Progress Thread Goofy fuel gauge on slow progress

[7991LXnSHO]

I’ve been driving, mostly around town and not doing much work on the car this year. That’s going to change.
1. An inner tie rod end is quite loose. I need to see if the rack is under a lifetime warranty. If it is, I have to review the hassle to just replace the tie rod since the rack does not have many miles on it over the ten years it has been in the car. And it’s been a longer time since I did a Fox inner tie rod end.
2. A power door lock solenoid froze up, and I still do not have the universal ones prepped. So I have one from LMR that will pop in.
Doing these without busting a knuckle or getting scratched on the inner door stamping is going to be a challenge. I am back on blood thinners and it will be too easy to spring a leak on the red paint or titanium interior.

 

[General karthief]

Got an old garden hose, heater hose or vacuum line?
split it and push it onto the edge of opening, it will help.

 

[7991LXnSHO]

Got an old garden hose, heater hose or vacuum line?
split it and push it onto the edge of opening, it will help.

That will help. I have to find my unused gloves or get mechanic’s gloves, but some split hose sounds better than gorilla tape for the door openings. I’m already bruised up after looking for parts in evil boxes, and have not started turning a wrench. (It looks like I was the horse in the pic.)

 

[7991LXnSHO]

No pics, sorry. It did not strike me as that unusual until later.
I got my helper to replace the door lock solenoid. When we used the key and knob to unlock it, we had pulled the stuck POJ solenoid out of the white bracket without breaking anything! And the hook ends of the bracket were facing down.
It’s good to have the locks clunk solidly again for now.

In other news, the neighborhood guard cat has been gone for at least a week. I suppose we can try to get another one used to stopping by, but this one claimed us, was curious about what we were up to, and even took out two grackles that were hassling us in the yard one day.
We do not know if it was the young coyotes, a bobcat, a car, or the neighbor who broke the cat’s pelvis when he was a kitten. But as he was fixed, I doubt he’s out roaming this long.

 

[General karthief]

Happy about the locks, sad about the cat.

 

[Mustang5L5]

Sucks about the cat. Had a neighborhood cat that came to visit us all the time. Pretty sure a Fox got him one night.

 

[7991LXnSHO]

Question then updates
- What do the rear hatch window trim clips look like, how do they work? Which trim tool do I use and which way to pry?
@Davedacarpainter

When cleaning up the 91 for winter storage, I found a spot where the Maaco quality paint job needs touched up deeper the the trim around the back window. I was planning on a repaint after my 61 gets reassembled and on the road, but this cannot wait.

- updates, we might not get any snow, but with 10” of snow and high winds forecast just north of here, the horse got fed E-0 fuel, I disconnected the battery and it is parked in the off site stall.
- Ninja Cat has not been back. :-( And sure enough, I saw a rodent last night in the attached garage. The lady next door is no longer feeding a Clowder, so I’m not sure what we will do for a therapy/guard/company outdoor cat. The 4-H show cockers make keeping an outdoor cat of our own complicated. They want to play, and that does not go over well with adopting most cats.
So anyway, I have a couple of mouse traps out now. I was slow with the Fresh Cab and Irish Spring, but I have enough of both to stink up the attached and offsite garages.

 

[General karthief]

There are about twenty of them, they push down onto a little stud in the channel, you'll see the slot in the middle of the clip. To get them to release the trim you kinda slid the pointy end of the tool you see in the pic under the u shaped part of the clip tilt the tool sideways, don't pry up or down on the glass, that should release the trim if you apply a little pressure outward on the trim, be careful, the trim bends easily,

there is a fair amount of butyl tape gooped around them so you have to work the tool digging around, I use a plastic scraper to shield the glass from the tool scratching it, I also take a gasket scraper to pry up (gently) on the trim, just a small amount of pressure up on the trim with the scraper and it should pop off, I start in the upper corner, across the top then down the sides and the trim will slide off at the joint at the top, this is for the rear glass, for the windshield take the top loose first, then the sides. IIRC.
You may be able to wedge a scraper and pry up a little on the trim and use a flashlight to see the clip, remember the trim is flimsy and kinks easy.

 

[7991LXnSHO]

There are about twenty of them, they push down onto a little stud in the channel, you'll see the slot in the middle of the clip. To get them to release the trim you kinda slid the pointy end of the tool you see in the pic under the u shaped part of the clip tilt the tool sideways, don't pry up or down on the glass, that should release the trim if you apply a little pressure outward on the trim, be careful, the trim bends easily,

there is a fair amount of butyl tape gooped around them so you have to work the tool digging around, I use a plastic scraper to shield the glass from the tool scratching it, I also take a gasket scraper to pry up (gently) on the trim, just a small amount of pressure up on the trim with the scraper and it should pop off, I start in the upper corner, across the top then down the sides and the trim will slide off at the joint at the top, this is for the rear glass, for the windshield take the top loose first, then the sides. IIRC.
You may be able to wedge a scraper and pry up a little on the trim and use a flashlight to see the clip, remember the trim is flimsy and kinks easy.

Thanks! That’s the tool I figured. And kinking the trim is what I want to avoid.

 

[General karthief]

On some really stubborn clips with lots of goop on them you have to attack the clip on both sides.

 

[7991LXnSHO]

Thanks to @revhead347, I have a close to new Steeda adjustable rear sway bar to go on with my Steeda Allluminumumum rear control arms. I am posting a scan of the instructions here to not loose them and for someone who was looking for info on the adjustable links.

 

[7991LXnSHO]

I’m saving a link @Warhorse Racing has posted that I think will come in handy. It’s factory sway bar sizes.

Mustang Sway Bar Size Guide - LMR.com

If you are looking for the Mustang sway bar sizes for your Fox Body, SN-95, New Edge, S197, or S550? Late Model Restoration has put together a quick and easy Mu

lmr.com

 

[CARBLDR]

On some really stubborn clips with lots of goop on them you have to attack the clip on both sides.

I just had all of tge trim off of my car to repaint it. I always get it off tge same way, ( and it has always worked whether it’s right or wrong)
I place a piece of 1/8-1/4 thin, flat wood parallel to the trim and lift on it with my fingertips until i can determine where the first trim clip is. stick a large flat screwdriver or trim panel pry tool under the gap, and pry the trim up being careful not to tweak or bend it. the wood protects the glass from break8ng.It’ll pop that clip off of the stud it’s setting on in some cases, and will slide out from under others

 

[7991LXnSHO]

Battery info for later from another post.

Does the 65 series fill the tray? It’s too freaking cold to go look what I am running. Off site storage, 7 deg F, and bronchitis from hell (not Covid, but two other normally mildly annoying viruses have been threatening to hospitalize me for more than a week.) etc. make going to look a very bad idea.
I probably have a group 58, AC Delco battery from Menards, 3 or 2 years outright warranty, lead acid, not AGM.
These charts will be helpful on a bigger screen
http://www.dstgateway.com/ACDelcoDocuments/BatterySpecifications.pdf

Battery Group Sizes and Cross Reference Chart with pictures | BCI, EN, DIN Codes

BCI Battery Groups description, sizes, charts, cross-references with EN and DIN battery codes. All you need to know about your battery replacement

batterygroupexpert.com

The stock size battery for my LX 5.0 is not as long as the box, front to rear of the car. I have two PVC house trim pieces cut to take up the space and prevent sliding should the clamp start to loosen again under enthusiastic driving.. I should look up the class with the right length to fill the box, and with the same width for the stock tray.
If a different battery has a bigger CCA and reserve capacity, some extra weight will be worth it. But bigger batteries are not always more powerful.

More info for testing batteries on your own -
I also want a bigger CCA and reserve capacity for the Grand Marquis. -4 F and leaving the 3 amp usb charger plugged in when parked for a week completely drained the battery. It was so dead that jumper cables did not help off the Kia’s battery before I was out too long in the cold and said enough. The 10 amp charger setting charged it up and the battery has held a full charge for three days so far and has has started up fine. But the big number of accessories and the radio in that car has drained aged batteries that have load tested fine before. Being stuck in the line at school was an embarrassing hold up.

Menards does not have a load and system tester for checking out warranty claims. If I find the receipt, coverage will be close, but they will just swap. It needs to be a reliable school car for my assistant.

I am using a digital meter with the lights on high and a foot on the brakes to check voltage drop when starting. I remember the fail spec was a drop to 10.8 V at one store I worked at with a load tester on a fully charged battery.
Yes, the terminals are still clean with red terminal spray. I hate cauliflower and similar appearing terminal corrosion.

 

[7991LXnSHO]

Sucks about the cat. Had a neighborhood cat that came to visit us all the time. Pretty sure a Fox got him one night.

That stinks. I do not want another furball in the house, but it’s hard not to try to work out a deal with the neighbor lady for another friendly, neighborhood mouser. I’d pay for vet visits and help supply food if it could sleep in I her garage at night (or inside on really cold nights). She was as at least as distraught as we were as the ninja cat was one of only a few she kept when re-homing the clouder she had collected/attracted. The shelter has been advertising cats that would make my oldest (and me) happy if they are fixed, not declawed and are friendly.

Here is another battery chart I want to save.

Battery Group Sizes and Cross Reference Chart with pictures | BCI, EN, DIN Codes

BCI Battery Groups description, sizes, charts, cross-references with EN and DIN battery codes. All you need to know about your battery replacement

batterygroupexpert.com

 

[Willybill32]

Battery info for later from another post.

Does the 65 series fill the tray? It’s too freaking cold to go look what I am running. Off site storage, 7 deg F, and bronchitis from hell (not Covid, but two other normally mildly annoying viruses have been threatening to hospitalize me for more than a week.) etc. make going to look a very bad idea.
I probably have a group 58, AC Delco battery from Menards, 3 or 2 years outright warranty, lead acid, not AGM.
These charts will be helpful on a bigger screen
http://www.dstgateway.com/ACDelcoDocuments/BatterySpecifications.pdf

Battery Group Sizes and Cross Reference Chart with pictures | BCI, EN, DIN Codes

BCI Battery Groups description, sizes, charts, cross-references with EN and DIN battery codes. All you need to know about your battery replacement

batterygroupexpert.com

The stock size battery for my LX 5.0 is not as long as the box, front to rear of the car. I have two PVC house trim pieces cut to take up the space and prevent sliding should the clamp start to loosen again under enthusiastic driving.. I should look up the class with the right length to fill the box, and with the same width for the stock tray.
If a different battery has a bigger CCA and reserve capacity, some extra weight will be worth it. But bigger batteries are not always more powerful.

More info for testing batteries on your own -
I also want a bigger CCA and reserve capacity for the Grand Marquis. -4 F and leaving the 3 amp usb charger plugged in when parked for a week completely drained the battery. It was so dead that jumper cables did not help off the Kia’s battery before I was out too long in the cold and said enough. The 10 amp charger setting charged it up and the battery has held a full charge for three days so far and has has started up fine. But the big number of accessories and the radio in that car has drained aged batteries that have load tested fine before. Being stuck in the line at school was an embarrassing hold up.

Menards does not have a load and system tester for checking out warranty claims. If I find the receipt, coverage will be close, but they will just swap. It needs to be a reliable school car for my assistant.

I am using a digital meter with the lights on high and a foot on the brakes to check voltage drop when starting. I remember the fail spec was a drop to 10.8 V at one store I worked at with a load tester on a fully charged battery.
Yes, the terminals are still clean with red terminal spray. I hate cauliflower and similar appearing terminal corrosion.

My '86 is also in a storage unit right now, so I can't easily access it. It has a larger-than-stock battery in it that does fill the battery tray. The downside is that the stock battery had a molded tab at the bottom that the stock battery clamp snugged over, and the new battery doesn't. The battery clamp is now snugged against the side of the new battery, but not as secure as the original.

Bill

 

[90sickfox]

The battery for our recently acquired 96 fox is way smaller than the tray. The parts store said the correct size was discontinued and the new one was the only recommended one. The 86 tray is a little smaller than the 88 tray. The HD down is useless but I have an idea for a custom one.

 

[Willybill32]

My '86 is also in a storage unit right now, so I can't easily access it. It has a larger-than-stock battery in it that does fill the battery tray. The downside is that the stock battery had a molded tab at the bottom that the stock battery clamp snugged over, and the new battery doesn't. The battery clamp is now snugged against the side of the new battery, but not as secure as the original.

Bill

I found a picture of my battery, an off-the-shelf battery from AutoZone:

 

[7991LXnSHO]

Paint Question -
The sunroof metal edging, the black top edge of the doors, and this cowl piece are looking a bit shabby and the black paint is thin. (That’s what I get for using the car regularly.) I’m sure it was taped off when the red was applied to the rest of the car.
What rattle can products are the best to do a touch up on the not-gloss black external parts?

When my 79 needed the bang strip on the bumpers etc., the cowl vent and window fake louvers touched up, there was a trim paint on the shelf at Autoworks that was a great match and went on smoothly. Autoworks (Checker, Shucks, Kragen) has been bought out, and I don’t remember what brand it was.
Thanks!
(Picture stolen from another member so I can remember the part number.)

 

[Willybill32]

Paint Question -
The sunroof metal edging, the black top edge of the doors, and this cowl piece are looking a bit shabby and the black paint is thin. (That’s what I get for using the car regularly.) I’m sure it was taped off when the red was applied to the rest of the car.
What rattle can products are the best to do a touch up on the not-gloss black external parts?

When my 79 needed the bang strip on the bumpers etc., the cowl vent and window fake louvers touched up, there was a trim paint on the shelf at Autoworks that was a great match and went on smoothly. Autoworks (Checker, Shucks, Kragen) has been bought out, and I don’t remember what brand it was.
Thanks!
(Picture stolen from another member so I can remember the part number.)

Not sure on the '91s, but for my '86, SEM makes a "bumper" paint in color 39153 that's supposed to be a very close match to the original charcoal. SEM 39143 is the black trim paint.