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I pulled the tail light and checked out the trailer connector this afternoon. I have voltage for signals, brakes, and lights but all four terminals are unbelievably corroded (one crumbled as I removed it from the connector). I'll clip one to swap in next time I'm at the salvage yard.

No, it was a local shop. But with that kind of service I may as well go to a tire shop. I'd rather pay tire tech labor than mechanic labor if the end result is me setting the camber myself. I can set camber pretty well if I have a level pad to park the vehicle on (had that in my old garage, but...

Mounty did great hauling loads of brush around on my makeshift utility trailer aka formerly abandoned boat trailer I dragged out of the field.

Not a bad idea. Access is pretty bad from below though. If I remove the left tail light, can I pull that connector up and out of the opening? Actually I found a pic from when I did my 2000 to 1997 tailgate conversion on the Sport, and I think the answer is yes (grey connector).

Yeah I had a square tube Reese hitch receiver on my '97 and it was way bulkier than this. I like this one a lot better, I think it's a Draw-Tite. I had to resist the urge to take it into work to strip and powder coat. With how weathered the Mounty is, fresh gloss black would just stick out...

Got the new front shocks on -- the old ones were so blown out I can't believe the Mounty wasn't bouncing more. The oil must've leaked out years ago. I also put in new front swaybar frame bushings (just Moog, not ES poly bushings). A shakedown will be needed to see if I eliminated all the front...

My freshly zinc-plated hardware is on and the rear shocks are torqued. Went for a little shakedown last night to check my work and man, does that rear swaybar change things. Accelerating through a turn on gravel, I can push it enough now to break the rear free just slightly before the AWD pulls...

I like the KYB gas-a-just shocks on my sport, but for $7.73, these Gabriels seem ideal for a daily driver

Yeah I was thinking some backer strips of thin stainless and rivets. Drilling the rivets later would be a pain though. Maybe panel retainers instead? I should look through some of my misc parts bins and see if inspiration strikes.

61624

Going to be pulling back up at the repair shop like "who's unstable now?" Hahaha. Everything in the rear is together except the lower shock bolts. I picked up some fresh M12 10.9 flange bolts from the hardware/ag store in town (less than $5 with nuts and washers!) today and they're just black...

I'm half tempted to just drill holes and use zip ties in order to be able to take the air dam off later. Purrington is helping me come up with other solutions though.

I called the shop and they're going to take another crack at the alignment. In the meantime, I've been thinking about a comment the mechanic made how worn out the shocks are (they really are). I had to order some filters, wiper blades, etc. for my wife's car and I saw RockAuto had some Gabriel...

It's just taped on for mockup purposes and I want to trim more off the ends, but I think it's looking decent. Can't decide if I want to epoxy the air dam to the valance, plastic weld it, or make some stainless backer strips and rivet it. I'm reluctant to go with any really permanent...

Maybe I'm just lucky, but I haven't had that issue yet. I'm running DEI aluminized sleeves on my wires and they seem to be holding up.

I'll probably keep it black. I've been hunting for a black valance with fog lights with no success, so I may just paint it all flat black. That's a great point. It's a nice solid oak and I'm sure my son would love a treehouse!

If I only had a time machine, I'd go back and buy all kinds of Explorer Express goodies. Swaybars, rear wing, air dam, etc. For now, I have Addco bars and a Lund Windjammer that I was lucky to find in a salvage yard. But what could I substitute for the air dam? Maybe someday I'll find one...

Yeah, I got into it with my shop in Milwaukee about this once: Me: You charged for a four wheel alignment? Front desk guy: Yeah, that's what we did. Me: How did you align the rear of a vehicle with leaf springs and a solid axle? Front desk guy: .....hmm, I'll go ask the tech. Tech: We didn't do...

Thanks, guys. I don't want to be a jerk about it, but I'm also confused why I paid $140 and it's really not that much closer to spec overall than what I did on my own with 15 minutes and a bubble level. Seems odd that they struggled more with a stock height truck than my old shop in Milwaukee...

I finally got the rig back home after the alignment (delay was no fault of the shop, I was out of town) and I'm a little confused. As expected, camber and toe were both out when I dropped it off. They adjusted toe and got "into the green," but now my steering wheel is slightly turned with wheels...

Late to enter the chat (as usual), but I've followed this thread since its inception. It was a huge inspiration for me as I began building my '00 Sport and I was shocked to see the truck on BAT. On the note of lowering, most everything said here is true in my experience. I stuck with 29"...

It's been a couple weeks since I posted in this thread, but I have been chipping away at the Mounty. The front end is all back together with the new UCAs and LBJs, freshly greased hubs, and lightly used sway bar links. I gave it a rough eyeball alignment and will take it in for a real alignment...

What type of camber bolts are in there now? I just did this job last week with TMHs on my Mounty. The camber bolts that were installed had the eccentric washer pressed onto the head side of the bolt and the only way I got them out was cutting them. But the new Mevotech camber bolts I installed...

I saw this pic and was like "where's the bad one?" You folks out west have it too good hahaha. When I replaced shackles on my '97 there was no sign of black paint anywhere and the steel was down to about half its original thickness. And my '97 spent its first 10 years in California before...

First car meet of 2024. Finally got black bumper trim everywhere except the valence.