Uberlands slow-but-hopefully-steady Excursion build.

[old_man]

Gears will give you better acceleration but your mileage will suffer. Gears give you more RPM, RPM eats more gas. Larger tires give you back your mileage. So, you should have about the same acceleration with gears and larger tires that you have now.

While on the surface this may seem logical, it really has to do with where in the power band your are running. Lower gears (higher number) routinely will help mileage on vehicles with taller tires due to getting the rpms where the engine is more efficient if your engine is running too slowly (lugging) with the taller tires.

 

[Sparksalot]

No worries at all...I've been remiss in my updates, and just realized that I wasn't getting notifications for replies. Oops.

Updates: I have some.

In my goal of de-chroming Creedence, I replaced the "chrome" (read: chrome-wrapped that was peeling) updated grille for a matte black one.

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Then, it was time to replace the old steering wheel. It turned the vehicle just fine, of course, but the "leather" was 20 years old, had lost most of its padding and was loose on the wheel, and was just plain unsightly.

Unfortunately, nobody really makes "new" wheels for the previous Super Duties and Excursions, so I was left with a wheel cover (unsightly), trying to find a better-quality used wheel, or...I happened to stumble on a guy on Ebay (search "Autowoods") who recovers wheels. For about the price of a used wheel, and less than I was quoted for a hand-stitched partial cover, I got a recovered wheel that is pretty darn close to the original leather. Solid. Can't recommend enough. Also learned how to properly de-charge an airbag and use a puller to remove the original wheel.

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Lastly...since the lift was done last August, Creedence looked like he kept skipping leg days. The 285/75R16 tires, while +1 from stock and capable enough (got me up Bald Mountain Jeep Trail without any problems) aren't quite as wide as I'd like, and made the truck bog a bit because the gears were stock 3.73s. So...an installation of Yukon 4.11s front and rear, an Eaton True-Trac (decided against the air locker...I wanted something that was functioning all the time), new bearings, seals and axle universal joints a few weeks ago set us up well for the delivery of 35x12.5 General Grappler AT/Xs on 17x8.5 Method 701s. They fit, but I had to lose my front mud flaps, air dam, and I may have to trim the bumper a bit until I can get my aftermarket one in (looking at Buckstop Truckware).

But. They. Look. Awesome.

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Until next time...

Cool window sticker!

 

[Joey83]

The 35's look kinda small on that Excursion with that lift, not complaining, just saying what I think.

 

[Lanlubber In Remembrance]

If you're going to re-gear then you might as well get a locker (or two)

Ha ha, if you got the money honey I got the time. A little here and a little there goes a long way. :-)

 

[Lanlubber In Remembrance]

No worries at all...I've been remiss in my updates, and just realized that I wasn't getting notifications for replies. Oops.

Updates: I have some.

In my goal of de-chroming Creedence, I replaced the "chrome" (read: chrome-wrapped that was peeling) updated grille for a matte black one.

View attachment 139038

View attachment 139039View attachment 139040

Then, it was time to replace the old steering wheel. It turned the vehicle just fine, of course, but the "leather" was 20 years old, had lost most of its padding and was loose on the wheel, and was just plain unsightly.

Unfortunately, nobody really makes "new" wheels for the previous Super Duties and Excursions, so I was left with a wheel cover (unsightly), trying to find a better-quality used wheel, or...I happened to stumble on a guy on Ebay (search "Autowoods") who recovers wheels. For about the price of a used wheel, and less than I was quoted for a hand-stitched partial cover, I got a recovered wheel that is pretty darn close to the original leather. Solid. Can't recommend enough. Also learned how to properly de-charge an airbag and use a puller to remove the original wheel.

View attachment 139041

View attachment 139042

View attachment 139043

Lastly...since the lift was done last August, Creedence looked like he kept skipping leg days. The 285/75R16 tires, while +1 from stock and capable enough (got me up Bald Mountain Jeep Trail without any problems) aren't quite as wide as I'd like, and made the truck bog a bit because the gears were stock 3.73s. So...an installation of Yukon 4.11s front and rear, an Eaton True-Trac (decided against the air locker...I wanted something that was functioning all the time), new bearings, seals and axle universal joints a few weeks ago set us up well for the delivery of 35x12.5 General Grappler AT/Xs on 17x8.5 Method 701s. They fit, but I had to lose my front mud flaps, air dam, and I may have to trim the bumper a bit until I can get my aftermarket one in (looking at Buckstop Truckware).

But. They. Look. Awesome.

View attachment 139047View attachment 139048View attachment 139050View attachment 139051

Until next time...

Oh Wow, you 've been a busy beaver and a bigger spender lately. It's come a loooooog way from your first post and everything looks great. I really like that steering wheel upgrade. Your going to have a totally new truck when your finished. The grill change makes one wonder why it didn't come that way from the factory. That was a good change IMO. Also I think Ford has always put the wrong size tires on their vehicles. I have never owned a ford that I didn't up the tire size to get better proportions to the vehicle. Personally I'd get rid of the running boards but that's just me. I don't mind climbing a little.

 

[Flying pig]

Very nice. Love the X and it has been great for my family. Got my clan through high school, some college and now its my overland exclusive rig.

 

[Lanlubber In Remembrance]

Very nice. Love the X and it has been great for my family. Got my clan through high school, some college and now its my overland exclusive rig.

Winner on all accounts. Keep her rolling Jeff !

 

[flyfisher530]

Today, I did something that didn’t NEED to be done, but couldn’t hurt to check off of the list. The Ex has been an East Coast car it’s whole 19-plus years and had accumulated a fair amount of surface rust on the frame and gas tank cover, including a few spots where the rust actually was starting to take hold. So, I out on my nitrile gloves, grabbed a large tarp and my wire brushes (hand and drill-mounted), and scrubbed the frame, skid plates, front and rear axles...and then coated everything with POR-15 rust inhibitor. Definitely not fun or easy, certainly messy, but it’ll be a little peace of mind when it gets salty on the roads or I take the Ex out on the beach!

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Wow big difference. Nice job!!

 

[Lanlubber In Remembrance]

Today, I did something that didn’t NEED to be done, but couldn’t hurt to check off of the list. The Ex has been an East Coast car it’s whole 19-plus years and had accumulated a fair amount of surface rust on the frame and gas tank cover, including a few spots where the rust actually was starting to take hold. So, I out on my nitrile gloves, grabbed a large tarp and my wire brushes (hand and drill-mounted), and scrubbed the frame, skid plates, front and rear axles...and then coated everything with POR-15 rust inhibitor. Definitely not fun or easy, certainly messy, but it’ll be a little peace of mind when it gets salty on the roads or I take the Ex out on the beach!

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That should give her a few more years. I will not drive on salted roads at all. I avoid salty places with my vehicles. Here our road people use sand for de-icing and snow. It's messy since it's red but it doesn't rust your vehicle bottom side.
Nice work Jason. Real gear heads don't care if a rig is small, medium or large. All have their place in the sun !

 

[Uberland]

The 35's look kinda small on that Excursion with that lift, not complaining, just saying what I think.

Went with 35s for a number of reasons. Firstly, the front leafs REALLY complicate larger tires. You can squeeze them in, but anything beyond 35x12.5 will rub on the springs and wheel well liner. That, and there was no way I'd be able to keep my stock bumper...I barely fit the 35s in and even then I had to do surgery on the front end. Secondarily, there's the extra cost of tires. Thirdly, my kids have a hard enough time getting in the truck...adding another inch would only increase the whining and complaining!

 

[Uberland]

That should give her a few more years. I will not drive on salted roads at all. I avoid salty places with my vehicles. Here our road people use sand for de-icing and snow. It's messy since it's red but it doesn't rust your vehicle bottom side.
Nice work Jason. Real gear heads don't care if a rig is small, medium or large. All have their place in the sun !

Regarding rust: I hoped to avoid it, but just found some rot in one of the rocker panels...sigh.

 

[Uberland]

Oh Wow, you 've been a busy beaver and a bigger spender lately. It's come a loooooog way from your first post and everything looks great. I really like that steering wheel upgrade. Your going to have a totally new truck when your finished. The grill change makes one wonder why it didn't come that way from the factory. That was a good change IMO. Also I think Ford has always put the wrong size tires on their vehicles. I have never owned a ford that I didn't up the tire size to get better proportions to the vehicle. Personally I'd get rid of the running boards but that's just me. I don't mind climbing a little.

There's no chance my kids (or wife) could get in without them. Might have to drop the boards eventually in favor of sliders, but that's not in the cards financially right now!

 

[Lanlubber In Remembrance]

Regarding rust: I hoped to avoid it, but just found some rot in one of the rocker panels...sigh.

You have to much invested to let it go further. See a body man before it spreads.

 

[Uberland]

It’s been a while...again. I’m hoping that the new app will improve the frequency of my posts (though it has been a bit buggy).

Our overlanding trips—including a week-long one planned for April—were panned due to all of the obvious shenanigans. Shame that so many campgrounds and trails were closed as well...what better way to social distance! But I’m not in charge, so...

Upgrades/maintenance: Creedence started going through some oil, so new injectors made its way into the rig (you can see from the picture that the o-rings had shrunk, allowing the oil to sneak by), along with the remaining six glow plugs, under-valve cover wiring harnesses, and a new turbo pedestal (o-rings there also brittle). Oof.

Nothing terribly exciting trip-wise...did Tasker’s Gap in the George Washington National Forest a week or so ago. Rainy/muddy, but it’s an easy trail.

 

[Uberland]

So...some prettying-up of the truck happened, and what should’ve been an easy fix led to wound to my pride (that could have been A LOT worse).

Given that the truck is 20 years old, some fading of trim is expected. I got tired of seeing the dingy, ash-colored trim and faded windshield wipers, and so I decided to do something about it. A can of Rustoleum semi-gloss and an hour or so of work, and voila. While I was there, I also installed a factory replacement for the rubber mat that covers the access to the radiator, charge air cooler and transmission cooler. Prettier up the mud flaps with some matte paint I had lying around, too.

Now for the repair...Ford 7.3s have a degas bottle on top of the radiator that serves as a (pressurized) overflow for the radiator. They have a tendency to fail (and get really ugly), which is why I replaced mine about six months ago. I noticed in recent days a slowly-gaping pool of coolant under the truck after long drives...turns out that the sonic weld that connects the two pieces had a small leak. I expected better from Motorcraft, but decided that I didn’t want to take the risk. I ordered up a Mishimoto coolant tank and installed...pretty straightforward.

What you might notice in the final picture is a new Optima Red Top battery. The trucks primary battery tray was getting a bit rusty, so while I was painting everything else I figured I’d clean it and give it the Rustoleum treatment as well. I reinstalled the tray and battery and went to hook it up—what I didn’t pay enough attention to was how the battery had to be mounted backwards (when looking at the label) because the cables are reversed on the passenger side. So, guess what happens when you hook up an 800 CCA battery backwards? It melts down, you get a bunch of smoke under the hood...not good. Fortunately, no fire.

Humbled, I had to do quite a bit of running around to find a replacement on the evening of July 3rd (because everyone was closing for the holiday). Reinstalled the battery (properly), gingerly started the truck...everything seems fine.

Lesson learned!

 

[Uberland]

So...it's been a while. A long while. Too long. Stupid COVID.

During the past 9-ish months, work has continued on the Ex. Sadly, the adventures haven't because of...life in quarantine...but let's see if we can change that.

-- In November, I had to have the front leaf springs dropped because the rubber bushings that came with the ARB springs didn't hold up (and I was NOT driving the rig hard). So I had some Energy Suspension poly bushings added to both fronts...let's hope they hold for a while!

-- Later that month, I figured it was time to deal with the stock battery cables. As you can see from the picture, they were in SAD shape. Unfortunately, stock 7.3 cables are nigh-on impossible to find, so I called Custom Battery Cables for one of their sets--which are larger-gauge than stock. Of course, the auxiliary connection running to the original starter gave up the ghost, so...the rig got a new Motorcraft starter as well. She starts a bit better, but old 7.3s tend to be a bit grumpy with the starting no matter the weather...more on that later.

-- At the end of December, I decided it was time to take care of some rust in the left rear rocker that was getting bad. I think this truck was taken out on the beach a fair bit, which probably made all Excursion's penchant for rust there and in the rear door doglegs even worse. Repair looks great...I'm hoping we stopped the cancer, but we'll see...

-- The late-winter/spring didn't see much activity as I saved parts and money for a big upgrade (aside from replacing some bushings to correct the loose/grindy shifter), which finally wrapped up in April: I got rid of the old, rusty brush guard in favor of an ARB bumper that I picked up from a fellow OB member in January. The bumper is filled by a Smittybuilt 15.5k winch, KC Pro Sport spots, and a F55 flatlink. It TOTALLY changes the look of the rig, and finally replaced the last bit of chrome. I can definitely feel the increased weight, but the protection outweighs the downside.

-- Back to repairs, the stainless brake line running from the reservoir to the rear of the rig let go while I was driving on the freeway. Fortunately, I was able to pull off safely and get a tow. Unfortunately, nobody makes the hard lines for the Excursion, so my local shop fabbed up a new one. A brake system flush later, and she's back on the road.

-- I also sold the giant CVT Mt. Denali hybrid tent...I wasn't using it, and carrying that brick on the roof definitely wasn't helping the rig's fuel economy.

So, future plans? For a while I was really leaning toward selling the rig. I bought it with the intention of being able to take my whole family (a wife and five kids, plus a large dog) on some awesome adventures. However, the girls definitely are thumbs-down on anything remotely resembling camping. I also need something that's reliable for a daily driver as well as an adventure rig, and I really could use a pickup truck for household duties. So I was REALLY close to pulling the trigger on a new Ram 2500 Tradesman with the Power Wagon package. The problem is that there's no way I'd easily get back the significant investment I've put in the truck--I'm at 19.5k just in parts. That, and the rig is COOL (although it definitely gets some flat stares from the Prius crowd) and is almost to being really squared away...what to do?

I've decided to keep the rig...and double down a bit. Ultimately, it came down to the fact that even the base-model Power Wagons I was looking at were right at MSRP (with very little flexibility shown by many dealers)...meaning anywhere from 55k-65k. So I can either spend some more on the Excursion and get a cool rig that is outfitted the way I want it to be, or spend a LOT more for a stock pickup truck. This means that I'm planning on a complete engine teardown/rebuild, a transmission refresh, some underbody rust prevention, and recovering/restoring the two front seats. I already have a carpet kit, so that'll go in at some point as well. Lastly, I like the idea of a RTT, but I'll definitely go with a smaller, lighter one...perhaps an Ikamper or a Roofnest that's a bit more aerodynamic!

Stay tuned!

 

[Uberland]

Took a trip to Flagpole Knob yesterday as a recon mission before bringing the missus, who hates bumpy rides. Unfortunately, even with airing down to 30 pounds per tire (from a normal 55-60), the leaf spring suspension on Creedence still leaves a lot of jounce/sway. I got to play with the winch a bit to pull a downed tree out of the path (note to self: pack a folding saw) and only had to go into 4WD three times, but the path was definitely tight and added some pinstriping in addition to a number of small/fun "water crossings" (muddy puddles). Good day with my 3-yo travelling partner, who helped me find a number of cool camping sites for the future.

 

[Uberland]

No new trips, but some much-needed interior upgrades. Why interior? Because this beast is my daily, and the ol' 7.3 isn't exactly the most quiet of power plants. So I tore out the old carpet, Kilmat-ed the entire floor and firewall, and put in new carpet. DEFINITE improvement in quietness, and the truck--which didn't smell bad before--definitely looks a TON better and seems a ton cleaner! It took a couple of days, but definitely worth it. Reupholstering of the two front seats will hopefully be happening next week.




I also added some sun protection...




...and then a brake caliper seized. #oldtruckblues



Hoping to get the beast out in the coming weeks to try out the fridge/battery combo I picked up...stay tuned!

 

[SlashX]

So, as I mentioned in my introduction, a few weeks ago I picked up a ‘00 Ford Excursion. I wanted something reliable, big enough to haul my family of seven plus dog (we’re reaching max capacity in my wife’s expedition!). I’m also a diesel fan, and as we all know there’s only one option for a large SUV with diesel power! Plus, this one has the 7.3, which is pretty well-known for being bulletproof.

Because this truck will also be my daily driver, I can’t go hog-wild on crazy lifts (which I think are a bit over the top anyways) or engine modifications that could jeopardize its reliability. The truck still has to be a people mover and commuter, but with some overlanding chops.

First on the list was to go over the mechanicals of the vehicle...oil change, fuel filter change, differential and transfer case service, diesel service...again, just to make sure its reliable goveb it has 247k miles under the hood. Everything g checked out, and the previous owner had 100k miles worth of service records.

Plans? The previous owner also added a 3” Rough Country list, Nitto Terra Grapplers that are getting a little light on tread, a tuner chip, bigger 4” exhaust...not sure how much of that will stay on. Definitely needs a lift, but I’m not sure about the long-term viability of the current, budget-ish setup.

Because I have a big family I already ordered a Buckstop rear bumper for a bit more interior room. I’m also torn as to whether I should pick up a permanent air compressor first or a roof rack. Eventually I’ll also need a front bumper and winch because there isn’t much that’ll winch out a beast this big!

Stay tuned!

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Get wider rims to help with the stance. It will make the truck look and feel better.

 

[SlashX]

I’m dumb. I just downloaded the app. I thought it was a new post.

Truck looks good.