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"Gunner" 88 LX 5.0

Stephanie ~Joker~

Stephanie ~Joker~

Guest
got my car from the neighbors son, i felt bad because he now has to watch as i fix the car, then make it better. anyway i'm Stephanie. i had a 85 base style fox body back in 02 but my dad sold it 2 weeks after we bought it (needed to much work) I have an 88 LX now, there's a couple problems i have with the car and that's why i joined up here.. i will have questions or idea's seeking advice or how to's, i'm pretty savvy around the garage, since mine is bigger than his, and i can get away to the silence of my back garage.. anyway i'm hoping by the time i am done fixing this car up i will have something fast on the floor but safe for kids to ride in. (we have a daily, but kids love the "toys" in mommy's garage.) lol..

Alitle about me... well first off i'm a girl. but don't treat me like an average girl, i know a thing or two that i've learned from school or my dad. i don't want treated different cuz i'm a gear head that's a woman (has happend before) the fox body is the ONLY kind of mustang or ford that i will ever own, so i plan to pamper this car and would like to get respect as a fox body enthusiast "in training" i'm here to learn... i'm not sure what all i'm susposed to say here..

Gunner is a '88 Foxbody LX with the 5.0 under the hood, and the tranny is the one with OD as well. (unsure the proper name for it)

Thanks, Stephanie :)


p.s. says my photo "file" is too big.. unsure how to change that...
 
Blown347

Blown347

Moderator
Staff member
Welcome Stephanie! You won't get any smart ass remarks about being a woman here. It's pretty awesome to see a female fox enthusiast (there's not to many)

Ask away with the questions you have, there are a lot of knowledgable people on this site. I look forward to seeing pictures of your ride. (The file too big thing you have to resize the image. Usually saving it a a jpg file will solve it, otherwise you have to use a photo editor. If its on a Mac in iPhoto, just copy and paste it to the desktop then use that file.)

And the stock automatic trans with OD in a fox is called an AOD (automatic overdrive)
 
Stephanie ~Joker~

Stephanie ~Joker~

Guest
yeah, he isn't much to look at right now, i'm gonna hand sand the body cuz then i can learn every surface inch of the car, also helps me find small dents or rust i didn't see before. but here's a couple of my questions.

1. i need an egr blocking plate, i'm gonna remove the EGR completely, the throttle body has been bypassed already, found out the hard way why it was bypassed to start with.. (i thought someone just did it to be a jerk) i put the hoses back where they should be, and well yeah.. it was foggy as hell in my garage for a day. lol, i changed it back to being bypassed, and did research online some, and i found that the EGR goes bad and antifreeze can get into your intake cuz the gasket goes bad.. but i read that you can just remove the EGR and put a cap or plate there and then i'm not sure if you have to tune or adjust the timing. there's a spot i'm still fuzzy in.

2. i have a vacuum leak or fuel line problem... i have good HP, but my torque sucks! off the line it heisatates, then i'm good till about 25mph and it goes as smooth as a new born babys butt. then at 35mph it picks back up and i'm golden again... i mean i can get the boys in the turns, but i'm SOL on the straight aways starting out.. also if i come to a fast stop, or what i can explain is, as i hit the brakes to slow down if i don't allow the engine to "kick back up" it will bog down and kill the engine, then starting it takes a moment longer than i like... but if i put the trany in netural as i come to the stop, then switch back to drive i don't have a problem... i wouldn't think the tranny could bog down an engine that much if at all.. but i know if you have a vacuum leak or fuel filter is bad it can make the engine do silly things.

i have other stuff, but it's easy fixes, just need to go to the salvage yard and get my parts!
 
Stephanie ~Joker~

Stephanie ~Joker~

Guest
also i run windows 8, and my photos i took of the car are on my galaxy s3 so i wouldn't think that a phone's photo is to large, i believe they are smaller than a normal digital camera.
 
Blown347

Blown347

Moderator
Staff member
The engine dying with hard stops could be the throttle valve cable from the trans not being adjusted properly. Does it hesitate to downshift? Because it would essentially be the same as not pushing the clutch in on a manual car, the load on the engine causes it to stall. My car did the same thing and that's what I had to adjust. Mine wasn't bad enough to stall but just about.
 
Stephanie ~Joker~

Stephanie ~Joker~

Guest
yeah, i think your right, now that i think about it... it is the down shift, i have to come up to the stop slow, or put it in neutral, i use overdrive all the time.. i'm not used to having the two "drive" options, so does it matter which drive i'm in? i would much rather a manual like my jeep and bike are... so for mods, yes! lol a 5 spd and we are already gonna look for a different engine as well.. figured i'm gonna keep the body stock and hide all the rest. make the silly boys up here think i'm just a stupid girl with a crappy car. ;) works every time, and i love owning "sleepers", if i feel like showing power and speed i just jump on my bike and ride around town with friends.

also i picked up a fuel filter yesterday, and have plans to get to my buddys shop in the next couple days. plus another thing... i've been having a kinda high to mid pitch hum or whining. it's kinda both sounds at once. i thought it was the power steering fluid so i topped it off.. now the sound is back again, and this time when you move the wheel you hear one sound, but while the car is driving the hum/whine is constant. i'm really hopping its not the PS pump or whatever the PS box is called. i know sometimes it's tight if i turn right onto a cross street at a low speed, but if i'm in a normal corner going steady speed it's fine. (steering and staling no issues)

Its almost like he is mad about something, cuz i fix one problem and he throws 3 back at me... ehh, mechanic's life! anyway i would also like to cut in a sunroof, it doesn't have one now, but i would like one put in, i was thinking t-tops, but after seeing it on a fox body here in town, i don't like it at all... i could hardly tell it was a fox body i was even looking at. i also wanna look into "key-less entry" with a faub including alarm. but i want to get a good one so if someone i trying to steal it i'm gonna wake out of a cold dead sleep, or have something that alerts my phone and calls the police at the same time.. might take some looking into but i'll find something that works. well i will let you get back to me for the questions i asked already. lol and also thank you again (even if i haven't said it already) for helping with ideas and answers...
 
Blown347

Blown347

Moderator
Staff member
Here is a simple instruction to adjust the tv cable. Takes all of 5 minutes:
http://www.txchange.com/aodadj.htm

So far as the drive, with an AOD you should keep it in drive (2nd D, top D is overdrive) unless your going 50 mph or more. The car will bog itself down in OD from 35-50 mph. Some 3.55 gears will make it much better and still good mileage.

As for a constant whine, that wouldn't be the power steering pump. You would only hear the PS when you turn. Foxes have a loud fuel pump usually so that could be it. Could also be the rearend or a u joint on the driveshaft. You have to pinpoint the area it's coming from to pinpoint it. For the ps pump whine some Lucas power steering stop leak/ conditioner may help.

Be aware that most fox sunroofs leak. It may be different for one you have installed, but the weatherstripping design is faulty by nature, so even a new set leaks in many of them.

For keyless entry, there are dozens of options and price ranges, just depends on budget and what you want out of it.

Hope this answers some of your questions
 
MustangDan351

MustangDan351

Guest
Most PS pumps whine of most Fords because they use ATF, NOT POWER STEERING FLUID. Most people do not know this and top off the ps with psf and it causes the seals to wear out and leak and that causes the whine.

Welcome to the site! Ask any and all questions you have!
 
Stephanie ~Joker~

Stephanie ~Joker~

Guest
yeah i lose torque at about 25-35 mph, but when my man gets home, i'll jump in the car and try out drive and see if that solves alittle of it.. like i said i'm OD stupid as i call it.. i never had a car that even had the option or i had a manual shift.

for the whine, it's coming from the front.. almost center.. but i did goto oreillys to get PSF, cuz i always thought that's what you put into the reisivor for the power steering, why would you use tranny fluid with the PS? i have honestly never heard of that, i think i have heard of something for a manual that crosses over, but i'm having a brain fart now. and without me starting the car and lifting the hood i can't pin point the whine. but i already know this car needs alot of work and i'm willing to do it.. plus this way i know after i fix it all then it won't be a problem later. lol

as for the sun roof, there's nothing there. i have a hard top or whatever its called.. i'm gonna find the style i like and cut the hole, i have a friend that can cut without mistakes, i also figured that if i design it myself then i can make sure i get good seals and weather stripping so i won't have leaks. lol

Well Nate should be home soon and then i'll be off to drive around in a circle to see what a difference D2 vs OD makes. i'm gonna feel silly if it fixes a lot of what i'm thinking is a vacuum leak. but hey, can't learn anything if i don't start somewhere right?!? i do have the squeak under the drivers fender, i think the spring/shock/strut is going out.. i just got this car not that long ago, so i'm still figuring out what's what.. Last year i was involved in a wreck while riding my motorcycle, i had a helmet on, but i have lost a lot of simple memories and names for things.. so i do apologize for lack of correct terms as i'm kinda relearning everything. so to pass time while i recover i decided i wanted a toy to fix up and make faster ;) just had to wait for the right one to come along and offer money they wouldn't turn down.
 
MustangDan351

MustangDan351

Guest
Yeah Ford used Type F Automatic Transmission Fluid in the power steering. Using ps fluid causes all sorts of problems.

Sent from my SPH-M820-BST using Tapatalk 2
 
Stephanie ~Joker~

Stephanie ~Joker~

Guest
i'm coming to find that out.. i will get that change out tomorrow, i told my buddy that helps me with the bigger stuff, and he just started laughing at me, then told me next time he is going with me... lol. but i did the D instead of OD last night, it didn't bog out at 25/35 mph, i haven't come to a fast stop yet so i don't know if that problem is gone yet.

okay a kind of silly question, but like i said i don't know much about OD. so, if i'm in D2 do i just put it in OD, or do i need to stop to do that? i mean is it like just shifting from 4th to 5th on a 5psd manual??
 
Blown347

Blown347

Moderator
Staff member
No you can just shift while moving. No need to even let off the gas. Once you reach 50 or more just click it up. If you're racing or something you don't want to ever go into OD it will burn out the OD gear quick.

Go to the top right tab next to your screen name and in the drop down box click signature. In the editor you can add a picture in the toolbox.
 
Stephanie ~Joker~

Stephanie ~Joker~

Guest
So I was romping around today... no boggin or stallin at hard stops since I have it in drive and not OD :) glad I found that out now.. also I did put psf in I picked up lucas atf today I will have it drained and refilled tomorrow, do u think I should get new seals? Or just put the lucas stop leak in it?

Also a new question.... my power door locks are unplugged the guy before me said that it was stuck like the lock button is being pressed down and drains the battery.. is it a common problem or easy fix? Or just go out to the junk yard and pull new ones?

Thanks again guys.. u are a lot of help!! Not a lot of foxbodys where I live.
 
Blown347

Blown347

Moderator
Staff member
If the seals don't leak just put the Lucas stop leak/conditioner in it and drive it around for a week or so. If they're not too far gone it will take away the whine. It's good stuff. So far as the lock switches, I've never seen that on any of mine, probably easier to just replace them. Better take off the door panels and make sure the lock actuators are still there though.

Make sure you adjust the TV cable soon though. It sounds like its way loose and you can damage the tranny that way. It's real quick and straight forward, just follow the instructions in the link I posted. There are several YouTube videos on the adjustment too
 
Stephanie ~Joker~

Stephanie ~Joker~

Guest
Thanks!! Ill check the links tomorrow. And I will stay updated since I already know more things are gonna show themselves as I fix the problems I know about
 
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