How are those sacrificial tires on the XJ6 holding up?

The (used) parts source.

I'll bet inquiring minds want to know!

I had been fussing with the slow leak in the left front tire for over a month. I knew that I needed to replace that wheel with another stock rim.

I contacted Jaguar Heaven in Stockton Ca. and they could provide me with a replacement set for a bit over 500.00. The going price for alloy wheels at Pick and Pull was usually 25.00 for the wheel alone. There would be an additional charge of around 25.00 bucks if a usable tire was mounted.

I visited my two local yards with no luck. So I kept a watch on  Craig's List. I've bought several sets of wheels there and the usually run around 50.00 each with a decent tire. I checked a couple of times a day for a couple of weeks with no luck.

I happened to have some business a little bit further north in the Fremont/ Newark area. After I was done I decided to swing by the Newark Pick and Pull yard to try my luck again. We were experiencing an unusual heatwave and the temps were up into the 90s.

I asked the guy manning the entrance booth if he could check and see if they had any '97 Jags in the yard. He checked his computer and couldn't find any listed. Seeing as how computer inventory is an iffy thing for this business he said that I was welcome to take a look, but please deposit the two dollar entrance fee first.

I really hadn't brought any tools with me except my 4 way lug wrench. I left it in the truck.

The "large European" section, that referred to the size of the car, not the amount of the selections, was waaaaaay in the back, about as far away as it could be and still be contained within the yard. I did however bring a pair of mechanic's gloves. Maybe I would get lucky and find a good wheel resting in the back seat.

I set out through the brutal intense light and heat. As I made  my way back I was somewhat saddened to see so many once noble steeds that had been reduced to a crumpled disaster or had been harshly disemboweled. I finally made my way back far enough to discover the wretched remains a several Bimmers. There were Jaguars: a few S types, and a XJ8. Sometimes it's hard to identify which model a car is if it's missing it's front end and has a smashed up rear section. Still no '97 XJ6.

I decided that I would walk all the way to the farthest corner. Right at the end I saw what I thought was an XJ8 but no, there was a straight six under the hood. It was even British racing green! But it didn't have any wheels mounted. There weren't any in the back seat. I lifted the trunk and saw that it was filled with junk. I pulled it all out and saw that the spare tire cover was still in place. Would I be lucky or would it have been a waste of time?

A great find.

I lifted the cover and sitting there as pretty as ever was a dimple alloy wheel, just what I hoped to find. It was unchromed featuring the original "diamond cut" (machined) finish. It was shod with a pretty good looking Pirelli P4000 tire with quite a bit of tread. However it was flat. I turned it around and around and saw a screw head visible in the tread. The rim was in great shape but I wasn't going to let them charge me for a tire with a screw in it!

Maybe it's a very, very, short screw?

I hoisted the wheel up on my shoulder in preparation for the long walk back.

I was tired from my morning's work, but I was jazzed about my find. I walked for a distance, then stopped for a break. As I continued, an old Black gent was coming my way pulling a hand truck laden with his tool box. "Hey Brother! You know they rent wheelbarrows?"  "I didn't know that I would find anything!" was my reply.

I am getting a bit too old for this stuff. After a couple of more breaks I reached the office. I hoisted the wheel up to the purchase window and the cashier asked if I wanted the tire. I quickly pointed out the visible screw head. "Okay," he said, "25.00" Score!

My XJ6 already had a good used tire mounted on a leaky rim. Now I had a good wheel with a possibly bad tire. My plan was to have the good tire mounted on my junkyard find. But.... Maybe there is an easier way.

Dang, that's a long screw!

The screw was in the middle of the tread. Maybe it was a a real short screw that hadn't pierced the tire carcass. I grabbed a screwdriver to remove the screw. It wasn't real short, it was an inch and a half long! How do these things happen? Punctures of this type are often repaired with plugs. I had picked up a repair kit at Harbor Freight on my way home. Why not try the easiest solution?

I've always preferred the internally applied patch.
But this how it's done DIY.

I applied the plug and it wasn't as easy as I thought that it would be. I aired it up and in a gesture of positive thinking mounted it to the car. Tomorrow morning I'll know whether or not I was set.

I was. But of course my luck couldn't hold out forever.

I started driving the car as much as possible. Last week I was dropped off my Wife for an appointment. As I waited at the metering signal I noted that the temp gauge was starting to climb. As soon as I entered the freeway I saw some steam escaping from under the hood. I took the next exit and found a place to pull over and park at the curb.

I knew what had happened. The upper hose had popped off and was completely free from the radiator fitting. Coolant had gushed out of the end of the hose as well as the radiator. Luckily I knew how important it was to shut down the engine as soon as possible. Failure to do so could easily result in a blown head gasket or worse.

I was carrying an empty anti freeze bottle in the trunk and set off to find some water. I wasn't near a gas station but I was near a Target store. I picked up two gallons of coolant and walked back to the car. If I was near a food store I could have bought a couple of gallons of drinking water which usually will run only 1.00 or so a piece. I suppose that I could have bought that water at Target, if it would have occurred to me at the time. Yes, I know that an aluminum engine should have anti freeze but I was only interested in getting the car home.

Most of the tools that you might need. 

I had recently put together a small toolkit that would fit in the fender well space.  It contained a four bit screw diver. A medium sized adjustable wrench. A pair of basic slip joint pliers. A pair of needle nose pliers with a wire cutter. A couple of clean rags and a pair of sturdy disposable gloves round out the kit. I keep a flashlight and small pocket knife in the glove box. I used the screwdriver to reattach the hose. The clamp hadn't come loose. The hose had just slipped off of the fitting! The hose wasn't split but it was kind of soft and spongy. It was soft enough that ( maybe) the clamp couldn't tighten it as well as it might.

I can't say that this was a total surprise to me. The same thing had occurred a couple of years ago. Luckily after my big trip up north. The first hose pop off. That should have told me something.

Several months back I was driving my Wife to the oldest Daughter's house to do some babysitting. I noticed that the temp gauge was rising, When I arrived and opened the hood I saw that the upper hose was leaking coolant at the radiator fitting. It even looked like the hose had slipped back a bit. I had noticed some fluid on the driveway under the Jag a few days ago. I should have checked, but I didn't. I ended up getting a ride to work that morning.

After getting a ride back I just tightened up the hose clamp, topped it up with some water and was good to go.

The hose felt a little soft so I decided to replace it with one I sourced from Rock Auto. I also put together that little toolkit.

The hose arrived and I stuck it on top of the inactive XJS and decided that it could wait for a while.

That wasn't the best plan. It couldn't wait. It never can.

So I decided that the best course of action was to replace that upper hose.

This is the troublesome fitting.

Besides the soft hose, the upper radiator mounts were somewhat perished so I used some foam water pipe insulation to tighten them up a bit. I thought that perhaps the movement of the radiator, although slight might contribute to the hose slipping off.

The new hose arrived from Rock Auto.
It was much firmer than the old hose.

I used these two containers to catch most of the spilled coolant.

Anti freeze is kind of messy when it's spilled in your driveway so I used a couple of containers to catch as much as possible. The large tray is the top of a large storage bin. The smaller white container is a dish pan from the Dollar Store. I poured the recovered coolant into the dish pan from the large tray.

I poured the recovered coolant through the proper filtering medium
 (a piece of one of my old black t shirts).

The recovered coolant had some leaves and dirt floating on the top. I didn't want that junk to get in my radiator. At first I was going to pour the coolant through a coffee filter to clean it. However that was taking way too long. A piece of clean old t shirt worked just as well and was much quicker. I put three anti freeze containers of water in the trunk just in case this event should occur again. I was going to be prepared!

Oh, about those sacrificial tires? So far it's been over 950 miles and I can't detect any abnormal wear. The car tracks and steers straight and except for a few little clunks, things seem to be fine.

The list of jobs that need to be done on the XJ6 is getting longer and longer. It's time to move forward on those repairs.

What's wrong with this picture?

Why are these different?

Some troubles with the "new" Mustang. Of course new is a relative term.

This occured while I'm still dealing with the aftermath of the stolen Explorer. More on that subject later.  I had been driving the 2007 Mustang and had heard what I thought was the sound of rattling metal. I figured that it was just due to my Daughter's habit of keeping a bunch of stuff in the trunk. I hadn't noticed any symptoms of funny handling.

Later that evening around 10 o'clock, I got the call. My Daughter told me that she might have run over something and now the car felt "funny." She was only a mile away so I went to meet her where she had parked the car. It was dark but I had a flashlight. I looked underneath and didn't see anything stuck under the car. I didn't see that any of the tires were flat. She had described the rear end as shimmying from side to side. I looked to see if any of the tires had loose lug nuts or obvious tread separations. I couldn't see any obvious problems. I drove the car about half a block then drove in reverse to get back to where I started. I couldn't feel anything (of course!) I shook the car from side to side.  Darn if there didn't seem to be a lot of side play. I looked but couldn't see anything wrong with the lower axle links.

I did remember that the Ford dealer recommended replacing the rear shocks when they finally got around to doing the air bag recall work. Could that be the problem?

I figured it would be okay to drive it home slowly, so I followed behind her at 25 mph. I did notice the rear end sashaying a bit. Hmmmm.

After the car was in the driveway I took another quick look underneath but didn't notice anything. It's late and it could wait until tomorrow.

The next Day I was advised by the Police dept that they had found my Explorer, but they didn't provide any details. I had given up on the hope of recovering it. It might have been easier if it had disappeared completely. Was it wrecked, stripped or burned? No way of knowing. My greatest fear had been that the thief might have been involved in a serious collision with it. Especially if it had caused serious injury or death. As the owner I might be named as a liable party. It would be kind of a weak connection, as the car had been reported stolen to the police, but it wasn't reported until I got back from my trip. Who knows what could have occurred during that delay? An ambulance chasing attorney could cause me a lot of grief as they tried to find someone with "deep pockets" actually, any pockets. I had wisely maintained the insurance coverage during this period.

When I arrived at the tow yard and saw the Explorer I was quite relieved. The truck was in one piece with no signs of a crash. Besides the broken driver's window there was a broken ignition switch and a damaged area on the dash. The thief had no skills or finesse. Just a brick through the window and a big wrench that broke the lock cylinder.

I had to pay out hundreds of dollars, (no kidding!) to secure the release of my truck. After an enormously frustrating phone interaction with AAA service. I waited the hour for the tow. The tow operator was a pleasant and skillful young man who delivered the Explorer back to my driveway.

I didn't want to get into the Explorer saga yet, but I'm just mentioning it because it was occurring at the same time I was dealing with the Grey Mustang. When it rains it pours, even if the Drought is officially over!

I needed to get the rear of the Mustang up in the air so that I could get a good look underneath.

My recently purchased quick lift floor jack had developed a problem. It would only raise about six inches. Then it would stop and no amount of vigorous pumping would produce further results. To borrow Charlie Brown's famous lament ARRRRGGGHHHH!!!!

So now I had to fix the darn jack before I could get to the darn Mustang!

As my older Brother is wont to say, "I just can't work under these kinds of conditions!"

But of course we must.

Why wouldn't the jack work? It must be low on fluid. I looked underneath and it was a little wet. A bit of fluid had been working it's way out for awhile. There must be a fill "bung" somewhere.

These were the worst two screws.

I figured that the filler would under this plate. It was held on by four Phillips screws. No problem right? These were the tightest screws I had encountered since my old Honda motorcycle days. There was no way to remove them with a hand held screwdriver. Back in the Day we all had a vital tool called an impact driver. A hand held device that you would hold against the screw and smack the other end with a a hammer. Bang, the most stubborn screw would loosen. I thought that my Son might have left one behind. Of course I spent a fruitless half hour looking for it.

I didn't want to drill the screws out so I used an old vise grip pliers to grip the head and turn it enough to break it free. Two of the screws proved to be a bit of challenge but they eventually yielded to my efforts.

That little circular rubber plug is the filler.

I didn't have any hydraulic fluid on hand so I used what I had, ATF. I filled and pumped until the proper functioning returned. Now back to the Mustang.

I raised it and placed a couple of jack stands underneath. I removed the rear wheels to give me a better view.

I looked at the shocks and they appeared to be fine. The axle linkage arms seemed okay. But wait, why was there a two piece Panhard rod? There was an inch between both pieces! Yeah, that could allow the rear end to move around a bit.

One of these is not like the other.

I also noticed that the original rod was bent, I thought that it was supposed to have a bend in it.

I did a little research online that night and saw that the bar should have been straight. I deduced that when my Daughter took her big dirt spin out years ago, it must have damaged the bar, though no one at the body shop noticed. The bend must have developed into a crack, and here we are with two pieces.

A while back I had ordered a new set of rear shocks from Rock Auto for this Mustang. I might as well replace them at this opportunity.

Besides the shocks I got the upper hose for my XJ6
 and another cool magnet.

I was concerned that it would take a breaker bar to loosen and remove the Panhard rod, but it was easily accomplished with normal hand tools. As I was replacing the wheels I noticed that the left tire had a screw in the tread. I hoped it be a very short screw, but of course it wasn't. I'm always amazed how an inch and a half screw finds it's way into the tread. Since these tires are covered by a road hazard warranty I'll just take it to tire store for repair or replacement.

After installing the spare tire I was finished for the day. Unfortunately I've still got a lot of work ahead of me with the Explorer.

Happy Father's Day!

Memories of better days!
I've lost my assistant since he's now almost twenty years older and much busier.

Cars, Dads and Kids.


It's one way that we as Fathers can try to connect with our children. Male or female. It's stereotypical to consider this bond as existing only between Dads and their Sons, but of course it can also exist between Dads and their Daughters.

For my kids there was no bonding over sports. No T Ball, soccer, or softball. I never had an interest in sports and I wasn't going to fake it and spend a lot of time taking my kids to activities that I had absolutely no interest in. I guess that makes me a poor Dad in that area at least, but that's how it is. The kids are all grown up now and they seem to survived okay.

All the following photos from The Happy racing web site.

Octane magazine is a great window into how the other half lives. There are some rallies advertised that are Father and Son (and now daughter) Ferrari owners events. Padre Figlio by HappyFew racing. They are restricted to only one example of each model! The photos in the advertisement shows it to be a pretty swanky affair.

Really that's all well and good. I'm not hating on these lucky guys who happen to be rich. There is absolutely nothing that prohibits us regular guys from doing the same thing. One of Octane's columnists wrote about how a group of his buddies got together to have a "poor mans's run" with their more common classics.

I have a future post featuring a group called Road Adventures. This is a grass root type of low key organization that produces local Northern California day drives and tours. They even produce off road adventures and drives. This sounds like a great way to get out and meet some fellow car enthusiasts.

Get together with a few of your old or collector car owning buddies and plan a two or three day outing with your Sons or Daughters. Pick a back roads route to some interesting sights and places that would have activities kids would enjoy. Let your kid navigate and make some route choices. Camp or stay in a group at a nice little hotel. Pack a few things to have a picnic lunch along the way. Travelling in a small caravan of three to four cars would make it an event to remember.

It may sound trite, but there is a "best by" date on their childhood. Once they get older it will be hard to find the time to spend with them. They will be busy and possibly won't want to hang out with the Old Man anymore.

My Wife and I just recently from my annual trip up to the Oregon Coast. It's a drive that I enjoy and the weather this year was again beautiful. I made the trip in my F150 because my other vehicles weren't quite ready or appropriate. Somehow my truck has become my enthusiasts driving vehicle. I've made the trip in my XJ6 before and it was such fun to drive one of my special cars. Like a lot of car guys I get buried in unfinished projects and end up having to take my daily driver. Still,it doesn't matter what car I drive, what counts is the trip itself.

This year I returned home to a new experience. As I pulled up my street I couldn't see my Explorer, which had been parked at the curb. I hoped that maybe my Daughter had used it for some errand. I noticed some broken glass in the street where I had parked it. As I pulled up in front I saw that it wasn't in the driveway either. I knew instantly that it had been stolen.

Why would someone steal an old worthless car? Well, it wasn't exactly worthless to me. I've found it to be quite useful and I enjoyed driving it. This is the first time that I've ever had a vehicle stolen. I know that lots of you out there have probably been in the same boat. So now I'm a member a club I'd never thought that I would have to join. I'm wondering if it was stolen because it had a fuel injected 5.0 small block Ford V8 in it. Maybe someone decided to use the motor in a project of their own.

Like most of my old cars it was only covered by liability insurance, so the loss is just going to come out of my pocket.

I had been considering selling it in attempt to thin the herd. That decisions been made for me now. Darn, I'd just fixed that leaky thermostat housing!

Gears and Gasoline. YouTube. Lot's of videos here!

I was introduced to this YouTube channel when I stumbled across their Florida to Alaska road trip series of videos. This is the first of the three videos. Honestly, I'm uncontrollably attracted to anyone's story of an epic road trip.

Even Today, a long distance, cross country motor trip can still grab the imagination. Probably because most long distance continental travel is now accomplished by air. It's so much quicker and easier to fly across the country than to drive. You use up less of your precious vacation time and can enjoy more time at your destination. But like with everything there is a price that you pay. You lose the experience of the travel itself. You lose the freedom to stop at and follow your curiosity at places that you encounter. You miss the breathtaking scenery and vistas, but on the other hand you miss hours of driving through flat boring prairie land.

I was also attracted to their earlier videos that covered a range of grass roots automotive enthusiast subjects. Their early videos explore some of the basic questions that surround the car community, such as:

"Why are we interested in Cars in the first place?"

It's a common refrain among the old guys that kids Today aren't into cars.  That might be true. I don't see any kids in my neighborhood fooling around with old Chevy Novas or even old Acura Integras, for that matter. On the other hand there's a small informal cruise in at the local Lucky supermarket parking lot on Saturday night. There are also plenty of slammed, stickered up, noisy, compacts on the local freeways. It could be that the kid's cars go unnoticed by the oldster crowd. They just look like the regular econoboxs and hatchbacks that make up a large part of the traffic around here.

Some us old guys wouldn't recognize anything but a '57 Chevy or an old Camaro. For me, a car is something that you need. But also something that you want. Cars are a means of self expression.

The easy answer to this question is a resounding Yes! Of course you can be into cars on a budget, it's not like most of us have a choice! We've got to do the best we can, with what we have. I've always said that it's a car guy's job to find the most fun he can, at a price that he can afford.

Most of my family know how to drive a stick shift. My oldest daughter and Son still have manual shift cars. I haven't driven one in a while, but I haven't forgotten. Last year as I was driving up the Oregon coast and I was explaining to my Wife how I enjoyed the act of driving itself. Even when driving an auto transmission equipped car. I explained that I enjoyed matching the rpm and power band of the motor to the hilly and curvy terrain. I would apply enough throttle to maintain our speed but not enough to cause a downshift. The narrow, twisty road requires my attention to maintain a smooth line through the curves. I told her that balancing these different inputs was a kind of "dance" with the vehicle and the road. Of course she really got a laugh out of that! My Wife has never enjoyed driving so I know that she could never relate to my explanation. I've always loved driving and riding a motorcycle, and those of you that feel the same way, know what I mean.

I still stand by that description

In this video they address a subject that is familiar to anyone who frequently visits the Internet. Luckily this is not the virulent hate that infests some dark corners of the Web. It addresses the nonchalant derision and dismissive attitude and commentary so prevalent in comment sections.

There are many different types of automotive enthusiasm. Japanese compacts, European sports and compact cars, modern Pony and Muscle cars, classic muscle cars, Lowriders, trucks and 4 X4s, collector cars, and even kit cars.

We all have our own preferences and that's quite understandable. That's what makes the car community so interesting. Most of us will find that their interests will change and develop and even "mature" over the years.

We just have to remember that a enthusiast's car is important to them. Whether it's modified or stock it is a reflection of what they want. It is an expression of who they are. If you feel a need to feel that you are better than someone else, than that is your problem, not theirs. Like our Mother's taught us, "If you don't have anything nice to say than don't say anything at all.

Beater Cars? Who would be promoting Beater cars?  G&G makes a pretty good argument. There is a lot of freedom in driving a beater. Sometimes though, there isn't a lot of satisfaction. Of course if it is a Better Beater than it's a different story!

Just a couple of Bens. It's a great story of a couple of young guys following their passion. The quality of their videos is very high. They are very earnest in their desire to provide a quality site for their fellow enthusiasts. The content is skewed towards the import side of the spectrum, especially Japanese cars, but they have other features, a "getting to know (somebody)" that allows them to introduce other automotive personalities to their audience.


Yes, I am a fan and a subscriber. I even ordered a couple of their decals to put on my car's rear windows!

More from the Blackhawk Museum.

This Stanley Wanlass sculpture summarizes the conflict of 1950's car enthusiasts;
Show or Go? Many cars had a bit of both!

The museum features a quite a few of these bronze sculptures on display throughout the hall. They are table top sized but very detailed. They all manage to convey a sense of urgency and motion. The artist has enlivened and captured the spirit and vitality in his portrayal of the vehicles and their drivers.

A 1950's Plymouth Dream Car displays a clear Italian influence.
There is a definitively a level of restraint displayed that is uncommon in most 1950's Dream Cars.

Besides Classics and one off Dream  Cars the museum displays some relatively "ordinary" cars. These are cars that were pretty commonly seen in my youth, but were rarely found in such a well preserved state. These have probably been restored to a much higher level than their OEM build quality.

Jaguar E Type

There had been several opportunities for me to buy one of these beauties in the past. I remember a nice convertible that was for sale when I was in Junior College back in 1975. It was parked in a prominent spot in the lot, and I drove and walked past it many times. Who would have been crazy enough to pay 1,000 dollars for a decent runner then? Not me. My interests at the time were motorcycles and old American luxury cars. I was driving a '66 Lincoln sedan. I also had a '70 Honda CB 750 motorcycle. Other opportunities presented themselves over the ensuing twenty five years at higher, but still reasonable and attainable prices. I had not been bitten by the Jaguar bug and there  was always something else that I wanted more. Besides, there would always be plenty of time to buy one in the future!

My Uncle bought one of these Austin Healeys when I was in the eighth grade. I remember being wedged in the backseat when he gave me and my brother a ride up to the UC Berkeley campus. I was pretty impressed. I thought that this sports car thing might be something to get involved with. Cars like this were not exactly common in my East Oakland neighborhood when I was growing up. My Uncle lost his enthusiasm for the Healey when a front wheel came loose and feel off on an early morning drive along the Sacramento River. Knock off wire wheels were not something that he was familiar with.

These cars were once common, driven as old beaters. Like with most old British sports cars they have also increased greatly in price. I like the classic mounting of the driving lights. It makes you miss metal bumpers.

The original an still the best.

It seems that there were once orange and other brightly colored Zs everywhere. I even managed to snag a couple for myself in the not too distant past. Luckily I sold them before they were worth anything, my usual practice! It's good to see the Z get the attention that it deserves. It was a real game changer. It's popularity and acceptance sounded a death knoll for the popular British models. The Z, and the 510 were also the first Japanese cars that earned the respect of the American motoring community.

It's nice to see examples of cars at their best. Sometimes you want to remember these cars as shiny and new, like the first time you saw them. I enjoy seeing survivor cars, not only at shows and museums but parked on the street displaying the patina of actual usage. My favorite website, Curbside Classics, is devoted to showcasing cars like that.

As in most museums, you can spend your time and focus on what you now find interesting. That will definitely change over the years. I have found my appreciation of many other types of cars expanding from what I would have liked when I was younger. You might visit this museum and choose to highlight another selection of cars, that's what keeps it interesting and fun.


                                          ---------------------------------------------------------------



From Glamour to Grime!

I have been keeping an eye on the Explorer and I had noticed that there was coolant pooling on the top of the timing case, under the thermostat housing. I knew that the coolant was either coming from a leaking hose or the housing seam. I checked the hose and it was okay. It seems that it was coming from the housing so I decided to remove it and replace the gasket.

As it turned out, there wasn't a gasket in place. The surface had been sealed with an application of RTV silicon sealant. It had deteriorated over time until there was a leak. I went to the local auto parts store and bought the gasket, a new bypass hose, and a new thermostat. If I was going to remove the housing I might as well replace the thermostat. The bypass hose was replaced because I anticipated bending it to point where the old hose would possibly break, or worse, start leaking at a later time. Much easier to do it now. I hadn't experienced any cooling problems, but better to replace these inexpensive parts while I'm in there. I could easily replace the upper hose when it becomes necessary.

I loosened the radiator connection of the upper hose, then disconnected the other end from the housing. I just bent the hose back and it didn't let any water escape from the radiator. I wasn't so lucky at the other end. Still, the loss was minimal.

Good old aluminum casting.
Unlike the plastic parts used on my 2007 Mustang.

There was enough room to work and remove the two bolts holding the housing after I disconnected the hose and removed the small bypass hose.  A small amount of coolant spilled out of the housing spigot and even more when I removed the housing itself. I used a long 1/2 inch box wrench to loosen the bolts initially. There was  limited space available to swing the wrench. A ratchet and an internally ratcheting box wrench really made the rest of the job easier.

These wrenches are worth their weight in gold when space is tight.
This design is now available at discount tool suppliers.

I cleaned up the two bolts by initially using a wire brush and then my die set to chase the threads of the bolts. They were pretty cruddy from rust and previously used sealers. A little extra time spent on this can save lots of problems later.

I keep my roll around work table covered with cardboard.

I just used a Q-tip to clean out the internal threads. (Don't tell my Wife!) The mating surfaces were also carefully cleaned. I applied my favorite sealer, Gasgacinch to the gasket and sealing area. It's good stuff!

You shouldn't wander too close to the racetrack
 with a sticky gasket in your hand!

Like many items sold to old time mechanics, the manufacturer used a picture of a pretty girl to get their interest. The can has't been redesigned- yet.

Yes, I was too lazy to bring out my tap set.

This is the type of basic repair that any hobbyist can do at home. As long as you don't mind getting your hands a little dirty. After buttoning everything up I refilled it with coolant and started the motor and let it heat up to check for leaks. There weren't any. Just to be sure I used the Explorer that week to drive to work. Check this repair off the to do list.