Hello. So I've had my 85' 302 for a full year. I drive the truck just about every day and I am wondering what are some things I should keep an eye on. (early signs of wear and tear and what not.)

Truck has 120k miles and so far this year I've done:

-Brake booster & master cylinder
-center link, tie rod, and tie rod ends
- 4 shocks
- power steering pump
-ATF change (AOD)
-Solenoid
-waterpump, timing set, upper + lower hoses t-stat

Most of the other parts are all original.

 

Remove and inspect, repack front wheel bearings? If they are shot, replace with high quality bearing and cup sets.

D/S u-joints, and center support bearing.

Replace ground, starter and battery cables, grind down to bright shiny metal at block, frame, and firewall, coat with vaseline or NO-OX and tighten securely.

Usually when the first cold weather snap overnight hits, lots of people come to find they need a new battery, but it's hot weather that actually causes the damage. In addition to new cables and ground, take the time to clean the battery box out with a solution of baking soda and water, clean the battery top and sides off, and put it on a slow charge for a day or two. Add distilled water if required. Make sure terminal posts are clean and tight, and coat with vaseline or NO-OX.

Carefully inspect tires, sidewall and tread for damage, stones, nails and evidence of tread separation, missing weights, and proper inflation, including the spare. Now is the time to perform basic preventive maintenance, compared with the wintertime anyway.

 

Forgot to mention red top optima battery with all new heavy gauge wiring. Thanks for the advice.

 

when was the rear axle oil last changed?


A lot of how long anything will last is how well it was taken care of up to that point.
Dave ----

 

Within the last 10k miles. Guy before me said he replaced axle bearings....and I see that black Gear oil gasket maker around the edges of the diff.

 

Def should check wheel bearings, thanks for that advice......Wheels have no play when I wiggle at 12 and 6 o clock and makes no road noise but they are cheap enough so might as well replace...

Driveshaft U-joints don't seem to have any play in them, should I replace them anyway?

 

Thing is you need to remove the drive shaft to check them. Before they get play in them bind up. With the DS out flex each joint checking for any binding and if it does replace it.


Other wise they are good. Maybe throw a little grease in them.
Dave ----

 

Inspect the wheel bearings, if they are serviceable reuse them.

If they are original they may be getting a little long in the tooth, but the problem is a lot of the el-cheapo bearings available today are not very good, and in fact worse than what's in there now, albeit worn out!

If you can source a quality set, U.S.A. Timken or SKF or better, then that's a different matter. Don't shortcut, replace bearing cups too, bearings and cups are a matched set.

Same deal with quality u-joints I'm sure. If the carrier bearing is original I like to replace those. Lots of "little" things add up to a quiet, smooth, vibration free ride.

A guy who really knows how to balance tires ... there's "balanced", and then there's balanced, because of the labor involved, a tech who is pressed for time can't afford to be pulling tires off and on the wheels and rotating around to get the very minimum vibration, "good enough" is good enough. Check for excessive wheel weights installed, this is a sign of someone who isn't very skilled at this process.

Make sure differential gear box breather tube isn't plugged. Mud daubers and wasps or other critters like to set up shop, if the differential cannot breathe it can result in gear oil leaks onto the rear brakes. It's worth pulling the drums and inspecting them for cracks and glazing. Check for oversize. New US made cast one-piece drums aren't super expensive.

Usually brakes are neglected, especially rear brakes, new quality rubber brake hose is a good plan too. In fact anything rubber is probably suspect from weather stripping to belts, radiator and heater hoses, and fuel lines.

Plenty of stuff to keep you busy! Keep at it, steady and sure and you'll get it to where you'll confidently drive it anywhere and be glad you did.

 

Electronic Fuel Injection, EFI, or Carburetor?

 

X2, EFI or carb? 85 couldve been either

 

Carbureted

 

In that case I would keep an eye on the carb if it's never been rebuilt, if the throttle feels less peppy then it's prob a sign it needs a refresh

 

or at the very least check the accelerator pump if theres a hesitation. Some of the replacement accelerator pumps don't contact the lever and you get a hesitation. I had that and I still have a slight hesitation on mine that I need to shorten the accelerator pump rod by screwing it into the throttle linkage connector to make the rod shorter so it will spray fuel with the slightest touch of the throttle. If it still does this on mine I will try dropping it down back to the middle hole as it might be spraying too much fuel.