Aerostar-unlimited message board

V8 aerostar

Wed, 06 May 2009 03:26:34 GMT

Come on, every aerostar owner on this site has had the thought of installing a V8 right... Well I actually did it!! My 1990 cargo van was given to me from my grandparents, with 165,000 miles. Soon I had 177k on the 6 cly's clock and got bored with it. So during my senior year in high school my dad taught me the basics of an engine swap. Star was tweaked around the back of the engine comp. the doghouse is wider and flatter that stock, and made of steel. the stock tranny mount and driveshaft still make themselves useful! Power from a roller car 289 small block, E303 cam, 289 crank/pistons, and a 4 barrel holley. I have 65 heads and a 72 intake on it now, but soon I'm swaping for GT40 heads and a Power Plus intake. T-5 tranny and a 9 inch rear on a 4 link. the spring perches are directly under the frame and the wheel wells have room for a 15x12 wheel with some room left! Custom headers and dual exhaust quiet the little beast!!This is an old pic of the engine, the wires are ford blue, the PCV is a beter peice, and the A/C box has been removed. Just a few of the mods since the pic here. Very soon the bodywork will start finnishing itself, right!! well only if I get my lazy ass on it.A pair of animations I made earlier.What do ya think. Those are on my DA page http://klutchfox.deviantart.com/

Best shocks

Tue, 21 Apr 2009 15:02:48 GMT

Did a little more dealing with people. Monroe has not improved their quality. The load levelers are better than their standard stuff. Pray tell, you were hauling how much with your van? I was under the impression that the maximum trailer weight an Aerostar can handle is about 4,800 lbs. Beyond that, there is a danger of the trailer driving you. Plus that is a lot a strain on the engine and transmission. I mean I guess by keeping the tonque weight down you are probably fine. I don't use the trailer much anymore, but the weight I handle in mine is a lot more than 850 lbs. I have hauled as much as 2500 lbs inside the van. The KYB shocks handle that very well. But I do need better springs. I actually have a set of air rides that I will be installing in mine quite shortly. I am routinely hauling in excess of 1000 lbs in the back f the van, and the cargo springs alone squat down pretty good. I have the on board compressor already installed, just need the air rides put in place. Even so, I have still had problems with every Monroe shock that I have used.

PLEASE READ

Sat, 21 Mar 2009 01:46:03 GMT

That addy takes me to Ford Truck Enthusiast (FTE) and I don't go there anymore. FBp

My '94 AWD Aerostar

Fri, 13 Mar 2009 15:49:09 GMT

Well, here are a few pictures of my Aerostar. Lets start out with my exhaust system.The factory converter is still in place and the section of pipe is 2.25" Ford used a 2" flex pipe and muffler on both the 3.0L and 4.0L. This is smaller than the size pipe they use on the 4.0L converter system. Ford did this for budget reasons, and also so that both models would share more parts. The 2" muffler is ok for the 3.0L, but does limit the 4.0L. I had a 2.25" flex pipe installed, and ran 2.25" pipe back to the muffler. This eliminated a restriction in the factory system, plus the 2.25" flex pipe is less prone to failure. For the muffler I used our FullBlown brand 50 series muffler. This is similar in to the Flowmaster 50 series. I used a 2.50" tailpipe for two reasons. One, is that unless you use a mandrel bender, the pipe gets crushed slightly, reducing flow in the bend. And two, the larger pipe projects more sound outward. the result is that the volume level outside is pretty good, without causing resonation and droning inside the van. I ended it all in one of our WickedFlow stainless steel tips.Here are the pictures.I am also running some very nice Cooper LT tires, which are awesome in the snow, but more importantly they also have an excellent tread life and can handle a lot of weight. I have installed some very attractive looking hubcaps from a vintage Ford Fairlane. (the tires shown here are not the Coopers, but the tires seen above are)I have installed some other extras such as the clear LED taillights (not legal in all states) and a new grill which will give me enough room to install an electric pusher fan in front of the condenser. I have a few other mods which are not visual modifications, such as a headlight relay harness, which prevents the headlight switch and high-beam switches from burning out, and also makes the headlights brighter. I have an AFE ProDryS air filter which is washable but does not require oiling and does not let small dust particles through. It is a direct replacement type filter that just goes inside the stock airbox. I like that all I have to do is rinse it with water, tap it dry, and then put it back in. I have an overbuilt A4LD transmission with the heavy duty torque converter and a modified valve body with the pressure boost kit (also known as a shift kit). I have a B&M plate cooler to keep the tranny cool. I have removed all the back seats and replaced the carpet with a liner called BedRug. It looks like carpet, but it is a type of bed liner material.

My Candidate for Van of the Month Is . . . . .

Mon, 09 Mar 2009 23:55:52 GMT

By the look of the van Id say it is a trailer puller.

reading & translating OBD 1 codes without a scanner

Sun, 08 Mar 2009 04:17:14 GMT

I'm translating a List of codes FoMoCo used with EEC IV Based OBD 1 systems. Some codes in the list will not apply to Aerostars, but all of the available Aerostar codes will be there. I'm not sure of year Aeros began using OBD 1 Technology, but it was same year they went to Coil Pack Ign. systems. That's what '90- '91 '92 ?I'll include how to use FoMoCo's STAR feature and your analog VOM to read Data Transfer Link at diagnostic port under the hood near M'Cyl. It's time consuming and I have another life beyond My affection for these incredible Vans this site is about, so be patient guys. Thanx.CIAOL

What does everyone do for a living?

Fri, 06 Mar 2009 22:27:29 GMT

dave boley wrote:WOW is right, how do you top FORDBOYpete??? Usually they say the first liar doesn't have a chance but I guess Pete doesn't need to worry about that one, LOL. I thought I had a few different things under my belt,,, Oh well...Anyway, here goes... Up until I retired around January 2007 I had worked as an IBEW industrial and commercial construction Electrician. Mostly power plants and big factories or steel mills plus a few car plants. I did that for 30 years with some other stuff I did between the slack times. I did Expedited Freight contract work moving short loads for the car companies back in the '90s. I built houses back in the '70s and before that HVAC and electrical contract work. I was in the Air Force and spent my time in Electronics supporting the Titan II missle weapons system which is now only history. My first Civilian jobs were in engineering and design and R&D departments of several different industries.Now I have two retirement businesses, I move custom and classic cars and I have a welding, fabricating, light machine work and repair business. I have been welding since I was 13.My hobbies are trucks, cars, electronics and Ham Radio. I am also a voracious reader. I average about fifty books a year plus extra reading of scientific and technical books. My weakness is the likes of Clive Cussler and Tom Clancy. I have read all their stuff. I also like to read some Sc-Fi. I was a devout fan of Robert A. Heinlein and I read everything he published. I also have a weakness for the Sci-Fi Channel, the History Channel, National Geographic Channel, The Science Channel and Discovery Channel. I'm into HDTV, Blue Ray HD-DVD, big Plasma Screens, and kick-ass sound systems.I have and maintain my own websites for my hobby projects and retirement businesses. That's my story and I'm stickin' to it. Oh, BTW I'm also doing my second childhood. I didn't have any problems with the first one, I just liked it so well I wanted to do it again and maybe even better. Hey, a guy can dream can't he???Later Folks... A message to dave boley, although it says I edited you post I really didnt I meant to hit the quote button.-- Edited by 4x4Aero at 15:24, 2009-03-06-- Edited by 4x4Aero at 15:26, 2009-03-06Are you sure you can mention that, I dont want to be arrestied

This is cool

Fri, 06 Mar 2009 20:04:11 GMT

Since I have nothing to do all day, I was looking through our family photo bins and I found MY great great grandmas, diary from 1917, the VIN number for her car was 271928, she lived in the states so the book is from the states and it has the population of all U.S citys with 10,000+ peoplefor example-Buffalo, N.Y..... 423,715, I thought it was cool.

We cannot be located via Search engines ??????????????

Fri, 06 Mar 2009 16:10:23 GMT

OK Guys,I went into Google and looked for all my sites and pages that show up on a search. I made a list of them and then fired up Front page and went into my sites that were listed and put in a plug for this board as well as a link to it on each page. The more hits my pages get, the more likely you will gain recognition on Google because they are continueously scanned by Google. So, go to my sites and take a look at all the pages and e-mail your friends to do so. With a little help we might just get this on Google.Sometimes this helps... I can't guarantee it but I do know it is a step in the right direction.One other thing that will help is to go to Godaddy.com and get your own domain name that can be parned there and forwarded to your site. I will look up some possible available names and send them to you.Later Guys...

Used Aerostar Parts FOB DAytona Bch Florida Area

Thu, 05 Mar 2009 07:06:22 GMT

I have miscellaneous 93-4 & 5 Aerostar stuff for sale or trade. all these vans are LWB XLTN models, sorry No SWB's Drive Train Parts1- 4.0L AWD AOD Transmission & good Transfercase1 - 4.0L AWD AOD Transmission w bad Transfercase1 pr Nearly New Front short shaft Drive Axles2 pr (as in 4) AWD Front Rotors 1pr Nearly New, 1pr clean Used2 clean Aluminum replacement XLTN Drive shafts1 8.8 rear end assy complete good 3.93:11pr good rear brake drums Powertrain parts 1 complete 4.0L engine runs great, over 100K Miles needs 100K tune up. 1 OEM soild, clean, radiator, 1 engine for parts, heads, buildable short block, manifolds 2 OEM alternators 1 93-4.0L P/S Pump Assy 1 95- 4.0L P/S Pump Assy A/C compressor for R-34 System (not black death type, it upgraded) 2 steering racks from XLTN AWD 2 Front K- Frame assys 1 complete & good to go, 1 for parts Used Calipers, spindles, a-frames etc pair re-bushed upper control arms, etc etc Misc Parts 2 driverside airbag set up 1 95 steering wheel (not Goop Filled) 1 clockspring Assy still good & works Seats 1 front bucket, 1 midship bucket (2 arm rest type) 1 rear fold down all are gray cloth covered. 1 set Bumper Covers Front w/ air dam & 1 rear w/ side extensions. polyurethane parts need to be painted to match. I'll paint them an OEM Trim color of your choice with flex agent in paint for a fair price per piece. Or you can have them as is & paint them yourself 1 95 Grille assy, black not argent 1 pr (both sides) 91-96 headlight assy's complete 1 pr clean Rear Taillamp assy's, Clean Pair electric Door Mirrors Good Hood, both Front doors & Slider door, Good Glass except windshieds (no clean windshields all are sand checked) door switches, window motors etc etc lodks & latches etc etcAlso 93 XLTN I'll strip for parts. . . . Send your want list for price & availability <-> Pictures on requestAll Parts gaurenteed to be As Described & 100% useable, No Junk here !All parts are FOB Daytona Beach Area, you choose your transportation.I will only ship prepaid parts & frieght both & only in USA or territories.If paid by check, it must clear my bank before I can ship or deliver itemsSorry If I sound like a hard case. I've worked in Parts & Salvage industry Before for others and I have learned from others how to do it. Also as an international shipper in my past, shipping everything from tiny pieces to Sea-Tainers I know what that's like so I'm NOT gonna deal with ICE or US Customs and various international Agency People anymore. I learned. PM me for contact infoCIAOFBp