Today I made the mistake of looking at my gas gauge... It made me kind of sad.

 

Today while pondering an engine choice I came across this video.

Now I can't decide if I want a 540cu. engine with a 106mm turbo OR a $65,000 727cu. engine that produces over 1,200hp.

 

Today I performed a full detail on Old Joe. My wife names our vehicles, and this is her name for the Bronco. Wash, wax, even conditioned the leather.

Here he is, sans side steps and looking clean!



And here's the rest of the fleet. We are Blue Oval to the core!



She drives Jolene, the 2012 Fusion SEL V6. My daily is the 05 Expy known as Big Joe.

 

My 514 was bad enough on parts!! I couldn't imagine something like that!! 514 roller big block Ford...$11,000. C-6 built to hold the 514.....$1600. Look on a punk kids face when a 6000 lb Bronco rips him out of the hole......PRICELESS!!!

 

The look on someone's face who paid way to much for a sports car or ricer... because a 6,000lb bronco keeps up with them and rolls more smoke.

 

Messed around with the Bronco today between rain showers. Trying to find what is loose in the drivetrain. Got a "bump" in the rear or under the vehicle when leaving from a dead stop. Looked at the trans mount and motor mounts...they seem tight. Tried to inspect the u-bolts, but the rain shut me down. Almost like a u-bolt is loose or maybe a broken leaf spring. I guess I'll find out more tomorrow!

 

Yeah I feel ya. The rain needs to stop for awhile. I'm thankful for it but man..its getting lame.

 

You could also try checking out your driveline bolts. On my 78 there was these


Those kept backing themselves out so I got these instead


You can see the threads were mashed down.


The bolts would cause the driveline to almost fall off


And would cause a sort of bang when starting from a start and under a load.




As for me, I drove TGM to Lowe's for an errand and noticed as I was leaving that the engine has developed a whistle. It sounds kind of like a large vacuum leak or something rubbing on the belt or a pulley. I had an issue once where the washer fluid box had fallen down into the PS pump pulley but that wasn't the case this time. I was on the side of the road so I didn't pull anything apart. It was also 90 degrees out and I didn't feel like being in the sun all day so I'm gonna wait a bit. The odd thing is, the engine is still running fine. I had a thought that the plastic air filter spacer I put on might be broken. I'll see by tomorrow.

 

Thanks Gruesome! I'll check those. Got the Bronco turned around and backed up into the driveway, and you guessed it......IT STARTS RAINING!! I even checked the radar!! So.....I'm waiting for the rain to subside a little so I can get her up on stands.
Parable for the day....Why do you keep hitting yourself in the head with the hammer??? Because it feels so good when you stop!!

 

Oh the rain isn't that bad.. or so says my friend with a full pole barn!

 

I got the drivers side wet sanded and wheeled out. Tomorrow I'll turn it around in the driveway and do the other side.

Made quite the difference.

 

Finally got her up on stands. Can't find anything loose, wore out or broke. Gonna look at the motor mounts tomorrow and see if maybe one is loose. I am pretty impressed on how clean it looks underneath!

 

I read in greystreak92's FAQ page that greasing the slip joint on the rear drive shaft will eliminate the clunk. Mine suffers from this issue as well, but havn't attempted to correct yet. It's definitely on my punch list. Really hope greasing is the fix.


Greasy Side

 

The slip joint could be an issue.. Matt, maybe try watching stuff and listening to things while it's running and have someone put it in gear then let it roll, hit the brake, hit the gas etc. See if anything is moving or if it is clunking. If it is you might be able to pin point it easier.

I know how you feel with that rain though, here in Washington it rains a lot. Luckily my 78 can be crammed into the garage without too much problem. But once I do that, I still have water dripping down and that gets on my nerves after a while...

 

I went and picked up a set of Eddie Bauer seats that still had the armrests I need for $50! They aren't bad but I may just change the armrest. The fabric doesn't match the XLT cloth.