I found something of interest on e-bay today, and would like to ask your guy's opinion of it.

I found an almost exact match to my 1981 F-150 Explorer, except that it is a F-100, and it is not in as good of shape as mine.

you can view it here....

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1981-...spagenameZWDVW

My question, would it be worth me getting as a parts truck, or for a restore project, on the condition etc...

and if I were to buy it, would I have a hell of a lot of problems trying to get it smogged out here in California. It has Tennesse smog on it. Does Tennesse have a lot of rust?

Looking for some opinions here. Thanks.

 

As far as being a parts truck, it may have the 5 on 4.5" bolt pattern lugs, so make sure before you buy it if that is important to you. The truck looks like it's in pretty decent condition, body-wise anyway. Can't comment on the smog aspect.

 

I know that tennessee doesn't have a lot of rust... they hardly get any snow unless up in the mountains. as for the truck, it is in better shape than mine (chicago winters take its toll), all I can make out of the pictures of what it needs bodywise is cab corners patched, or weld some new ones. Maybe it is just surface rust and get away with a quick fix (skim coat em with bondo).

 

I think that Calif will only require the truck to have all the smog equipment that is originally came with since it is as old as it is.

 

It looks like everything the truck had in the way of smog is still there, which is somewhat unusual in this state. We haven't had any form of statewide safety inspection (let alone smog check) since this truck was new. Depending on which county the truck is in, it MAY have a current TN smog check on it. Nashvile (yes I know how I spelled it) caved to the feds a few years back and has smog checks at the city and county level. Link follows:

http://www.state.tn.us/environment/a...e/counties.php

Smog is caused by sunspot activity, which makes smog checks little more than another way for government to relieve you of more of your money, but that's a subject for another thread, I suppose. The above link is one reason I will never live in Nashvile or Chattanooga. Too many Yankees ruined a couple of perfectly good cities, and no I didn't vote for that person occupying the Governor's office either.

 

So you actually think it's good to have air that burns your eyes?

 

I never said that. What I said was that if there is such a thing as global warming, it's not a result of any human action. Here's the link.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maunder_Minimum

Short form answer: INcreases in solar activity, INcreases in ambient temperature. DEcreases in solar activity, DEcreases in ambient temperature. Pretty simple, really. Smog tests are little more than an income generating device for local governments. What they should do is just have a wheel tax or raise the extant one instead, as they would get more money that way.

 

i'm about 20min north of nashville.

When i bought my 85 it hadn't been on the road in 10 years it sat in a barn.

The dmv never even asked any questions, just transered the title and gave me plates, they were more concerned with the sales tax.

O ya i don't have any smog crap on my truck at all

looks like a clean truck

DT

 

Plain Old Dave,

The encyclopedia link has nothing to do with smog; instead it says that sunspot activity has varied the temperature of the earth. Smog is caused by the combination of pollution and natural sunlight. It is no news that the earth's temperature has fluctuated over millions of years without the aid of humans. However, this does not mean that human activity has not or cannot negatively affect the atmosphere.

According to the link http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smog smog can damage humans in many ways:

"Ground-level ozone is especially harmful for seniors, children, asthmatics, and people with heart and lung conditions such as emphysema, bronchitis, and asthma. It can inflame breathing passages, decreasing the lung's working capacity, and causing shortness of breath, pain when inhaling deeply, wheezing, and coughing. It can cause eye and nose irritation and dry out the protective membranes of the nose and throat and interfere with the body's ability to fight infection, increasing susceptibility to illness. Hospital admissions and respiratory deaths often increase during periods when ozone levels are high"

 

Vehicle emissions systems were instituted to reduce pollutants in the air around us.
I was around during the 60s and 70s and can remember my eyes burning from the pollution. I also remember alot of our lakes and rivers were dead or near dead, but we have brought them back, for the good of us all. Ozone is a new issue, but perhaps it is similar.....it may be a call to action so that 30 years from now the next generation can say....hogwash, it's not a problem!

 

Smog is something that is part of the natural condition of the planet, and has been around ever since the Spanish called Los Angeles "The Bay Of Smokes". And as I said before, greenhouse gases have NOTHING to do with it; it is an adjunct of solar activity. Emissions equipment, IMHO, has a couple useful functions:

1) Makes cars too complicated for backyard mechs to maintain
2) Reduces power, thus making engines work harder
3) Increase engine temp
4) Makes tree-hugging liberals feel good

2) and 3) serve more or less the same function; reducing vehicle life .

And, as I said, emissions/safety checks have one and only one purpose: depriving people of their hard-earned money. We haven't had then in the State of TN since the late 70s, and I have literally transferred title on cars that haven't run in YEARS. No DMV here, either. You register your car at the County Court Clerk's office and get your driving license test at the Department Of Safety office. Tennessee is one of the last hold-outs of Jeffersonianism; the government that governs least governs best.

The upshot here, though, is we're drifting. The truck looks OK, though if it were mine I'd probably rip the smog pump off soon as I got it home.

 

Plain Old Dave, I'm sorry to get off topic but I have to reply to your last post.

Pollutants mixing with sunlight cause smog. Where are you getting the information that emissions from cars and factories do not create smog? There are tons of reputable sources on the Internet that define smog.

I have lived in countries with zero emissions standards in Latin America and I can tell you first hand that the smog there is much worse than anything up here in the USA. If smog is only caused by solar activity why does Mexico City have the worst smog cloud in Latin America? Could it be the fact that there are 0 emissions standards there?

Safety and emission standards were not created to "make liberals feel good" Srercrcr is correct, the environment is in much better shape today than decades ago because of government regulations. Conservatives don't want cars with gas tanks that will explode on impact.

The truck looks good, go for it!

 

I really like the truck. I have one exactly like it in almost every way. (check my gallery)

The only differences is that it is a F-100 and the smog. I have a computer setup. :S

Both mine and this truck are Explorer Package A with the same pinstripes and the same color. Dark Caramel metalic. both have a t-18 four speed and a 300 inline six. I e-mailed the seller and he said I knew more about his truck than he did. LOL. He's not sure of the smog working... but it's all there.

From what I can see in the pictures, It's missing it's explorer emblems and hood ornament, the pinstripes coming off on the driver fender, the cab corners are a little rusty. It's a little rusty everywhere but not bad. the door panels are powderizing, the dash probably needs replacing... (cant tell from the pictures) and the seat is torn. If the faberic is ok, the vinyl part could be fixed.

Trying to convince the wife however is harder than I thought. "Why do you want this truck? and it looks so identical that you would have a problem knowing which one was which." LOL.

My arguement is there are not as many of these explorers around anymore, and one exactly like one I own is even rarer. I could call them the twins. And I thought it might be cool to have two trucks that are "twins"

She thinks I lost my mind, and it's more sane to buy a truck here, and it don't have to be identical. Perhaps she is right. I am a Ford Pickup nut though. and I know how rare these trucks are. At least around here. I have never seen one exactly matching mine (except the one for auction). They were always different colors or one extended cab. And I've only seen 5 of the 81 Explorers in total in the circa 15 years of owning my truck. And I'm not sure if it's five total or the same trucks I see over and over... and I drive all over the place.

I have a chance to buy a 1984 F-150 with a 4 speed overdrive, 300 I-6 for only $500 cause it wont pass smog. Which is almost in showroom condition, with white exterior and grayish interior. She's a lot more willing letting me buy this than the "Twin". But these are a heck of a lot more common. And I don't like 4 speed overdrives. Especially where I live. Replacing the clutches would become common place...

Oh well...

 

You haven't yet realized that changing clutches is a lot of fun?