My friend in high school had a monster Ford LTD from 1977. We used to pack it with 8 teenagers and whip donies on the lake ice at lunch.
We called that monster the "el tiddie"
Another reason to not adjust the IP while it's running is because the gearhousing cover is very brittle. If you put too much strain or impact on that housing, it's very easy to crack it. They aren't easy to find for replacement.
I've seen a few that had hairline cracks up along the...
If you can find one, try to get a used axle and just swap out the whole axle. It's usually cheaper than having a trans shop swap out the gears. I had a shop quote me over $1000 to swap my 4.10 to a 3.55, but I lucked out in 2014 when I stumbled upon an old E350 with a 3.55 axle and just...
"Did you try cracking open an injector line while turning the engine over? Just to see if you get fuel out of the line. Either have someone turn it over or use a remote starter switch and press in the schraeder valve on the filter head to see if any fuel is coming up. Still sounds like the...
Install a couple petcocks on the bottom-sides of the engine block, so you can drain the block without making a massive mess on the ground.
https://www.nickpisca.com/diesel/engine/stuck-engine-block-coolant-plugs-heres-a-1-trick-to-break-them-loose/
The heads I got from Diesel Cast Welding were far superior to that rebuild. I'd be concerned about the cracks. The pre-cup cracks arent' a big deal as long as they are within the firering, but the big crack on the underside of the head probably won't stay small once you torque down the studs.
I think it goes without saying to most of us, that it's imperative the block not be decked. The surface should be thoroughly cleaned (like in our images), but that's about it. This advice can't be expressed enough, especially for IDI newbies and anyone getting machining advice from a...
When I pulled my 6.9 from my other E350, I undid the body mounts on the front of the cab to give myself an inch or two extra, so that it would be possible to pull the block with the IP and injector lines still installed.
Turns out lifting the body to pull the engine or other tasks is more...
It was so long ago, but that sounds really familiar. Something about Diesel Cast Welding having a shop in Minnesota and another in Oregon? I'm pretty sure I called the MN office, and they directed me to Oregon. And they ended up sending me fully dressed heads for I want to say $550 a piece...
Also, I go to EMS in Inglewood for my cylinder head or machining work. They are top notch, but lately they have been getting old and I don't know if they are preparing to retire...
I know exactly how you feel. pulling the heads in the van is an art.
we made a steel tube extension for my shop crane to make lifting the heads easier.
The hard part for you (as a one-man operation) is reinstalling them without scuffing the HG's. I'd ask a friend or neighbor to help...
98 jetta AHU. Same as my existing 98 jetta AHU with 370K.
The seller was totally confounded when I showed up driving my Jetta to test drive his Jetta. He literally asked, "What, you want another one of these?" I guess he'd never seen anyone buy a car just for parts.
very very true. I just picked up another late 90's TDI. I've been wanting a block so I could rebuild it as a backup for my current TDI which is at 370K mileage. The seller wanted the upper bound of KBB (around $3K) for his whole car. While the car was rustfree, it was not "mint." I said I'm...
Yeah. It's a really nice IDI with custom everything. I dig all the features, but ultimately it comes down to how much people are willing to pay for it. Sadly, all of us put in a lot of work into our IDI's, but when it comes time to sell, we just have to accept most of that work won't pay off...
yeah, I've put a LOT of eco mods on my IDI to get up passed 20mpg. It's nearly unachievable on an automatic without dumping a lot of time and money into the vehicle. I made a list of my mods here.
Pretty much the only people I've met who have a slightly more efficient IDI than my van are...
The only way that fuel economy is possible is if he put the sedan on a tow dolly, put a brick on the sedan's accellerator, and put the truck in Neutral.
There are moments when I visit a highly-deregulated state, and I dislike the results a lot more than the mild regulations in California. Take for example when I visited Cheyenne in 2018. I happened to arrive during some rodeo competition. I just wanted to pick up some food and go to a city...
the E-series had a lot of antiquated tech. I remember doing my kingpins, and when I went to pick up the bushings and kingpin kit from NAPA, the guys in line thought I was building some kind of ratrod. They were disappointed when they learned I was fixing the suspension on a 80's ford van.
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