1981 straight six manual 4x4 project

[Gary Lewis]

I added 5 gallons to the rear tank. Still reads 70 ohms, and no change to the gauge reading. Sending unit has to be bad... I was thinking I would put in the Bronco tank that I have, but as it sat it got condensation rust inside. Bummer. So it's either get a sending unit for this tank, or get a new sending unit and a bigger tank. I'm not looking forward to it either way...

Now on to the dash/HVAC work!

Well, at least you have it figured out. On the Bronco tank, you could use one of the coatings, like Eastwood's, but that costs $45 + shipping, so that is an appreciable portion of a new tank.

[Ford F834]

Well, at least you have it figured out. On the Bronco tank, you could use one of the coatings, like Eastwood's, but that costs $45 + shipping, so that is an appreciable portion of a new tank.

Unfortunately my junkyard punctures all of its gas tanks 😰. The bronco tank that I have I bought from a yard in Winslow that does not do that. Might be worth a call to see if they have one (it was $25) but it's 150 miles away.

Yesterday I tore the dash out and that was a good move. The AC/heater box area had a basket ball sized mouse nest in it. The heat/cold cable actuated door could barely move:

Next I fixed the blend door and it took me the rest of the day. What a pain. I made mine from a spare glove box hinge. I kept getting it flipped around in my mind and I had to re-rivet 3 times. I think the geometry of mine worked out a little different than the FTE article because my 81 has a metal door with a plastic clevis riveted to it. However the offset of the glove box hinge is just right. The door was tight in the housing and I ended up trimming the edges just a bit, but by the end of the day I had a super smooth hinged door that seals right in both directions:

(Note that I had to notch out the hinge for the clevis)

Then I found out that the newer style HVAC controller has a completely different vacuum electrical switch. I think I can solder on the newer connector pig tail, but I need the newer vacuum harness. Today I will see if I can borrow the one from the diesel until I can get back to the junkyard. This has been a particularly bitter onion layer!

[ArdWrknTrk]

Unfortunately my junkyard punctures all of its gas tanks 😰. The bronco tank that I have I bought from a yard in Winslow that does not do that. Might be worth a call to see if they have one (it was $25) but it's 150 miles away.

Yesterday I tore the dash out and that was a good move. The AC/heater box area had a basket ball sized mouse nest in it. The heat/cold cable actuated door could barely move:

Next I fixed the blend door and it took me the rest of the day. What a pain. I made mine from a spare glove box hinge. I kept getting it flipped around in my mind and I had to re-rivet 3 times. I think the geometry of mine worked out a little different than the FTE article because my 81 has a metal door with a plastic clevis riveted to it. However the offset of the glove box hinge is just right. The door was tight in the housing and I ended up trimming the edges just a bit, but by the end of the day I had a super smooth hinged door that seals right in both directions:

(Note that I had to notch out the hinge for the clevis)

Then I found out that the newer style HVAC controller has a completely different vacuum electrical switch. I think I can solder on the newer connector pig tail, but I need the newer vacuum harness. Today I will see if I can borrow the one from the diesel until I can get back to the junkyard. This has been a particularly bitter onion layer!

Really good progress!

Thanks for sharing all the detailed photos

[Gary Lewis]

Unfortunately my junkyard punctures all of its gas tanks 😰. The bronco tank that I have I bought from a yard in Winslow that does not do that. Might be worth a call to see if they have one (it was $25) but it's 150 miles away.

Yesterday I tore the dash out and that was a good move. The AC/heater box area had a basket ball sized mouse nest in it. The heat/cold cable actuated door could barely move:

Next I fixed the blend door and it took me the rest of the day. What a pain. I made mine from a spare glove box hinge. I kept getting it flipped around in my mind and I had to re-rivet 3 times. I think the geometry of mine worked out a little different than the FTE article because my 81 has a metal door with a plastic clevis riveted to it. However the offset of the glove box hinge is just right. The door was tight in the housing and I ended up trimming the edges just a bit, but by the end of the day I had a super smooth hinged door that seals right in both directions:

(Note that I had to notch out the hinge for the clevis)

Then I found out that the newer style HVAC controller has a completely different vacuum electrical switch. I think I can solder on the newer connector pig tail, but I need the newer vacuum harness. Today I will see if I can borrow the one from the diesel until I can get back to the junkyard. This has been a particularly bitter onion layer!

Jonathan - That may be a bitter layer, but trust me, it is gonna be so sweet when the heater works just right. I drove Big Blue today and just now coming home it was cold so I turned on the heat. Boy, did it feel good when it worked. No muss, no fuss, it just worked.

 

[Ford F834]

Jonathan - That may be a bitter layer, but trust me, it is gonna be so sweet when the heater works just right. I drove Big Blue today and just now coming home it was cold so I turned on the heat. Boy, did it feel good when it worked. No muss, no fuss, it just worked.

Thanks Gary, this was a bitter layer, but the smooth positive action of that blend door was very satisfying... and with day two ending with a clean new dash shell installed it really looked and felt like progress. Intermittent wipers, Motorcraft headlight switch, locking hood release and the new HVAC controller were the other upgrades.

I know I've said this before, but I really need to extend a special thanks for the two EVTM's and wire diagrams on Garagemahal. I was able to look up the lower switch wiring and just re-pin the new style connector with no cutting or soldering involved.

Note that the funky wire colors from the newer connector were from an Econoline. I got the wire order from looking at my 86 diesel unit. The two brown/white are electrically connected and interchangeable.

The new controller fixed my fan problem, at least it part. It will shut off now with the bottom lever in the off position. The fan speed 4 position switch goes low, low, medium, low instead of low, m1, m2, high. So I'm guessing the resistor?

The headlight switch pulled out one notch turns on the dash illumination, but no running lights front or back. Two notches out and I have headlights, tail lights, but no front running lights. Front blinkers work though, so bulbs and wires are working. More research in the EVTM is needed. I'm getting closer... 🙂

[Gary Lewis]

Thanks Gary, this was a bitter layer, but the smooth positive action of that blend door was very satisfying... and with day two ending with a clean new dash shell installed it really looked and felt like progress. Intermittent wipers, Motorcraft headlight switch, locking hood release and the new HVAC controller were the other upgrades.

I know I've said this before, but I really need to extend a special thanks for the two EVTM's and wire diagrams on Garagemahal. I was able to look up the lower switch wiring and just re-pin the new style connector with no cutting or soldering involved.

Note that the funky wire colors from the newer connector were from an Econoline. I got the wire order from looking at my 86 diesel unit. The two brown/white are electrically connected and interchangeable.

The new controller fixed my fan problem, at least it part. It will shut off now with the bottom lever in the off position. The fan speed 4 position switch goes low, low, medium, low instead of low, m1, m2, high. So I'm guessing the resistor?

The headlight switch pulled out one notch turns on the dash illumination, but no running lights front or back. Two notches out and I have headlights, tail lights, but no front running lights. Front blinkers work though, so bulbs and wires are working. More research in the EVTM is needed. I'm getting closer... 🙂

In reverse order, Page 40 of the 1981 EVTM shows the park lights. Note that the front lights, although not the side marker lights, are dual filament. So, either you have the smaller filament on both front bulbs out or you have a wiring problem in the brown wire circuit.

Yup, resistor.

Wanna do a how-to on re-pinning that connector?

Dash looks GREAT!

[Ford F834]

In reverse order, Page 40 of the 1981 EVTM shows the park lights. Note that the front lights, although not the side marker lights, are dual filament. So, either you have the smaller filament on both front bulbs out or you have a wiring problem in the brown wire circuit.

Yup, resistor.

Wanna do a how-to on re-pinning that connector?

Dash looks GREAT!

Thank you Gary! I hate wiring and electrical work because I don't understand it well. But with your help and website I am gradually sorting it out and understanding it better. I had not thought about the front signals being dual filament, and that could definitely explain it. Someone might have even installed single element bulbs for all I know. And the side markers are almost always neglected and not working. A lot of the cleaning and cosmetics will have to wait, but I want it street legal and mechanically sound by December.

There is not a lot to the re-pin that isn't shown in pictures in my last post, but sure, I can do a short write up and maybe include pictures of the old vs. new controller and vacuum harness changes so someone switching from one style to the other will have all the information?

I don't know (electrically) which pins to move, but I know the instrument cluster plug-in can be re-pinned the same way. This would help people with 1980 vs. 1981-86 bezel indicator light / circuit film dilemmas.

And yeah, I'm really happy with the dash. The pictures don't do it justice. It looks so much nicer even with the rest of the interior still missing. The paint is a bit soft and it did pick up a tiny mark here and there during the install... but it was a rush job with only two days in between for the paint to dry. I've read a couple weeks or better yet a couple of months is a good idea before handling/installing. I just didn't have that kind of time. I can't wait to get it all together with the rosewood trim.

[Gary Lewis]

Thank you Gary! I hate wiring and electrical work because I don't understand it well. But with your help and website I am gradually sorting it out and understanding it better. I had not thought about the front signals being dual filament, and that could definitely explain it. Someone might have even installed single element bulbs for all I know. And the side markers are almost always neglected and not working. A lot of the cleaning and cosmetics will have to wait, but I want it street legal and mechanically sound by December.

There is not a lot to the re-pin that isn't shown in pictures in my last post, but sure, I can do a short write up and maybe include pictures of the old vs. new controller and vacuum harness changes so someone switching from one style to the other will have all the information?

I don't know (electrically) which pins to move, but I know the instrument cluster plug-in can be re-pinned the same way. This would help people with 1980 vs. 1981-86 bezel indicator light / circuit film dilemmas.

And yeah, I'm really happy with the dash. The pictures don't do it justice. It looks so much nicer even with the rest of the interior still missing. The paint is a bit soft and it did pick up a tiny mark here and there during the install... but it was a rush job with only two days in between for the paint to dry. I've read a couple weeks or better yet a couple of months is a good idea before handling/installing. I just didn't have that kind of time. I can't wait to get it all together with the rosewood trim.

I know you are pushing to get ready for your trip, so the how-to can wait. But it may help someone down the road. And if it had info about the vacuum differences so much the better.

[Ford F834]

Thank you Gary! I hate wiring and electrical work because I don't understand it well. But with your help and website I am gradually sorting it out and understanding it better. I had not thought about the front signals being dual filament, and that could definitely explain it. Someone might have even installed single element bulbs for all I know. And the side markers are almost always neglected and not working. A lot of the cleaning and cosmetics will have to wait, but I want it street legal and mechanically sound by December.

There is not a lot to the re-pin that isn't shown in pictures in my last post, but sure, I can do a short write up and maybe include pictures of the old vs. new controller and vacuum harness changes so someone switching from one style to the other will have all the information?

I don't know (electrically) which pins to move, but I know the instrument cluster plug-in can be re-pinned the same way. This would help people with 1980 vs. 1981-86 bezel indicator light / circuit film dilemmas.

And yeah, I'm really happy with the dash. The pictures don't do it justice. It looks so much nicer even with the rest of the interior still missing. The paint is a bit soft and it did pick up a tiny mark here and there during the install... but it was a rush job with only two days in between for the paint to dry. I've read a couple weeks or better yet a couple of months is a good idea before handling/installing. I just didn't have that kind of time. I can't wait to get it all together with the rosewood trim.

I forgot to mention that there is a really large gap between the defrost duct and the lower heater box assembly... is this normal? Did I get this back together properly?

It was a good thing I removed it for cleaning... the driver side half was 90% clogged with junk. Pens, pencils, coins, bottle caps, matches, three necklaces, a pocket knife two small wrenches, a small screwdriver, popcorn, French fries, and much dirt. Then I made the brilliant mistake of forgetting a can of the interior paint on my dash over the summer. It exploded and cemented the whole thing into a clump of dried paint 🙄

Unfortunately it gummed up my vin tag also. I've been told never to clean or mess with that area because it will look tampered with, but I will have to in this case because you can't read it at all.

[85lebaront2]

I forgot to mention that there is a really large gap between the defrost duct and the lower heater box assembly... is this normal? Did I get this back together properly?

It was a good thing I removed it for cleaning... the driver side half was 90% clogged with junk. Pens, pencils, coins, bottle caps, matches, three necklaces, a pocket knife two small wrenches, a small screwdriver, popcorn, French fries, and much dirt. Then I made the brilliant mistake of forgetting a can of the interior paint on my dash over the summer. It exploded and cemented the whole thing into a clump of dried paint 🙄

Unfortunately it gummed up my vin tag also. I've been told never to clean or mess with that area because it will look tampered with, but I will have to in this case because you can't read it at all.

Can't help on the defroster duct, mine was changed to the later system several years ago. On the electrical, I have been slowly getting up a list of Ford PNs for connector parts and if available the aftermarket PNs that coincide with the Ford numbers.

Anytime I disassemble a parts vehicle, be it Ford, GM or Chrysler I save the harnesses and if I do not need them, strip them of connectors and pull out the longer wires and roll them up so I have the needed colors to extend or repair sections.