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Old 10-29-2015, 11:43 AM   #1
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considering a second van...the addiction goes to phase 2

multiple vans...following suit of many others participating in this forum

since we will be removing all the seating from our van to build it out. a friend and i decided to go in on a van for our group outings, mt bike shuttles, etc. currently looking at a beatdown 93 12 pass with a 5.8 and 220k on the mileometer. have yet to look at it in person, but was wondering what you guys suggest to specifically look for? i poked around the nets and dont really see anything thats common per say, just looks like the typical old vehicle issues that arise, but i wanted to check with the pros on what i might need to look for once i have it in my sights. any drawbacks or things to look out for on these earlier vans? any input would be appreciated!

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Old 10-29-2015, 11:50 AM   #2
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Re: considering a second van...the addiction goes to phase 2

Transmission (maybe already done?) and radiator are probably the two big items that always go out on that year van with that many miles. Also if it has rear hvac those lines are probably toast, because that year had steel lines (newer have aluminum)
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Old 10-30-2015, 05:46 AM   #3
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Re: considering a second van...the addiction goes to phase 2

^^^ thank you carringb, exactly the kind of info i was hoping to see!

talked with the guy briefly yesterday. he said only issue hes had with it was a misfire that ended up being a bad plug wire. other than that, its caused him no grief. he didnt know if the tranny had been replaced or repaired prior to him owning it. trying to meet up with the guy today.

on these 5.8 motors, are there specific plugs, wires, cap & rotors brands to use or stay away from? if we pick it up, this will be my first ford motor.
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Old 10-30-2015, 07:28 AM   #4
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Re: considering a second van...the addiction goes to phase 2

NAPA Belden plug wires are the best I've seen across the board. You might be able to find something application-specific thats better, but the Belden wires are really good, and actually cut to fit properly. And labelled. I generally go with the Napa Echlin cap and rotor, but Motorcraft or any of the OEM parts makers (AC Delco, Denso etc) would also be good too. Just avoid the bottom of the barrel parts house stuff.

The 5.8L is a really good motor, and can put out more power than the 460 with a simple cat-back system and opening up the intake.
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Old 10-30-2015, 07:57 AM   #5
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Re: considering a second van...the addiction goes to phase 2

.......
Quote:
Originally Posted by shenrie
but was wondering what you guys suggest to specifically look for?
Look for gas money!

Na, just kidding. It's probably not going to be bad. I'm sure you'll get 10-12 hauling gear and people, not much different than most vans.

I used Ford Racing wires on mine, which I got on sale from Jegs/Summit, don't remember which. I've found that those are 2 good places to get good deals on good parts. For the rest of my stuff on my 460 I went with Motorcraft. You can find great deals on the essentials for these older engines cheap, especially at Rock Auto if you have time to wait on mail order.

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Old 10-30-2015, 08:23 AM   #6
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Re: considering a second van...the addiction goes to phase 2

Also, be prepared to service of lot of the small stuff. While the motor itself is solid, the accessories (water pump, emissions parts, alternator, T-stat etc) is not a long lasting as the stuff bolted to the Triton motors. Small stuff too can be especially aggravating. I had a bad engine temp sender on my '94. The one that sends to the PCM, not the dash. It would fail open (common) making the transmission think its cold and not lockup the Torque Converter. Also fuel pump is kinda a given for that age van, but it was already done at some point with those miles.
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Old 10-30-2015, 09:31 AM   #7
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Re: considering a second van...the addiction goes to phase 2

Quote:
Originally Posted by 86Scotty
.......
Quote:
Originally Posted by shenrie
but was wondering what you guys suggest to specifically look for?
Look for gas money!

no joke. not to scare anyone off, but our 93 saw 8mpg at best. Engine felt fine and was solid, minus a miss that was corrected with new plugs/wires/cap/etc. It was a very smooth driving engine for sure. For me, the transmission was it's biggest downfall - 1st gear was fine, but once it shifted into second it fell on its face hard - especially on a highway onramp uphill trying to get up to merging speeds.
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Old 10-30-2015, 04:36 PM   #8
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Re: considering a second van...the addiction goes to phase 2

went and drove it today. rad has been replaced (had yellow salvage yard writing on it), and I'm guessing the tranny has been replaced as well. shifted good and had the exact same characteristics as audisnapr described. under hard acceleration it shifted firm, on lazy acceleration, it was smooth as glass. i did get a cel on one of the hard accells, but it went off almost immediately.

heat and ac both worked great up front, but nothing in rear other than fan blowing. steering was sharp and rode well, as in, wasn't a total rattletrap. removed doghouse and there was no seepage from valve covers which surprised me. the breather was wet and obviously leaked some there, but wasnt soaked. lower half of motor was wet all over, but didn't appear to be coming from heads. owner said it had a good leak when he picked it up and it was fixed by replacing oil sender on front of motor. if it was leaking for some time, would this omit enough oil to completely saturate the entire lower half of motor? we went and parked over a puddle for quite some time and didn't get any rainbows, so if it is still leaking, it isn't severe.

lots of little shit didn't work...dope scopes, passenger door regulator was waisted, all little stuff id expect to need some love. definitely needed cleaned. it did have all pop out windys that were in working order. some good dents in rear quarters, but we really aren't concerned about looks. we will be using this solely for utility. mpgs are irrilivent as we will normally have a handful of occupants to pitch. i didn't expect great mileage, but 8?? that's prety bad, lol.

owner bought it for his sons church camp as their bus had recently died, but they bought a new van before he got this one to them and it sounds like it's pretty much sat for the last year or so. i talked him down 500 from original price, but with how wet the lower half was, im a little weary. thoughts?
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Old 10-30-2015, 07:13 PM   #9
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Re: considering a second van...the addiction goes to phase 2

If the leak was never cleaned, then that explains the oil. It won't clean itself off.

I got 15-16 in my '94 EB wagon. Actually could go am little further on a tank of gas than my V10 could. It routinely went 500+ on a tank of gas
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Old 10-30-2015, 08:21 PM   #10
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Re: considering a second van...the addiction goes to phase 2

I would say wetness underneath on that thing is the good old Ford rear main leak. If it's not dripping much I wouldn't worry about it.

It sounds pretty average for its age. Enjoy!
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