didn't see introduction section so eh .. i'm new here but not to pre's i have owned a 83 , 84 , and 85 f150 's And i once owned a 92 f150 as per usual i bought someone's problems . I thought i was getting a good deal but was wrong owner orig wanted 800$ for this truck . but told me sense it needs work he'll take 600$ - i got him down to 525$ .



what i found after spending 2 hrs getting insurance re started up after 1.5 yrs without . i got it home tagged, its inspected for a year, and insured! After doing another look over i determine it needs the following :

85F150 I6 300 6CYL with automatic.
Hood springs (ouch )
seat belts ( how this thing passed w/o seat belts is beyond me unless someone sliped some $ to the inspectors .)
Hole in driver floor pan along door sill ..
left turn signal lense broke on corner but still does its job.
left side motor mount broke << that one he told me about along with the seat belts>
aparently the drivers side bearing is shot or needs greased ,
Drivers side shock could be broken ,as it makes a clunk noise GOING thru pot hole roads .
valve cover gaskets
tune up. * was told it needed a tuneup as well.
and now the pics ..







Driver floor pan :





gut tells me i should have went looked at the 86 f350 crew cab long bed for 850$ instead of buying this truck ..

i'm curious to know if the trans is bad as well or if its a 3spd ... when going 45 mph seems like every one still pass's me.. I took it on its 1st long ride sense i bought it on thursday and it would loose power climbing hills . i was kinda hoping that it would tow a 33 ft camper . but i think i screwd up . and bought a truck that won't even pull it even if i swap the springs to f250's .



any one in the lancaster co area ? i could really use some imput particularly from some one who's mechanically inclined to tell me about the bearing atleast .

 

Thats not enough truck to be lugging around a 33' camper with. My tired 460 with an auto couldn't even pull a 15' camper up a hill without losing 20mph in speed. Putting in the 5spd allowed it to keep up though. The 300 is a decent motor, but having an auto behind it isn't going to help anything.

 

Hah, I'm from your area and I saw that $850 crew cab on craigslist, too. That looked like a pretty solid truck, if I didn't already have a truck I'd have probably gotten it. Anyway, welcome to FTE, nice Explorer. You don't see too many 80-86s with that trim line around here.

 

yea welcome to the forums - your floor's in better condition then mine(had to use bondo/fiberglass matting on passengers side). I'd go through all the maintence things first: plugs, cap, wires, rotor, oil, etc.. the 300 is a strong little motor and with a little get go, you'll be able to handle a camper but not a 33(25' would be pushing it). My 84 has the 300 and a 4sp stick and I pass folks just fine. Congrats on an Explorer since their few and far between.

 

the f350 i was lookin at was in nj . Unless you are talking bout the same one .


The more i look at this truck and more i drive it the more pieved i get . NEEDS alot of work . Motor mounts perhaps a set of shocks . Its obvious to me that this guy buttered the inspecters hand to get this truck to get a 2010 inspection .



Failure items :
Seat belts ( lack there of )
hole in cab floor and sill
wheel bearing(s) shot
shocks probably shot i suspect.
exhaust is loud needs work near cab area
hood hinges shot
tuneup
Possible trans problem .( Unless somone can verify if its 3spd automatic trans)
FAN blower motor shot .

i've done a "rough" estimate without labor for parts and its near 120 area .Might not seem like alot to most but 120 in parts is alot for me with very little money . if i had the money i'd look at this 84 i think f150 for sale in lancaster for parts - the motor has a knock - i'm sure i'm gona come across something else that needs repair . this isn'tmy first rodeo with pre's so i'm use to it to a degree. I bought a 83 f150 for 1,200 once and it lasted me 3 months til something blew in the motor in n.jersey. What a headache to get it from n.jersey to pa . P.s. don't break down in nj your not allowed to leave your vehicle anywhere . so make sure you get aaa before going to nj !

 

i'm not sure how PA is with its inspections but over here in Iowa their optional. I too had that lovely rattling sound coming from the front end of the truck(sounded like a bearing on it's way out or a busted ball joint, unless you're talking about a different sound) but found out that was a tie rod end. Seems the PO didn't grease any of the zerks on the front. I don't mean to bag, but why'd you buy it for in the first place? I mean, with trucks as old as ours, not everyone's going to keep up the maintence(i split the harmonic balancer driving mine home).

 

pa pulls your vehicle apart .. Takes the wheels off actually checks brakes ( gauage em ) check ball joints , no holes in cab - Bed of truck ok if it still holds cargo in bed safely . No holes in cab period because of exhaust fumes .. EXhaust must be complete as well . seat belts are manadatory . delaware is so simple its not even funny

 

ok - their like Maine then. I had to get the run-through when i drove my Aerostar up there before switching titles over. Lovely stuff. Well... what I can suggest to you is to get what you need from the auto yard(aka stosh). Parts are cheap and that 120 price tag mighe be down around 50 or 60. Just my 2 cents on the subject matter.

 

well there's this awesome place that has 3 locations in pa Called Harry's u pull it . nothin over 100$ including truck beds and motors ! i favor thier hazlton yard most as its 82 acres of trucks and cars , bus's you name it its probably there. lol

 

dude that would so make my day lol! There isn't a u pull it here in Sioux City and the yards want alot of money for parts($150 for a rear window and rear bumper - rediculas man). I'd keep it for rarity sake, but that's me. I was lucky to walk with an '84 exploter 4wd. Darn thing's got over 150k mi on a 300 I6. Everythingit time oriented but the results make it worth it(what am I explaining this for, you've owned a few 80s fords so you know). Sorry to trail off, it happens.

EDIT: the rust holes are easy to take care of, but you'll need an air chuck w/tank, a rust removal disc, and some POR15. it'll stop the rust from spreading further and then you'll have the option of either bondo'ing the holes(like i did) or weld in a panel to cover it since exhaust fumes can get you high.

 

well i'm not really mechanically inclined .but my buddy in md is a ford nut ! lol .He's got a 05 , 86 , 78 ? f150's I Sold him my 83 for parts when i got my 84 f250 , i Towed that 83 to his place strait from n.jersey . got to his place at 4 am . long nite and scary tow dollying the 83 with the back end up on the dolly and front wheels on the ground . Lets just say multiple stops along the way home to adjust straps

 

"Delaware, Home of the drive thru inspection lane" No kidding!

Maryland are ball busters too unless you go the Historic route and wave the inspection process

 

i drove through Jersey on my to Iowa from Maine... not ever again. Well, if there's parts you need, ask Stosh reall nicely. He's the resident junkyard scavenger. Most stuff can be done with a carolina socket set. If you don't have one, a ratchet set and a screwdriver usualy works. Also thinking about it, the inspection station could be a garage somewhere and the shop owner and the dude ya bought the truck from could've been best friends, skimping on a majority of the inspection. But now that you do have it, if you need help doing anything, don't hesitate to ask. It's what we're here for.