This morning my starter went out on my 2001 Ford Expedition (5.4 liter V8), so I decided to let it sit in my driveway until I returned home this evening with a new one. The vehicle barely has over 100K on it, and it hauls like nobody's business. Naturally, the rain is coming down pretty good, my garage is not yet finished (concrete floor in the pole barn literally being poured tomorrow), and its getting dark. No problem -- I have done this before. One time in a Staples parking lot with my 1996 Aerostar.

Well, that little starter is really wedged up in there and one of the three bolts cannot be seen, only "felt".

Needless to say, I needed to have hands that were much smaller than mine. It took me almost 2 hours!!! to get that thing out, get a new one in and fire her up! Humbling experience. Felt pretty dumb.

I will never complain about the y block starter again. Heavy? sure. Tight? well, not compared to most. Accessible from the top of the engine compartment? You bet!

Ok, I'm done.

Daniel Jessup

Lancaster, California

aka "The Hot Rod Reverend"
check out the 1955 Ford Fairlane build at www.hotrodreverend.com

It is not fun working on the newer cars

54 Victoria 312;  48 Ford Conv 302, 56 Bird 312
Forever Ford
Midland Park, NJ

I have friends asking me for mechanical help all the time and I used to be more ablidging, but now a days I ask what year is it and if it is newer than '74 I don't want to touch it. Heck,  I don't even like working on my own newer cars.

   God Bless.   Tim                           http://yblockguy.com/

350ci Y-Block FED "Elwood", 301ci Y-Block Unibody LSR "Jake", 312ci Y-Block '58 F-100, 338ci Y-Block powered Model A Tudor

tim@yblockguy.com  Visalia, California    Just west of the Sequoias

Ah, yes, the curse of friends who know that you work on your own stuff. If I didn't own my Firebird, I wouldn't touch one. Every time I have to take a piece of plastic off I wonder will it be the last time.


Lawrenceville, GA

 

I feel your pain! Worst starter I ever worked on was my mother-in-laws front wheel drive Chrysler. Starter is behind engine and bolts are hidden. After I "finally" got them out  with a 4 foot extension on my socket wrench had to play hide and seek putting bolts back in. And remember--- mother-in-law=no pay

Ol'ford nutCentral Iowa

56 Vic w/292 & 4 spd.

While I figured out a slick way to replace the fuel pump in my late model GMC, I really try to avoid touching it beyond brakes and basic maintenance and tune-up parts...

A couple weeks ago I did a basic plug, wires, cap, rotor tune-up on my little sisters (non-lifted) 4WD Suburban (1999). One of the last SBC's before the LS engines.

Now you could say that I am taller than average, and I still had to fully climb into the engine bay, only to find the the cap AND rotot were both fastened with TORX SCREWS!! And to make things even more exciting, they were so small that I couldn't even tell I was holding them without visual proof!

Pretty sure I'm done working on late model stuff, even as favors. Though my sister is one helluva baker, and I've a serious sweet tooth...

Todd in Central California...about half way between Fresno and Sacramento

1956 Thunderbird - 1960 F-100 - 1961 Starliner - 1961 Imperial

I am a devout FORD man and always been a Ford man, but sometimes I think when they build these cars and trucks, they start with the engine on a stand and build around it till they're finished. I got wise and started buying extended warranties cause it cuts down on frustrations and blood pressure both of which a 64 year old doesn't need.

Bud in Northern Arizona on route 66 in Winslow (standin' on the corner)

If you're American, buy American

631/2 Galaxie 500XL 406   55 T-Bird

I had a buddy ask me to paint his fender and bumper on a 95 oldsmobile. I couldn't hold that fender on my lap and sand on it without denting it. What crap! I am making a piont to not even have metric wrenches in my garage, if it uses metrics, its too new for me.

55 Vicky & customline

58 Rack Dump, 55 F350 yard truck, 57 F100

59 & 61 P 400's, 58 F100 custom cab, 69 F100, 79 F150, 82 F600 ramp truck, 90 mustang conv 7 up, 94 Mustang, Should I continue?

I was a Ford/Linc/Merc tech since starting in 1980 on the lube rack. Retired in 2005. Worked on them all. It's like anything else, you do it enough times, it gets easy. Like a guy I apprenticed with would say,"You just have to remember what tools to use and then hold your mouth just right to get it." I work on my own late model stuff but no one else. They don't take that much work anymore; no distributors, plug wires, 100,000 mile spark plugs, etc. But swapping out a set of late model PowerStroke diesel injectors or a turbo in a Ford Econoline can try your patience. On the late model F 350 and up, the front clip is now removable for major repairs. Ford reliability has improved dramatically in the last decade. The amount of warranty work done now is a fraction of what it used to be. I still get the full extended warranty though but haven't used it much at all on my last few cars. Wife drove a 99 Grand Marquis for 250K miles, never had a single problem.

57 Black Tbird 312/auto

Spare a thought for all us guys with RHD ( Right Hand Drive )cars .We aslo have to contend with a clutch linkage ( manual box ) AND a steering box . Not an easy job to do .It does help if you have 2 index fingers and 3 thumbs on the same hand ????????

Lon

PS Maybe Cusso Bill has some photos of what I'm talking about ???

yblocksdownunder