Newbie needing some help!

[johnvosh]

So I am new to the Ford Explorer's. Just got myself a 1993 Explorer Sport. It's got the 4.0L engine, 5 speed manual tranny and electronic 4 wheel drive.

The guy I got it from had it sitting for a little over a year. Took and started right up though with a battery and a boost. It is actually not in too bad of shape. Not much body rust, green colour, decent interior, aftermarket deck, and the cruise control actually works!

Drove fairly decent. Smooth shifting except for a rear shaking past 100 KM/H. Fill neck where the cap screws in is a bit rusted. Looks like he changed the spark plugs with some NGK's. Going to do an oil change, fuel filter this weekend coming up.

Now's here's my problems. The battery is good, full charge, 900 CCA. When I go to start it, it almost doesn't want to turn over. It is acting like the battery is weak. Alternator is charging, lights all work, no check engine light. I took and put a battery charger/booster on it and set it to the 135AMP start and it turned over good. What could be causing this???

Also, how hard is it to change the ignition cylinder? I can take and turn it without the key in. When you do this, I get a buzzing, but it won't start without the key in.

Thanks in advance for all the help and advice!

 

[ragajungle]

slow starts are either the starter going out - or lack of charge.

 

[little x]

Could easily be internally corroded battery cables. It's a common problem with 1st gens.

 

[johnvosh]

So I guess I'll change the cables first since they are cheap and then go from there.

The other thing I forgot is, the stick shift seems to be loose. Is there any way to tighten it up? I ended up going to 3rd instead of 5th.

Thanks again for the help!

 

[FIND]

Probably corroded wires or a bad connection for your starting problems. Have the battery tested though anyways. As for your shake, that is probably just a tire out of balance or a bad tire.

 

[little x]

There are bushings that wear out (break into pieces) that cause the sloppy shifting. You can get a kit that will come with all the parts to firm it back up, or you can get a hurst shifter and really tighten up the pattern.

 

[Anime]

Nice ride!

Sometimes it is the cables, but not always. If you check out the postive cable connection at the starter, look if there is a lot of yellow or blue corrosion in the copper wire. You might also check the grounds, on the passenger side of the engine block (look through the fenderwell behind the shock), and the outside of the frame (same side, in front of the coil spring bucket)

If it has a lot of miles/kms on it, the starter brushes do wear out. They seem to go around the 200,000 mile mark, and symptoms are not starting but getting a single click when you turn the key. New brushes are available instead of buying a whole new starter, which I highly recommend to save money and keep the high quality OE part if it still has it.

Other than that, you are looking at a new battery. Even ones that test good can be bad when they are loaded and trying to start an engine.


I wouldn't bother with the ignition cylinder, since usually you have to get a new key.

And as stated, the shifter bushings will really tighten things up. You can change them out just by popping off the shifter, but be careful not to get any bits of the cracked up bushings in the transmission! Its a good idea to stuff a rag or something in the hole that you can pull back out to keep this from happening.

Another thing, you might consider changing out the NGK plugs to Motorcrafts. NGK makes good plugs, but Motorcrafts seem to give the best performance in these motors, and take care of issues associated with using other plugs. If you don't have engine/ignition problems don't worry about it, but it's something to consider if running issues crop up.

Congrats on the new ride and welcome to the forums!

 

[johnvosh]

Thanks everyone for all the advice and help. I would say it does have quite a bit of mileage, 300,000 KM's. I don't think it is the starter bushings though as when I turn the key it does turn the engine over (don't hear any clicking), but sounds like I have a low battery even though the battery tested good and works fine in two other vehicles.

Are hurst shifters expensive and are they worth it? Does anyone have pictures of how to remove and replace the bearings in the shifter? I don't want to mess anything up!

One thing I will say though is the clutch pedal is a heck of a lot tighter than it is in my 2010 Cobalt. After driving the Explorer then driving my car I found I was pushing the pedal a bit too hard!

I found a new ignition lock assembly at Part Source for $55 which comes with keys so that I'll probably take and change out.

The spark plugs I was reading about on this forum and find it funny. I've owned GM products my entire life and you can put any brand of plug/wire in and not have problems. Any reason they don't like the other plugs/wires? I can't see how they could be much different from the OE.

I think after some TLC this thing is going to be a good winter vehicle. Any other problems I should know about so I can keep a look out for them.

 

[FIND]

Thanks everyone for all the advice and help. I would say it does have quite a bit of mileage, 300,000 KM's. I don't think it is the starter bushings though as when I turn the key it does turn the engine over (don't hear any clicking), but sounds like I have a low battery even though the battery tested good and works fine in two other vehicles.

An engine that just clicks when you try and start it instead of turning over would be a bad starter solenoid. An engine that just turns over real slow or has a large amp draw is usually a bad starter or brushes. The fact that you can put yours on a battery booster and get it to turn over nicely suggests that you either have a weak battery or bad connections/grounds. However, it is still possible that it could just be a worn out starter.

If you really want a new ignition cylinder, go to a locksmith and have them order a new one based on your key instead of just getting a random one from the parts store. They are not hard to replace. Pull the cover off the steering column, turn the key to the on position, there is a pin you can press in and then you can slide the ignition cylinder out. Then slide in your new one. Expect to pay 20-35 bucks for the locksmith to order you an ignition cylinder. If you want them to install it, you would probably be looking at 60-100.

The clutch will normally be a little stiffer in an explorer than a cobalt. Perfectly normal.

 

[johnvosh]

Well I took and put it up on jacks today and went thru the entire SUV. It actually wasn't that bad, even for sitting for over a year.

It has a slight grind on the right rear break, which isn't major and possibly a worn axle seal on that side as well. I was trying to find the check/fill plug for the rear diff. How do you guys check it? Found that the transfer case didn't have much fluid in it. Put my pinky finger in and couldn't feel any fluid. I took and tried to put some fluid in and got maybe 1/4 to 1/3 of a litre in it. I think I got more on the floor than in it. How do you guys find is the easiest way to fill it?

Got the stick shift figured out. It actually wasn't the bushings, just the nut that holds it was loose. Tightened it and all was good. Got two of my speakers working. I also found out my my passenger door lock isn't working. The plastic piece on the lock assembly was broken. So for some reason it won't lock from the inside now either.

Took and replaced the positive battery cable going to the starter. The other one was not in the greatest of shape any more. Corrosion even under the sheath. Also took and remove the starter to clean it and found that the top bolt was just sitting there and only the bottom bolt was holding it in. Anyways, cleaned it and the contacts. Put a new battery in and it is still doing the same thing. I think I am going to a visit to Pick N Pull and pull one as well as an alternator.

I do find that they is a slight bit of hesitation though when it is first started. It is either because of the plugs, wires or I am guessing probably from the old fuel in the tank. It had less than an 1/8th tank left and I put 20L of premium fuel in. I am hoping it gets better once I put new fuel in it.

 

[FIND]

The fill plug on the differential is on the drivers side front, right behind the corner of the fuel tank.

If you don't have a pump to put fluid in, I like to use some fairly thick (3/8" ID) rubber tubing attached to the top of a gear oil bottle to add the fluid. Otherwise, you can find flexible funnels with small tips.

 

[johnvosh]

Well got the starter changed out with one from the local Pick N Pull. Looks like it is a reman one so should last me a while hopefully.

Now I have a question about the 4 wheel drive on these things. What is the fastest I can drive in 4hi? On my old '94 Suburban and my old '02 Duramax I could do 110 KM/H in 4hi. And if I were to change to manual locking hubs, what all do I need to replace?

Thanks once again.

 

[little x]

I *think* 55mph is top recommended speed for 4x4. But maybe you should ask yourself this: "If I need 4x4, do I NEED to be going faster then 55 mph?" I've never driven faster then 25 or 30 mph in 4x4: because if I needed 4x4 I didn't need to be going too fast. Remember, 4x4 helps you GO not STOP!