The Whole Story...
I bought this rig from a family in Tacoma, WA, after having my dad look at it (he is in WA too) because I was too far away. When I went to pick it up, it ran well enough to drive but had horrible vacuum leaks, oil leaks, no 2nd gear synchros, faded/oxidized paint (except for the panel that had new 2 stage), bald tires, and almost no rust at all.
After buying it, and flying to WA to pick it up (which the PO paid for), I drove it home and it started having a horrible vibration in the rear end. I stopped to drink beer in Eugene, OR and realized that I was nearly out of oil. So with a top off I figured I'd do about 50-55 mph from Eugene to Grants Pass, and then have our FD fleet check it out and see what was up.
Well things got busy, I found an opportunity to borrow a car while a friend was away and could paint it sooner than I thought without having to bum rides. $2400 and hours and hours and hours of sanding later it was shiny and rust-free. Next up I replaced all the outside plastics except the rear vents, which I pained. Meanwhile, the engine was still leaking fluids all over, I still had to double clutch 2nd gear, and above 55 mph it would try to rattle the ass end off.
I took it to our fleet, the mechanics said "it has 258,000 miles on it." So I started looking into what I could do to revive it, or i would have to settle on replacing it. I drove across the street from our Station 1 to the famed John Groves house (he builds sick LCs for a living) and talked engines for a bit. The options were new stock seals, tranny, u-joints, and a non-USA carb or new u-joints and a chevy conversion (he recommended the gas saving 4.3 V6) and a NV4500.
However in the mean time, I replaced key items (PCV valve and hose, K&N air filter, and fuel filter) and added some Engine Restore, Water Wetter, and high mileage oil.
Well, then I bought the lift and wheels and tires, so as not to spend that money on something else and be stuck with the granpa mobile. After putting those on at fleet, the mechanics again started looking at the engine and asked about the spark plugs and wires. Turns out the PO never tighted the spark plugs and when he replaced the distributor years ago, never replaced the crappy aftermarket wires.NOW she runs great with 258,000 miles on a 2F (not exectly gas efficient, but it does it).
Also on the way home I found out that the tie rod ends were peeling aluminum off the rims on hard turns, so $240 for 1 1/2 adaptors later she is all set. I just need a radio, new seat covers, a tuffy, and a gun safe in the back (gotta lock those up in Josephine County). A new engine would kick ass too.
Oh and the oil leaks were from loose bolts.
If I forgot somethings, just ask... this was getting long.
[official Mud salute]
