(1990 F150 5.0) Sitting for 4 years
 

Hey guys, I have a question for those of you that know these trucks better than I. I'm about to buy a beautiful cream white and blue extended cab here next week or so. It was a ranch truck so has over 100k miles straight body, excellent paint, along with lots of chrome, mudflaps, grill guard, bed lined, etc.Only rust I could find was surface rust underneath on the parts that are normally moving, suspension, driveline, etc.

I know of three issues with the truck that I would like to have some help with.

1. One of the rear brakes was removed 4 years ago, original reason for being parked. There was a leak, however, the drum and the cylinder that were removed are both pretty rusted and full of dirt after sitting on a ranch shop floor for years. What's my best option, new brakes or try to rebuild the cylinder? If new brakes I assume both sides will be needed.

2. Reason the brake was never put back on was because the owner noticed a broken leaf spring. I didn't get a good look yet but what all parts will be needed to replace the springs? Again, I know it will be both sides.

3. Hasn't been started in the four years that it's sat. Was sitting in the shop for most of that time, but when it got moved it was just pushed. Battery is most likely shot. Fuel? What's the best way to drain it on these? Oil and transmission fluids are both still topped off so no current leaks. Change both before trying to start or get it started first then change them? I've heard about priming the oil pump, not something I've ever done so can anyone elaborate for me?

My main reason for buying this truck is to fix it up and resell it. I am getting it for extremely cheap and would drive it myself if I didn't want a pickup in worse shape for off-road beater duties. Any advise will be appreciated. Who knows, I may decide to keep the truck once I get it running.

Thanks,
Garrett

1) If it was me, I'd just replace the cylinder and have the drums turned at a shop. Or at least see if they can be turned and if not, buy new or used.

2) Leaf springs aside [which, if you don't know, JC Whitney has them for a good price], you'll need new mounting bolts, bushings, and u-bolts. I think that's all but someone else should probably confirm that.

3) Drain the gas tanks by removing them and dumping them out. I know it's not the ideal way to do it, but there could be a lot of crud in the tank and this is the most ideal way to clean them. It will also give you the opportunity to look inside the tanks and inspect the condition.

Change both engine and transmission oil before even attempting to start. Having set for that long it's just safer to assume the fluids are no good. When you go to put engine oil back in, replace one quart with Marvel Mystery Oil or some type of oil additive designed to clean and recondition engines. You'll also want something similar for the transmission.

You can prime the oil pump by removing the distributor. Make sure to mark the position of the distributor against the manifold, and the rotor inside the distributor. If you don't do this the timing is going to be off and can be a real pain to reset if the engine is rotated. Once the distributor is removed, you'll see a hexagonal shaft inside the distributor bore- you're going to need a special tool to fit it and then prime the pump with a drill.

Once the pump is primed and the distributor reinstalled, disconnect the coil-to-distributor wire and give the engine a few cranks to prime the oil system. Once that's done you should be good to go for ignition.

Something to keep in mind as well is that, having set for that long and having that many miles on it, there's a good possibility that the rings are stuck. I wouldn't worry about that right now tho- once you've prepped it to run, see if it will run, and if not, then start checking compression.

I hope this helps, and I'm sure others will chime in here with any other advice. Good luck.

Thanks! I just got my '87 944 running again this summer but that's quite a different engine than this one so didn't know if there were any other specifics that I didn't know about.
I assume I can probably rent the tool to reach the shaft behind the distributor (does it have a name)?

As for the leaf springs, is JC Whitney generally the best deal? I'm just looking for stock replacements as I don't want to deal with a lift unless I decide to keep it. My girlfriend has the same issue with hers (same '90 f150 but single cab) and she wants to save as much money as possible so I'm helping her out at the same time.

I don't know if the tool is available to rent or not. My gut tells me probably not, but you never know. You could always buy the tool and sell it with the truck.

I was shopping around for some leaf springs for my 91 F150 a few months ago. For brand new stock replacement, I found them the cheapest at JC Whitney at, I think, about $106 each. That was compared to searching locally and checking a few online stores. I can't attest to their quality as I'm yet to buy a set, but JC Whitney is usually good quality products. You could try checking your local junk yard and see if you find anything.

you can get it at summit in there tool section i believe there like 15-20 bucks

I drained my tanks by unhooking the fuel filter on one end and putting a hunk of hose on the filter end and turned the key on and it drained into a bucket.

I thought about suggesting this, but with the truck having sat around for 4 years there's a very strong possibility that the inside of the tanks are rusted beyond use. Running the pumps would likely draw loose crud in and clog the strainer and you'd end up dropping the tank anyway.

Okay, got the pickup running. Non-ethanol fuel was always used so the tanks were fine and didn't take much to start it up.

Exhaust leak - Started looking like smoke coming from the rear of the engine right at start up. Figured it was an exhaust leak because both exhaust manifolds are cracked and the engine wasn't hot enough to be burning anything off. Sound about right?

What can be done about the cracked manifolds? I was told this is somewhat common on the 5.0. True? Options?

About how much are Warn hubs for these pickups? I was told that it now has Warn hubs and the transmission was replaced with a new one the same year it was parked.

Brake needs rebuilt on the driver's side. New cylinder, shoes and spring kit are needed before I drive it back home.

Oh, and here are the pictures. Anyone know if this is a factory paint job? The white is more of a cream.

https://img135.imageshack.us/img135/...113001128d.jpg

https://img529.imageshack.us/img529/...113001128b.jpg

https://img251.imageshack.us/img251/...113001128a.jpg

https://img217.imageshack.us/img217/8743/1113001127.jpg

Same paint scheme my truck has, just in much better shape.

Chris

Thanks, that answers my question. I take it yours is the factory paint. I was pretty surprised at the condition of this paint considering how long it had sat outside without care.

Anyone have any comments on the exhaust? What's the cheapest option for fixing the exhaust leak?