanic may indeed be right.
LPG has a fairly high octane rating and that can indeed cause issues.
I have no idea if the 4.0 SOHC engine is an engine that handles LPG rather well or not when it's converted. And who knows how well or poorly the conversion was done, and how well or not the previous owner took care of the car and engine.

So it might be useful to do some research about LPG conversion of cars with this specific engine to get a general idea how it affects the lifetime of this engine.

It's good that you're being weary. Let them thoroughly explain all the necessary repairs and what is wrong with the engine you have in there.
With the little information you posted it's nearly impossible to say if the mechanic is generally right with the assessment or not.

The best way to find out is letting the mechanic give a detailed list of necessary repairs with a cost estimate and then checking back if the suggested necessary repairs are typical for converted (or stock) 4.0L SOHC engines to happen like that and to see if the whole thing and the damages 'make sense' or not. If the diagnosis and the estimate seems reasonable or fishy.

Oh, and about the fluids,... I would recommend flushing the engine and then replacing it with new oil and adding some Liqui Moly MoS2 additive to the Engine oil (This stuff made my 4.0 OHV engine sound like new again when I added it, the difference was surprisingly noticeable, it will naturally make your engine oil black, so don't be alarmed about that then afterwards. This MoS2 additive is just naturally black.). But if the engine really needs some major repairs then there may not be much point in changing the oil before having it fixed

PS: On the conversion, maybe this general opinion here helps a little and it might help you see what type of conversion was installed in your vehicle:
Ford Explorer LPG

Just chiming in on that oil additive suggestion, never heard of it. I'm also running a '99 V6 OHV. At what mileage did you use that additive? I'm at 233k and always wanting to do anything I can to keep things happy.

 

[German Engineer]

Just chiming in on that oil additive suggestion, never heard of it. I'm also running a '99 V6 OHV. At what mileage did you use that additive? I'm at 233k and always wanting to do anything I can to keep things happy.

It's an additive developed in Germany many years ago. My Dad used and still uses it in all of his and our family vehicles no matter the age. And that's how I learned about it and why I also always used it.

I must say I'm generally not exactly a big fan of all these additive things that you can pour into any fluids in your vehicle these days. This is simply because often those things are fairly expensive and actual tests and studies often times reveal that they may even be rather useless.

But that MoS2 additive really is good stuff that's around for many, many years now and it indeed works really well. It's a 'dry lubricant' similar to graphene. Here's a link that explains what MoS2 is and how it works.
Molybdenum disulfide - Wikipedia
It also somewhat accumulates inside the tiny groves that form with mechanical wear and smoothens out the surfaces that way.

You can find the Liqui Moly MoS2 stuff online, but at least the Advanced Auto Parts stores here in the area where I live also carry it. But here where I am they're the only ones that have it. (Liqui Moly is a German brand that also offers a bunch of other additives as well these days, so don't confuse those with the MoS2 additive that they make, and which they started out their business with. Hence also the name of the brand.)

Back in Germany I just always had it in the oil in all my cars, in Diesel or gasoline engines likewise.

Here in the US despite looking for it now and then I just couldn't find it for quite a while, and when I finally found it and added it to the Oil in my Explorer I was surprised how noticeably quieter, smoother the engine sound of my 4.0 OHV (with 195k miles) immediately was.

This stuff is the one thing that I really recommend adding to your engine oil, no matter how old or new your vehicle, simply because it does reduce wear at any stage of an engine's lifetime. The effect of the additive may be more easily noticeable on older vehicles of course (like in the noticeably smoother engine sound of my old Explorer), but it reduces mechanical - 'tribological' wear in old and new engines likewise.

On the 4.0 SOHC engines I imagine this MoS2 stuff should probably also be able to help extend the lifetime of the timing-chain guides and tensioners.

 

[9794shmazdaranger]

It's an additive developed in Germany many years ago. My Dad used and still uses it in all of his and our family vehicles no matter the age. And that's how I learned about it and why I also always used it.

I must say I'm generally not exactly a big fan of all these additive things that you can pour into any fluids in your vehicle these days. This is simply because often those things are fairly expensive and actual tests and studies often times reveal that they may even be rather useless.

But that MoS2 additive really is good stuff that's around for many, many years now and it indeed works really well. It's a 'dry lubricant' similar to graphene. Here's a link that explains what MoS2 is and how it works.
Molybdenum disulfide - Wikipedia
It also somewhat accumulates inside the tiny groves that form with mechanical wear and smoothens out the surfaces that way.

You can find the Liqui Moly MoS2 stuff online, but at least the Advanced Auto Parts stores here in the area where I live also carry it. But here where I am they're the only ones that have it. (Liqui Moly is a German brand that also offers a bunch of other additives as well these days, so don't confuse those with the MoS2 additive that they make, and which they started out their business with. Hence also the name of the brand.)

Back in Germany I just always had it in the oil in all my cars, in Diesel or gasoline engines likewise.

Here in the US despite looking for it now and then I just couldn't find it for quite a while, and when I finally found it and added it to the Oil in my Explorer I was surprised how noticeably quieter, smoother the engine sound of my 4.0 OHV (with 195k miles) immediately was.

This stuff is the one thing that I really recommend adding to your engine oil, no matter how old or new your vehicle, simply because it does reduce wear at any stage of an engine's lifetime. The effect of the additive may be more easily noticeable on older vehicles of course (like in the noticeably smoother engine sound of my old Explorer), but it reduces mechanical - 'tribological' wear in old and new engines likewise.

On the 4.0 SOHC engines I imagine this MoS2 stuff should probably also be able to help extend the lifetime of the timing-chain guides and tensioners.

The only stuff I add to my vehicle in Lucas heavy duty oil stabilizer or seafoam straight through the intake manifold once or twice a year and add it to my gas every once in awhile. I heard marvel mystery oil is pretty good but I never really use it. Swear by seafoam and Lucas though.

 

[donalds]

I use marvel mystery oil in my gas
Good stuff