My other car (Warning: Ford Content)

[SJMaxwell]

Yes, it takes some getting used to. They are conveniently 11 miles away so we use them regularly. Very helpful if you phone them and the Gold Card discount can save a few quid if you are on a big build budget.

I think you may be Dave's new go-to guy if you get discounts!

Its good to read that the monster is progressing and hopefully I'll get to see "RedFord" at Newby

 

[Blobcat]

This thread is seriously lacking in pictures

 

[daveenty]

Its good to read that the monster is progressing and hopefully I'll get to see "RedFord" at Newby

Robert.
Redford is the surname (and description)

This thread is seriously lacking in pictures

As the car's been up on a lift in my mate's garage for nearly 5 months now, there's a legitimate reason for that lack.

Not only that, when I do get any chance of taking a picture or two, I've inevitably forgotten to bring my phone with me...

Just put the new track rod end and drag link rubber boots on it, makes a pleasant change to just be able to replace the boot (at less than a couple of quid each) and not the complete part, all of which are totally unworn, as usually seems the way nowadays.

 

[daveenty]

Eventually got the truck back at my place last Thursday so I can start doing all those little bits and pieces which start to add up. I've got it booked in for alignment this Friday with a local place, they seemed happy enough to attempt it when I spoke to them and they also seemed to appreciate what the car was, basically old. It definitely needs the camber/caster sorting though as it's currently driving like a Tesco shopping trolley.

A good few jobs slowly being done, some more pressing than others. The electric choke isn't operating correctly so I'll have a look at that firstly as it's inconvenient having to keep leaping out and setting it manually. It's taking it's live feed from the coil which is not recommended according to Holley, the carb manufacturers, as the voltage is not high enough. Not a problem hopefully, I'm sure I can find another switched live in the rat's nest of wiring under the bonnet. The horn is another thing which has been bugging me. It had been placed on a toggle switch under the dash for some reason and was pretty erratic to say the least. I've now rewired it and it's working first time now, though I'm going to try to wire it back up the column to be operated by a button in the centre of the newly ordered steering wheel where it should be.

Had all the dashboard out for a couple of days. I was originally thinking of changing the speedo from the KPH one which it's currently fitted with for some reason, to an original MPH one. There are a couple for sale on the bay of dreams currently but they're killing the prices with the shipping and import costs, so I'll probably learn to live with it in kilometres. It is however allowing me the chance to change a few bulbs which are no longer functioning, such as the indicator warning arrows and the ignition light which has just packed in today. Eventually got it all back together and all bulbs working (at the moment). It turned out that they just needed a bit of a clean up on the contacts with a bit of emery so I now have a couple of spares, courtesy of my local accessory shop.

I'm going to pop it back to my mate in the next day or two to get him to try and sort a fluid leak on what appears to be the transmission. It can realistically only be either the sump pan gasket or the cooler pipes, hopefully a quick and easy fix. This is something I'd normally do myself but, due to the physical length of the truck, I can't get it very high in my garage as it hits a shelf on the back wall and I'm not supple enough to be crawling about underneath it. In the meantime I'll be carrying on polishing the wheels in whatever spare time I get.

Still trying to get it ready for Newby Hall but not holding my breath as there's an awful amount to do yet and the wiring is pretty scary.

 

[daveenty]

Just a quick update, with a few pictures this time hopefully. It turned out that the transmission leak was from neither of the places I assumed it was coming from but from the dipstick tube where it slots into the transmission, thereby proving that my diagnostic capabilities are rubbish. A new rubber O ring has now been acquired and fitted which, fingers crossed, will hopefully sort it out. There was also a slight weep on one of the power steering joints which has also been nipped up, so hopefully we're leak free now.

The wheel alignment has also now been sorted, well at least the camber angles and the tracking have. The caster, whilst being slightly out, refused point blank to move, even though the adjusters were relatively free so it's been left as it was. It's not particularly critical, though it would have been nice to have it perfect. However I suppose it's acceptable for a 50+ year old car. After all this had been done, I decided that it deserved a nice new shiny steering wheel to celebrate so bought a wooden rimmed one which should fit on the currently fitted boss. The horn will need rewiring from the current toggle switch through the column to the new button in the centre of the wheel yet but that's a job for another time as the wiring is proving a challenge to say the least. No rush for the horn though, it's still legal as it is, just awkward...

Current steering wheel: -



I want to upgrade the seats, or at least tidy them up a bit. The currently fitted ones, whilst being genuine Recaro, are looking rather shabby although they are still quite comfortable. They're also a bit limited on adjustment due to the headrest hitting the rear window but they do go far enough back for me. A larger person may struggle however so again, something to be looked into. I spoke to an upholstery specialist yesterday and he's promised to pop round next week to have a look at them. Apparently he doesn't usually do automotive stuff though has done a few over the years. I'll just leave it to him to decide if he wants give it a go, or at least advise if it's not feasible. If not then I'll have a re-think.

Seats as they are now: -



I've also decided to farm another couple of jobs out. The left hand rear wheel arch is rotten at the rear of the wheel whilst the right hand side is rusting where the paint has cracked. These are jobs which I would have had no hesitation in tackling a few years ago but it just seems easier to let a professional do them nowadays. They have the knowledge, the facilities and the experience so the job will be right and it will take a lot less time than if I were to have a go. The bad news is that he can't touch it till early May though has said that he'll definitely have it ready for Newby Hall.

The arches in question: -





I've started to clean it up a little bit as it was looking decidedly jaded after it's long hibernation with the engine on the bench. It's certainly looking better for it but I'm limited to what I can do at the moment as I certainly don't want to be upsetting the painter by putting a load of wax on it.

Cleaner looking truck than last week: -

 

[daveenty]

Quick update... The new steering wheel arrived just after I posted this so I decided to throw it on. A vast improvement in my opinion, I really disliked that earlier thing.

 

[AMGeed]

Big improvement Dave. The truck is coming on a treat.

 

[daveenty]

I've not done a great amount after my previous posting, a bit of cleaning and a fair bit of driving around. The driving was interesting as, apart from bringing it the mile or two home from the alignment place, I'd not really used it. I planned a mixed route of A & B roads and must admit to being a bit disappointed in the handling, it seemed to be bouncing about a lot so I cut my little trip short and headed back home. I realised that, when they set the alignment, the garage inflated all the tyres to the same pressure which when checked turned out to be 38psi. This would certainly account for the wayward handling and, having got them to a more reasonable level (24/28), a vast improvement can be felt. They still need a bit of messing with though they'll do for now.

One thing which has cropped up on the test driving is that the temperature gauge is barely moving from the cold mark which was a bit strange as a new thermostat was fitted when the motor was rebuilt. Upon further checking it turns out that the supplier sent a 160 degree one as opposed from the 195 one it's supposed to have in it. Probably my fault as I did the ordering but I was sure I asked for the standard one. I've ordered a replacement along with it's housing which has just arrived so I'll get them fitted soon.

I've had a play around with the auto choke which has never really worked so, as there are a couple of damaged items on it, I decided to order a new one. I've gone for a manual one instead of another automatic as it should give me a bit more control. This was not supposed be here till May but arrived a bit early so it's now fitted. It was a nightmare to do, with a sheet of instructions that may as well have been in Chinese for the sense they made to me. I ended up watching You Tube videos though still had to improvise a bit as my carb is slightly different to the ones featured. One thing which did become apparent is that there is a small port on the side of the carb which is apparently a fresh air intake for the auto choke though this needs blocking off for manual. They supply a small lead ball for this which is basically hammered into the port and then drifted home. This mod alone has already made a world of difference to the starting and the performance so I've left the new choke disconnected as, while it works OK, it's starting fine without it at the moment and if I do need it it's now just one small hair pin to connect.

Whilst waiting for bits I decided to do a bit of under bonnet cleaning, nothing spectacular, just to improve the aesthetics really. First was the air cleaner which is basically two metal discs sandwiching the actual element. The disks were treated to a very quick rub down with a sanding pad and then given a coat of satin black. A new element was sourced and fitted and it really has made a difference. The element is a bit of an oddball size apparently, a few in the US, but very limited over here though I did eventually find one from a UK supplier at a reasonable price so happy with that. Once this was sorted, I turned my attention to the distributor cap and the leads, all of which were lagged in oil and grease. I should have done this while the engine was out but obviously didn't. I did the plug leads methodically, taking one off, cleaning it, cleaning the cap where that lead came from and then replacing it. I did have a bit of a scare at the end when it refused to start but the king lead was re-seated in the coil and it now starts and runs fine. Panic over

A before/after picture just because.

As acquired: -



Present: -



The truck goes in for the bodywork repairs/paint from the 2nd - 4th May, which doesn't give me a massive amount of time to prepare for the Newby Hall meeting on the 7th. If it looks a bit of a mess then so be it but I'm definitely going to try to get there with it, more to give it a good run that anything else. It's not the best of motorway cruisers, a bit too bouncy and VERY loud, but it's not too bad on normal roads where you don't have to maintain a constant higher speed so I've planned my route to stick to these.

Oh, and it's so far recorded a UK best of 7.9mpg...

 

[EmilysDad]

....

Oh, and it's so far recorded a UK best of 7.9mpg...

Ouch!

 

[Snake Charmer]

7.9mpg, positively economic! I hoofed my Interceptor about one evening and managed 4mpg.

I had a 390 Holley on a Rover V8 and decided a Holley manual conversion choke over the electric might improve mpg. First use flooded the engine as there is no vacuum pull down for when the engine starts. I ended up leaving it open and used the accelerator pumps to get it going. Most of the carburettored V8 cars we have in with manual chokes have them locked open.

 

[daveenty]

7.9mpg, positively economic! I hoofed my Interceptor about one evening and managed 4mpg.

7.9 is the best it's done in my tenure. It's averaged 4.8 with a low of 2.73.
Having said that, it's been off the road for most of this time, basically just shunting back and forth. The latest figure is from the first time it's had a couple of actual distance runs. I'm hoping for early to mid teens on a run, will know more next weekend when it hopefully gets a little trip.

I had a 390 Holley on a Rover V8 and decided a Holley manual conversion choke over the electric might improve mpg. First use flooded the engine as there is no vacuum pull down for when the engine starts. I ended up leaving it open and used the accelerator pumps to get it going. Most of the carburettored V8 cars we have in with manual chokes have them locked open.

Understand completely. Mine's a 750CFM with the same issues. I've currently got the choke plate disconnected but left the fast idle in place just to help keep it ticking over when cold, though I can do this with my foot just as easy...

 

[00slk]

That is very very poor fuel economy Dave from your engine
My Dodge 440 with twin 4 barrels on a hi rise manifold (above bonnet line) and race cam I am sure did more mpg. That engine was in my '66 Olds Vista Cruiser. It was hooked up to the powerglide and single axle, I could get the speedo reading 90mph without the car moving forward, and then I couldn't see for smoke coming inside the car I had some fun in that car!!!
I did manage 22 mpg from my 1977 Ford LTD 460 driven carefully, 12 if I belted it. My missus and I also had 22mpg from our '70 Catalina 400.
The worse car I had for fuel thirst was the race car. About 8-10 mpg on track.

 

[EmilysDad]

..... with a low of 2.73.
.....

Could you actually pour it out of a bucket any faster? LOL

 

[daveenty]

That is very very poor fuel economy Dave from your engine

A combination of things really Peter. As mentioned earlier, it's not really had a decent run yet though has had a lot of stop/start/shunt stuff. It's only really since Easter that I've started running around in it and it's still not getting up to temperature due to the incorrect thermostat being fitted. I now have the correct one so will be throwing it on next week after it comes back from the bodyshop.

After that it will be less messing around with it and more driving hopefully so I'll have a better idea though not expecting miracles. I'm pretty certain though that I won't be getting as much from the Ranchero as I can with the Merc: -

 

[00slk]

Yes, once it is out and having descent runs you'll find the fuel economy will improve forthwith, like the 55, stop start running in and out of the garage, being move in the driveway certainly drinks the gas
Take a trip over to North Cambridgeshire Dave when its on the road We can pop over to my mate and see his '63 Vette Fuelie

 

[daveenty]

The body repairs have now been completed and it's back to solid metal around the rear arches now. The guy has done an excellent job with the metalwork, fabricating wheel arches from scratch and welding them into place superbly. This has been let down a little bit by his painting unfortunately. A very poor colour match and no attempt to blend it in, just a masking line where he finished it up. I've re-done the worst one, which was the right hand side over the arch, basically just rubbed it all back and blended it in with the correct coloured paint. I've also reinstated the side stripes it came with, more as a distraction than a feature really though. I'm not as bothered about the drivers side as it's very low down and therefore less noticeable, plus I've basically ran out of time and patience. At least the rot has all gone which was the primary objective and, let's face it, it's a 53 year old commercial vehicle with lots of bodywork and paint being applied over those years, so pretty unlikely to be perfect.

The correct thermostat is now in place and the temperature is now a lot better that it was, namely staying around the middle of the gauge where it should be. The front brakes had developed a bit of a squeal, specifically at low speeds and under light braking though I'm hoping that a bit of copper-slip has now hopefully sorted this. I also had a rear drum overheating slightly so have backed that off a touch. I think, and my mechanic agrees, that the thing just wants using for a bit really, getting a few miles on it will hopefully help settle things down.

Everything is now planned for my trip this weekend, which consists of Wetherby Saturday, Newby Hall near Ripon Sunday morning for the "Cars in the Park" meet, back to Wetherby for the afternoon and back home Monday which should be a total of around 180 miles. I could do it in a little less mileage (and time) but, as mentioned previously, I'm trying to avoid motorways at the moment, both for comfort and potential reliability issues. I'm also pretty sure that Skipton, Harrogate and several other places along the way need to hear a practically unsilenced 7.0 litre V8 visiting their streets.

I'm hoping not to do much else to the truck for a while as every little job I start seems to turn into something massive. I'm just going to do some driving around for a while, making a list in my head of things which will need sorting out at some stage. The paint can be sorted as and when, it's not really a priority so possibly over next winter.

 

[bladecrazy]

Its always a bit unnerving on the motorway in an old classic but i drove mine home from wolverhampton despite the seller no giving much in the way of reasurance but it cruised home easily, once you have used it more it will be easier, and there is always something to do!.

 

[daveenty]

Its always a bit unnerving on the motorway in an old classic but i drove mine home from wolverhampton despite the seller no giving much in the way of reasurance but it cruised home easily, once you have used it more it will be easier, and there is always something to do!.

It's not so much the unnerving bit, I appreciate that the steering wanders, even though it is all new, as it's an old fashioned box with a drag link and idler arm. The ride also leaves a bit to be desired as in it wanders about, probably due to American suspension which is not really set up for our roads. I took my 190e Cosworth down to Portsmouth and back (a 500+ mile trip) when I owned it, albeit a few years ago now. No drama and it was a pleasant couple of days out though it was obviously a case of taking it a bit easier than normal.

With the Ranchero it's the noise factor more than anything else. It's great in short bursts but it's practically unsilenced, with 4 into 1 headers going through what look to be small cherry bomb type "silencers" which aren't much wider than the pipes. They then exit underneath each door, basically directly underneath the passenger compartment. It's horrendous at a constant speed on the motorway and is on my list of jobs to be sorted out

Incidentally, here's a couple of pictures of my new metal. The paint is now sorted on the arch but not on the bottom quarter as yet.

 

[Snake Charmer]

With the Ranchero it's the noise factor more than anything else

I had to put some miles on a continuation Shelby Cobra 427 S/C before it went to the new owner and did a fair few on the motorway, bleddy awful noise wise but better than sitting in traffic with your eyes bleeding from the fumes with a lopey cam!

Ranchero looks great.

 

[daveenty]

I'm pleased to report that my trip to Newby Hall went well, with the truck performing superbly. I took the long way round as mentioned in my previous post, mainly as it was still an unknown quantity and I'd prefer to break down in or near a town than on a "smart" motorway. It was a nice little run of around 70 miles of town and country roads, which ended up as an easy drive, with the truck feeling comfiest between 45 - 55mph on the B roads. I decided to come back home via the A1 and M62 as I knew the traffic would be light with it being a rainy Bank Holiday Monday. Again, the truck behaved well though I was sticking to a nice steady speed of around 60mph which equated to around 2,500rpm. The trip there returned around 11mpg, not brilliant but the old road consisted of lots of town traffic, then a lot of hills and bends across the moors. It was a bit better coming home on the motorway bit, probably helped by the steady speeds and less variation in throttle position, though still only managed just over 13mpg. Something to look at I suppose but I can't see it doing much more, mainly due to the amusement I get driving it and pressing the loud pedal.

I was making mental notes whilst driving about jobs which need doing but there's not that much really, certainly nothing on the serious side anyway. In no particular order the transmission is still weeping oil, albeit only very slightly now. The handling is still proving a bit of a challenge and it does have a tendancy to wander about in the road. I'm still experimenting with tyre pressures as the OEM ones seem to be miles out with the larger wheels and tyres which it currently wears. If I still get no joy, I may try a heavier duty spring/shock set up on the front end though this will have to wait for a while. A rather more serious problem is the wiring which, in reality, will probably want a complete going through by a competent person as there seems to have been many people altering things over the years. There are lots of live wires all over the place which don't seem to be going anywhere and under the dashboard is a nightmare with lots of stuff that seems to be duplicated. I've had a word with an old school auto-electrician who came highly recommended via several sources. He's currently working on an early E Type, a 1968 Ford Anglia and a CA Bedford amongst other things so he seems to understand older stuff. He's hopefully going to pop round to look at it before committing to sort it out, though he's not been yet after a couple of weeks. I may also change the ignition system as it's an old school Ford electronic system though heavily modified. There are several live wires all with different voltages heading towards the coil so I'm assuming that at least some have ballast resisitors attached. It really does need the lot ripping out for a fresh start, probably replacing with a more modern HEI distributor.

Whilst waiting for the electrician, and having a bit of time on my hands, I decided that the time had arrived to change the hit or miss B & M gear selector, which was now needing two hands just to put it in drive due to the amount of wear it has on all the pivot points. I'd already bought the Mr Gasket universal model late last year, so it was just a case of fitting it to the car. What I'd not taken into account was the fact that the car has had that many alterations over the years that nothing was going to be a straightforward fix. The supplied kit has turned out to be an absolute nightmare, with every single component having to be adjusted to fit, including the transmission tunnel itself as the box is so close to it. I've spent two days on it with the assistance of a friend who I managed to rope in and it's eventually something like, in that I can get all the gears but it's a very short throw due to the limited amount of space to fit the linkages in to. It's still going to need a bit of adjustment though it's already performing much better than the old one. One downside to it is that there's no provision for what the Americans call a "Neutral Safety Switch", basically what we know as an inhibitor switch which disables the vehicle starting in anything other than Park or Neutral. This is not really an issue as it's only me who drives the truck, so I've currently by-passed it but I'll be fitting one when/if I can find the correct one for it.

Old & New: -




Looking again at the pictures, those seats are going to have to be the next job I think...