1988 Rear View Mirror

Hey all, I'm new here. Hi!
I just bought an '88 TC. My dad had one when I was a kid and I taught myself how to drive stick (and do donuts) in it when I was 13. So it's got sentimental value for sure. My dad is coming to visit me in Tucson in a couple weeks and I've got a few things to finish up before he gets here.
Rear view mirror and clip are busted. Auto dim eye is fine, I just need the mirror and clip. Anyone?
The blower motor has a mouse nest in it so I need to remove and clean it out. I've searched for a video on how to do it without breaking stuff but no luck. Anyone?
Auxiliary fan doesn't kick on, so she overheats sitting in traffic. Main fan works fine, it's got a new module. Any ideas on where to start on the aux fan?
Fuel pump seems to stop working when it's hot. Is there a relay or something, easy fix? Or should I just spring for the pump and swap it out.
Thanks in advance for any help!
Brian in Tucson
'88 TC 5 speed

Good morning Brian, welcome to the forum. I cleaned out my blower on my 88 as well, it was super easy. Pull the glove box door to get it out of the way, then remove the screws that hold the blower on the heater assembly, disconnect the power cables and place on the ground. I cleaned the blower assembly with some simple green and a toilet cleaning brush and some light water to rinse it. I then used a small shop vac to clean out the heater box area where the blower was, the heater core is right there so a good vacuum helps to clean it out. As for the fan, did you try hot wiring the fan to verify that it works? The temp sensor that controls the fans is located on the intake manifold top between cylinders 2-3, pain to get to, but easier if you remove the upper manifold. Also, the small hose that runs to the lower manifold where the lower meets the upper, that connection like to get clogged up and prohibit flow to the temp sensor, you can remove the hose and run a screwdriver or a pick into the connection to try cleaning it out. Mine was so clogged up I had to remove the connection and use a drill to clean it out. I would simply replace the fuel pump with at least a new 190lph WALBRO pump, most of us run a 255 when we start to run the power up, but anything is better than the stock 90 pump. I would not replace it with a stock replacement unless you are absolutely certain you are leaving it all stock. But to change the pump is easy to do, make sure your tank is mostly low in fuel, so it weighs less, drop it and change the pump. it took me maybe 2 hours to do mine. You may also want to replace the tank to fill tube seals while you have the tank dropped. Hope this helps, let us know how it works out for you.

Not sure if you have the automatic or manual climate control although the blower removal should be similar. The motors are not the same and the ones for the automatic climate control are quite scarce. I just swapped the motor in mine and not too difficult. I used a long 1/4" extension to get the bolts out. When installing the bolts, I put a small piece of electrical tape around the bolt shoulder area/socket... just enough to hold it on and get the threads started and a few wraps around the socket/extension to keep it from coming off... once the threads are engaged you can pull the extension/socket out. Makes installing the bolts actually quite easy.

As far as the fuel pump, check the inertia switch. I've had to jump it a few times generally when it's hot. I could tell when I couldn't hear the fuel pump prime when the ignition is switched on, ran a jumper at the connector and that took care of it. I did get another inertia switch and saw it a few times and when I finally got around to installing it, couldn't remember where is! I was recently working on the taillights and noticed the jumper wire still there and been looking for the switch for the past few days!

When you say mirror and clip, do you mean the button on the window glass?

I would suggest getting an auto dim mirror from a lincoln, not the motorized type but the electro chromatic type. They work perfectly.

On the topic of overheating, I know it gets HOT in your area but under normal conditions here my secondary fan never kicks in, even when it's 100 degrees and I've got the A/C on high.  Even under those conditions my car does not overheat.  Are you judging the overheating by the factory gauge?  If so, that is an unreliable source because my gauge will read very hot when the car is only around 205 or 210 and those temps are fine.  Do you have access to a scanner that you can plug into the car?  These cars have two temp sensors, one for the gauge and one for the ECM.  I plugged my scanner in and watched the temps going to the ECM and that's how I determined that my gauge was inaccurate.  You could also use an infrared gun. 
If it is in fact over heating have you checked the other common items such as the thermostat?  Radiator look clean?  Any signs that it's weeping water somewhere?  Any signs of water in the oil? 

The blower fan isn't bad at all.  I had the same thing in my car and it has automatic climate control.  I just pulled the glove box door out and there is a plate over the blower motor.  I took those bolts and and wiggled the plate around until it came out, you've got to hold your tongue right.  Cleaned out all the junk and put it back together.  My heat and A/C worked but it would hardly move any air at all.  I found that the blow was completely packed with junk and it went up into the heater core so I took the motor/blower wheel out and cleaned everything out.  Now it works great. 
This is what I found. 

[img][/img]

Good morning Brian, welcome to the forum. I cleaned out my blower on my 88 as well, it was super easy. Pull the glove box door to get it out of the way, then remove the screws that hold the blower on the heater assembly, disconnect the power cables and place on the ground. I cleaned the blower assembly with some simple green and a toilet cleaning brush and some light water to rinse it. I then used a small shop vac to clean out the heater box area where the blower was, the heater core is right there so a good vacuum helps to clean it out. As for the fan, did you try hot wiring the fan to verify that it works? The temp sensor that controls the fans is located on the intake manifold top between cylinders 2-3, pain to get to, but easier if you remove the upper manifold. Also, the small hose that runs to the lower manifold where the lower meets the upper, that connection like to get clogged up and prohibit flow to the temp sensor, you can remove the hose and run a screwdriver or a pick into the connection to try cleaning it out. Mine was so clogged up I had to remove the connection and use a drill to clean it out. I would simply replace the fuel pump with at least a new 190lph WALBRO pump, most of us run a 255 when we start to run the power up, but anything is better than the stock 90 pump. I would not replace it with a stock replacement unless you are absolutely certain you are leaving it all stock. But to change the pump is easy to do, make sure your tank is mostly low in fuel, so it weighs less, drop it and change the pump. it took me maybe 2 hours to do mine. You may also want to replace the tank to fill tube seals while you have the tank dropped. Hope this helps, let us know how it works out for you.

Awesome, thanks. Got access to the blower motor an cleaned it out. Sheesh. FULL of mouse house. Took out a crazy amount of materials and got it all cleaned up. Blows great now.
As for the other stuff, I guess I'll start digging into that. Thanks for the tip on the pump. Not looking forward to dropping the tank. :/ And thanks for the tip on that aux fan. Was hoping it might be something that doesn't involve replacing parts. Fingers crossed.

On the topic of overheating, I know it gets HOT in your area but under normal conditions here my secondary fan never kicks in, even when it's 100 degrees and I've got the A/C on high.  Even under those conditions my car does not overheat.  Are you judging the overheating by the factory gauge?  If so, that is an unreliable source because my gauge will read very hot when the car is only around 205 or 210 and those temps are fine.  Do you have access to a scanner that you can plug into the car?  These cars have two temp sensors, one for the gauge and one for the ECM.  I plugged my scanner in and watched the temps going to the ECM and that's how I determined that my gauge was inaccurate.  You could also use an infrared gun. 
If it is in fact over heating have you checked the other common items such as the thermostat?  Radiator look clean?  Any signs that it's weeping water somewhere?  Any signs of water in the oil? 

The blower fan isn't bad at all.  I had the same thing in my car and it has automatic climate control.  I just pulled the glove box door out and there is a plate over the blower motor.  I took those bolts and and wiggled the plate around until it came out, you've got to hold your tongue right.  Cleaned out all the junk and put it back together.  My heat and A/C worked but it would hardly move any air at all.  I found that the blow was completely packed with junk and it went up into the heater core so I took the motor/blower wheel out and cleaned everything out.  Now it works great. 
This is what I found. 

[img][/img]

WHOA. Mine wasn't THAT bad. Just got it all cleaned out and blower works great now. As for the cooling, yeah, I was going by the gauge. Good to know. I'll check that, and if I need to I'll follow Kuch's guidance on troubleshooting.

Not sure if you have the automatic or manual climate control although the blower removal should be similar.  The motors are not the same and the ones for the automatic climate control are quite scarce.  I just swapped the motor in mine and not too difficult.  I used a long 1/4" extension to get the bolts out.  When installing the bolts, I put a small piece of electrical tape around the bolt shoulder area/socket... just enough to hold it on and get the threads started and a few wraps around the socket/extension to keep it from coming off... once the threads are engaged you can pull the extension/socket out.  Makes installing the bolts actually quite easy. 
As far as the fuel pump, check the inertia switch.  I've had to jump it a few times generally when it's hot.  I could tell when I couldn't hear the fuel pump prime when the ignition is switched on, ran a jumper at the connector and that took care of it.  I did get another inertia switch and saw it a few times and when I finally got around to installing it, couldn't remember where is! I was recently working on the taillights and noticed the jumper wire still there and been looking for the switch for the past few days!
When you say mirror and clip, do you mean the button on the window glass?
I would suggest getting an auto dim mirror from a lincoln, not the motorized type but the electro chromatic type.  They work perfectly.

E65Y-17700-A
Awesome, thanks. I did get that blower cleaned out and it works great now. I did check the inertia switch, but didn't try jumping it. Because I have no idea what that means. :}
By the mirror clip I mean the part that pressed on to the mirror. I just need one that will work with the stock eye. Do you know what years of Lincolns would work? I have part number of E65Y-17700-A. Can't find it anywhere and don't know what it crosses with for other models/years.

I'll add one more possible cause for overheating in traffic (I just went through this). The OEM radiator cap is a key component to this cooling system. It is designed to deliver coolant to the overflow bottle when the engine is hot and also suck in coolant from the bottle as it cools down. This keeps an air pocket from forming in the system. I replaced my OEM cap with Gates 31523 and found that after 3-4 drive cycles, I was overheating at idle. When the engine was cold, I would open the cap and find the coolant was down 2-3 inches even thought the bottle had coolant in it. I replaced the Gates with a Motorcraft RS62 and it has worked as it should since then (the radiator was full to the top when cold and no more overheating). Note that the RS62 is only 13lbs, not 16lbs. I found out later that the Motorcraft RS90 is 16lbs and should fit.

that is the most clogged heater blower I have seen. Damn

that is the most clogged heater blower I have seen. Damn

The worst I've ever seen too.  I'm amazed it moved any air at all.  After it was cleaned it was like a whole new heat and A/C system.