My sinuses will be %O*$ed up again...

[Freshmeat]

Every time I work with metal I forget to wear a dust mask. I'll be cutting, grinding, etc... and the dust/shavings get into my sinuses and haunts me for a week or more.

I am finally working on the Town Car exhaust system. I stripped 3 of 4 collector bolts so I cut off the air tubes, cut right in front of the rear cats, and I'm gonna try to slide the front cats out with the manifolds.

It's just a bitch working on cars when heartburn is flaring up to the point I can hardly drink something without getting sick.

What's going on is the classic cheap set-up... stock Mustang shorties and H-pipe (lightened, if you get my drift), S-10 midpipes (thanks again for those part numbers, Scott), Summit mufflers, and downpipes. All 2.25" of course. I'm hoping it'll be a lot quieter than it was before- I was getting headaches from the exhaust rumbling right below my seat and the fumes coming in the windows.

Oh- I also have new O2 sensors to install while I'm doing this, just to make sure they're good. The plan will be to replace any sensor involved in any work I do, just to make sure I don't get screwed like I did with the wagon by reinstalling a bad sensor.

So... enough yapping. Quick shot of caffeine and I'm gonna get back to it. Wish me luck.

[Freshmeat]

Oh... I also hope it was cold enough to kill all the brown widows that called the Town Car their home. Last time I worked on it I was bitten by two spiders... fuckers.

[Tiggie]

Good luck on those spiders dude!

What else is new with the Linc?

[Freshmeat]

The passenger side came out without (too much of) a hitch. I had to remove the coil bracket, tensioner bracket and pulley, and the A/C compressor to get to the passenger side manifold easily enough to not slit my wrists, but it made easy access to the thermostat housing and I think I found the source of my overheating, too... so I'm replacing the t-stat and some hoses while I'm in there.

There's been minimal change- I haven't even driven it consistently in six months or so. Hopefully, having the exhaust done and the overheating resolved will encourage me to drive it more. It's gonna need new U-joints soon, so I'm gonna hit the junk yard Thursday and look for an aluminum driveshaft for it. Once those issues are resolved it should be pretty freaking solid. I'm hoping to get it fixed up enough to drive it regularly instead of buying a brand new car. After the driveshaft will be new valve cover gaskets and probably an HO upper at the same time, since I'll be right there.

[88Vic]

Good luck with that mang. I enjoy working on exhaust systems, I just wish I could weld better. Hope you get it done quick and easy.

[Freshmeat]

It's been far from quick or easy. The whole purpose of this is that the exhaust rotted before the stock mufflers to the point that driving across the yard I hooked a dragging muffler on a root and ripped it out. Went ahead and cut the other side in the same spot to avoid it happening again. I went ahead and removed all remnants of tail pipes and resonators and whatnot at that point. I was driving it like that and just dealing with it, but it was a lot louder than I like it and I was getting crazy headaches from the fumes and exhaust note... so I started piecing together the exhaust system to prepare for a swap. Then it started overheating a lot, so I spent a week or two constantly flushing the cooling system and even replaced the radiator. That resolved it for about a week. Today, while working on it, I found a hose (goes from the water pump to the hard pipe bolted to the lower intake) that was so packed with rust I couldn't even squeeze it. I bought a new one, as well as the water pump bypass hose and I'll swap them Monday when I do the thermostat.

While under the car I found that the hard fuel line is extremely rusty and may soon be compromised. I think I'm gonna take it to a shop for that, I won't feel like fucking with it.

So far, no spider bites.

I got the Mustang headers on with Mr Gasket Ultra Seal gaskets and called it a night. I broke the air box bracket to Hell and back so I need to get another one from the yard (which I'm not looking forward to doing). I bought new bolts for the headers, as the stockers were obviously too long (the bolts for Mustang headers are 3/8" diameter, 16tpi, 1" long, for anyone who's doing it and doesn't know).

I work tomorrow, so Monday I'll get out there and do the thermostat and hoses, then get the passenger side reassembled with the A/C compressor and all that good stuff, then Tuesday I'll plan to get the H-pipe reassembled and if I have time I'll start mocking up the midpipes and mufflers. Might be Thursday before I can get the airbox bracket I need to get all that reassembled.

All in all, it's nice to finally be making progress on it. I've been without any time at all for several months, so now that I've had a full day to devote to it (and rearranging the house with Dad) and get the hard part of swapping the manifolds for the headers mostly complete, I think it'll really start to come together. It's been a major eyesore (this thing is ugly) but I'm actually looking forward to driving it again.

[Tiggie]

Good to hear no spider attacks.
I had to replace the fuel lines on the wagon... it was horrible! Mine didn't leak until I sandblasted them and it was then that the flood of fuel began...

[Freshmeat]

Was it hard to replace the lines? I want to say I've seen the lines available pre-bent somewhere, but I can't remember where. Either way, I'll probably still pay someone to replace them. Both the hard lines look equally rough.

[Tiggie]

I just used compression fittings and several three feet sections of line I bought from AutoZone and bent them to fit. It was a pain but cheap and effective. No leaks so far after about 1000 miles.

[Freshmeat]

Pay someone else it is. Haha!

[gadget73]

NO COMPRESSION FITTINGS DAMMIT. Carbs use double flare fittings for 6 psi, EFI should not be using shoddier connections at 7x the pressure.

[interceptor1985]

Stick a f&^%ing bug bomb in that car!....and you have a garage than put the car in there and Bomb the hell out of it...so you can get the outside of the car too....Fu*k spiders man......dude really......I got bit by the same brown recluse three fu*king times ....No more....I kill em ALL......that shit ain't funny...

Oh and for the clogged up nose eat some Chinese food with that hot mustard.....I just did and I feel Greeeaaaat!

[torquelover]

So far, no spider bites.

Good to hear, man. Now that my Vics not a DD, it always seems to be carrying extra passengers, too. Reminds me of the time when I wedged myself under the dash to remove stuff for the heater core exhange and had a nice hairy one parachute down from deep within the dash almost into my open mouth. F(*& that.

[interceptor1985]

Bug Bomb man......I tellin you guys....Bug bomb the holy Hell out of that shit.

[Tiggie]

NO COMPRESSION FITTINGS DAMMIT. Carbs use double flare fittings for 6 psi, EFI should not be using shoddier connections at 7x the pressure.

Compression fittings are way better than the pissing rusted original fuel lines that were under there. Is there a source to get complete sections new?