What have you done to your wagon lately? (Let's keep the thread going!)

See that this is where to post 59 Villager progress.
Reposting last two and future here.
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Got progress to report
New radiator, gas tank, headlight switch, speedo cable are in.
New radial wide whites are on. Nice! Will take pics.
Working on weather stripping. Have most. Found what should work for the rest including new window channel. Order it soon.
Got cut to size hinge for spare tire well top. Need to drill matching holes for mounting screws.

Next stops:
> exhaust shop for duals
> suspension shop for inspect and replace as needed.


Took pictures. Working on a wagon for first time is different & fun.
Lowered front end to have slight rake that Villager carries well. These in shop pics don't show much of rake. Tires are standard size 215/75/14.
Discovered factory electric wipers are not working. Have to figure that out.

 

Looks sweet!

 

Nice going

Excellent jobs on all those rides !!! Love the Edsel and that is a super color Red and White. It is nice to work on them then step back and see the results shining back at you.

 

patrick80




What a difference, really looks great in the pics.

About the clay bar, I suppose the directions are on the package but does it really make alot of difference in the out come if you clay bar before waxing? I was checking out a bunch of products and of course they all promise the same thing "a like new finish". I have used a few products in the past, I have a few favorites but I've often wondered about the clay bar...are they used wet/dry?

 

Clay bar first, then wax/polish. The Meguiars clay bar kit comes with two clay bars, a terrycloth towel, and the liquid "lube" that you spray on the car. You do about two square feet at a time. It has to be wet where you use the clay bar, or it'll stick to the paint. You simply move the clay bar back and forth until the clay "glides" across the panel. Then, you dry the area with the terrycloth towel, and press on to the next area. I like Turtle Wax, because it is a true carnuba wax. I'm going to finish the job with the Turtle Wax polish. It'll shine "like a diamond in a goat's a$$" when I finish up. The nice thing about the woody trim is that I need to do only half a car!

The clay bar removes the grit and minor imperfections on the surface, allowing the paint to accept a good wax and polish. I do this once a year on my daily drivers. It will NOT "bring back" a dead paint job, keep that in mind.

 

There is no such thing as bad gas. There must be another issue. If the gas were bad, no amount of filters would fix that. Look for the real issue. You could have some erosion on your fuel system parts from the alcohol in the fuel. Water in the gas is about the only issue you can have, and it is usually from condensation in the tank. A treatment for water will solve that, and is mostly alcohol. You need to look for the real problem.

 

It'll shine "like a diamond in a goat's a$$" when I finish up.


Nice work. I'm like fannie. I've never used a clay bar on a car.:confused:

But I wonder, my wife won't let me touch her diamonds and we don't have a goat.
We do have deer in the yard almost everyday.
So about how well will a piece of broken glass up a deer's butt shine ?

SBHD good luck on the FOOLISH FUEL problem. We've had several problems with bad gas. Son and I have replaced gas tanks, cleaned old ones, added filters, cleaned carburators, replaced lines, even cussed. Still get bad gas now and then.

On my brand new Sears riding mower the first time I filled the tank the white non smelling stuff wouldn't even start the mower. Drained it out, returned it to get more. The station I bought it refused to take it and said I was the only person complaining. Had to use it to kill stumps. I don't even think it worked for that.
Bad fuel is something we have to live with thanks to many. About all filters are good for is to collect dirt and rust.
Yes Fred there is bad gas. Recently I got a five gallon can full of what appeared to be mostly the alcohol part of the fuel. No color, no smell, nothing to ignite. And it wasn't water. Also now and then you may get water, dirt, rust, or other sediments from a gas station tank.

 

Interesting. I was at the junk yard last week, and in pulling some engine parts, had to remove the intake manifold. None of the bolts were torqued to spec, and I could remove 4 of the central ones with my fingers. The engine was not tampered with prior to my efforts. I am surprised that it even ran correctly at any time. It looked like a crate engine, or a replacement, because it had a 2 row timing chain, and had not been opened for a long time. I did not see any signs of the manifold leaking, but it should have.

 

Oh, yes there is!

 

Although the car was overdue for a fuel filter replacement, a Caravan I drove would usually get about 23-24 MPG on most days. Then when I went to get gas from one gas station in particular it went clear down to 16. That was only on $5 of gas, but wow.

(I know the fuel economy because I was using a ScanGauge II.)

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On subject of the Mercury, I posted this elsewhere on the forum but yesterday Dad and I worked on the rear door (Window wasn't working.) I think it's a cable in the door because the motor works fine. The door also won't swing out yet, and the motor cable is hanging out from the paneling so I can hook up a 9V battery and operate it. (The door won't open as a tailgate with the window up.)

 

Speaking of gas stations........ somewhere I recently read that most fuel pumps are cheating us. Even though a gallon of gas is supposed to be checked now and then this rarely happens. So possibly you are not getting full gallons of gas when you fill up. I'm sure this is an accident because those nonspeaking owners are here to help us not cheat.
Add to that the fact that corn fuel does not get as good a fuel mileage as good old regular gas and no wonder our mileage may vary.

 

If you don't believe in bad gas than you should sit next to my Boston terrier.

 

While in the wagon with the windows up.

 

I tried starting the Mercury today, The battery was dead. As it turned out I merely left the interior lights on all night, The car works fine now that the battery is charged.

 

I've left inside lights on and also left parking lights on. Cars started right up. I don't think it should run your battery down overnight. Keep an eye out for a bad battery or some other drain.