Bronco II, bringing it back to life.

[chazzone]

Which oil do you recommend?

The oil that you want to use is what Ford recommends for the engine, that's 5W-30.

A lot of guys will tell you to run a higher viscosity oil, but they really don't understand how this engine is designed, or why they almost all have a lifter noise.

There is poor circulation to the lifters, and a higher vis oil only makes that worse.

The worst possible thing you could do to that engine is throw in a higher viscosity oil, when it's already crudded up and has low oil pressure.

You really need to do an oil pressure check with a mechanical oil pressure gauge. They aren't that expensive or hard to install.

That way you know what you're dealing with, and have a baseline to judge any progress in cleaning up the engine.

Use some Sea Foam in it and run it long enough to get the circulation going and clean up the bad stuff.

Then change the oil, add some more sea Foam, and run it for another 500 miles and change it out again.

Keep track of the oil pressure, and see if it starts to improve. Also keep and eye on the condition of the oil and see how bad it looks after you run it a while.

It may not be all that bad inside, so just keeping it lubed with good quality 5W-30 will give the best longevity for the engine.

 

[rusty70f100]

Have you even read the whole thread? The oil light is coming on, when it's warmed up! That means that the engine is very worn out. The only way to get enough pressure to make sure everything has oil, in his particular engine, is to raise the viscosity.

Yes, I've had a 2.9L V6 apart. I know exactly how they're designed. I also know that if you want to limp by on a worn out engine you need thicker oil. This isn't just lifter tick; If he's got the oil light coming on he's got bigger problems. That is most likely worn out bearings.

How is the oil going to get into the lifters if there's no oil pressure to begin with? Most likely the lifters have already collapsed anyway, and no amount of maintenance, fiddling, or oil changing is going to make them quiet now.

But yeah, try to clean it up as mentioned. I don't think it'll turn off the oil light though.

 

[Charles]

OK, got the oil light issue taken care of....maybe.

here's what I did, I poured 1/3 to 1/2 can of sea foam in the top (where thwe oil goes) and ran it up the road a mile or two, just long enough to get it warmed up.

Let it sit and idle for about 5 minutes, oil light was on by then.

shut it down and changed the drained the oil and changed the oil filter.

Put 4 quarts of standard 10w40 in, what I had around at the time, and poured in a can of Lucas oil stabilizer (thick stuff) in it also.

started it up and ran it down the road several miles (can't go too far, no rear bumper, so no tag, and cops are trying to meet their quota, they would LOVE me right now). Oil light stayed off.

The only thing I saw was a slight flicker of the oil light when sitting idle after getting back, and that was hard to notice. I imagine the longer I run it, maybe it'll flash more but it seems like an improvement or a step in the right direction for now. not a cure all.

nowhere near as much ticking coming from the engine. getting better.

I know this is probably not the correct way to do things, these short cuts, but I'm not trying to fix it up to sell or anything. This is so similar to my Ranger that I enjoy, I figure it would be a good vehicle driving back and forth to work in. not for off roading or beating the hell out of.


Two more issues.
1- The Rear AntiLock Brake light is on and stays on. No problem with braking, they work fine. What could it be?

2- The EGR solenoid buzzes when I shut the engine off. Does this need changing or is the oscillation coming from something else like the voltahe source?

 

[CountryBoy78]

Like others have said you can tinker and do bandaid fixes on that motor, but until you get a mechanical oil gauge in it to see whats going on for oil pressure you are just guessing whats its problem.

If it was mine I would just do the normal repairs to get it running good and just run it till she blows. If the motor is bad theres no sense sticking a ton of money in it. But I have limped a few weak motors for a long time and they just kept on running till I got sick of them and replaced them.

Have fun and keep doing what your doing. If it doesn't hurt your wallet to bad and you learn somethings thats all what matters.

 

[rusty70f100]

Good to hear you got the oil pressure up high enough that the light goes out.

1. I haven't had experience with the RABS system not working, so I can't help you there.

2. The EGR solenoid is supposed to buzz for a while after you turn it off. It's the way they were designed. It's not a problem.

 

[Charles]

I'll be putting a oil gauge on it probably in the next week or so. I can do general maintenance on a vehicle but that's pretty much the extent of my knowledge. anything else I have to get a mechanic involved.
I really do appreciate everyone's input. It has been a learning experience.

I managed to get the bumper back on and the tag on it. Drove it up to the store and back, put some gas in it.

Fuel gauge isn't working, is there a connector or something easily accessible where I can check the float to see if it's working (resistance, I believe).

I'm gonna check with the previous owner to see if this was always the case or if it's something recent.


Could also be a problem with the instrument cluster. The temp gauge was working, but dropped down to cold.



one thing after another.......

 

[MountainMike]

1- The Rear AntiLock Brake light is on and stays on. No problem with braking, they work fine. What could it be?

Could be something as simple as the master cylinder is a little low.

 

[kimcrwbr1]

Yea the truck is 25 yrs old and the connections could be getting corroded. pull all the connections apart and clean with electrical cleaner inspect them and use some dielectric to put them back together to protect from corrosion. For the coolant temp that is pretty common take the 90 degree connector and crimp it a little so it fits tite on the sender also sand the terminal on the sender to rough it up a little first and dielectric it also.

 

[Steeda04SVT]

The oil that you want to use is what Ford recommends for the engine, that's 5W-30.

A lot of guys will tell you to run a higher viscosity oil, but they really don't understand how this engine is designed, or why they almost all have a lifter noise.

There is poor circulation to the lifters, and a higher vis oil only makes that worse.

The worst possible thing you could do to that engine is throw in a higher viscosity oil, when it's already crudded up and has low oil pressure.

You really need to do an oil pressure check with a mechanical oil pressure gauge. They aren't that expensive or hard to install.

That way you know what you're dealing with, and have a baseline to judge any progress in cleaning up the engine.

Use some Sea Foam in it and run it long enough to get the circulation going and clean up the bad stuff.

Then change the oil, add some more sea Foam, and run it for another 500 miles and change it out again.

Keep track of the oil pressure, and see if it starts to improve. Also keep and eye on the condition of the oil and see how bad it looks after you run it a while.

It may not be all that bad inside, so just keeping it lubed with good quality 5W-30 will give the best longevity for the engine.

What brand do you use and how many quarts?

 

[Steeda04SVT]

OK, got the oil light issue taken care of....maybe.

here's what I did, I poured 1/3 to 1/2 can of sea foam in the top (where thwe oil goes) and ran it up the road a mile or two, just long enough to get it warmed up.

Let it sit and idle for about 5 minutes, oil light was on by then.

shut it down and changed the drained the oil and changed the oil filter.

Put 4 quarts of standard 10w40 in, what I had around at the time, and poured in a can of Lucas oil stabilizer (thick stuff) in it also.

started it up and ran it down the road several miles (can't go too far, no rear bumper, so no tag, and cops are trying to meet their quota, they would LOVE me right now). Oil light stayed off.

The only thing I saw was a slight flicker of the oil light when sitting idle after getting back, and that was hard to notice. I imagine the longer I run it, maybe it'll flash more but it seems like an improvement or a step in the right direction for now. not a cure all.

nowhere near as much ticking coming from the engine. getting better.

I know this is probably not the correct way to do things, these short cuts, but I'm not trying to fix it up to sell or anything. This is so similar to my Ranger that I enjoy, I figure it would be a good vehicle driving back and forth to work in. not for off roading or beating the hell out of it.

Did you stick with the same oil weight now? Plus no ticking yet either with that weight of oil?

Like others have said you can tinker and do bandaid fixes on that motor, but until you get a mechanical oil gauge in it to see whats going on for oil pressure you are just guessing whats its problem.

If it was mine I would just do the normal repairs to get it running good and just run it till she blows. If the motor is bad theres no sense sticking a ton of money in it. But I have limped a few weak motors for a long time and they just kept on running till I got sick of them and replaced them.

Have fun and keep doing what your doing. If it doesn't hurt your wallet to bad and you learn somethings thats all what matters.

So I take it the stock oil pressure gauge isn't really reliable then i take it?

 

[Charles]

Did you stick with the same oil weight now? Plus no ticking yet either with that weight of oil?

So I take it the stock oil pressure gauge isn't really reliable then i take it?

Haven't been running it much. It has an oil leak that needs to be addressed along with loosing coolant. I originally used 4 quarts of Havoline 10W40 and 1 quart of Lucas. Valves still tick, some work needs to be done there also.

I'm not sure about the reliability of the stock gauge, but I would guess that these guys/gals around here are correct in stating that an aftermarket mechanical gauge would be better.


I've got to clean up the engine, someone mentioned some type of dye you can put in the oil to find the leaks via ultraviolet light. Might try that if I can't find all the leaks.


One issue I'm having, it starts up super easy, runs good. after a few minutes, the idle will start going up and down, and a few times it'll shut off. also doesn't seem the power I would expect.

won't do it when it's warmed up, only when it's cold and idling.

Good little vehicle but it'll consume some time and money, so I've had to kinda put it on the side for now while I work with mammas van and my Jeep.
I plan on getting back to it hopefully this week, making a list of parts. seriously thinking about an engine swap after reading many post here.

 

[Steeda04SVT]

That would be nice for the dye to find the leak, cuz I got a slow leak somewhere too and can't find it for the life of me.

 

[Charles]

I did the dye thing and found a few leaks.

One thing about the dye, there are different types of dye you can put in, some are florecent and some are UV. I used the UV because that was what someone suggested. It requires a blacklight (good blacklight, not cheap walmart bulb) to find the leaks, and best to do at night after running the dye through it for a day or week.

The stuff I used was SuperSeal engine Dye and stop leak. It was available off the shelf. I didn't use the stop leak portion of it, from what I understand that's more for any rubber parts that are worn out and leaking, all it does is make them swell. Anyway, with the blacklight, it showed up decent, my leak was probably worse than yours and it took some time to pinpoint it. I'm not sure how the florecent stuff does.

 

[Steeda04SVT]

I did the dye thing and found a few leaks.

One thing about the dye, there are different types of dye you can put in, some are florecent and some are UV. I used the UV because that was what someone suggested. It requires a blacklight (good blacklight, not cheap walmart bulb) to find the leaks, and best to do at night after running the dye through it for a day or week.

The stuff I used was SuperSeal engine Dye and stop leak. It was available off the shelf. I didn't use the stop leak portion of it, from what I understand that's more for any rubber parts that are worn out and leaking, all it does is make them swell. Anyway, with the blacklight, it showed up decent, my leak was probably worse than yours and it took some time to pinpoint it. I'm not sure how the florecent stuff does.

What did it all cost for the SuperSeal engine dye and stop leak?

 

[Charles]

About 7 to 8 bucks for the bottle. It has two parts, one is the dye, the other the leak seal. I only used the dye portion.