Now I've done it! 62 Van

[doghows]

Ok time to let the cat out of the bag. I finally tracked down a window Van. With Brian's help I located a 1962 window van 95% rust free and best of all it only cost me $500. It is all there and I have been messing with it for a week or so now. The paint is polishing up nicely, it has a few dings and dents but in overall very good shape.
I have the motor turning over now and I think it needs a new coil. So I should have her running tonight. Need to mess with the brakes a bit and she will be on the road again after 15 years.
I will take some pics tonight now that I have her cleaned up a bit and show you all what I am into now. The delivery is still my priority but could not pass up the Van to keep in good graces with my wife. So I am back to a 3 Falcon family again!?! 1965 Ranchero (hopefully sold) 1963 Sedan delivery and the newest member 1962 Econoline.:rocker:

[Luva65wagon]

1962 Econoline.

Uh humm... Falcon Van.

Congratulations on the newest addition to your family.

[doghows]

OOOpps yes a 1962 Ford Falcon Van. Pics to come....

[doghows]

Here she is in all her glory, or lack there of.. Almost got her running last night. Cranks over but no spark off the coil?? Need to trace some wires I guess. All the parts are in boxes for the tail lights and so forth.
Side note: Painter came by last night and took the doors off to the paint shop for final prep and primer. Yeah!!!!!:banana:

[Jeff W]

That DOES look clean. I see you have the rare three battery option:ROTFLMAO:

Congratulations. Now Brian will a sympathetic shoulder to cry on.

[doghows]

I am just hoping I can talk him into helping me with any problems on it till I figure it out. Just want to get it running for now and finish the delivery. Then I will start messing this one up!!:D

[Luva65wagon]

Oh boy... more while we're at its. :banana:

[doghows]

Add those to the Honey Do's and there is no time left for anything.

I did find the wire that was causing the no start issue, so I will replace that tonight and see what happens. Then fix the brakes and start driving.
I might have to use the van for get together's until the delivery is ready.:rocker:

[BPVan]

That DOES look clean. I see you have the rare three battery option:ROTFLMAO:

Congratulations. Now Brian will a sympathetic shoulder to cry on.


Nope, now Brian has a buddy to strip a parts van with! :sawzall:

[doghows]

Time to shop for the parts vans. I have plenty of storage space!!!

[doghows]

Got the Van running this weekend!! Needs a carb rebuild and the brakes done on we are off to the races.
Shift linkage is a little stiff, doesn't want to go into first or reverse? 2nd and 3rd are no problem. I think it is the linkage up by the front of the van??
Still managed to get work done on the delivery but that is another thread.:D

[doghows]

Carb is off and I took it apart only to find that someone had tried to rebuild it before. Unfortunately they left out some of the parts and there were not replacement pieces in the kit. So now I need to find another carb. Bummer time to steal the one off the 65 till I get that done.
Trying to get it running well enough to come over for the meeting. We shall see.

[SmithKid]

Sounds like you might be a candidate for the carb conversion that ended up on Flarechero.

[doghows]

I sure thought about it. But for now I just want to get it running decent and finish the delivery. I just need something cool to drive around in. New cars suck, I much prefer old!!!
I think a 200 6cyl and a auto are int the future for the van...:shift:
And no:sawzall::sawzall::sawzall: for this one.

[Jeff W]

What kind of carb was it and what do you need for parts??

[doghows]

It is an autolite 1100 or 1200 whatever they are. But I have acquired a replacement for it.
It was missing the little rod that sits on top of one of the little steel balls inside the carb. I found a reman unit that should be here tomorrow. Thanks Jeff.

[BPVan]

Carb is off and I took it apart only to find that someone had tried to rebuild it before. Unfortunately they left out some of the parts and there were not replacement pieces in the kit. So now I need to find another carb. Bummer time to steal the one off the 65 till I get that done.
Trying to get it running well enough to come over for the meeting. We shall see.

Looks like we have matching valve covers... [thumb]

[Luva65wagon]

I'd have sent you the Holley 1 barrel I took off the Flarechero when I put on the Weber. Oh well. You are a busy guy lately - that much is for sure.

[doghows]

Roger I might need the whole engine?! How soon you doing the V-8 swap??(kidding, kind of) I have got good spark, good carb, but still can't seem to get the old 144 running very well. At higher rpm (2500+) she runs good but at idle she runs like the gas is still bad? I have drained the tank flushed the lines, new fuel filter, reman carb??? I might have to look for a bad distributor or maybe something with the valves???
Don't want to waste too much $$ on a motor I plan to swap anyway but I want to drive the van while I finish the delivery. Any ideas Falcon guru's?:confused:

[redfalken]

Maybe Jeff can give you the details but he just went through a poor running engine and it may have been a combination of bad gas and some electrical issues. I know he changed out about everything you can. Take a volt meter and check voltage to coil while starting and running, coil resistance, check plug wires, voltage from generator (or alternator), etc.

[Nathan289]

Sounds like a vacuum leak...

I had a rebuilt engine that acted the same way. Another carb fixed the problem..


Nathan

[Jeff W]

I think my main problem was a bad coil that damaged my pink resistor wire. Use the test outlined in the manual to check the voltage drop across the pink wire. I ended up replacing the resistance wire and installing a new coil.

The other problem was carburetor related... with both issues simultaneously going on it was extremely frustrating.:doh: :confused: :doh:

I'll have my 170 and 3 Speed available but not until next spring... I'm a bit slower than you and Roger.[BOW]

[doghows]

Thanks guy's. So far I have checked all the stuff in the book and it all is in spec with the voltage reading I should get. I have installed new points, condenser, rotor,cap, plugs, and wires. Someone had converted this to an alternator vs. the generator. So the voltage regulator is gone?? Maybe something there. Little bit of a hack job with the wiring? I have a one wire alternator I could put in? Is there any critical wire's I should check there?
I haven't searched to hard for a vacuum leak but have put on a carb off of the 65 chero. The 65 ran great with that carb on it.
The other thing I am hoping it is not might be some stuck or bad valves? The valve cover was off when I drug her home, so 10 years ago or so maybe someone was looking for the same issue?
We'll just keep banging away at it. I switch between it and the delivery so I don't get to frustrated with one or the other...

[Nathan289]

Bad vacuum advance?

Just a guess

[Jeff W]

Did you check the compression on each cylinder? The PO had teh valve cover off for some reason, by the sounds of the rest of the van he wasn't trying to simply replace a leaky valve cover gasket.

[doghows]

Compression check is on for this weekend. I was hoping for the best but expecting the worst. I think it has valve issues.. Oh well still a great buy even if I need a new engine..:o

[doghows]

Motor is toast. Found a spare 200 and getting ready for the swap. Pulled the engine and cleaned up the inside a bit. Now to prep the motor and make it pretty.
Turns out the engine had been swapped once before. It was a 200 6 that was in it?? Oh well the one I got runs so should be an easy swap.
Good thing I have my own powder coat shop to make it all pretty..

[doghows]

Pressure washing done! Now to pull it apart check it all paint and powder it up, and hopefully have it back in in the newt two weekends. I hope to drive this one to the mini regional.

[Luva65wagon]

Such fun. Don't miss it a bit. :ROTFLMAO:

[doghows]

Motor good, way cleaner than I thought. Painted it last night and start to reassemble it tonight. Hopefully stuff it in the Van Saturday, and drive it on Sunday. Hmmmm might still make a few get together's this summer yet!!:3g:

[doghows]

Engine cleaned painted and powder coated. Should go in this week sometime. That will give me a few weeks to drive before the mini meet...

[BPVan]

Looks nice, perhaps we can bookend the club cars with our vans :BEER:

[Luva65wagon]

Very nice looking Steve. Should run a lot better now.

[AGREE]

[doghows]

Hope to have it running this weekend. Then go through the brakes, and clean and adjust the shifter and should be in business. I'll keep y'all posted.

[Luva65wagon]

Thanks for the reminder. I gotta pull my shifter out of my wagon as well as the pedal assembly. Getting too hard to use the clutch and the shifter assy is ratty and loose. Have another to get parts from now, so will make it better. Can't imagine the shifting mess from a van like that. It's hard enough when they are 12" long. What kind of transmission did this have?

[SmithKid]

Yup. Lookin' good. Love those Ford BLUE motors!

[doghows]

It has the stock 3 speed in it for now. Brian picked me up a 9" out of a parts Van so I will switch to an auto and 9" this winter maybe..?

[Luva65wagon]

Yeah, I guess it would be hard to put a floor shifter into one of these - wouldn't it? Even with an automatic, it would be kind'a tough. What sort of things have people done for this?

[doghows]

I think there is room to put one of those Lokar shifters in there. I stink a stick you would be banging your knuckles off the dash and the doghouse??
I will probably use the same shifter I put in the delivery just a longer handle.

[doghows]

New engine is in and running, now to button up the cooling system and on to the brakes.. Runs great hope I can make it stop as well...

[Luva65wagon]

Looks like you got 'er in and hooked it up the best you could just to hear it run. Pretty cool.

On another note about these vans, I know somebody who has one of these with the extended tail-end and was used as a fire department truck. Pretty good shape and I think he's selling it for about $2500. I plan to take some pictures and post it for him.

And before it's said... no, I don't need a van too.

[doghows]

Yes just to get it running before I put the doghouse back on. It really gets in the way.

By the way did all of you guys know that the starter solenoid has to be grounded to work?? Took me about an hour to figure that out. Usually just bolt them to the fender and go... Also if your remote starter switch fails you engine will run until you pull the coil wire off.. Hmmm the things you learn..

[doghows]

Ran the Van for a while last night and seemed to be getting a lot of blow back through the oil fill cap? Then I noticed it coming from around the exhaust, and then through the little lubrication port on the distributor? I think my muffler is plugged. I smacked it with a hammer this am and it sounded like a solid chunk??? Hmmmm. I guess I need to open that up and inspect Yeah!!!!!!!:sawzall:
Anyone else had this problem?

[Luva65wagon]

Is this a PCV system? Do you have all the right filler caps and PCV valve on the engine? Internal pressure should be nil if all that is good and the motor actually has rings.

A muffler that is clogged isn't good, but the motor would probably instead just die because it can't breathe (on the combustion side, not the crankcase side). I don't think it could cause more blow-by without also some other obvious issues too.

[Luva65wagon]

I see in the pictures the PCV system. Pull it while it is running and see if there is a lot of pressure pushing out where it is pushed into the valve cover. Rattle the PCV make sure it is clear. Make sure the vacuum port on the carb adapter is sucking strong. Make sure the PCV hose is good. All little things, but gotta check 'em.

[doghows]

All those things have checked out good. PCV rattles, good strong suction from the vacuum port. Oil cap is the same as I ran on the other motors just chrome.
I banged on the muffler this morning and it sounded fairly solid. I may just:sawzall: and see what is in there...

I guess I should be more specific on the "blow by", I am getting smoke (exhaust?) through the oil cap. I am thinking the exhaust is partially clogged and the excess pressure is coming out there?

[Luva65wagon]

Excess pressure from the exhaust side is getting into the crankcase? Through what means? The only connection between the exhaust side of the combustion chamber is past the rings and the valve stems. And I think the motor would not run if it got too bad at all. Think banana up the tailpipe.

:banana:

If you wanted a new exhaust anyway, and this is a way to get it - cut away.

:sawzall:

I'm not sure the history of this motor you got, how long it sat, and where, but if not stored correctly the cylinders could have gotten pitted by condensation getting into the combustion chamber through any open port. You may find in cases like this that the rings also get a little "glued to the piston" and may not all seal well. Will maybe get better as it runs more.

While it is running, if you place a hand over where the PCV valve usually goes, is the pressure steady (all cylinders) or pulsing (some number, but not all, cylinders.

[doghows]

I will check it tonight. I hope it is not anything too bad. The guy had the engine stored in an engine bag for about 3 years he said. Compression check on it showed about 165 on all cylinders. I will run it some more tonight and top off the coolant and see... Thanks for the help I will post up some results tomorrow.

[doghows]

Cooling system is in. Button up this weekend and start to drive.

[BPVan]

I got a chance to finally see the van on Saturday, definitely making fast work of things. We got the brakes straightened out and solved the mystery of the shift linkage. I also found out Steve doesn't stop at sawzalls...

[BillP 98201]

oh no! not another tool of destruction! I think he likes the sparks! :BEER:

[doghows]

Sparks are pretty....

Got the Van running and driving. Took her for a short trip around the neighborhood and she drives very good. Still a little smokey but clearing up nicely. Some pics to follow.
Thanks for all the help Brian it definitely helped and put me about a week ahead.

[doghows]

Here is how she sits now.

[BPVan]

I took some pics of the dash section I have. If you want I'll :sawzall: the wiper arm holes and the ignition section and mail them to you. I am only interested in the speaker grill section, the rest is yours.

[doghows]

Wiper section yes. I got the ignition section hammered out and the switch in. So I am good there for now. I will need to fix that one wiper section so that would be cool.
I have your parts clean already so I will start to powder them tomorrow. Thanks again for all the help.

[pbrown]

I got a chance to finally see the van on Saturday, definitely making fast work of things. We got the brakes straightened out and solved the mystery of the shift linkage. I also found out Steve doesn't stop at sawzalls...

So am I missing something or are there no safety glasses in this photo?

http://www.rainierfalcons.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=2529&d=1346766804

[BPVan]

C'mon Pat, Steve's a pro!

[redfalken]

Careful or you'll end up with "Bazooka Steve" for a nickname!

[doghows]

I had on my safety contacts??

[doghows]

So the "smoking" issue is clearing itself up a bunch. Now just getting some under heavy acceleration. Not sure if I trust driving it to Woodland yet. If not I will toss it on the trailer and go that way.
She runs and drives real well, but might need to do the clutch. I was hope to not have to because I want to switch it to an auto but the trow out bearing is chirping pretty good now.. Oh well should only be about a 3hr job...

[doghows]

Cleaned her all up polished the wheels and she is ready to come down for the mini...

[doghows]

So all was going well, until the drive home from work last night. Made it most of the way home (about 10 miles) and up the last hill before my turn off the Van lost a lot of power, some smoke out of the exhaust and the valves started to clatter. I hit neutral coasted off the Highway onto my road, engine still running. Sat for 15-20- seconds and the clattering stopped. So I proceeded the last mile home. Van ran fine, had power, and no clatter????
Any ideas? I was thinking oil pump may be clogging or going bad but would that cause power loss???
Crap she was just getting fun to drive.:mad:

[Luva65wagon]

Sure - no oil being pumped would make the valves stop working right - no power. Why it would happen? Taking those corners at 6 G's? IDK. Did you pull the pan on this ever? Timing Chain/Gear set one of the Ford's better idea nylon one with all the bits broken off and clogging the oil-pump strainer? Oil level checked?

[doghows]

Oil is full. I was leaning towards the oil pump. Good thing they are easy to pull the pan off of. Maybe Saturday???

[Luva65wagon]

That would be fun to watch you do. :D

[doghows]

Well bad news, worst fears realized. Look like the replacement engine is about to spit out a bearing or two.
Had my friend at a shop look at it and he said that the bearings are starting to go. I guess they are loosing their tolerance and it is letting the oil go past them to fast? And this is when I am experiencing the loss of oil pressure. When we pulled the valve cover we saw the same thing as when we pulled the oil pan, a bit of sludge but nothing that would cause oil not to drain back in to the pan.
Bummer, time to rebuild the other 200 in the shop...:(

[BPVan]

Do I sense an engine swap tech day coming?

[doghows]

I think she is going on hold for a bit till I get the delivery into the paint shop. We have very little body work left and time for priming and blocking. Still have my fingers crossed for a Christmas present!!
Maybe a big tech day, assemble the delivery and swap an engine???:WHATTHE: