Newb...with first truck
06-05-2016, 09:21 AM
#1
First Truck
Thread Starter
Newb...with first truck
Hi guys,
I just bought a 1992 Ford F-150 XLT Lariat 5.0L v8. This is my first truck and I am a female trying to fix her up. I bought this truck with 130,000 miles on it. Everything is factory I believe. I have several questions and hoping for several answers as I am trying to bring this baby back to life.
1- The truck used to belong to a man and it sat for a while. Two days after I bought it the seal in the tranny busted. Now that that's fixed, after I got it back from the shop I had a radiator flush done. Since I got her back the radiator fluid leaks out of the overflow tank from the top of the cap...Like it boils over. I let it sit for a couple days. Open the actual cap on the radiator and it is full of coolant. My overflow housing or coolant tank is like half full. When I originally got it back they had it almost completely full. With the radiator and the overflow tank both full of coolant would this be the reason why radiator fluid is leaking from my overflow tank? How do you fill these guys up? Just to the "Cold Fill" line? My needle never goes past the halfway mark so I don't think she is overheating, but just some insight would be great.
2- Overdrive button. Is there a light or something that is supposed to come on when you hit this button because nothing happens and seems to be the only original part on the truck that does not.
3- My truck tends to take two cranks to get it fired up. The first one it's like it doesn't want to go but cranks right up on the second one...Then in my opinion it sounds like it idles high as soon as it cranks. It's not until I put it into reverse or gear that the idle goes down to normal. How do I fix this?
4- My AC works on normal AC but does not on Max AC. I was told it was a vacuum issue. I had bought some Freon to refresh it with but they told me to take it back because that was not the issue. However, if this is the guy that way overfilled my coolant.. I don't exactly trust him anymore.
I've replaced all the wires/plugs/cap and distributor. Trying to get the air filter housing undone now but the bolts at the back have something at the bottom that's being a pain in the *** for me to get off. I've seen some F150's that just take the housing out completely and put the circular air filters on the end of the hoses. Is this better for the engine/recommended? What does this do? I was replacing the fuel filter as well but when the radiator flush was done, the mechanic said it looked like it was recently changed. They said the oil was recently changed as well but I am going to have her changed anyways in the next two weeks.
Any suggestions/other things I should replace? Any help and advice would be greatly appreciated as this is my first truck. I'm in love with it already and I am slowly trying to restore her back to great condition.
Also ***** There is no check engine light on...do codes still pop up even if this is so? I'm trying to get used to "check engine" lights only being for the actual engine now...instead of everything under the sun.
Thank you!
I just bought a 1992 Ford F-150 XLT Lariat 5.0L v8. This is my first truck and I am a female trying to fix her up. I bought this truck with 130,000 miles on it. Everything is factory I believe. I have several questions and hoping for several answers as I am trying to bring this baby back to life.
1- The truck used to belong to a man and it sat for a while. Two days after I bought it the seal in the tranny busted. Now that that's fixed, after I got it back from the shop I had a radiator flush done. Since I got her back the radiator fluid leaks out of the overflow tank from the top of the cap...Like it boils over. I let it sit for a couple days. Open the actual cap on the radiator and it is full of coolant. My overflow housing or coolant tank is like half full. When I originally got it back they had it almost completely full. With the radiator and the overflow tank both full of coolant would this be the reason why radiator fluid is leaking from my overflow tank? How do you fill these guys up? Just to the "Cold Fill" line? My needle never goes past the halfway mark so I don't think she is overheating, but just some insight would be great.
2- Overdrive button. Is there a light or something that is supposed to come on when you hit this button because nothing happens and seems to be the only original part on the truck that does not.
3- My truck tends to take two cranks to get it fired up. The first one it's like it doesn't want to go but cranks right up on the second one...Then in my opinion it sounds like it idles high as soon as it cranks. It's not until I put it into reverse or gear that the idle goes down to normal. How do I fix this?
4- My AC works on normal AC but does not on Max AC. I was told it was a vacuum issue. I had bought some Freon to refresh it with but they told me to take it back because that was not the issue. However, if this is the guy that way overfilled my coolant.. I don't exactly trust him anymore.
I've replaced all the wires/plugs/cap and distributor. Trying to get the air filter housing undone now but the bolts at the back have something at the bottom that's being a pain in the *** for me to get off. I've seen some F150's that just take the housing out completely and put the circular air filters on the end of the hoses. Is this better for the engine/recommended? What does this do? I was replacing the fuel filter as well but when the radiator flush was done, the mechanic said it looked like it was recently changed. They said the oil was recently changed as well but I am going to have her changed anyways in the next two weeks.
Any suggestions/other things I should replace? Any help and advice would be greatly appreciated as this is my first truck. I'm in love with it already and I am slowly trying to restore her back to great condition.
Also ***** There is no check engine light on...do codes still pop up even if this is so? I'm trying to get used to "check engine" lights only being for the actual engine now...instead of everything under the sun.
Thank you!
06-05-2016, 09:53 AM
#2
Senior Member
Welcome to the forum!
1) Fill to the cold fill line when cold - if it is still over-flowing at that level then it will be a problem to address.
2) Mine is a manual so not sure about the OD button but I am pretty sure it is supposed to have a bulb that lights up - best way to see if OD is working is to get it up to speed and see if it shifts into 4th. Other's with automatics might have more insight here.
3) It's normal for the truck to idle a little higher on a cold start - usually mine does it for about 30 seconds then settles down, or if I hit the gas it drops. Did you replace the entire distributor or just the cap and rotor? How about the ignition coil?
4) It could definitely be a vacuum issue - if Max A/C isn't working better than A/C then it probably means that the re-circulation door/motor is not working. There is a white vacuum line that runs through the firewall and to a small motor where the passenger fender and the firewall meet - if that line is shot, or that motor is busted, it might cause the problems you are seeing. Common problem with that vacuum line.
Lots of folks purchase the K&N RF-1012 filter ($70) and rig it up with some tubing and hardware - I did it on my 5.0 and definitely like it better than the stock system. Plus it removes all of the stock airbox which gives you tons of space to work in the engine bay. You can also pay for a more expensive bolt-in kit ($250).
If it were me, with a new to me truck, I would make sure all of the fluids were changed - I'm assuming since you had the tranny serviced they changed the fluid, and the radiator is already done - oil, brake, and power steering should be all that's left. Fuel Filter is an easy enough replacement and cheap but you need the right tool.
Most important thing is safety - so make sure your brakes and tires are good. Suspension and steering would be the next thing to look at (shocks, springs, tie rods, ball joints).
There is a thread at the top of the forum that shows you how to pull codes - you can also buy a $25-30 ODB1 code reader at most local autoshops.
1) Fill to the cold fill line when cold - if it is still over-flowing at that level then it will be a problem to address.
2) Mine is a manual so not sure about the OD button but I am pretty sure it is supposed to have a bulb that lights up - best way to see if OD is working is to get it up to speed and see if it shifts into 4th. Other's with automatics might have more insight here.
3) It's normal for the truck to idle a little higher on a cold start - usually mine does it for about 30 seconds then settles down, or if I hit the gas it drops. Did you replace the entire distributor or just the cap and rotor? How about the ignition coil?
4) It could definitely be a vacuum issue - if Max A/C isn't working better than A/C then it probably means that the re-circulation door/motor is not working. There is a white vacuum line that runs through the firewall and to a small motor where the passenger fender and the firewall meet - if that line is shot, or that motor is busted, it might cause the problems you are seeing. Common problem with that vacuum line.
Lots of folks purchase the K&N RF-1012 filter ($70) and rig it up with some tubing and hardware - I did it on my 5.0 and definitely like it better than the stock system. Plus it removes all of the stock airbox which gives you tons of space to work in the engine bay. You can also pay for a more expensive bolt-in kit ($250).
If it were me, with a new to me truck, I would make sure all of the fluids were changed - I'm assuming since you had the tranny serviced they changed the fluid, and the radiator is already done - oil, brake, and power steering should be all that's left. Fuel Filter is an easy enough replacement and cheap but you need the right tool.
Most important thing is safety - so make sure your brakes and tires are good. Suspension and steering would be the next thing to look at (shocks, springs, tie rods, ball joints).
There is a thread at the top of the forum that shows you how to pull codes - you can also buy a $25-30 ODB1 code reader at most local autoshops.
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FordToughGirl (06-05-2016)
06-05-2016, 11:02 AM
#3
First Truck
Thread Starter
Just the cap and roter. Did not do the ignition coil...I see they make the motorcraft. Should I get everything motorcraft? Or at least try to? I bought a pcv valve as well but it was not motorcraft. I read somewhere on here to get that one and not just an after market one.
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FordToughGirl (06-05-2016)
06-05-2016, 01:04 PM
#5
PCV valve, Throttle position sensor, and vehicle speed sensor should all be motorcraft only.
Other parts are hit and miss for quality, motorcraft is usually much better quality than the average parts but sometimes they're a little bit too expensive to be your first choice.
Other parts are hit and miss for quality, motorcraft is usually much better quality than the average parts but sometimes they're a little bit too expensive to be your first choice.
06-10-2016, 07:41 PM
#6
The OD button should come on if you have the E4od trans. Not sure but I think the AOD stopped production in 91. Does it shift out of overdrive when you hit it? If your not going fast enough and have not shifted into overdrive then it wont do anything.
06-11-2016, 10:11 PM
#7
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Hi! I also just bought a '93 f150. Bought one two years ago, that one still won't run. This one ran for about 30 minutes. One trip to the campground, had to tow it home. Not getting gas. I will try a fuel filter. The fuel pump is kicking on. Went through this exact same troubleshooting with the last truck, after a half dozen cheap parts, finally figured out it needed a new computer. Not looking forward to doing it all over...