Help, Couple Of Issues With New 88 Lx

[Chris69]

The car is a 88 LX 5.0 convertible, it has 74,000 miles on it...I picked it up for my wife, and our first drive ended up with it coming home on a trailer. First issue, after about 35 miles of 70 MPH highway driving, we pulled into town and heard a grinding noise from the rearend...I first thought it was an axle/wheel bearing, but there's no play in either side, so I have drained and cleaned the rear, and will be putting in new gear oil and friction modifier. Hopefully that will take care of that issue...but if you have another suggestion, please let me know

Shortly after that noise, we decided to limp it to a friends house, when it just up and died...acted like it just ran out of fuel. It was not running hot, and the car restarted almost immediately, only to die again in less than a mile...So, once home, I changed the fuel filter, but I could blow right through the old one, so I'm worried that that may not be it....The pump is working, I can hear it , I'm thinking maybe the sock is plugged ? The car had been sitting for a few years before I got it.....suggestions ?

Currently, the car is still on jack stands...Like an idiot, I drained / cleaned / resealed the rear diff before I tried to remove the fill plug...which is stuck like crazy...I've had it soaking in PB Blaster for a day now, and am fixing to go give it another try...

 

[old_blue]

Any codes?

As far as crunching noise, were you able to pull the axles while it was drained just to check the bearings and seals? How do brakes look?

 

[mikestang63]

Wow, sounds like you got a real cherry on your hands. I take it you did not inspect the car prior to purchase?

Regarding the rear, did you notice any metal shavings in the fluid when you drained it? Did it smell burnt? Did you inspect the spider gears and traction lock before buttoning it up? Once the cover is off, it takes 5 minutes to pull the axles. I would pop out the C clips and replace the bearings and seals as maintenence regardless

As far as why it died, could be a host of reasons. Best to pull the codes and report back.

 

[Chris69]

Wow, sounds like you got a real cherry on your hands. I take it you did not inspect the car prior to purchase?

Nope, I didn't really inspect it much...but even if I had, no problems surface until 40 miles into a drive...as far as being a real cherry, it is a very nice car that's 27 years old, and has been sitting for a couple years, I would expect a problem or two...so no need to bust my nuts about it.

Regarding the rear, did you notice any metal shavings in the fluid when you drained it? Did it smell burnt? Did you inspect the spider gears and traction lock before buttoning it up? Once the cover is off, it takes 5 minutes to pull the axles. I would pop out the C clips and replace the bearings and seals as maintenence regardless

Fluid looked decent, not burnt badly, but it certainly didn't smell "fresh" no metal...

As far as why it died, could be a host of reasons. Best to pull the codes and report back.

I buttoned up the rear with fresh 80/90 and friction modifier, changed the fuel filter, and it seems to be fine now...but there's that worry, what's it going to do 40 miles from home. I'll check for codes, I guess, and see what I find.

 

[FoxMustangLvr]

With a car that has been sitting for years did you do a tune up? New plugs, wires, cap & rotor? Did you drain the gas out of the tank and put in fresh fuel? There could be water in the tank from moisture build up, same inside the engine block too. Have you performed an oil and filter change? That car needs a nice long drive to get it up to operating temperature and keep it there for a while to clean all the old crap out and ensure it's going to be reliable.

 

[Chris69]

No, no tune up yet, the car was delivered to me running, the previous owner got it out of storage , and up and running. It was stored in a climate controlled shop, this isn't what you'd think of as a neglected car I'm trying to revive here...As of right now, it's running just fine, what worries me is what's going to do the next time it gets 40 miles from home ? One of the things I read about while searching stalling cars was the TFI module, seems like a candidate, but the car started right up within minutes of stalling, and I'm not sure an over heated ignition component would recover so quickly...

 

[Mustang5L5]

First thing to do is pull the codes. 1988 Mustangs don't have a working check engine light, so you'll want to use a code reader like this

View: http://www.amazon.com/INNOVA-3145-Ford-Digital-Reader/dp/B000EW0KHW


Run the codes before replacing another part.

 

[Chris69]

Okay, a long delayed update....I bought a code reader, 0 codes in the car. It's not had an issue since changing the fuel filter and changing rear end lube, but I've only driven it on the highway for short distances. My wife is still nervous about driving this thing very far. It's put away for the winter at the moment, but thinking of putting a fuel pump in it just because...would I be wasting money, or do the in tank pumps act up and slowly die ? There's a few other issues with it as well, no heat or A/C for one thing (blower works fine). Cruise isn't working, 1/4 window motors need replaced...that sort of thing. But reliability is the most important thing...Being uncomfortable in a cool car is okay, being stuck on the side of the road sucks.

 

[mikestang63]

You will know if the intank pump is failing. FP will start to drop and be inconsistent. You will not hear it engage when you turn the key on.

Is the existing fuel pump old? Not providing sufficient flow for your setup? If the car is stock, it came with an 85lph pump. I say if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

 

[Mustang5L5]

You checked the codes with the engine off, and then again with the engine running right?

Many people only do it with engine off thinking it's like an OBD2 cars. You need to get three code 11's. Two with the engine off, and one after you start it and run the codes.

 

[Chris69]

You checked the codes with the engine off, and then again with the engine running right?

Many people only do it with engine off thinking it's like an OBD2 cars. You need to get three code 11's. Two with the engine off, and one after you start it and run the codes.

Yes, I pulled both, with only code 11's

You will know if the intank pump is failing. FP will start to drop and be inconsistent. You will not hear it engage when you turn the key on.

Is the existing fuel pump old? Not providing sufficient flow for your setup? If the car is stock, it came with an 85lph pump. I say if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

The car is pretty much stock, I have no idea the age of the current pump, it very well could be the original pump, and it always hums when the ignition is turned on...car runs just fine, even under hard acceleration...except for that first drive. I'm just wondering if they tend to get hot and work intermittently, see, I'm an old mechanical fuel pump and carburetor chevy guy.

 

[2000xp8]

I'd probably just replace the pump with a 155 (hp255 if you plan on an sc in the near future) and dump and clean out the gas tank.
Tank probably needs a clean out anyway and might as well do the pump for for the $75 or a so a walbro costs.
Will it be the problem? No clue.
Last time i lost a pump it sounded like it was grinding, then the car ran for a bit longer, then it died forever.

As for the rear grinding? If it got that far, friction modifier and fluid would not fix the problem.

 

[89oem]

Nice looking vert,

Throw a fuel pressure gauge on the fuel rail schrader valve will give you fuel pressure reading,

Is your heat exchange there? the water lines and AC enter at the firewall passenger side, but more than likely the blend door is stuck closed,


quarter window fix is easy, the safety rubber bushings in the drive housing disintegrate over time - both sides fix an couple hours start to finish

 

[Davedacarpainter]

For what my opinion might matter....
Several different issues:
1. You said the previous owner got it up and running. She's yours now, I would do a complete tune up. It doesn't matter where it sat for a long period. Time will dry rot stuff, fluids will break down, etc...It's your wife's car, change out any normal thing you can think of, hoses, plugs, plug wires, all fluids(including transmission) and filters. Me personally, I wouldn't trust someone telling me my car is taken care of if my or my family's life depended on it's reliability.
2. Stalled on the first drive, Did the previous owner dump the old gas before firing it up? Or maybe just add fresh gas? I had an old '68 Ford Country Esquire that had sat for a decade, even with putting in fresh fuel, it would die. The tank needed cleaning as well as the carb.
If it's running fine now, I'm betting it was a bit of varnish build up that was plugging things. I would drive the crap out of it now though and maybe add a can of seafoam to a tankful of gas to help clean out the injectors.
3. Grinding in the rear? Did it sound like it was coming from the differential? If so, open it back up, thoroughly inspect the gears. Lots of things could cause the grinding there, Rotate the rear tires(up on jack stands, in neutral) and take some time to really look at the ring gear. But you said it stopped making the grinding noise? If it still makes it, I wouldn't waste much time waiting on checking out the insides of the differential.
Like @mikestang63 said earlier, good time to change out the axle bearings and seals, Really doesn't take long at all and is a pretty simple process, borrow a bearing puller from autozone. This can be done in an afternoon.
Kind of hard to tell without having heard the grinding noise, if it was just from the rear in general, the spring isolators could be shot and the spring can make a god awful noise without them.
4. Changing out the fuel pump on a thirty year old vehicle couldn't hurt, you have a nice looking car that looks pretty stock, I would imagine it has a stock pump. It would be wise to flush out the tank if you have it out anyhow to change the pump.
5. No heat or air conditioning with the blower working. two separate issues. Quick check on the heat, check the radiator fluid, topped off? If it is, Not too many other things will stop you from having heat, broken blend door is possible, I'm betting on the radiator fluid though. If fluid is low, fill it up and then check that it stays filled. Might be a pain in the butt reason it's low, leaking heater core. You'll know, you'll have a nice damp passenger floor carpet.
Air conditioning probably just has some dry rotted seals in the lines. They can be replaced fairly easy and have it recharged.
6. Rear window motor, easy fix. Get to know LMR, all the parts you will need to fix your car with lots of instructional videos to show you how to do it (including the aforementioned differential).
7. Cruise control, I'm an idiot on that one, someone here will know though, sharp group of people on this forum. I have to figure it out soon though.
I have to agree with @FoxMustangLvr , the car needs to be driven and be allowed to warm up for a good period of time. Fluids break down and leave deposits that won't go away without heating up to temp.
Amsoil has an engine flush that helps clean out the block, might be worth thinking about.
For a car that has sat for an extended period, it's kind of good to almost think of it as breaking in a newly built engine. You run it for a thousand miles or so and change out at least the oil and filter. Stuff lets loose when it has run normally for a while.
Jeez I talk a lot. That's it for me.