Bringing an F100 Back from the Dead

Well, unfortunately for those interested in such things (wink wink) Ol' Furd isn't quite the boobie bouncer she used to be. Explorer front springs and different shocks along with bucket chairs has tamed the ride considerably! Aside from the wind noise at freeway speeds, it's a pretty nice ride.
The wind noise is something I haven't been able to eliminate. I've taped all the seams, around the windows, the door gaps etc. It's still there. I think it might just be the rain gutters, or coming up through the A pillars.
But at sub 60mph speeds, it's tolerable. That is mostly the speed this trip will be. Those in a hurry can go on around!

 

The t-stat housing I picked up should do the trick. Put the sensor close to where coolant exits the head. I was thinkin' about doing like @wfo guy suggested about splicing it into the top rad hose. But then I latched on this housing.

Pretty cool truck! Mikey like! I really dig that you road trip it and put good miles down. Very impressive!
Yeah I agree on the stopping every two or three hours. I'm certain we will have plenty of reasons to stop, such as looking at stuff like the world's biggest ball of string. Lots of old towns that time forgot along the way.

 

Thanks. The truck has been on the road since 2022. Its already been east to Lloydefest in KY, its been west to NB, south to the southern tip of IL, and north to the northern boarder of WI from our home in the north west corner of IL already. The plan was to make a trip to the far side of SD later this year, we will see how that works out. We don't do the Interstate unless there are no other options.

Never pass up those places that are posted as Historical Marker locations along the road. Stop at each one (at least once), and find out why someone thought it was important enough to them to jump through the hoops to have it marked. Helps make the history we read in school become real, all these years later.

We always carry a small cooler with water and a snack with us on the road. Those Historical Markers a good excuse to get out of the truck and move a little, and a lot of them have a picnic table and a great view.

Long trips for us might be a bit slow sometimes. We include enough time to be able enjoy the things that catch our eye along the way, then try to take a different route home. We figure a 5-6 hours driving time day. We are not wore out when we get where ever we are going or when we get back home. Makes the whole trip more enjoyable. We got out of the rat race when we retired.

 

I removed the drip rails on 2 51 Ford cabs. They were quieter but not up with wind tunnel designs. I left the drip rails on my current driver a 48 chevy and above 55 mph, it's pretty bad. I really hadn't planned to remove the rails but that could happen.

 

Sounds like it's the nature of the beast and I'll just have to deal with it.

 

Cover the drip rails with tape to make them more aerodynamic?
See if that makes a difference?

 

Of the 4 different old vehicles we have road tripped, all of them have had wind noise. Wind noise was not something the auto companies had any concern about until the mid 70s, when the cars became boring. Then suddenly removing the wind noise helped them sell the cars. They started with the company luxury cars, them moved on to the popular cars in their line ups. Trucks were about the last thing that got the wind noise eliminated.

Window and door sealing was the 1st thing they did (have you notice all the newer door seals are of the enclosed loop design?), followed by removing any cabin venting that didn't run through the heating/AC system. Drip rail removing and relocating the top of the door seal location, and leveling the side glass with the body level were the next changes, but those required a body redesign. Bonded front and rear glass happened at about the same time frame.

There are many places on the old bodies that upset the smooth flow of air around them, those areas added together are what causes much of the wind noise.

 

Thanks Gene. I reckon after a time, we get spoiled. Little by littel until we forget the way it was. When we step back in time by driving our classics, all the old nuances are thrust right back to the front.
So when it comes to this particular aspect, I'll play the song in my head...."don't worry. Be happy."
I reckon the next time I post, it'll most likely be from Lone Pine on Highway 395. One of the few pre planned stops.

 

We solve the wind noise in our old truck by driving with the windows down and our arms on the window ledge, unless its raining. I've found that with the cowl vent open, and the windows down, the wind noise is greatly reduced. Or maybe it just doesn't bother us too much?

Don't worry, be happy! Enjoy the ride.

 

I did the temp sensor relocation yesterday, and that turned the trick! I left the gauge sender where it was, at the rear of the block about two inches below the deck surface. The EFI temp sensor is now on the t-stat housing as shown in the photo.
Fired up Ol' Furd this morning, and it was out of cold run mode with 2 minutes, and up to around 180 within five minutes. That should be the ticket for fuel efficiency.
Interestingly, looking at the 3.5" EFI monitor, and comparing it's reading to the dash gauge, (still having that sender in the old location), there was about 20° difference fully warmed up. While the EFI monitor said about 180, the dash gauge was about 160°, or maybe a bit below.
So, with all fluids changed, and this little pesky thing resolved....NOW I'm road trip ready!

 

Good.

 

Aaaannnnddd.....don't it just figure.
A couple weeks before road trip time, and the system voltage is dropping. Up until a couple weeks ago, it had been steady at 13.9 to 13.7v when running. It's been steadily dropping. Today 13.1 to 13.3v.
Might be the battery. Might be the alternator. Both were new 3 years ago.
Put a charge on the battery. I'll see where the voltage is after sitting over night.

 

Its that extra temp sensor sucking all the volts out of the battery....

Maybe the belt isn't tight, or the battery posts need cleaning? Personally, I would be making sure your new addition to the cooling system isn't dripping on the belt that appears to be right below it.

Hopefully is something simple. New battery life isn't very impressive these days. I had to replace a defective 2 year old battery (fortunately still under warranty) a year ago. The new one seems to be doing OK.

 

LOL. The "extra" sensor has always been there. Now just in a different place. THAT is working great! I like that it's out of cold run mode within a couple minutes. That'll no doubt help short trip fuel mileage.
Back to the alternator dilemma, some cursory diagnostics were first, putting a good charge on the battery yesterday, then checking voltage this morning. Held the charge, checking in at 12.4v. All connections clean and tight.....no coolant dripping on the belt!
Fired up the Ol' Furd, and the voltage readout while running was 13.5 to 13.3v. Turned on the lights. 65W halogens. Interestingly, system voltage actually increased a bit to 13.6. Bringing the rpm up just a tickle and it was showing 13.9 to 14v. I was resigned to replacing the alternator, but I think I'll wait.
The alternator is internally regulated. Mighta been "stuck?" Maybe needed a load to trigger it for higher ouput?
Anyway, I'm driving it about 40 miles before dawn on Saturday. If it misbehaves, I won't be far from home. My son has an amperage tester that we will use Saturday afternoon.
Might just be "Pre Road Trip Anxiety" just looking for things to fail where no failures exist. Who knows.

 

Sounds like you are on the right path. I too would hold out replacing the alternator to see if this was a one time occurrence. Sometimes when there isn't a load, at an idle, an alternator won't put out much above battery voltage. Even at the 13.1, its still above the battery voltage, so it is still charging.

Back in the days of a generator, most of those didn't even charge up to battery voltage until the motor reached 1500 rpm. We are so spoiled by the advances in technology, we forget how things worked in the past.

 

Thanks Gene. If this were still point type ignition and a carburetor, I'd have no hesitation about rolling with it. But with this electronical fool injectoration and ignition, my concern is not having enough voltage for it to function correctly. Even so, changing an alternator on the road, or hotel parking lot is not really an issue, as long as I can find one!
Back in the day, if the motor turned over it would start. But using my Harley Davidson as an example, which has that electronical stuff, it may crank with a low battery, but won't start.
This is the fascination new age we're living in!

 

I had intermittent starter problems once. Picked up an extra starter at Autozone. It rode with me, in the original packaging, for several months.
One day I stopped by a local Autozone and got a refund.
Cheap travel insurance.

 

It is not unusual for charging voltage to drop some after the battery is fully charged. In my world, I get concerned at 13 volts under full load. That may or may not be enough to keep a battery fully charged. I'm a lot happier with at least 14 though. If you add up ( in case you haven't) all of your amp draw and compare to the alternator output, you will have knowledge to know if a change might be required.

 

Or, take the fully charged battery to NAPA. They will load test it.

 

Another point: Street alternators need to reach a "threshold RPM" before they start to put out ( unlike racing alternators that are often wired to put out amps linearly, at any RPM). Maybe you did not reach its threshold RPM when you first tried it?

 

This was occurring at all speeds. Voltage might kick up a tenth of a voltage above idle.
At any rate, I'll be driving it before sun-up Saturday morning, with lights on and see how it goes then. If it misbehaves, I'll replace it. Still have a bit of time before setting out on our big road trip.

 

It's Almost Road Trip Time!
Soon, we will be setting out on a 2500mile road trip in the Ol' Furd. I've been refining and tuning on the EFI for the last couple of months to give us a good shot at a reliable run, as well as decent fuel mileage. Alternator issue kinda resolved itself. Kinda weird. Put a load on it by turning everything on, and it started behaving normally. All new fluids, tires checked, nuts and bolts checked, new wiper blades, stashed a fire extinguisher in to the bedside storage box, and all the usual stuff. I even have a roadside trouble box put together. Yep. It's a bit bigger than the one I put together for our last big road trip. But that one was in my late model truck. Ol' Furd, she's got some time on 'er! But the frame up renovation was done with road tripping in mind.
Below is a map of the first few days. I kept it as a thumbnail, so you click it to make it big, if y'want. First, south on 99 to Delano, then turn east on Garces Highway (155) to Lake Isabella. This is a slow goin' road. Then Hwy 178 to Hwy 395. I've never been north of Reno on 395, and I've wanted to go that way for a number of years.
Most overnight stops will be less than 300 miles, so it can be a nice relaxing pace along the backroads of the west. The first half destination is my In-Laws place in Florence Montana.
I have not decided when or where we will turn east toward Montana once we've got ourselves into Washington state. Pasco, WA? Walla Walla? Umatillo? Don't know yet. I reckon we will burn that bridge right before we get to it!

 

This is probably stupid but you do have a spare tire and good jack with you? I think you will have a good trip. Hopefully it won't turn into an "adventure" in the negative.

 

Have a great trip!

 

I do! I made up a nice recess in the bed and bought the narrowest tire I could find that was the same diameter as the back tires, since it has a limited slip diff. An El cheapo vinyl cover, and we are good to go!
I've prepared by trying to foresee the unforeseen....if that's a thing! I've actually told people that I hope it's not TOO much of an adventure!
I'll try to post interesting stuff we see and do along the way.
Thanks fellers!

 

Road trips are always great, so I'm praying for you to have a safe and trouble free road trip.
300 miles a day is a good days driving distance, it gives you the chance to take in anything that catches your attention, and leaves enough time to make up for anything you find that may delay the journey longer then expected.

My wife and I was on a road trip once, about 100 miles into a 250 mile planned day, we passed through a small town that was celebrating its "Founders Day." They had a craft show, historical reenactments, and a tour of all the little town's historic sites and a whole list of other activities going on that day. Needless to say, we didn't make our 250 miles that day, but it was easy to catch up the next day. We got to the point where my wife had national listings of 2-3 hotel chains and would simply start calling the area we thought we would be ending our day to get a room for the evening. It was pretty easy to get back on schedule the next day.

You know that pictures are required through out the trip, right? Well, OK, take the pictures, we will wait until you get back home for the full road trip pictorial.

 

That right there Gene, is the essence of a proper road trip. I really enjoyed reading about your experience, and am using those as inspiration! We have no set schedule. No time limits and no particular place we need to at a certain time.
Slow and easy, with frequent stops...like you guys do!

 

Godspeed Mike

 

Then I know you and your wife are really going to enjoy this trip!

We are doing a 100 mile reliability run (WI Hot Rod 100 with the Crossmembers CC) in a couple of weeks. The starting point is 140 miles from home, then the run is going another 100 miles farther, and we will be doing the 200 miles (more direct route, still on 2 lane highways) home. Our plan is to spend the night before the run a few miles away from the starting point. We will be leaving home the day before the Run, to look for points of interest along that route.
If something catches our eye on the Run, or on the drive home, we will go back a different weekend to check it out. That would be another excuse for another short road trip.

 

Sounds like a lot of fun Gene. Safe travels....and we'll be lookin' for a report on that too!