Progress Thread 2004 Comp Orange GT

95steedamustang said:

I can dig it. Whatever makes the car better Id be all for.

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I'm decent at what a buddy used to call a 'cheat blend' where you don't spray base a bit below the tape line, but you do clear over it, then wet sand the tape line out. But the New Edge has pretty decent body lines to let me hit sections. And Comp Orange is weird - I've seen three different shades - they were three different brands, all mixed to spec.

So with new tensioner, new idler pulleys, belt and water pump - the OEM Motorcraft alternator bearings felt a bit 'draggy'. Not a fan of aftermarket for alternators, so I normally just order rebuild kits. Chasing down the bearing part #s, regulator etc - randomly ran across a NOS new in the box Motorcraft NEW (not reman) alternator for $100+ the ride. Couldn't pass that up. Hell, junkyard wants $40 for one that might or might not work. I'll install the new and rebuild the original and paint the case while I'm at it. Rebuild kit is only $60 for brushes, regulator, bearings, retainer and cover.

I also noticed how nasty the power steering fluid looked (Hydroboost car of course) so I sucked some out, replaced some etc. Might have pulled a bit too much out and got a bit of air in the system. Slight noise. I'll swap some more out one night after work or this weekend, put the front up and do the tried and true 20 turns lock to lock, check fluid, rinse repeat etc.

New alternator came in - got it in installed. Inside one box was the original, unopened (paper shipping tape under original label) Motorcraft NEW 4.6 2v alternator. Seller immediately listed another after I bought this one. Have a feeling he cleared out a parts store / dealer. Even had the spec / test and warranty sheet / warning in the box. I'll rebuild the original and paint the case.

Storming outside - cleaning up the shop and decided to do a quick and dirty cut / polish on the 20+ year old hood paint. Tried out some new spray on ceramic coating my buddies have been raving about. Made by cerakote.

Quick cut with heavy, then fine, then a wipe on / wipe off w/ this cerakote stuff



You can see the chips etc - daily driven - 22 year old paint. Not bad though for minimal effort

My '04 is my daily - so a few days ago I notice a noise. Not really "a" noise. Just more of a different 'sound' of the car driving down the road.
It's not a noise where I'm worried about something breaking - it's just that the car started to make a different sound when driving. It's road noise for sure - it differs based on various roads / surfaces etc.

Truth is, I'm sure most people would never notice it. That's fine. Seemed to be most noticeable with the window down coming from the LH wheel / tire. No vibration, no pulling etc - like I said - the road noise from the car was just 'different'. Jacked it up spun the wheel / tire wanted to make sure no bearing noises. Both LCAs, ball joints, tie rods (inner and outer), struts etc - I've already replaced. The only mechanical thing (besides a new part failure - hey it does happen) could be the hub / front wheel bearing.

No play. No noise. Granted they have @ 100K on 'em so wouldn't be a bad idea regardless - but no play / real 'roar' or noise from them.

I wondered if my quick and dirty setting of toe in (after springs / control arms, tie rods etc) was coming back to bite me.

That would be yes. I've got some inner tire wear - not horrible noticeable visually - but I can feel it running my hand across it. I have no one to blame but me - I should have measured camber etc but I did not.

NOTE: The car does not have CC plates and it had Eibach Pro Kit springs on it (since close to when it was new) when I bought it and no weird tire wear. I've since:

- Replaced springs with BMR min (1") drop springs (Old Eibach springs were actually broken on one side)
- New stock replacement lower control arms on both sides (LCA bushings were SHOT)
- KYB replacement struts (I know there are better - but everything better rides WAY firmer - no thanks)
- New inner / outer tie roads
- New rotors / calipers etc
- New ball joints

So I broke out the level and measure camber - converted to degrees - and I'm right at -2 Camber. Okay.
I knew it had a bit too much negative camber for even tire wear - but I know I'm eventually going to replace the 17x8 Bullitt wheels with something wider, maybe even different - so I did put cheapish tires on the front when they needed replacement.

- I AM NOT installing CC plates. No matter how good they are, they all make noise. Spherical bearings.

So I took a look and the top strut bushing needs to be replaced. I forgot to order them when I replaced struts. I can see cracks in the rubber. The lower bushing / bump stops were fine when I replaced struts.

So apparently you can't just order that bushing. It's a 'strut mount' kit. Per side. A few manufacturers. Includes bumpstop / bushing on top of OEM bellows / sleeve, metal spacer and top strut bushing. They range from $20-50 - per side. Really?

Just ordered the Prothane replacement - it includes both sides (metal spacer, top strut bushings, and bushing on bellows) - basically for the cost of one side of OEM stuff.

That should help to at least retain alignment settings and not let everything sag. I'll install those and see if my camber changes. If not enough, I'll loosen the strut to spindle bolts and put outward pressure on the strut when tightening to see if I can get rid of a bit of that negative camber. If that doesn't work, I'll drill the OEM rivets on the top plate and see if there's any more slack in there.

And if THAT doesn't work? I'll go with camber bolts.

Mustang5L5 said:

When my hub was failing, it made a roar/thumping type noise, but I was never able to feel any movement in the wheel when i jacked it up and spun. No rough feel as well. I had to pull the rotor off and put my hands on the hub and spin it and that's when i felt the roughness.

Tires can also make road noise as well that might feel like a wheel bearing/hub. Highly depends on the tire.

I have MM caster/cambler plates on both my Mustangs and have never heard a peep out of them. In fact my '00 GT is more of a semi-daily driver, so all my parts were picked with NVH in mind. With eibachs and bilstiens and my MM c/c plates i don't get any suspension noises at all.

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Good to know - thanks. If it comes to point I need that extra adjustment I'll definitely be going with MM - I just don't think I should need to. We shall see.

I want to upgrade to Cobra brakes - so odds are I'll just do the hubs / wheel bearings while I'm in there for that.

squeak93 said:

+1 for MM 4 bolts plates. If they make any noise my exhaust covers it up for sure.

Tire tread feathering will make noises depending on road type/surface. Sounds from your description that the toe may need a slight adjustment and be less agressive. Should solve both tire wear and what you're likely hearing.

At the age and miles, bearings (ford ones) are not a bad investment and cheap overall. Do it before a new alignment just to make sure the other bearings didn't' have play to jack with the specs.

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Unless my memory has failed me (which is quite possible) I thought too much toe in on these chassis caused outer tire wear? The noise only started in the past few months. It wasn't there last Fall for example. Only really hear it when the driver's window is down while driving. It's louder on certain road surfaces, but it definitely wasn't there before. Of course I could just be going crazy.

Mustang5L5 said:

Toe in is usually inner wear. Toe out is outer wear. It's due to the caster angle that these cars are set with. The tops of the struts are raked back so when the wheels tilt in, they kinda roll over the edge of the tire a little bit.

Definitely go Cobra brakes. One of my fav mods on this chassis

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Really? Fair enough. I'll tighten the TOE IN up and see what it does.

Think 1/8 TOTAL Toe in is too much?

Per the OEM service manual

In the middle of yard work - decided to replace the upper strut bushings with poly. Didn't take pictures - it didn't take long at all and I had more yard work. We'll see how it drives in the morning.

Always something - Went to adjust my clutch cable the other day (adjustable cable / quandrant / firewall adjustre) as I haven't done it since I installed the new cable a while back. Adjusted it per Max Motorsports instructions and my sometimes noisy T/O bearing started making noise with the clutch engaged (pedal out) - I can hear it at low speeds.

Readjusted (loosened cable) noise is mostly gone now. Clutch engages / disengages smoothly, no grinds, no nibbles, no slipping. Hoping it's not a warning it's getting ready to go. May try to get some grease in there this week.

I have enough to without an unplanned clutch job.