MrWizard
Active Member
- Joined
- March 9, 2007
- Messages
- 80
- Reaction score
- 4
- City, State
- Bay Area, CA
- Year, Model & Trim Level
- '94 XLT, '98 XLT
Long story but I bought a '98 Explorer 2x4 SOHC for essentially nothing.
Belonged to a guy's daughter who ran it into the ground and left it for dead. It looked and ran like a complete piece of junk.
Though it would be a neat project car, so I decided to bring it back to life.
p.s. This is a fantastic forum. Most of the diagnosis and repairs came from reading hundreds of posts on explorerforum.
Think I'm trying for the record for most repairs done in one month:
Replaced:
* Upper and Lower Intake Manifold Gaskets
( crappy cold start idle - fixed )
* IAC Valve
( took 4-5 seconds to cold start, new IAC fixed that )
* Front Wheel Bearings, inner and outer
( was replacing the rotors and hub anyway )
* Replaced Upper Control Arms/ Upper & Lower Ball Joints
( knocking noise, bad handling, disintegrated boots )
* Front & Rear Brake Pads and Rotors, caliper slide bolts
( grinding pads and rotors, rear rotors causing severe pedal vibration while braking )
* Right Rear Door Lock Actuator
( wouldn't always lock the door )
* Driver's Seat Recline Mechanism & Seat Cushion
( fine if you can drive while laying on the floor )
* Thermostat Housing, Seal, Sensors, Thermostat, Coolant, Lower Radiator Hose, Serpentine Belt, Idler Pulley
( Thermostat housing leaking like a sieve, mysterious leak, musta been a gallon of coolant hidden on top of the engine )
* Windshield
( the one thing I paid someone else to replace )
* Corroded battery cable
( fell apart )
* Front Floor Mats ; Wiper Blades, front & rear ; Air Filter, Oil, Oil Filter
* Front Shocks
( jarring ride, rotted bushings - much better ride now )
Repaired:
* Overhead Console Temp/Compass Display
( thanks for the fix! )
* Headlight Switch
( corroded, no parking lights )
* Lubricated Both Door Locks
( didn't work with key )
* Re-skinned Center Console with new matching leather
( I guess they all tear and fall apart )
* Rebuilt the Alternator
( dropped dead abruptly, fixed with rebuilder-in-a-box kit )
Misc:
* Cut and programmed two new PATS door/ignition keys
* Painted Roof rails, side pillars, cowl air intake ; Dyed faded rear bumper back to black
* Buffed yellowed headlights, put on UV sealant ; Buffed oxidation off paint.
( Looks great now! )
To Do:
* Have a new water pump in the box, don't need it...yet.
* Replace Serpentine belt tensioner to see if weird groaning noise goes away.
Belonged to a guy's daughter who ran it into the ground and left it for dead. It looked and ran like a complete piece of junk.
Though it would be a neat project car, so I decided to bring it back to life.
p.s. This is a fantastic forum. Most of the diagnosis and repairs came from reading hundreds of posts on explorerforum.
Think I'm trying for the record for most repairs done in one month:
Replaced:
* Upper and Lower Intake Manifold Gaskets
( crappy cold start idle - fixed )
* IAC Valve
( took 4-5 seconds to cold start, new IAC fixed that )
* Front Wheel Bearings, inner and outer
( was replacing the rotors and hub anyway )
* Replaced Upper Control Arms/ Upper & Lower Ball Joints
( knocking noise, bad handling, disintegrated boots )
* Front & Rear Brake Pads and Rotors, caliper slide bolts
( grinding pads and rotors, rear rotors causing severe pedal vibration while braking )
* Right Rear Door Lock Actuator
( wouldn't always lock the door )
* Driver's Seat Recline Mechanism & Seat Cushion
( fine if you can drive while laying on the floor )
* Thermostat Housing, Seal, Sensors, Thermostat, Coolant, Lower Radiator Hose, Serpentine Belt, Idler Pulley
( Thermostat housing leaking like a sieve, mysterious leak, musta been a gallon of coolant hidden on top of the engine )
* Windshield
( the one thing I paid someone else to replace )
* Corroded battery cable
( fell apart )
* Front Floor Mats ; Wiper Blades, front & rear ; Air Filter, Oil, Oil Filter
* Front Shocks
( jarring ride, rotted bushings - much better ride now )
Repaired:
* Overhead Console Temp/Compass Display
( thanks for the fix! )
* Headlight Switch
( corroded, no parking lights )
* Lubricated Both Door Locks
( didn't work with key )
* Re-skinned Center Console with new matching leather
( I guess they all tear and fall apart )
* Rebuilt the Alternator
( dropped dead abruptly, fixed with rebuilder-in-a-box kit )
Misc:
* Cut and programmed two new PATS door/ignition keys
* Painted Roof rails, side pillars, cowl air intake ; Dyed faded rear bumper back to black
* Buffed yellowed headlights, put on UV sealant ; Buffed oxidation off paint.
( Looks great now! )
To Do:
* Have a new water pump in the box, don't need it...yet.
* Replace Serpentine belt tensioner to see if weird groaning noise goes away.
..... good job bud. Keep her roll'n. Love to see ppl put time into their xplorers. Thats what im doing to my $850 damn near rust free 98 eddie w/timing chain rattle right now, not that big of a list (as of now) but did tackle a couple of what you posted (intake gaskets, thermostat housing). Got more to tackle, but i got time 
