Thanks to people who gave advice when i was thinking of ditching the aerostar during my last thread. I've since found out that my downstairs neighbor grew up in an auto shop, and is willing to offer tips, so it looks like a good decision to hang onto it so far: recently made cross country trips without incident, I've gotten a sense for the car, minor repairs are getting me out of the house, etc.

i'm limiting myself to preventative maintenance so far, following the advice given to me by people in the thread: mass airflow sensor clean, throttle body, fuel filter replace.
I've also taken over driving it, giving the missus the new, dependable Honda with a strong A/C, which was a wonderful decision. Thank you, whoever advised me to do that.

The power steering pump has gotten really loud recently and I'm going to swap it out.
1 question: pumps range from 50-100 bucks. anyone got suggestions on a brand? I'm aiming for 8-10 years/100K miles of family service out of this car.
2 question: in general, what is a good brand to go to for parts? I'm interested in the best compromise between quality and price.

I'm going to need at some point
new axle bearings
new engine/transmission mounts
new fuel injectors
new spark plugs
a good brand of coolant
a good brand of motor oil, given a slow oil leak, San Diego weather, 130K miles on the motor, and 30 miles of daily freeway commuting in slow and go traffic.
new tires
new shocks

 

and i'm also going to need components for the vent's various vacuum switches and actuators, as well as a mixing door for the max a/c recirculating units, which I'm planning on going to a junkyard to get.

 

Re: steering pump
Check owners guide for your year, but pump likely takes Type-F transmission fluid,
and use of off-the-shelf steering fluid results in noisy operation.
Change fluid first, then decide.

 

did already. put in new fluid, put in different power steering pump- related liquid fixes, still whines a lot. put a hose to my ear and the whine is coming from the pulley, even when pump is not working (but is louder still when it is).

 

If you want a quiet replacement, buy a Ford pump. It is much costlier, but with the right fluid, it will be quiet. If you want a pump that MIGHT function, but will in all probability be noisy, buy an aftermarket pump from your "lifetime warranty" source.
Ford has to build them to keep the customers happy. The aftermarket builds them to (sometimes) work.
Years ago, I installed a genuine Ford replacement power steering pump and there was a little brochure inside the box that explained how the Ford pump was rebuilt to be quiet and why the aftermarket pumps were noisy. I wish I had kept that brochure.

 

most parts are made in China anyway, and that means all car manufacturers have a good portion of the "OEM" parts made in China. (same with Jaguar retro parts, all "Made To Jaguar Specifications", no longer "Made in England").

at least SOMEONE is making the parts, because Ford and others stop supporting their cars after 7 years.

That does not mean parts quality is less, the Chinese aren't fools, they have excellent tooling and manufacturing, that is why they have taken over all over the world.

A good source for parts with low prices and free shipping is:

AM-autoparts AM Autoparts - After Market Auto Parts - Headlights, Mirrors, and More

 

I agree with Jose. Too many times the Ford dealer has told me no longer available. Ford doesn't want you to fix that Aerostar, Ford wants you to buy whatever they're selling this year.
BTW: If a part made in China is inferior, it's because it was made to the inferior specifications dictated by the American company buying that part from China.

 

Check out the "deals" on parts from Advance Auto Parts at this link:
Advance Auto Parts Coupons

I've used these discount codes for years and saved a bundle. Just order and pay for the parts online using the coupon code and pick them up locally. If the first discount code you use doesn't work, try another. They expire after awhile and new ones replace them.

 

yes, and what is worse than paying the high price for a Ford Motorcraft part, opening the box, looking at the part, and it says "Made In ROC" (Republic Of China).

Fordget it, I am not wasting money on Motorcraft packaging.

 

Glad your wife loves the Honda and you are enjoying the Aero.
The Aero seems to be a mans rig, don't know why, my wife doesn't like driving ours.
I love the seat in ours, still the best long distance driving seat rig I have.

Critical parts that are safety related such as brakes or will keep you and the wife from having to walk,spend the extra money and buy top quality brand name. Motorcraft, Raybestos, Spicer, ACDelco at top quality parts stores. They cheapy stores often carry fake knockoffs even the Motorcraft name. Motorcraft keeps a tight quality inspection chain on their manufacturers, inspecting each shipment lot.

Drain and put a bottle of Lubeguard in the PS. Fill with Mobil 1 ATF. Holds up to the heat and poor pump design of FoMoCo. Put an inline filter in to remove pump/rack debris. Put a soup can over the PS filler hole cap. Line broke on mine, drained all the PS Mobil 1 out, ran for 40 miles home. Filled again with LG and M1, still running very little noise. Quietest Ford PS I've ever had. Put a bigger cooler on.

Oil, any 10w30 on sale at your discount stores. Buy enough and filters for several changes at a time, saves gas money running to store. All 4L OHV engines leak oil.

Antifreeze Ford spec'd on the bottle, the 100% concentrate any brand on sale. Put the antifreeze in first, then add distilled water to fill. Park with nose at least 2 ft higher than rear, purges the air bubbles out of the rear heater.


Nothing wrong with your fuel injectors, just run some cleaner through them. Double dose of ONLY Chevron Techron Concentrate or Gumout Regane. Both contain polyetheramine, best injector and combustion cleaner on the market. If you are into the engine for other reasons, then pull injectors and send off for cleaning testing.
Have 190,000 miles on mine, still runs like a champ. The later 4Ls with sequential FI like these 96 Aeros have outstanding FI.

https://gumout.com/fuel-additives/re...ystem-cleaner/
https://gumout.com/fuel-additives/re...ine-treatment/

KYB shocks, gives the best ride, not the cheapest but takes the rolly polly out of the van. Add high end poly bushing to front roll bar, Energy Suspension.
Mine still handles great.

Rockauto our site sponsor has great service for planned ahead maintenance orders. Quick ship