Re-Coil

With the ‘Bird quiet and reliable around town now, I took it out for a test at the next level–freeway speeds and distances. At speed, there’s plenty of power, but not a lot of comfort. Besides the howl from the rear end and the normal ash tray rattle, there’s a lot of vibration and none of it feels like a tire out of balance.

I took the Thunderbird out southbound on a weekday afternoon and quickly found myself in a traffic jam. Sitting in traffic, the temp gauge climbed into the high end of the normal range–something I hadn’t seen in a while. I exited, got on northbound and did a longish loop, about 10 miles, that put me back at my house. The car sat in the driveway long enough for heat to soak, then I went on some local errands–multiple short stops, lots of traffic lights.

Coils, Old vs. New
Coils, Old vs. New

By the end of the trip, some of my heat soak symptoms returned. While I could sit at idle just fine, the engine hesitated under moderate acceleration and backfired occasionally. I suspected the fuel system, but when I posed the question on a VTCI forum, there was a chorus of voices saying the coil was shot.

Last place I would have looked.

The coil is located close to the fuel pump and has to come off to get to it. Let’s just say that it hasn’t been treated well during the whole fuel system restoration and was a little banged up. I found a vibration resistant replacement on Amazon; ordered it on Thursday, standard shipping. Saturday afternoon a truck pulled up and the driver handed it to me while I was actually standing at my workbench, wondering what to do next.

How sweet is that? I put it in right then. I’ll be driving the car this week, testing it out.

Exhausted

I took the car, original-style heat shields and bolts to a local muffler shop and asked them to seal up the exhaust leaks. Two days later, the car is back and quite literally transformed. Quieting the engine completely changed the character of the car from “old Ford in decent shape” to “luxury vintage Thunderbird.” She purrs.

I’m a little sorry now that I didn’t get this done a little sooner, though not sorry at all to have it professionally done. One bolt was missing and two had to be extracted when the manifoldsĀ  were removed–not exactly a job I’d like to tackle in the driveway.

The plug wires–less than a year old–were burned and split in some locations and had to be replaced. With the correct heat shields now installed, that should not happen again.

As for the fuel pump, new fittings did the trick. I installed them on the pump I had only to have it crack again (outlet side this time, though). Swapped it out under warranty–pump number 5, total, for those keeping score–installed the brass fittings, put the pump in and all was good.

New shocks this weekend!

Plumbed

New Fuel Line
Looking back at the new fuel line.

Got a new line fabricated on Monday and installed it the same day. Hardest part of putting it in was getting the inner fender reinstalled. Once in, the fuel pressure didn’t come up (though the gauge fluctuates a little more) and after a short trip, the pressure was back down to zero. With everything new now from the tank to the carb, the only possible culprits could be a clogged filter (either in the tank or the pump) or a bad fuel pump. I have another pump on the bench and will have a chance to install it this weekend.

In the meantime, the brake lights went out on me (again!). I traced the problem to a replica relay I installed earlier this year. Instead of dropping another $100 on a replacement, I found a generic at a local auto parts store that I could wire into place. Problem solved, permanently this time.

Brake Relay
Modern brake light relay installed in place of the old.

As of this moment, though, the ‘Bird is grounded–this time for an undiagnosed scraping noise somewhere in the back of the car. Something–probably something made of sheet metal–is rubbing against a wheel or the driveshaft, especially when the car is turning right. My bet is that part of the exhaust system is loose, but I won’t know until I get it off the ground and crawl underneath.

So . . . it’s been a year. Last December I had a car that wouldn’t run, couldn’t stay in park and couldn’t stop. Sitting in the driveway, water leaked into it and fluids leaked out of it. Twelve months later, the car normally runs and stops reliably and can generally be counted on for around town errands. In twelve months, I drove it about 1,100 miles, and it’s just about to tick over to 190,000.

In the coming year, I have four areas to work on:

  1. Exhaust: the leaks need to get fixed and at the very least the hangers need to be replaced. In all likelihood, the whole system needs to be re-done. It will be nice to drive with the windows up once and a while.
  2. Rear suspension: the original springs are shot, as are the shocks back there. The springs need to be replaced or rebuilt.
  3. Transmission: The current transmission works, but it’s at the end of its service life. I’m searching for a correct replacement that I can rebuild myself.
  4. Differential: Like the transmission, it’s due. Just a matter of time before the whine back there turns into a howl.

There are some aesthetic issues with the car, like carpet and trim, as well as some minor rust issues. Those would be nice to do, but in 2013 I’ll be focused on getting all the mechanicals to reliable running order.

 

No Pressure

It was with a certain sense of confidence that I went out to run errands with the ‘Bird last week. With the new spacer under the carb, I figured I was good for any distance and all the stops I wanted. Unfortunately, my confidence was misplaced. After the third stop on a 15 mile round trip, the engine died in traffic, just as it had in the past. I was able to re-start it and by holding it to a higher idle, find my way back home.

The question is, now what?

I put my fuel pressure gauge back on and took a couple of readings. At idle, with the car cold, I had a good flow of fuel: 4 pounds with the regulator in place, and a little over 5 with the regulator removed. (I took the regulator off, suspecting it to be part of the problem. It wasn’t, but the car is running fine without it, despite the issues I had before.) After a few miles and the engine warmed up, the pressure always dropped to zero (or close–the engine was still running).

After a lengthy discussion on the VTCI forum, suspicion has come to rest on the fuel pump, a restriction somewhere in the line or potentially a bad gas cap. The gas cap is an easy check; something I can do next time I run out with the car. Nonetheless, like the starting and charging system–which had to be replace in total–it looks like the road to reliability is all new parts from the tank to the carb.

Throttle Stopper

When I purchased the T-Bird–wow, almost a year ago now–the double-jointed throttle linkage was flopping around under the hood and the gas pedal didn’t connect properly with the linkage under the dash. I cobbled together a fix and left the matter for another day.

Today, in fact.

Missing from the linkage equation was a throttle stop plate, which attaches to the upper bellhousing bolt. It doesn’t connect to the linkage, just gives it something to bang up against. (Why it was designed this way, I don’t know; it seems overly complex to me.) I got a replacement from Thunderbird Headquarters after confirming with the helpful folks on the VCTI forum that I was on the right track.The Throttle Stop

Turns out, this is a lesson in the dangers of non-stock modifications. The top bellhousing bolt came off easily, even with the linkage in place, but I couldn’t get the stop plate to fit at all. The transmission on my car is not original, and while it belongs in the same family as the one that should be there, it’s a poor fit. Like everything else that bolts to the tranny, the stop plate needed to be modified. I removed a substantial bit of metal to clear the bellhousing and install the plate. Modified Throttle Stop

I installed and removed both the plate and the linkage assembly a few times before getting the fit right. It’s a long stretch down there behind the motor. Even with long arms, it was a tiring reach.5/8th Wrench on the bellhousing bolt

 

The finished assembly.Thorttle Stop, Installed

Once correctly in, there was the matter of a connection to the carburetor. It’s a straight rod from the end of the linkage to the throttle actuator, but it has to be the right length. Too short and the gas pedal doesn’t properly connect. Too long and you can’t open the throttle all the way.

I “fabricated” a new connector rod from straight aluminum rod; basically cutting it to length and notching it where the set screws attach to provide a little extra security to those connections.Throttle Connection

The throttle response on my test drive was vastly improved. I was just going to go around the block, but I realized immediately that before, even with the gas pedal all the way down, I was at half-throttle at best.

To the expressway!

Wow. This car is fast. Much faster than I thought. Next stop, though, the gas station.

Stop and Go

I have to confess that it wasn’t by chance that I checked the left front wheel first when I suspected a leak. There’s been a decided klunk in that wheel for some time, noticeable intermittently when the brakes were pressed. I’d also noticed a veer to the right on hard braking.

Sorta like maybe the front left brake wasn’t working too hard.

Brake Hardware
3 retaining springs and the broken helper spring.

My new wheel cylinder fit nicely into the backing plate. Then I noticed that one of the springs was just plain broken. Remembered, too, that one of the brake shoes was held on with one-pin. Referenced the manual: yeah, there should be two.

And that dangling cable? That should be routed through a guide. But, there is no guide.

Tracking down a replacement spring–once a very common part–took three trips to a local parts house, Bob’s Auto Supply, before a match was found. The new spring came in a kit that included a new hold-down pin that fit, but is not exactly the right length.

Brake Springs
The new spring, when found, was a good match.

The missing cable guide is part of the auto-adjusting mechanism and therefore not critical. The cable itself was frayed and unusable anyhow.

I bled out the new cylinder with my wife’s help after the shoes and drum were back on. (Criminy! Could the bleeder screw be any less accessible?) The brakes were firm and the pedal didn’t sink any more. Also, the klunking and pulling were fixed as well.

I purchased the right wheel cylinder with the left, but it appears I got the wrong part in the right box. The nice folks at O’Reilly’s are working on a replacement. New rear cylinders were in stock and are on my bench, waiting for next weekend. The rest of the hardware bits (correct pins, cable, guide, a few extra springs, etc) are on order from Bird Nest.

It’s been the pattern on this car that fixing a weak link only exposes the next weakest link. This time, I’m ready for it!

Wheel Cylinder Madness

Push the brake pedal on an old Thunderbird and you activate a hydraulic cylinder at each wheel that presses the brake pad against the drum. In my case, for the last few weeks, I’ve been running around with three good ones and one that just leaked fluid when the brake was applied.

Wheel Cylinder Project
Everything has to come off to get to the wheel cylinder

I pulled off the front left wheel and drum; found fluid pooled up inside. The more I dug, the more fluid I found.

You have to dig deep to get the old wheel cylinder out, starting with the drum (held on by the wheel bearings); the brake shoes, springs and accouterments; the rubber brake line; and the backing plate.

Most of this came apart pretty easily, nothing broke and I didn’t walk away with bloody knuckles this time. The four nuts holding the backing plate are pretty hefty and were torqued down pretty good. I had to get the big tools out to get them moving. One of them stripped, or nearly so, and will need to be replaced.

Wheel Cylinder Project
No, it's no supposed to look like that at all!

This is a job that needed doing. What fluid there was left in the cylinder was a watery, rusty mess. New wheel cylinders, available locally: $32 each. New rubber lines: $22 each. Being able to stop: priceless.

I’ve posted a photo journal of the removal process, too.

Shear Force

I opened the hood yesterday to start work on the cooling system. Right away, it was apparent why the power steering had failed: one of the two bolts holding the pump had sheared right off. Oddly, I noticed the broken bolt–jammed in a crevice in the motor, before I realized where it came from, and that the power steering pump was hanging loosely.

Snapped bolt
This bolt used to hold the power steering pump in place. No longer.

Chances are that the pump froze, snapping the bolt against the pressure of the belt. Removal of the pump itself was easy. Aside from the last bolt connecting it to the motor, there were two hose fittings to disconnect. Both came apart smoothly.

With that pump off and the alternator disconnected, we started to remove the old hoses and water pump. Most of the hoses were either soft (especially the lower radiator hose) or rock hard (the smaller hoses leading to the carburetor plate, for example).

Disassembly (Almost) Complete
Disassembly is almost complete. Only one hose remains. Need to remove the carburetor to get it out.

There are two oddities with the cooling system right now. When left to idle for a long while, the car will overheat, even on a cool day. When driving at normal speeds, the engine runs too cold. I blamed both conditions on a missing thermostat: without it, the coolant can flow too freely in the motor at speed. At idle, the coolant may not have time to cool off in the radiator, leading to overheating.

There was, in fact, a thermostat installed. I’ll put in a new one, as well as a new radiator cap and see if either condition improves.

A complete photojournal of the disassembly process is uploaded to my photobucket account.

A Gallon of Gas

Went out to run a few errands in the ‘Bird yesterday. Fired it up, then walked back to the house for some packages I needed to mail. Before I got back up the driveway, I heard the idle slow down, then the engine just died.

What the heck? Cranked it over a few times, then took a look under the hood. No gas in the fuel line. In fact, no gas in the car at all.

  • Disadvantages of a broken fuel gauge: you never know when you’re about to run out of gas.
  • Advantages of a broken fuel gauge: none that spring to mind.
Gas Gauge
This gauge always reads "E". Yesterday, it was accurate.

Walked to the gas station, picked up 4 gallons of gas. Did the trick, and the car started right back up. But this was the beginning of the odyssey. I drove it around the block, turned it off, thinking I’d just make sure it’ll start back up ok. With the key off and out of the ignition, the engine kept running.

Decided, what the hell, I can run these errands even if the car has to sit running in the parking lot. Got more gas, the stopped at the post office. Dropped off packages and came back to a very hot engine. More idling at a long red light and now the engine is running rough.

Finally, a mile down the road, the engine stopped, backfired a few times, dieseled for a moment, then quit altogether. A kindly stranger helped me to push her into a parking lot, which happened to be our local watering hole.

Perhaps the car just wanted me to stop for a beer and watch a few innings of baseball. Anyhow, that’s what I did.

Half an hour later, the ‘Bird fired right back up and I drove it home. Turned off the key, and the motor stopped, just as it should. Go figure.

A New Start

Over the last week, my son and I got the distributer in, new wires put together and the rest of the odds and ends installed. Out came the old distributer, the high performance spark enhancer and the extra wiring that went with both.

Today, we finished wiring up the coil, hooked up the fuel line from the tank and–with some trepidation–turned the key.

Over the last month (since the last time the car ran), we’ve replaced all these parts:

  • carburetor
  • distributer
  • coil
  • plug wires
  • starter
  • alternator
  • fuel pump
  • oil filter
  • oil pressure sender
  • . . . and many ancillary hoses, wires, bits and pieces

The engine turned over smoothly and we suffered through two false starts and backfires through the carb. A little starter fluid, a nudge to the distributer and she came to life:

We ran it for about 20 minutes until it was warm, then set the timing and adjusted the carburetor. There was still a stumble in the motor that had us scratching our heads when the engine coughed . . . and died.

Finished and running
Finished and running.

Now we were really perplexed. Poking around, I noticed that a plug wire had come off–probably the stumble we were looking for, but not enough to kill the engine. The nifty in-line fuel pressure gauge I had installed was reading 0–definitely odd. I pulled the gauge out and replaced it with the old in-line filter.

That done, it fired right back up!

I took it out for a quick spin around the block where it ran stronger and much more smoothly than it had before this evolution began. I was, frankly, a little amazed that we had so little trouble. Of all the things we swapped out, only the oil pressure sender didn’t seem to work–a problem that is likely in the gauge, not the new unit.

But, that’s an issue for another day.