Hi there again!! I'm starting to gather supplies to work on my newly acquired 1978 F150 Custom 2wd truck. This truck has the 8 cylinder 5.8L Engine (351M), 2150 2v carburetor, and c6 tranny. Shopping around online right now for replacing some of the electrical components and other fluids and fluid related parts that are easy fixes. This truck hasn't had ANYTHING done to it in a long time, at least that's my guess anyway.

By the way, I'm a girl and as of the day I bought this truck, I knew absolutely NOTHING about trucks. I'm learning quick on this forum though from you guys. I'm looking to learn and would really appreciate some help from everyone on here. I know the basics of car care, so that is what I am listing below that I can think of to start off with on this truck. Lets assume that the frame, engine, transmission, tires, rims, exhaust is all in working order as of this moment.(as that seems to be the case...I DO know the assembly pump on the carburetor needs to be replaced, so I bought a carb kit and I'm gonna try and fix it myself, otherwise take the original carb in and have it refurbished.)

Here's a list of what I was thinking I should start off replacing. I need advice on what brands people recommend...I'm sifting through the archives as we speak, but if someone can chime in the next couple of hours that would be great.

List:

1. Spark plugs - (guys in the archives recommended motorcraft with copper tips)
2. Spark plug wires - (Again, guy in the archives mainly recommended motorcraft)
3.Distributor cap and rotor kit (Do I replace just the cap, or the rotor too??)(also, need advice on which brand)
4. Air filter (again, everyone seems to recommend motorcraft)
5. Oil filter (ditto, motorcraft)(obviously going to change the oil too)
7. Battery - I know there's a million different options here..maybe just some advice on strength and size..I know you can get poor man's battery, intermediate, and crème de la crème, so a couple ideas of good brands and strength levels would be great. (I am researching recommended size for my truck as we speak on the archives)
8. Fuel filter(do these trucks HAVE fuel filters??)(researching that too right now)
9. Check transmission fluid and see if it needs to be changed
10. Check the radiator coolant level (and change if necessary)
11. Windshield wiper fluid (previous owner told me this doesn't work, so I'm assuming there might be a crack in the reservoir, which would mean me finding either a NEW reservoir or getting one at a junk yard.)

I guess that's all I can think of right now...I'm buying parts as I get the money and not in a hurry to have this all done, as this is NOT my main vehicle. Want to use this as a hauling truck.

Any advice would be really appreciated. Thanks!!

Jennifer

 

good so far, have fun

http://www.parts123.com/parts123/yb....fffD~~~~A10~A1

look under windshield on 2nd page for w/washer tank and pump, get a catalog or two from the sponsors, but this is the class leader. ND or MikeOoOoO(sic) might source a NOS or you can buy from a JY

 

And you could add a PCV valve to your list... Good Luck...

 

Thanks Miketahney...I will add the PVC valve to the list. If anyone can suggest anything else, keep firing away....

Jennifer

 

oopps...PCV valve...dumb blonde moment

Jennifer

 

Sounds like a fun project, best of luck! Oh, and welcome to the site!

 

Probably not needing replacement, but carrying a spare won't hurt:
Fuel pump, voltage regulator, the electronic ignition modules, fuses and most importantly, a tol box particular to working on your truck.

 

and nobody has said brakes yet That's the first thing I check/change when I get a new toy. Nothing else matters if they don't work.

Where are you? you can talk to people close to you that can help/show you how to do whatever you need. People here are pretty cool, and being a female won't hurt you finding plenty of help. :P

 

One of the first things I like to do when I acquire a "new to me" vehicle is change out ALL the fluids...motor oil, tranny fluid, diff lube, brake fluid, coolant, everything.

Who knows the last time this stuff was serviced and by changing it all out you have an established baseline for future service work.

 

D1TZ-17618-B .. Windshield Washer Fluid Reservoir-Does not include Washer Pump / Reproduced

1971/79 F100/350 & Bronco / Carpenter has it @ $30.00 (as per my 2011 paper catalog).

 

Hi there again everyone!! Thanks for all the great replies. I just got back from the Ford Dealership and got all Motorcraft parts for spark plug wires, spark plugs, distributor cap, rotor, fuel filter, pcv valve, and air filter. My sister suggested that I go have someone who knows what their doing look over the truck...a 115 point inspection costs $99 and this is a $900 truck fixer upper, so I felt kinda silly doing that. I DID go get a $40 oil change with 40 point inspection at the Ford dealership while I was there though, cause I figured that they would probably be nice and point out some problems right away(for free), and I DID figure that I'm a girl and they might be more willing to share stuff with me. A lot of times they won't tell you anything without you paying for additional services. It was a total gas bringing that truck in there amongst all the new trucks...Ha Ha... all these young mechanics didn't even know where everything was underneath the hood. I felt kinda stupid with my POS truck and their sitting there servicing it..it was actually funny as He**.... It took the the maximum time of a full hour to service the truck and the manager was getting annoyed cause they hadn't finished, so I finally got kicked out. I go some usefull info though and it was TOTALLY worth $40.

The oil was super dirty, so glad that got changed. They said that all the oil around the engine could probably be fixed by replacing the valve cover gaskets on both sides. They of course would not tell me what other problems the oil could be from and I didn't push them. They verified that while the wipers work, they DON"T spray, so guessing that might be the washer pump.(like numberdummy said) They DID tell me that the ball bearing were kinda loose, nothing that isn't common on an old truck like this and they didn't think it was anything to be really worried about. They also identified that the Reverse lights when you back up don't work.(Hopefully it's just bulbs) They escorted me down into the pit and I got to look at the under carriage of the truck....the front drivers side floor boars are DEFINATELY rusted all the way through in two places. (which I already new, but nice to see how much) The drivers side floor boards are rusty, but still intact. The battery cables are completely shot and need to be replaced, as well as the battery. (Already knew that too) The underside of the bed looks fairly clean with no rusted through spots. The entire back half of the exhaust system including the muffler is fairly new and it looks like the exhaust system is in pretty good shape, as far as rust goes.

I guess the two things I'm worried about are the engine and fixing the accelerator pump. Really hope the engine leak is just from old gaskets. If anyone has any ideas on what else the engine leak could be from, please feel free to share. I bought new spark plugs, but just and FYI, the engine runs smooth and doesn't misfire. The main problem I have right now is the truck stalls when idling because the accelerator pump on the carb is leaking gas at a slow drip drip rate.

As for the brakes, the head guy was going to look at them, but I had already been there an hour so I got kicked out and they didn't look at them. The brakes seem to work fine to me, but I haven't had a chance to go out and look at the pads and rotors. I don't think there's any major warping in the rotors though, cause I'm not getting huge vibration when I brake.

I also forgot to mention, but when I bought this truck, the guy I bought it from told me he had receipts for repairs made. I forgot all about it until just last night, when I decided to take them out of the glove box and read them all. There are repair receipts going all the way back to 1984 and the orginal owner who lived in Arizona!!! Also, there only seems to be repair receipts from 2 different owner, which makes me believe the story the guy who sold me this truck told me. He had said he had it for 2 years and did NOTHING to truck, the previous owner had it for 10 years( I have receipts), and the most of the repair receipts were from the orginal owner that lived in Scottsdale Arizona. I even found the original truck manual that came with the truck!!

Anyway, going good so far...we will see if the engine ends up being an issue. Still can't decide if I want to tackle the carb kit myself or pay to have someone refurb my carb.

Thanks again for all the great replies and if anyone has more advice, I will keep reading it.

Jennifer

 

Ohh..yea, thanks Montanahigh boy for the advice on changing all of the other fluids. In all of the excitement when I just got the oil change(I had like 5 mechanics fluttering around the truck), I forgot to ask the guy how my other fluids looked. My guess is they are ALL dirty and need to be replaced, so I will definitely check the tranny fluid, diff lube, brake fluid, and coolant. I learned most of the stuff I know from my dad and I have watched him drain the tranny fluid before, but not sure I know how to do it. Ditto on the diff fluid(I don't know what this is, so if someone wants to clue me in, that would be great) and brake fluid. I have watched my dad replace a car radiator before and refill the fluid, but never change the radiator fluid. I guess I'll have to start reading the manuals, I need to save some money somewhere and changing my own fluids would probably help.

Does anyone know, do I HAVE TO jack up the truck or put the truck on ramps to change these fluids?? I don't mean to sound like a whimpy girl and I used to change the oil on my Honda accord all the time by using car ramps, but nervous about using car ramps on a truck. I don't like jacks, they can fail and I am a clutsy person..I also don't own a jack anyway. It seems to me that I DON"T have to jack up the truck to do the oil change, as I watched them today and I think I can wrap my hand around and up to change the oil filter and the drain plug is no problem. I don't know where the other drain plugs are located, guess I'll have to look that up too.

Ohh..so much to do...looking forward to this project, but it honestly has to go on the back burner until after this weekend. Keep any advice coming that you feel like sharing.

Jennifer

 

If you can fit under the truck, pretty much everything can be done without a jack. Diff fluid is in the rearend - gear oil. There is probably a 9" rearend, which should have a fill plug somewhere (round with square in the middle). Unscrew it using a ratchet and the fluid should just barely run out or if you stick your finger in, you should touch it.

Tranny fluid - there may be a drain in the pan on the bottom of the tranny, but probably not so you'll just have to loosten all the bolts around it and let it drain that way. It's messy, keep a pan under it and buy some floor dry/cat litter. Filter is in the pan, should just push in or maybe have a bolt. I'm sure there's a write up on that somewhere.

 

Hey, thanks a lot Brian1080!! It's good to know that I don't need to jack up the truck to get at the goodies. I don't feel so dumb now that I didn't know what diff lube was, as that sounds like a truck fluid and not a car fluid.(aka...I wouldn't know cause I never owned a truck )

Thanks for the recommendations on the fluid changes. Not sure if I wanna tackle the tranny...I think the procedure you mentioned about talking most or some of the bolts out and letting the fluid drip out is what my dad did on one of my previous cars.(And YES, it was a total mess!!) I might just cough up the money and pay to have someone do the tranny fluid..maybe I can find a coupon. On the other hand, I'm supposed to be learning, so maybe I WILL do it myself.

Thanks!!

 

that's one that's easy, but not really much to learn if you wanna let someone else do it. There are plenty of other things to keep yourself busy with. baby steps, lol