The Boreal Badlands

[Boreal]

Bronco is back in action. New Synchros (hopefully, will update later). New Swaybar Disco. New Front MIC Panel Outer Seals. Well see how it all holds up.

Complete side note:

I swapped out the 4" Kicker dash speakers for suspect of a blown voice coil. Turns out I was wrong. The Hertz started gargling and seizing up over the last few months... I pulled the front apart and realized that the magnets are rusting! I guess in our winter climate with the hot dash aircon piping directly below was working against the metallic mass of the magnet and causing some condensation build up. The thaw freeze cycles throughout spring would be great to promote rusting... perhaps some Kicker 45KM44 Marine speakers are worth a shot? maybe some plastic baffles? While I had the speakers pulled I was able to stroke the cone to clear the corroded spots along the pole/vc... they sound 200x better, but I need to find a better solution.... @604Bronco Have you heard of anyone else with dash speaker issues in the Canadian climate?

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[604Bronco]

Bronco is back in action. New Synchros (hopefully, will update later). New Swaybar Disco. New Front MIC Panel Outer Seals. Well see how it all holds up.

Complete side note:

I swapped out the 4" Kicker dash speakers for suspect of a blown voice coil. Turns out I was wrong. The Hertz started gargling and seizing up over the last few months... I pulled the front apart and realized that the magnets are rusting! I guess in our winter climate with the hot dash aircon piping directly below was working against the metallic mass of the magnet and causing some condensation build up. The thaw freeze cycles throughout spring would be great to promote rusting... perhaps some Kicker 45KM44 Marine speakers are worth a shot? maybe some plastic baffles? While I had the speakers pulled I was able to stroke the cone to clear the corroded spots along the pole/vc... they sound 200x better, but I need to find a better solution.... @604Bronco Have you heard of anyone else with dash speaker issues in the Canadian climate?

I have not. However I live in probably the least likely part of Canada to see true Winter weather. But don’t tell @Tricky Dick - He assumes we all live on the moon or something.

I’d be surprised if that was a thing though - there’s lots of convertible vehicles out there and I’ve never heard of this being a big issue due to the climate. But to be fair, I don’t look up much stuff that’s not Bronco-related

 

[Boreal]

But don’t tell @Tricky Dick - He assumes we all live on the moon or something.

My Igloo needs so much AC to withstand the summer days.

I think the speaker issue is moreso related to placement and the fact that I spend 6 months of the year bringing in snow/moisture that melts and condenses on the colder metallic surfaces. Ya know, using the rig as intended (unlike every single one here in MB with pristine paint and city miles). Ah well, I’ll get it sorted in time.

—————-

Anywho. The Rig is back in action. I went up to the cabin with a few friends, who bought my old FXT. They were donning a new RTT to test out. The forester is on KYB Excel G’s and King Springs with a 2” lift, Yoko G015’s and a bunch of poly bushings up front.

These cabin roads claimed the FXT’s original set of springs years ago - the rear coils were drawn poorly and the 2014’s all snapped at the lower perch in time. The roads have also claimed the FSD on the Bronco… two for two on major mechanicals, but this time was flawless all around.

What are friends for? Work weekends apparently! After a bunch of summer prep and wood cuttin, I owe them a relaxing weekend.

We were treated with some Aurora too. What better place than in a dark zone with nothing to the north?

The wildlife started to appear! Loons are nesting, eagles nesting, mooseses are calving. It’s nice to see.

ANNNYWAYS. This was the first real test of the Moardoor Springs and new FSD. Everything worked great. The bronco handles so much better on the rally roads with a more suited spring rate. Very happy with the change up for the time being. Tighter all around with better driving habits on gravel for sure.

Finally, the old and new seals on the front MIC hardtops are no good... Design flaws, maybe? A one off warped passenger side panel, probably more likely.

The passenger side front panel always whistles on highway with crosswinds. I shoved a pool noodle in there to quiet it down, but it didn’t solve anything. While the vehicle was in the shop for the trans TSB, they installed some fresh outer seals. The new seals are about .6-.7” longer than the old ones, closing the gap towards the clamshell… but the seals are vertically too short in the rear corner. Almost as if the panel warps upwards at that corner, not allowing the seal to come in contact with the vehicle. I shopped around and settled on 3/4”x 7/16” weatherstripping with a low tack adhesive. Cut to fit and installed between the outer/lowermost “C”. It works for now.

 

[Boreal]

In light of the Dana44’s popping plug welds harder than MDMA lately, I’m just adding these photos of poor penetration for any possible future debates with warranty. If a forum post even counts as evidence. ~48,500kms

 

[Boreal]

The Good:

7MT post TSB appears to be excellent. Although +15-30°C temps won’t yield any sounds or grinding… initial miles look good though.

Front Sway Disco appears to be working well after replacement too.

The moardoor springs pair very nicely with the weight of the winch up front. I feel that they suit my driving style more too. Win-win.

The Neutral:

The Trail Gear Oasis Bronco Cover comes with no instructions(for the time being, they are workin on it)… it’s been tough to sort out, but I think I’ve got it going now. It has worked, and kept the cab dry through a light spit. I’d like to see how the material and stitching stands up to a summer of use.

The Bad:

The so called “waterproof, IP67, submersible” Rough Country 9500s winch has shorted out. I woke up to a completely flat battery this past weekend after a shallow water crossing. With still water about 16” deep, the solenoid pack wasn’t even submerged, the rock rails didn’t even get wet… the fairlead didn’t even get dunked. Why is it that the things I buy tend to go to shit!?

Warranty it is. Lesson Learned, don’t hook up the winch to battery unless you need it. Otherwise you may end up stranded when it decides to dead short. FFS. How hard is it to make a decent product these days, it didn’t even last a year. It’s more so tedious to swap than anything else

Bella Tax:

Would your wolf ancestors would be proud or ashamed that you get your own comfy chair to sunbath in at the cabin!? Howling ain’t her strong suit, but dramatic yawning sure is

 

[KRAKEN]

Nice looking Bronco & Dog... beautiful photography too.
Very interested in theose Capable bumper recovery light mounts.

 

[Boreal]

Well, this is fun.

My Bronco died on the road not more than 20 minutes ago. It’ll crank, it sounds as if it’s getting spark… perhaps no fuel… it will not fire up.

It turns over, and I’ve “exceeded the cranking time allowed”. There are no active alerts/MILs

It is as dead in the water as it could be.

How many problems will this thing have.

Update: Pops came out. We considered water in the fuel. Added some Water Remover, Seafoam and 10L of 91, No go. Pulled the battery, no go. We hauled it home. Nothin else to really try at the moment.

Will be calling and getting it decked over to the dealer.

If I had to guess, I’d say fuel pump. It sputtered while attempting to start, earlier on in the break down. As if the residual fuel in the line/rail was vaporizing over time and giving a bit of kick, making sounds similar to it trying to fire. But now it really doesn't have any “kick”, flat cranking at 300rpm.

The fuse for the pump was good and there was another one I checked that might’ve been worth something, and it was ok too.

The truck/engine simply cut out at 70km/h on the highway, accelerating from a light down a slight dip through an underpass. Voltage was good when the Bronco shut down mid drive. Not Charging related. We threw the battery charger when we got home after cranking it over for the five thousandth time. This also made no difference.

To the dealer she goes.

 

[emulous74]

Being pulled/towed by a Bronco Sport can’t help your ego. Interested in finding out what went wrong this time. Do you have your own parking spot at your dealer? It’s been to the shop to many times.

 

[Boreal]

Being pulled/towed by a Bronco Sport can’t help your ego. Interested in finding out what went wrong this time. Do you have your own parking spot at your dealer? It’s been to the shop to many times.

The dealer is expecting it, and the tow is on the way. It might be @Ford Motor Company‘s ego that needs some help here…

When I called Service, they quickly pulled it up on their end. I have a few network/U codes where the shop keeps failing to address the network connector in the passenger footwell… but no codes being thrown or anything obvious as to why it died and refuses to start.

Update: The tow truck opted to pick her up from the rear, dragging the front wheels on the road. I asked him to Dolly it and he said it wouldn’t matter and he wouldn’t use them - to which I put the truck into “neutral tow” mode to try to avoid t-case damage… as we dropped the truck off, I smelt clutch. The front diff and tcase was pretty hot to the touch.

Fuck me. I should’ve pushed harder for dollies.

Update 2: It is a pinched/kinked/collapsed fuel line. Weird.

 

[Boreal]

It must be Groundhog Day because the Bronco is back in my possession yet again. Third times the charm? Things happen in threes? FSD, MT88 TSB, now Fuel Line replacement. I said I wanted to put less miles on the rig this summer... but this wasn't method envisioned.

While there was no MIL thrown, there were a pair of DTC's the tech found. P008A, P00C6; Interesting these didn't throw a light.

I am assuming that this was an incidental downstream effect of the MT88 TSB. The fuel tank needs to be dropped to pull the trans, and this plastic fuel line (MB3Z-9J280-B) most likely got kinked during the TSB operation.

The dealer says I did everything right, as far as putting the T-case into neutral for the tow, and smelling clutch is expected... and that's what warranty is for... im not sold on that answer for the longevity of the drivetrain, but only time will tell I guess. In a week I hope to swap all the fluids(sans trans, since she was just serviced) and take a peak at what pours out.

For Now, Back to Driving.

 

[Boreal]

Ford says that fluids are lifetime. I call bullshit. They'll certainly last the warranty period... funny.

The driveline got all new juice today. The Front and T Case are of concern since the doggystyle tow. Front Diff, T Case and Rear Diff are all OEM spec'd fluids, a transfer pump is a godsend for this job.

The usual engine setup - Pennzoil Platinum 5w-30 D1G2 w/ FL-910S Filter. It drained as a dark brown, minimal fuel bypass, all in all, very healthy from the eye and sniff test.

The front drained a dark grey colour and smelt of the usual gear oil. Really nothing to note. We'll see what comes at 100,00kms (for all the driveline too)

The T case drained black, like, black black... and when I cracked the fill plug, the most burnt, fire riddled, smokey putrid gear oil smell wafted out... as if you were to light a clutch on fire. I may drive for a few thousand and change this fluid again, just to let wash out whatever damage was done. Will the dealer put it on file when I bitch about it? Ill take "things that should be handled with a smidge of concern at the dealer level" for $500, Alex...

Engine Oil, Front Diff, and T Case took an hour. The rear diff alone, took an hour.

The Rear Diff cover was tedious. 10mms, 13mm deep, the track bar gives you just enough room to work with the bonus brake lines which are fun to work around. The fluid drained rich golden brown, with almost no smell... perhaps the T Case alder smoked ATF fucked up my nose for the night. With hearing tales of people snapping bolts, I ensured to get a small torque wrench.

All in all, everything went well with no leaks after 80kms. Soon ill be doing a write up on the Oasis Gear Trail Cover, for those interested in it.

Till next time.

 

[Boreal]

The shop shut down at noon… this meant I had free rein sooner than later. After doin the driveline fluids and wash this week, I was onto swapping out the winch; the old one has be sent back to RC. Earlier in the week I cracked open the new winch and removed the solenoid pack to prep for relocation.

This is the first time having to tear the bumper off with the lights and mounts. Removing the lights added about 10 minutes of tedious threading. I’m hindsight, I should’ve fully loosened the mounts up top on the LP9s and let the light be free to swivel for extra clearance… you have to reaim the lights anyways.

Lights off, Bumper off, skid plate dropped, winch dropped. Made new cables for relocation, made a relocation bracket out of SS. Reassemble. I’m gettin pretty quick at this shit.

Following the reinstall of it all, I wanted to tackle some paint and decal work. A few days back I noticed the drivers door had sagged and was contacting the body in the lower corner, chipping the paint. Maybe an hour of door on, door off, knuckle knocking, sweating and swearing I had the door aligned and hung proper.

The Meguiars MT300 got some welcomed use; the pinstripes and door dings needed some attention. 90% of the visual damages were able to be worked out.

 

[Boreal]

 

[Boreal]

Did a write up on the tarp - https://www.bronco6g.com/forum/threads/2-dr-oasis-trail-cover-review-rundown.77267/

Shits gone south since the transmission TSB… not getting into it now, but once shits settled

 

[Berwolf]

Awesome build, always appreciate the function over form builds. Going to be watching your manual info as a fellow 7 speed owner. So far so good with mine but getting worried long term these may not hold up.

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