The old No Good White Trash Ho was running and looking very nice after the interior update and tightened exhaust manifold bolts. It did have a small problem, the A/C only came out the center vent and some air would leak out the defrost vents. Not an issue when it was cold, so I ignored it.
This plan worked until June when my wife and I went for a 4 hour drive to Butler’s Orchard and it was HOT that day. We were both uncomfortable and sweaty so I had to fix it before we went to Pennsylvania in July for my mother’s memorial party. For that trip we would have our son and husky in the backseat and that would have been unbearable.
The only way to fix this was to rip out the dash(again). I really didn’t want to do that but there was no option. In preparation, I watched the video that helped the first time.
Then I spent a Saturday pulling the dash. Much easier this time, but I had the refrain of my favorite non-diesel YouTube mechanic in my head, “I love my job so much, I do it twice”.
Only took about 3 hours to pull it, I’m sure a pro would be much faster, but I took my time. Once I got it off I looked at the blend door. I had replaced it with one from Blend Door USA because the foam was turning to dust on the original.
I couldn’t see any issues so I dug out the instructions and they clearly said to make sure the door could be moved easily by hand. My door was pretty stiff, so I loosened the nut holding the door to the arm until it was easily moved by hand like the instructions said. That made me feel stupid, I usually read instructions to prevent things like this, but obviously did not do that here.
Checked everywhere else while I had the dash out and didn’t find any other problems, so another 2 hours later and the dash was back together. I did notice the airbag controller felt a little soft as I clicked it back together, it didn’t give me a solid “click” like it did the last time. But I started the truck and had no warning lights. It sucked to do a whole days work for 2 minutes of loosening a nut. Now the A/C was blowing ice cold from the proper vents, so I had that going for me, which was nice.
Then in early July we got our luggage, our son, and our dog loaded up and the 4 of us hit the road for a 7 hour trip. My son is way too tall for the back seat, but he managed. He knew from experience that if he would have complained I would have answered, “That’s weird, is really comfortable up here”.
About 3 hours into the trip, the airbag light came on. I figured that whatever old plastic in the airbag controller that was barely hanging on had finally let go. Had no other issues and the A/C was able to keep everyone cool.
The day after we got to Pennsylvania, I went to Auto Zone and bought some flat metal zip ties. With my son helping we removed the gearshift console and I wrapped 2 of the zip ties around the controller to hold the connector in place. When we put it together the airbag light didn’t stay on anymore. I’m sure someday someone will be working on the truck and laugh at my fix, but if it’s stupid and works, it’s not stupid.
Then a few days later, the exhaust started clicking again. I keep a pretty decent tool kit in the truck and I added a 12 point 10mm socket and 10mm ratcheting wrench for the exhaust manifold. This time it was only 2 bolts that worked loose, so hopefully that is the last time I have to do that.
The next day I drove us up to Amish country in Ohio. Truck is still running great, she is so nice for these long drives.
We had a nice visit and a much better ceremony for my mom than we were able to do at the funeral. After our 2 week visit was up, I drove back to Suffolk, I think I smiled the whole way driving her.
Earlier when I was watching YouTube for dash help, it recommended this video, which fascinated me. I had a decent stereo, a Clarion head unit with JBL speakers. I used my phone for navigation and music, but the idea of a modern larger screen that could run Android Auto sounded like something I should look into.
I never filled in the hole where the old airbag switch went, I just had the Bluetooth receiver in there. I had bought some 1/4″ thick plastic to put there, but hadn’t gotten around to it yet.
While I really thought the double din stereo looked nice, I was a little hesitant because I had never messed with a car stereo before. The most I had done was taking this one out and putting it back in when I had the dash apart. I found a few other videos and a post on CumminsForum about it.
They all said that they hooked up an adapter from the stereo to the truck, so that sounded simple.
I bought the kit from eBay. Then I went to a local car audio place to pick out a new stereo. Ended up with a Pioneer DMH-C2550NEX. It needs a USB cable for Android Auto, not Bluetooth, which is what I wanted. Some of the rental cars I used for work travel had Bluetooth Android Auto and they all had a propensity to drop connection. I also bought a USB extension with a mounting ring.
Now I have all the pieces, next article will go through installation and use.
This is the welcome I got sitting on the couch the first time after a week away.
The Truck is back! Back in the 80’s the first work I ever did on a car was to put a tape deck stereo and some beefy back speakers into my 88 Firebird. That was before YouTube, so there was a lot of relying on instructions and figuring things out. I don’t remember it being that hard to do so hopefully you have good luck with your stereo.
The nice thing is the standardized DIN setup, back wiring harness, and trim clips just for your make and model make it a much easier job than in the 70’s where the back end of the stereo would be supported by bent metal plumber’s tape.
That sounds terrible! I do remember it came with a few different size plastic frames that held it in place.
I’ll have you know that’s a proper ground!
/union electricians
I had never messed with stereos before until I pulled this one out the first time I removed the dash.
Looking at how it plugged into the truck, I assumed all stereos would have the same plug, but that’s not how that works.
When I was younger, any car with a crappy stereo got a boom box installed.
Those of us who drove VWs ended up with the removable stereos. Apparently the VW factory stereos were pretty universal and were a frequent target of thieves.
A friend of mine in ’92 had a Rockford Fosgate system in his Camaro that was worth more than the car.
He loved to show it off at our giant bonfire parties which would get people coming from all over.
I think he was the only person really surprised when the system got yanked out of the car.
I remember those! I remember buying my gf a nice head unit that was “theft proof” because you needed to unlock it with a cd that was coded to it if it was removed.
That’s not so much theft-proof, as useless once stolen.
@ RC
Yeah. Thus the quote marks.
OTOH, it never got stolen…
Truck looks great, Ron!
Dogs look excited to see you as well.
I could never attack a problem like that, I had enough trouble installing an am/fm radio. I’m at the point now where I have to call Robby to change a tire.
Interesting challenge that many of us would not accept.
They all said that they hooked up an adapter from the stereo to the truck, so that sounded simple.
Adapter/jumper harnesses are the way to go. Like everything else, “modern” audiotainment has been made insanely complicated.
Agreed. Spend some time researching, and buy one if needed. Your new stereo may already have some basic adapters with it.
The stereo is installed already, but I couldn’t use an adapter.
The next article is scheduled for next Thursday.
*Spoiler Alert*
It works great.
When you fire up that stereo for the first time and go for a ride, and hear the improvement from the previous one, it’s pure bliss.
Haha! Dogs are awesome.
Looking forward to seeing the Pioneer install.
I don’t want to do anything more involved than changing the cabin or engine air filter.
Turns out most local stuff – including car offices – are closed today because it’s 26 Dec – aka St. Stephen’s Day. An Italian National holiday. I think I had seen that before, but didn’t think to look through my references till all the offices I stopped by were closed. My supervisors/sponsors only talked about 25 Dec and 1 Jan (and some stuff closing early on Tues, etc).
Looks like there are a significant number of national holidays that fall on different dates than US national holidays – but given my billet, I don’t expect to get any extra time off work.
Right now, trying to research the train schedules to see about future travel…and it looks a lot less convenient than I’d been lead to believe. I found 2 apps that let me make some ticket reservations…for one rail line. The location I want to get to requires 2 different rail companies – seems doable, but one of them uses it’s own (apparently very lousy) app – I’ll probably just plan on buying a ticket on the platform. May experiment next week if I have some time…don’t think I want to take any risks with “weekend schedules”. Can’t wait till I can get a car.
Spinning gold into straw
What Happened: Responding to a social media post about Scott’s donations to liberal nonprofits, Musk offered a one-word critique: “Concerning.” The comment came after author John LeFevre highlighted Scott’s contributions to organizations focused on racial equity, social justice, and LGBTQ+ rights.
Scott, who received Amazon.com Inc. shares worth billions in her 2019 divorce from Jeff Bezos, has emerged as one of America’s most prolific philanthropists. Through her Yield Giving organization, she has donated over $19 billion to more than 2,450 nonprofits since 2019, while maintaining a net worth above $30 billion due to Amazon’s stock performance.
This marks Musk’s latest criticism of Scott’s giving. In March, he suggested in a now-deleted post that “super rich ex-wives who hate their former spouse” could contribute to the decline of Western civilization. Shortly after his comment, Scott announced an additional $640 million in donations to 361 organizations.
Wealth destruction. If she spent that money building a colossal monument to herself on a mountain top, at least some of it would end up in the hands of honest people.
The old ‘Hell hath no fury…’ saying didnt come about for no reason.
I have experience in this area.
I mean she can spend her money however she wants but she could really help the less fortunate if she gave to foundations like Mercy Homes for Kids in Chicago which helps troubled teenagers, instill in them a good and moral foundation, and pay for their college, or Mike Rowe’s apprenticeship program along with many other great programs. But instead, she would rather enrich the non for profits which has contributed to many of the issues we have in this country.
Which shows that the Left aren’t really about helping the less fortunate but rather lining their own pockets and accumulating power.
This is the welcome I got sitting on the couch the first time after a week away.
🙂
My dogs have a ruff life.
I really like these articles Ron. I have an 06 1500 with about 255,000 miles on it. I usually spend a couple of weeks every summer fixing what broke over the previous year. The last time I tackled a persistent problem I had been having with the headlights over the years. They would randomly go out usually at the worst possible time. I had previously added some fog lights into the space for them in the front bumper (my truck was not optioned with them). They were wired via a relay to a side marker light so they were always on when the light switch was on.
This worked for a while till the relay burned out. While replacing that and checking the wiring harness for obvious problems, I found the remains of a trailer light harness that someone had left in there. It was corroded and I think it was shorting out tripping the breaker for the lights. I removed that and have not had that problem since – knock on wood.
Since I had everything apart, I decided it was time to replace the faulty rear speaker and ordered a set of Alpines that would fit. Lo and behold, the new speaker also didn’t work so I did what I should have done first and checked continuity. Which lead to replacing a segment of the wiring harness: apparently a common problem on the rear doors. With that fixed now and the truck still apart, I decided it would be a good time to also update the front speakers. Also Alpine but the new ones were component speakers so I could put tweeters in the dash. The truck also did not come with the optional factory dash speakers so adapters were needed (Metra makes these). Now with the wiring harness, doors and dash all apart, I thought this would be a good time to update the stereo head unit.
I ended up selecting a JVC unit which supports Android Auto and whatever Apple has. It also had provision for a backup camera and a hands free microphone. Since the dash was already apart and the wiring harness exposed it wasn’t too hard. Also, since the old factory radio was 1 DIN and the new 2 DIN, part of the dash had to be cut out to make it fit. Metra also makes a nice adapter which hides the old factory hole and the modification. Re-purposing one of the cigar lighters to a USB port was the final step for the Android Auto tether. Yay! Google maps and Pandora in an ’06
That all sounds familiar.
Dealing with prior work can be a pain.
Metra’s adapter worked really well.
“Re-purposing one of the cigar lighters to a USB port”
They did that on Mrs. Dean’s FJ. Very slick. I was concerned about it being the only lighter/power source, until I remembered the FJ has an actual 220V plug in the back.
OT:
My wife called me at work this afternoon during my lunch break and told me that my five-year-old daughter after being told many times not to do so, went into my mother in law’s living room, dicked around with the tree, and broke an ornament. My daughter was obviously very sorry about it, but the ornament belongs to my wife’s grandmother and was a favorite of my MIL so as you can imagine she was not pleased.
My wife found something similar to the original ornament on Ebay, so we’ll get the replacement, but I told my her that my daughter will have to pay us back in installments for the full amount we bought that ornament through her allowance from chores and write a letter to my MIL apologizing and understanding the value of respecting other people’s things. She’ll be paying us back for a long time, but she brought it on herself.
My Mom and grandmother would have dished out belt separately so she’s lucky that we live different times, and I think hurting the pockets and much more effective.
I hope your daughter enjoys the monocle mine!
I’ve only owned two drivable cars so far, and on both of them, the audio system had a failure. On the first one, I did swap out the factory system for aftermarket.
On the second, I just got some cheapassed usb-powered speakers with a 3.5mm plug and use an MP3 player. Best part is I can swap the mp3 player over to headphones and keep the audiobook going after I leave the car.
How many non-drivable cars have you owned?
One. It was a Honda Civic that would stall out when you tried to shift into First Gear, or into Second, or when you applied the brakes. Basically I think it has issues, since it wasn’t just me it’d do that to. Oh, and the starter liked to die, so you’d have to push start it.
That sounds like a car the devil gives you in purgatory to work off your sins…
“the idea of a modern larger screen that could run Android Auto sounded like something I should look into”
I did exactly that to Mrs. Dean’s 2008 FJ Cruiser. Mostly to have a backup camera on that vehicle, because the rear visibility is crap. The original head unit was starting to go, also.
I had professionals do it. Even if I had felt up to the job of replacing the head unit (which in itself turned out to be tricky, I was told, because we have the upgraded stereo with a subwoofer, which has a separate amplifier), I did not feel up to the job, at all, of installing the backup camera and running the wires for it.
Came out great. The guys had done this exact job on a number of FJs (which there are an inordinate number of in Tucson). The screen fits the space on the dash perfectly (they knew where to get an adapter), it works like a charm, sounds better, and most importantly, Mrs. Dean likes it (in spite of her initial skepticism).
I might be catching up, 327K on my ’06 2500 Silverado now. I did about 8 round trips across Washington hauling parts this summer which put on some additional miles. I had my first real issue while on the road. Alternator died around 1am in the middle of the state. Spent the night in an Autozone parking lot and changed the alternator in the morning when they opened. Took about 1 hour to R and R.
At least it was an easily solvable problem.
Well done! I am not embarrassed by my inability to fix cars! Apparently this isn’t a Me thing, as cars are kinda unrepairable now, with ‘proprietary’ electronic shit everywhere. I can and have changed my tire! ‘Tis time to set up my Xmas new car fob, one with a working Unlock button. Still pissed/ amused on ‘new’ cars, using the key to unlock the door triggers the damn alarm. Starting the car with the same key turns it off. Sensible, that. It *is* a decent anti-lock mechanism! Even if ya have the key it still thinks its stolen!
But it is Boxing Day, so let’s beat the shit out of each other! I’m gonna get into my inbox and restart the Job Hunt. More or less, a ‘goal’ of $18 full time and I don’t really give a shit where I work. I would much prefer stupid office shit if it gets me in (the/a) door. Being busy is such a predictable way to make the days go by, and attached with a bit of Accomplishment, eases the mind into rest and satisfaction. Doesn’t always matter if one’s own pet hobby project or something bigger. Idle hands aren’t staid. Wish me luck, one and all, and I hope St. Stephen’s Day is joyous and restful for you and yours. *Doffs cap*
I still have vivid memories of crawling under a 69 Camaro to replace a starter when it was 20 below zero.
As soon as I became an engineer, I stopped working on my cars and paid other people to do that. I don’t enjoy it. I’m not good it. So, I let other people do it.
Story of my life right there, only I didn’t become an engineer. Change a water pump on a ’46 Ford in the cold so I could go out Saturday night.
Now Mr Ford is my friend. 2004 F150 has 112K but starting to show winter chemical damage.
I enjoy and am good at both the design and fabrication tasks of my business. I don’t think I could do only engineering without eventually getting bored. Plus, for me, it is fulfilling going from design to fabrication to field installation.
Just ran across a very amusing blog:
https://thompsonblog.co.uk/
A Brit, who has that gift of insulting people and ridiculing them with the utmost politeness and decorum that seemingly only a Brit can possess. He works a target-rich field, wokism. I found him hilarious.