My 4th Aerostar.

[gersfeld]

We bought a 92 Rear wheel"mini" way back. I loved it but hated that it was too small for my tall husband and I and 3 kids, though it was better than my Sunbird!

After that we bought a 94 AWD extended gorgeous vehicle, loaded with everything! The only issues I had up until I totaled it was trans trouble.

We then bought a new left over 97 i n January of 1998. We had that until 6 months ago and after two accidents(not mine) it just got too difficult to find parts to fix it. We saved the ranger engine with about 80,000 original miles though and a solid rebuilt trans. We also saved the nice aluminum wheels and we STUPIDLY scrapped the rest which was in like new shape!!! I could scream and pull my hair out now but we needed the money. I even threw out the repair manual!

I was just going to settle for my husbands beater Honda but barely had room in the trunk for groceries and Pet food, not to mention my big dogs.

Then I saw an ad for another 97 Extended AWD in Kansas(I'm in Pa. ) It has some nice trim,was supposed to be rust free and had 132,000 miles on it(plus we had a good an engine and trans for a spare).

I paID 2944.00 PLUS SHIPPING AND WHEN WE GOT IT THE ROOF WAS RUSTING...SIGH. The DEALER LIED. what ELSE IS NEW.oops caps lock.

It runs like a dream although the fuse to the instrument panel was blown and now that we replaced it the check engine light went on(Here we go!)

Its nice and clean inside though it needs a new front headliner and the back one is dried and dusty too.Seats are nice,but 3rd row seat is missing it's seat belt socket. How it passed inspection I have no idea!

I had a heckuva time finding a new rear wiper switch that worked. I found ONE in a junk yard with only 4 of them.(Aerostars). If the other two junk yards in our area one has none and the other has two, nearly stripped clean.

I must be insane for getting another one!!! When we bought the 97 new we had trouble from the get go...you name it, it happened.Every summer I drove it with the AC running it stalled intermittently, usually at an intersection. Even with a new engine it retained that problem. Ford NEVER did figure out why that happened.

After 1,500 miles it needed a new trans, and in the course of looking for the stalling problem they found it had been running on 5 cylinders. One rod was bent. Then after about 70,000 miles the trans needed a rebuild, so the place that did it has a solid rep and we never had trouble after that.

after it reached approximately 150,000 miles we had some AC/Heat issues. Replaced the radiator, recharged the Compressor, replaced BOTH heater cores, but ever after the front heat refused to run and the rear AC made the heat come out on the floor . Oh AND, the stalling problem began intermittently, even when not using the AC. Oddly it always seemed to happen most often when turning left and going uphill a,d toward the end it didn't even wait till I stopped at an intersection. it stalled a few times while going 55! front suspension was crap. Tie rod ends replaced a few times, and also shortly before we said good buy it needed an entire front axle.

What finally did her in was the brakes. We could not figure out why we could not find the problem. It shuddered horribly and refused to stop quickly. We replaced the ABS module and I forget what other things we tried. We finally gave up after 14 years and off to the crusher she went.

The new one is nice,but I don't like the bed folding feature of the 3rd row seat. I liked the front fold best....so were looking for a mocha seat that folds forward. We also need some interior trim around the front side windows and around the window switches. There's no rust anywhere but the roof and we spent the last bit we had on the shipping so, my husband IS GOIng TO HAVE TO USE A SPAY CAN AND SAND AND REPAIR THE RuST HIMSELF....damn caps Lock AGAIN!

So I am crazy. Maybe I should sell?! Sunday I am going to drive nearly 100 miles to buy some stuff from a guy parting his out, but after THAT maybe I should sell!

I'll post pics too.

 

[BrooklynBay]

Don't get rid of it so fast. I haven't seen any in this condition for a long time. Try to fix what you can.

 

[gersfeld]

heres my frustration

What if I wanted to restore it??! Lord knows they're getting few and far between. I have no idea where I get good interior parts. We drove 200 miles today just to get some trim pieces,but they're pretty dirty(not a problem) and some are already brittle and cracking in spots. It's not like the '56 F-100 my step dad had. Parts for those are still easy to find. Look for a part for a '65Chevy Malibu SS like my mom had?! No problem!! I realize Ford sees Aerostar as a failure to a degree,but isn't anyone going to make some interior after market parts??!?!

 

[BrooklynBay]

Check EBay, Amazon, and Craigslist.

 

[Josh P]

I know the feeling about finding parts. I own a merkur xr4ti and Scorpio. I'm on my 3rd van from people running into me.

 

[Jose A.]

I have a 1997 with the Mocha interior, (my third Aerostar), very few were made in that color so the trick is to get the parts you need in the normal Grey color and then go to an automotive paint store where they can match the color of one of your good parts and you can spray the parts. (Ford sprayed the parts anyway).

Headliner: I know where you can get the exact Mocha color headliner used by Ford. Not expensive.

Roof: where is the rust? is it in the water channels? They all do that. Sand it off, use silicone-paintable caulking at the seams, mask the rest of the body, and repaint the flat roof, you can do it with 4 cans of spray made by Duplicolor or similar. Not easy but doable.

The point is this: these vans are not getting any younger. Get them while you can. They are becoming "classics". Right now I know of 2 in decent condition and their prices have gone up, the cheapest one is selling for $4.600.00 especially the extended body with the 4.0 liter engine. You need to test drive and inspect them yourself before laying the money on the table. Or get someone who knows these vans to do it for you if buying long distance.

Engine: the stalling can be the intake gasket failure known to be an issue in the 1996-and 1997 4.0 liter engine. Once that issue is repaired with revised gaskets, the engine will last.

Check Engine Light: go to any Autozone or Advance and tell them to read the Codes for the CEL. It might be an Oxygen Sensor, or some other sensor that needs replacing.

The Aerostar was not a failure, it was made for 11 years, but Ford could not keep up with the Federal Regulations and dropped it, it became too costly to continue adding safety equipment and modifications to protect drivers from themselves.

As for parts, I can get many used parts. (Ask Brooklyn Bay and other member here). But don't expect them to be cheap as pulling them yourself locally. Shipping takes its toll on the price. Nowadays some parts the salvage yard refuses to sell them separately but as an "assembly".

 

[gersfeld]

I sure would like to know where to get the headline. I need one. Even the rear long headliner, while intact is crumbling and dust falls from it. The Midwestern heat baked it to death.

The engine runs like new suspension is solid, brakes work well. What I need is interior parts. I noticed that the seat belt supports in the center row bucket seats are missing(broken off), so I need those. I wish I had noticed that before we went to the junk yard!!

I also need the mounting braket that the rear right bench seat belts snap back into. Its missing. An\y ideas?

 

[Jose A.]

post pictures.

you can get the headliner FABRIC, not the headliner pad. you need to scrape the old fabric from the foam pad and glue new fabric using 3M Headliner Adhesive Spray, takes about 3 or 4 cans.

 

[gersfeld]

Ok where do I get the fabric?

 

[Jose A.]

best to call them and tell them the vehicle you have, they will send you color samples.

the one you want is 3/16ths thick foam backed as used by Ford. Measure the entire area you want to cover and add about 4 feet to the total.

you will note that in the front and back edges of the pads the fabric is folded over the edges.

click on the following link:

http://www.miamicorp.com/products/HEADLINING/3@@2f16@@22 HEADLINING.aspx

 

[gersfeld]

Thanks. Fortunately I got another headline too so I can cover the one that is already out. I wish I had gotten the big one from the old van too!

 

[Jose A.]

yeahh me too, I have 2 of the front pads and one extra for the back, mine is the extended body.

 

[gersfeld]

I also have the extended body and should have pulled the long rear headliner from the van we went to see that was being parted out. Its too far to go again.

 

[Jose A.]

do you not have pull-a-part yards in Penn ?

 

[gersfeld]

We have 3 in our 20 mile radius. One yard had 4 Aerostars, and of those only 1 had barely useable parts. Another yard had 1 nearly stripped clean and another, the cloest one had 0.