Hit and run

XR7-4.6 said:
Those Lorain assembly workers must have had pockets full of them to just fall out of 😆
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When I did assembly work any hardware that got dropped stayed there to the end of the shift an which point got thrown away. If it hit the floor it didn't get used. When I went to making Dies if the bolts came out they got replaced. Cheap insurance.
 
If you use a come along it will be much more controlled. It sounds bush league, but it can be effective. I'd probably just drill out the spot welds and weld a new one on, but if you don't have access to a welder it is a viable option.
 
See even Jeremiah agrees. Sorry Martin; that totally sucks. IMO I would consider that a minor accident though. The airbags did not deploy, which is close to a death sentence for our cars. I have faith that with all the mods you have done you can fix this. It is mostly just bolt on repairs. Hardest part is finding/paying for the parts.

Dont knock the tree method LOL. You could also use a lightpole, or something similar. As some have mentioned using a "comealong" is more controlled. But from what I saw I would be surprised if you need any framework. But you don't really know until you tear it down. But you could probally just pound it out.

I wish you the best, and I wish the worst for the sorry SOB that did it.
 
It's kinda like a small, portable winch. It has hooks on each end. They usually have an extra pulley or two that the cable wraps around to increase the load capacity.
 
A friend with a truck and tow strap (that you trust dearly) could also pull that back out for you. But with a come-along or even a big ass ratchet strap you can add pressure and the hit the pinch points with a hammer to relieve the stress. It will straighten much better than what you think.
 
Green T said:
The airbags did not deploy, which is close to a death sentence for our cars.
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Mine are disabled for that exact reason. Pretty sure I'll never find an intact blue dash if I ever needed it.
 
Those are EVAP hoses. There used to be a write up on replacing all the vacuum hoses, with sizes and lengths listed. Maybe some one can point to that.
 
Kidd-7 said:
Those are EVAP hoses. There used to be a write up on replacing all the vacuum hoses, with sizes and lengths listed. Maybe some one can point to that.
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Ford 4.6L 5.4L V8 Vacuum Line / Emissions Hose Replacement

Detailed instructions on how to replace underhood vacuum hoses on Ford 4.6L V8 engines. Applies to many Fords like Mustang, Crown Vic, F150, Thunderbird, etc.
www.blueovaltech.com

Footnote can't confirm the difference with the 3.8
 
I haven't posted much today because I was busy with this "project". Ultimately I couldn't finish it up, so the bumper cover goes back on tomorrow. Car is also due for an oil change, so I'll do that, too.

Kidd-7 said:
Those are EVAP hoses. There used to be a write up on replacing all the vacuum hoses, with sizes and lengths listed. Maybe some one can point to that.
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I figured I should replace them while I'm in there. Let's see how I feel tomorrow. So I would buy emissions hose, correct? What I saw at O'Reillys was awfully stiff.


As to the repairs, I took off the bumper cover and fender. No surprises in there. The spot welds looked intact. The Fender required a lot hammering to realign with the hood (there was a 1" gap). I replaced the absorber as well as the header panel.

Finding that header panel took a drive to Virginia Beach. Even then, the best I could find had one crack, which I stitched together to prevent further breakage. Good thing, they only charged $16.

20241214_122540.jpg

Still far better than mine, which was completely shattered on the left side.

The bumper cover looked OK. No cracks in there. I used a heat gun in an attempt to revert some distortion in the curvature, which seemed to work. I was happy that those two rivets were still intact:

20241214_100838.jpg

Oh, and when I got a bit tired of repairing stuff, I took some spray paint to the grille. The finish is a bit shitty, but seen from a distance, it creates nice contrast. It's either this, or I'll go for a floating bird like @MadMikeyL (could you post how you mounted the bird?), or I'll create a custom grille from metal mesh.

20241214_163821.jpg
 
Yea replace those lines while youre there! Accessing that canister is a pain in the ass in my opinion. The new lines are stiff, but you'll get em. Maybe others can chime in, but wouldn't a warm water bath help them bend in the tighter areas?
 
1997ThunderbirdLXV6 said:
I haven't posted much today because I was busy with this "project". Ultimately I couldn't finish it up, so the bumper cover goes back on tomorrow. Car is also due for an oil change, so I'll do that, too.



I figured I should replace them while I'm in there. Let's see how I feel tomorrow. So I would buy emissions hose, correct? What I saw at O'Reillys was awfully stiff.


As to the repairs, I took off the bumper cover and fender. No surprises in there. The spot welds looked intact. The Fender required a lot hammering to realign with the hood (there was a 1" gap). I replaced the absorber as well as the header panel.

Finding that header panel took a drive to Virginia Beach. Even then, the best I could find had one crack, which I stitched together to prevent further breakage. Good thing, they only charged $16.

View attachment 9146

Still far better than mine, which was completely shattered on the left side.

The bumper cover looked OK. No cracks in there. I used a heat gun in an attempt to revert some distortion in the curvature, which seemed to work. I was happy that those two rivets were still intact:

View attachment 9147

Oh, and when I got a bit tired of repairing stuff, I took some spray paint to the grille. The finish is a bit shitty, but seen from a distance, it creates nice contrast. It's either this, or I'll go for a floating bird like @MadMikeyL (could you post how you mounted the bird?), or I'll create a custom grille from metal mesh.

View attachment 9148
Click to expand...

Zip tie stitches. That's brilliant! Nice work!

You can also weld it with a zip tie. I haven't tried this method myself but it looks doable.

 
I would guess that small collisions like that is the reason mine was sold with clear corners. I also imagine that a fraction of the retro rod kits were the result of a small collision. Along with the few odd pickup truck Marks
 
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