Roxanne, the Van of Many Lovers (1989 Ford Club Wagon XLT E250) Build Thread

[JakeC]

It's been a long, long time.

I created a build thread on here around 5 years ago with my 1997 Jeep Grand Cherokee I was building to be an overlanding vehicle. I owned the Jeep for 8 years, drove it 75,000 miles, towed a crap car to Pennsylvania, sold crap car for a sixer of beer, and then drove it on the Tail of the Dragon in the February 2018 Escape from Moscow LeMons Rally. Although the thread eventually fizzled due to money constraints, I continued to work on building it up until the day that I sold it last month with 251,000 miles on the clock and some pretty good memories of it.

I sold her because I found a van that i fell in love with, online, and needed to have. I present to you, Roxanne. My new (to me) 1989 Ford Club Wagon XLT with a 351w, c6 transmission and a Gear Vendor Overdrive.

I wanted to start a build thread on Expedition Portal as it was the forum that spawned my love for the idea of driving and living out of a van for an extended period of time.

My girlfriend and I plan to build it up, mechanically and aesthetically, to take on long trips all across America and possibly Canada. We've visited both coasts via driving in the last year and a half and we knew we needed something we could sleep in to save on those costly hotel stays.

Thank you for welcoming us! More photos and the work that I've done to it already, coming soon.

 

[WVI]

You did well!

 

[JakeC]

After purchasing the van, there were a few issues I was having with it.

The Gear Vendors overdrive unit wasn't functioning properly. The past 2 owners weren't able to get it working or didn't care enough to get it functioning so I began troubleshooting it with absolutely no experience with working on Fords or Gear Vendor units. After scouring the internet for information, I ended up contacting Gear Vendors to ask them about how to troubleshoot the unit attached to my c6. They ended up sending me a manual of how to install the device and everything I tried, wouldn't work. What I learned in this process was that the electronics connected to my unit were virtually version 2, which is about 4-5 versions old. After toying with the electronics for a few days with no luck, I decided to attach the solenoid on the unit to a foot switch and a little bulb so that I know when the unit is on or off. I know that if the device is engaged when reversing it can really mess up the unit and I enjoy having the 4th gear for highway driving. Im most likely going to remove the old electronics, dig into them further and see if i can get them working. New electronics are $400 from Gear Vendors and I'm not sure i want to spend that money currently towards that.

Dirtying up the streets of the town in which I live.

Another thing I had to get sorted out on the van was the current state of the A/C. Indiana has been insanely hot this summer with most of the days being in the 90's. With the added heat from the engine creeping through the dog house, i wanted to take the van to the only mechanics I trust, and have the A/C system diagnosed. After a few days, they told me that they solved the blower motor in the front not working but for the A/C system, the condenser had been brutally cut out and from the state of the cuts, it looks as though it was done a while back. Meaning that there is definitely condensation and water in the system, I opted to just have the blower motor repaired and then got a quote on replacing the condenser and testing the system. They quoted me at $1100 which seems incredibly high. Now I am in the back and forth though process of having the A/C redone, having the rear A/C checked out as well and deciding if I want to do it all, or just the front. Our plan is to drive the van to the Grand Canyon within the next year with people in the back of it, my brother and mother, so I do want them to be comfortable as well and I do look at it as an investment. We will also be converting it to a camper, so would it make more sense to hack together a window A/C unit and a large inverter?

I also removed the dog house myself and found that they have rerouted the heater hoses and cut off the rear completely.

We took the van on a CostCo run recently and I took measurements of the rear space to start mocking up ideas for the camper conversion. I think for the sleeping platform we are going to look at something that doubles as a couch, so I'm working on that idea as well.

and my brother managed to get some photos of the roof. It's got a bit of light surface rust, but im debating on painting it white to reflect some heat. Rollers? Plasti-Dip? Rattle Can? I'm still debating on how to do it as well.

and lastly for this update, my girlfriend and I drove all day last Sunday to Kentucky to pick up some swivel seats from a van dweller. We ended up picking up some FlexSteel seats with swivel bases and a rear tire carrier for around $70 which was a heck of a deal. I'm not sure how the drivers side swivel will work without a tilt wheel, but we will see.

 

[Mwilliamshs]

You most likely do have a tilt wheel. You push the turn signal stalk forward to release; there's no separate lever. Lots of folks are surprised by that.

 

[robert]

Without trying to sound condescending, get your mechanical issues sorted before you worry about the camper stuff. You can always throw some pads and sleeping bags in the back. When I was into VWs there were far too many people on the roads with falling apart, unsafe and unreliable buses that would spend their limited bus money on nonessential stuff while their brakes needed replacing or their shifter was about to fall out, or their fuel pump was jury rigged or any of a thousand other more important issues. That cooling system looks like a cobbled together mess; overheat your engine and you'll be lucky if you don't overheat your engine and end up with much larger repair bills. I'd strip all of that old hose out and replace it along with new clamps; I'd probably go ahead and replace the water pump and thermostat as well if you don't know any history on them. Those plugs look like they've been in there for a while too so I'd consider a full tune up too. My main experience with Ford vans is E350 ambulance conversions but they liked to eat front end parts so I'd go over those closely as well. I do love that body style though and the fact that they still had wing windows.

 

[wanderer-rrorc]

Yolanda says HI!!

Ohio is hot too..

I just ordered the A.c. suction line for the back unit of mine (that's where my leaks are) from rockauto.com and while expensive would be a cheaper route to just start fresh and use A-N connectors..get it all replaced new then take it to have it charged...a van CAN do with just the front heat and A.c....but if you have the budget you won't regret it!!

The interior is fairly cheap to build..and I would roll the roof with some rustoleum enamel from Lowe's..good quality..easy to do...looks good when done..

Your Roxanne makes me miss my 85 6.9...her build is on here too...as is Yolandas..link in my signature.

Keep at it....its a slow marathon...not a sprint!!

Sent from my VS987 using Tapatalk

 

[JakeC]

You most likely do have a tilt wheel. You push the turn signal stalk forward to release; there's no separate lever. Lots of folks are surprised by that.

I feel like I've tried it, but i'm going to have to try it again. It would honestly help a lot.

Without trying to sound condescending, get your mechanical issues sorted before you worry about the camper stuff. You can always throw some pads and sleeping bags in the back. When I was into VWs there were far too many people on the roads with falling apart, unsafe and unreliable buses that would spend their limited bus money on nonessential stuff while their brakes needed replacing or their shifter was about to fall out, or their fuel pump was jury rigged or any of a thousand other more important issues. That cooling system looks like a cobbled together mess; overheat your engine and you'll be lucky if you don't overheat your engine and end up with much larger repair bills. I'd strip all of that old hose out and replace it along with new clamps; I'd probably go ahead and replace the water pump and thermostat as well if you don't know any history on them. Those plugs look like they've been in there for a while too so I'd consider a full tune up too. My main experience with Ford vans is E350 ambulance conversions but they liked to eat front end parts so I'd go over those closely as well. I do love that body style though and the fact that they still had wing windows.

Your reply isn't condescending at all. The cooling system is pretty cobbled together, I'm currently working on getting it in proper order because i definitely don't want the engine to be damaged. The temperature gauge also doesn't work on the van, so I'm installing an aftermarket group of gauges to monitor transmission and engine temps while also monitoring oil pressure. The water pump has been replaced recently. Plugs, wires, cap and rotor are on the list and will be replaced soon. The a/c and camper conversion are down the road. We're going to be testing it out in the simplest forms before then to decide on what we need and how to build it. Thank you, i love this body style and when I found it, i knew i needed it. The MPG's are pretty low right now so that's another reason the tune up is on the list.

Yolanda says HI!!

Ohio is hot too..

I just ordered the A.c. suction line for the back unit of mine (that's where my leaks are) from rockauto.com and while expensive would be a cheaper route to just start fresh and use A-N connectors..get it all replaced new then take it to have it charged...a van CAN do with just the front heat and A.c....but if you have the budget you won't regret it!!

The interior is fairly cheap to build..and I would roll the roof with some rustoleum enamel from Lowe's..good quality..easy to do...looks good when done..

Your Roxanne makes me miss my 85 6.9...her build is on here too...as is Yolandas..link in my signature.

Keep at it....its a slow marathon...not a sprint!!

Sent from my VS987 using Tapatalk

Yeah, we figure if we're going to invest in the front a/c, we may as well get the rear a/c working. Thanks for the information regarding the roof, i know I've seen some people do it with rollers. I think that's the way that we are going to go. I'll definitely be looking at your threads, work has been slow this week and last week and I've been trying to find threads on here with this style of vans!

 

[robert]

Cool, I really didn't want to sound mean; I just hate to hear about folks, epsecially families, breaking down on the way to or from camping. Something about VWs really seems to attract all the wanna-be hippies who will deck out their buses with all sorts of goofy crap inside and the thing would barely make it into the campground and the brakes would screech when they stopped. It was bad enough that several of us always carried timing lights and small spare parts (like shifter bushings) and more than once I made a run to the parts store to help people change their brakes, replace plugs, etc. The crazy part was how many never seemed to learn.

One other thing I noticed- those window switches look aftermarket. Pull your door panels and check the wiring to make sure it clears all of the lifter mechanism and that they're on a fused line. A buddy of mine in the '80s had a set of JC Whitney power window conversions in his car and toasted part of his wiring harness.

 

[JakeC]

Cool, I really didn't want to sound mean; I just hate to hear about folks, epsecially families, breaking down on the way to or from camping. Something about VWs really seems to attract all the wanna-be hippies who will deck out their buses with all sorts of goofy crap inside and the thing would barely make it into the campground and the brakes would screech when they stopped. It was bad enough that several of us always carried timing lights and small spare parts (like shifter bushings) and more than once I made a run to the parts store to help people change their brakes, replace plugs, etc. The crazy part was how many never seemed to learn.

One other thing I noticed- those window switches look aftermarket. Pull your door panels and check the wiring to make sure it clears all of the lifter mechanism and that they're on a fused line. A buddy of mine in the '80s had a set of JC Whitney power window conversions in his car and toasted part of his wiring harness.

I'm a pretty decent mechanic. The reason my Jeep never went 100% Expo is because I kept spending money on strengthening or upgrading mechanical parts to ensure that I wouldn't ever get stuck. I'm definitely a fan of improving the reliability first. But a AAA card has relaxed me a bit.

I've also got a 1974 Volkswagen Super Beetle and i know what you're saying about the buses. Really, i feel like that mindset bleeds into a lot of the automotive subcultures.

I replaced one of the gears in the window motor and had to remove the panel for that. Nothing behind the panel looked hacked or anything of that sort, so I believe that they are stock electric switches though I may ask around to some of the Econoline groups to be sure. Thanks for the catch.

 

[F350joe]

I have the gear vendor in my 7.3 f350 and love it. I can cruise at 80mph and still be under 2k rpm for better fuel mileage. It’s also nice when doing steep grades either up or down. Just tap the button on the floor and it will either down shift or up shift. Mine was malfunctioning because one of the wiring clips on the back of the dash unit worked a little loose. A transmission shop and the ford dealer could not figure it out. I got the multimeter out and started checking every wire which led me to the wiring clip, wish I would have started on that end. Bottomline, if it’s not something simple like a bad wire or clip, you might save 400 bucks in fuel after just a few trips. Here in CA you would make it back in one gas tank.

 

[JakeC]

I have the gear vendor in my 7.3 f350 and love it. I can cruise at 80mph and still be under 2k rpm for better fuel mileage. It’s also nice when doing steep grades either up or down. Just tap the button on the floor and it will either down shift or up shift. Mine was malfunctioning because one of the wiring clips on the back of the dash unit worked a little loose. A transmission shop and the ford dealer could not figure it out. I got the multimeter out and started checking every wire which led me to the wiring clip, wish I would have started on that end. Bottomline, if it’s not something simple like a bad wire or clip, you might save 400 bucks in fuel after just a few trips. Here in CA you would make it back in one gas tank.

Was it the same unit as mine? (I've heard mine is like version 2) I've been thinking about digging into mine and replacing some of the wiring on it. It seems to all be connected via RJ11 connectors.

 

[F350joe]

Was it the same unit as mine? (I've heard mine is like version 2) I've been thinking about digging into mine and replacing some of the wiring on it. It seems to all be connected via RJ11 connectors.

No matter the version it should still work. It looks the same as mine and it really isn’t all that hard to rewire. The wires are just connected with snap on jumpers to vehicles wiring harness. Those connectors can also corrode, not exactly water proof. Cool van BTW.

 

[Mwilliamshs]

Those are factory Ford window and lock switches. If windows aren't working, 9/10 it's the plastic gear. They're readily available.

 

[JakeC]

Those are factory Ford window and lock switches. If windows aren't working, 9/10 it's the plastic gear. They're readily available.

Yes, i was pleasantly surprised by how easy it was to replace. It was maybe $7-$10 on Amazon.

 

[JakeC]

The work on the van has been pretty slow lately. I'm currently also working on my 1974 Super Beetle which has some brake light problems, disassembling a 1988 Volvo 240 and then using those parts to rebuild a 1991 Volvo 240 that rear ended a school bus.

This weekend i did manage to get some work done though. My brother came down to help me with one of the Volvo's so I managed to drag him into working on the van as well. Over the past couple of weeks I've been trying to come up with a layout for the rear of the van, as well as exploring different things that need to be addressed asap. In September we're headed on a camping trip, so the interior needs to be at least be started by then.

When we picked up the swivel seats, we also bought a rear tire carrier for $10. My girlfriend and I took it apart, cleaned it up, and painted it, putting it back together with new bolts. I'm going to plasti-dip all areas that touch metal to keep it from scuffing the paint on the van. This weekend I also picked up 2 spare rims for free! After a bit of a drive, i also snapped a picture of the van.

Saturday, i started working on swapping out the thermostat housing to allow for the new water temperature sending unit. I ended up breaking a bolt on the lower portion. Luckily there are some threads still exposed so i bought a tool I'm going to try to use and if that doesn't work, i'll be welding a nut to it and heating it up. (I'll be heating it up anyways). While i was breaking things, my brother installed the gauges inside the cabin. There is some leaking going on somewhere in the van. I keep hearing its coming from a drain that is stopped up in the fenders. I hope this is the case.

My brother also helped me on Sunday. The hitch in the receiver had been stuck for so long that after smacking it with a sledge and heating it up, i still couldn't get it to budge. With a bit of chain, about 3 feet, a heavy moving blanket draped over everything, and me standing on the van's brakes, my brother tugged on it around 10 times and it finally came loose. I can't believe how stuck it was.