1988 BII Build

[88_Eddie]

UPDATE............finally

well i've got a cracked head or head gasket.....so i've decided to take this project in a new direction. it's gonna be a RESTORATION now instead of a BUILD. i got this BII when i turned 16 and i wanna make it nice again. i'm gonna start by rebuilding the 2.9L. i'm gonna put a small lift on it, get a manual t-case, some 31's, probably regear and redo the interior.

napa has a rebuild kit for $600 that includes everything you need and they'll check out your old block and heads and stuff to make sure everything is ok. you can also subtract stuff off the kit to make it cheaper - which is nice, cause i just replaced the plugs, wires, water pump, alternator and t-stat.

here's the progress so far:

gonna paint some stuff ford blue, intake and valve covers so far

http://i893.photobucket.com/albums/ac134/88_Eddie
/BII/P2030002.jpg

more is on the way.............

 

[Xandor]

I like the blue. Def keeping an eye on your build. Nice to see people realy work on there builds even if its slow.

 

[jhammel85]

Looks like a good job man. I really like the intake. Did you grind the top of it to give it that look?

 

[88_Eddie]

I like the blue. Def keeping an eye on your build. Nice to see people realy work on there builds even if its slow.

yeah, the rack at autozone said FORD BLUE, i like it....plus my cone air filter is "ford" blue, so it'll go nice. not sure if i'm gonna paint the block yet. got the valve covers done today.

here's everything, should look nice in the engine compartment

Looks like a good job man. I really like the intake. Did you grind the top of it to give it that look?

yep, painted the whole thing and used one of sand paper wheels to take the paint off, worked great.


got the one of the heads off today.....the right one is still stuck on there. i got all the head bolts out, but i have the very back, lower exhaust manifold bolt to take out still. they're rusted in there like a mofo......got some good penetrating oil though, should take care of it.

here's the left head, looks to be in good shape, but i'm gonna get it checked out along with the block and other head

 

[jhammel85]

Making progress

I hope those heads are good. Itd be nice to save money for once wouldn't it?!

Did you find any other problems while digging around? Just a guess, but by the looks of the black marks on those manifolds, you might be fixing some leaks as well!

 

[88_Eddie]

^
i hope the heads are ok, i havent seen anything that is jumping out at me. one of the gaskets on the exhaust manifold was in pieces and fell apart when i removed the left hand head. the exhaust manifolds are really rusty, i'm thinkin about puttin some headers on it when i rebuild. it'd mostly be for looks, the exhaust manifolds on a 2.9 are flow pretty good as it is. plus, autozone charges $87 for the left side and $65 for the right - i found some pacesetter headers for $175.

 

[ForOffRoadDriving]

lookin good so far, did you run a compression check on it before you tore it down to pinpoint which cylinder was leaking? got any pics of the old head gaskets? the 2.9ls are famous for cracking so id have them magnafluxed if the napa by you offers this service. i wish we had rust like that around here! ive developed almost that much rust in only 2 years of michigan weather! keep up the good work, even if it is slow going.

 

[88_Eddie]

^
nope, didnt run a compression test, i thought of that yesterday after i got the exhaust manifold off.....oh well, you know what they say, hindsight is 20-20. i have the old head gasket sittin in the garage, i'll post a pic when i get a chance.

we're lucky down here, usually not much snow. the body is in great shape, there's just surface rust on the undercarriage.

bout to go get the last exhaust manifold bolt off now, hopefully i'll find a crack in the right hand head gasket, not the head

 

[88_Eddie]

got a good bit out today.....the right head gasket/head is out, doesnt look like anything is wrong tho, gonna get it checked out. took out the front drive-shaft, starter and got both exhaust manifolds out, they were a bitch. my bro is gonna help me get the block out this week....just gotta get in there and get the bolts out of the bell housing......

 

[88_Eddie]

ok, both head gaskets were fine as far as i could tell. gonna get the heads checked out ASAP. i went and rented an engine hoist today, $23 for 24 hours - not too shabby. i put this pic up on some other threads, but here is what my cat looks like. i'm thinking this is what was makin the car run so bad.

i found a new universal cat at pep boys for $72.99, so i'm gonna get that and some new piping and a new muffler to fix the exhaust, along with a new o2 sensor.

i think i'm gonna scrap the engine rebuild for right now, i just dont have enough money. i MUST buy the following right now:
-o2 sensor ~$40
-cat ~$73
-gasket set ~$74
-muffler ~$20 for a P.O.S.
-all the piping for the exhaust - who knows how much
-all the crap i'll need to hang it
-new head bolts ~$40
-new oil and filter
-most likely a new distributor, i think i broke it takin it out ~$60 (minus TFI)

 

[88_Eddie]

the engine is out, go the oil pan/oil pump off/out. gettin the heads checked out at napa's machine shop and then gettin a gasket kit and throwing everything back together. then gettin the exhaust parts together so i can get everything back in.

 

[88_Eddie]

well napa wants $120 to check my heads and resurface them.....i'm tossing around the idea of just gettin new headbolts and puttin them back in. the head gaskets were fine and there was only "milk" the oil cap, there was none in the crankcase, so everything in there should be fine. i think the exhaust was so clogged with debris from the cat, that it was backing up into the left side(passenger side) of the exhaust manifold/head/valve cover and thats where the moisture was coming from. i dont have the money for a engine rebuild kit now.

i ordered a new cat today, $53.49 and free shipping on a universal one from autoparts warehouse, $20 cheaper than pepboys

http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/sku/Ford/Bronco_II/Eastern/Catalytic_Converter/1988/Eddie_Bauer/6_Cyl_2-dot-9L/EAST70318.html?tlc=Engine+&+Drivetrain

 

[jhammel85]

Funny...I looked for it for my truck. Doesnt fit! Its universal. It should

lol But hey, 53 bucks for a new cat is pretty nice!

 

[BlackBII]

My local machine shop charges 35$ a head to mill and check for cracks...120$ is crazy

 

[88_Eddie]

Funny...I looked for it for my truck. Doesnt fit! Its universal. It should

lol But hey, 53 bucks for a new cat is pretty nice!

for $53, i'll MAKE it work....lol, just picked up a POS sheet metal welder today from harbord freight, so i'll make it happen one way or another

My local machine shop charges 35$ a head to mill and check for cracks...120$ is crazy

that's what i thought, it's actually gonna be more than $120 too, $37 a head to compression test and $32 a head to resurface