It's been a while since I have stopped by, but I still own and drive the 97 mustang GT. I've had the car more than 10 years and she has over 238k miles now. Maintenance issues are starting to accumulate, but the car still runs and drives great. All the accessories are functional, and the AC even works.
Over the weekend, I changed the oil and rotated the tires and noticed some horrific tire wear on the front:
The inside half of the inside rib is worn smooth. This occurred on both front tires. Both fronts looked fine 5k miles ago when I rotated last.
Here's what I have checked so far:
* alignment seems fine, I measured 1/8" toe in
* wiggle test says ball joints, and inner/outer tie rods are fine.
* inner tie rods replaced 24k miles ago
* ball joints and outer tie rods replaced 38k miles ago
What else do I need to look at? Camber appears fine. Having done autocross, I know what 3-4 degrees of negative camber looks like (not the case) and it doesn't wear tires like this.
If anything is loose, maybe the rack? There is some initial looseness on the rack, but both tires and the steering wheel move freely for a few degrees before I feel the tightness of the rack. Everything seems to move as a unit though.
And another unrelated question: Tips for getting the 3/8" fill plug on the rear end out? I seemed to have stripped it this weekend, trying to remove the plug to top it off. The front seal seeps so I would feel better topping it off.
Over the weekend, I changed the oil and rotated the tires and noticed some horrific tire wear on the front:
The inside half of the inside rib is worn smooth. This occurred on both front tires. Both fronts looked fine 5k miles ago when I rotated last.
Here's what I have checked so far:
* alignment seems fine, I measured 1/8" toe in
* wiggle test says ball joints, and inner/outer tie rods are fine.
* inner tie rods replaced 24k miles ago
* ball joints and outer tie rods replaced 38k miles ago
What else do I need to look at? Camber appears fine. Having done autocross, I know what 3-4 degrees of negative camber looks like (not the case) and it doesn't wear tires like this.
If anything is loose, maybe the rack? There is some initial looseness on the rack, but both tires and the steering wheel move freely for a few degrees before I feel the tightness of the rack. Everything seems to move as a unit though.
And another unrelated question: Tips for getting the 3/8" fill plug on the rear end out? I seemed to have stripped it this weekend, trying to remove the plug to top it off. The front seal seeps so I would feel better topping it off.