first drive after a loooooong slumber and shes making a bad noise.

[gas man]

so I have a all original 39 mercury. seems to be a car that was driven alot . I bought it a few months back and since have installed new brakes , front motor mounts, distributor , coil , plugs , plug wires and gas tank. the car fired up on first try and purred like a kitten. the car has sat for at least 10 years. so I took it for its first drive today. pulled out of the garage after figuring out first is left and down and not left and up. it made a really bad shutter sound , then when cruising in 1st it made a grinding noise at low rpms but went away when the rpms went up a little . deceleration in 1 st was even worse. clutch in car in neutral coasting and still nasty grinding noises. when driving in first it almost seemed like the drive shaft was hitting the bottom of the car every revolution. so I turned around and parked it in the garage. what could it be ? I know it's a vague question, but where should I look first? front motor mounts are brand new . maybe there not tight enough? The 2 rear tranny mounts look old as dirt. other then that I havent touched much . I don't have any history on the car. thanks for any help. ready to get this back on the road.

[petehoovie]

Probably the reason that "the car has sat for at least 10 years"....Clutch not disengaging is a possibility....

[gas man]

it makes the actual shift fine. if I co Really really slow forward or reverse it doesn't do it. the second i go above 10mph it starts also clutch pressed in and grinding when coasting is a new one for me.

[petehoovie]

I'd remove the floor mat and pull the top off the transmission to see whats going on in there....Just six bolts to remove....

[ford38v8]

Gas man, welcome to the Ford Barn, and congrats on your new-to-you Merc. Sounds like you've jumped right in with little experience in old car stuff, like so many of us have, but never fear, its going to be ok with some judicial diagnosis and some elbow grease. You're going to get your hands dirty, but that's part of the fun! Firstly, let's determine the exact origin of the grinding: You mentioned the motor mounts, so starting there, the fronts and rear mounts should be new rubber, tightened to just the point of rubber barely beginning to swell, no more. Be sure to reinstall the cotter pins. Check the radiator to fan clearance: A loose motor mount can cause the fan to contact the radiator under a load as you stated "...at low RPM", and will leave a tell tale fresh scarring on the radiator of such contact. While replacing the rear mounts, check to see that the steady rods are in place: Steady rods connect from the frame to each side of the block at the aft end. The purpose of these rods is to prevent unwanted movement of the engine under load. These preliminary tasks can prevent many wasted dollars and time investigating the rest of the drive train, and with a minimum of time and dollars invested. Get back to us on your findings, please?

[richard crow]

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jack the car up put on horses. now start car put in speed. now put your hand where the torque tube meets the diff. housing. you can use a steel rod or a long screw driver. agenst your ear some times the coller pin brakes drops down & rubs on the tube making a rubbing sound

[jimTN]

Did you fill the transmission, rear end and lube the u joint housing with about a tube of grease?

[G.M.]

My guess would be the grease in the U joint sagged down
to the bottom and the U joint is in a dry space. I would add
more grease, use a low drip or drop point grease so it melts
a little when the U joint warms up. Heat it up with an electric
heat gun. I have seen this before and had the same sounds.
This happened on a V/8 club tour a number of years ago to
a 1934 sedan. We added at least a full tube of grease and
the sound went away and he completed the tour. Years later
he was still running on tours with no problems. G.M.

[hook00pad]

The shuddering sounds like the clutch grabbing from a rusty flywheel, possibly. The grinding could also be rust on the brake drums, which should have quietened after a couple of uses of the brakes.

Al Hook

[gas man]

remember it's a 39 merc. not sure if it matters , but for the life of me I cant find the grease fitting . i see a fitting near the u joint on the bottom but I'm guessing it's for the speedo cable. where is the zerk fitting located exactly

[marko39]

Originally Posted by gas man

remember it's a 39 merc. not sure if it matters , but for the life of me I cant find the grease fitting . i see a fitting near the u joint on the bottom but I'm guessing it's for the speedo cable. where is the zerk fitting located exactly

That's the fitting for the u joint. When filling, it's best to remove the speedometer turtle to see how much grease you are adding. The turtle is on top of the torque tube where speedo cable attaches . Mark

[gas man]

I have the car on Jack's and an under the car. the fitting I'm seeing is threaded on the outside and kinda facing the driver's side. it's at the 4 o'clock postion if you were facing the car

[gas man]

well I decided not to wait and find the grease fitting. I took the rear apart and found the ring gear had a few chipped teeth . I have another ring gear. how do I seperate the differential housing?

[ford38v8]

Ring gears are matched with pinions, serial numbered in pairs. Both axles, ring gear, and spider gear are removed from the driver side as an assembly. The pinion must be pressed out of the banjo. Reassembly is a process that can be explained in steps here, but is best done by reading the Ford Service Bulletins, or a Motors Manual of the appropriate era.

[gas man]

long story short , I have the original ring gear on the shelf. just need to get the carrier apart

[glennpm]

Locate the two "clam shells" at the front of the torque tube. The grease Zerk fitting is located in one of the halves.

[gas man]

got it all back together with the original ring gear. drives like a champ.

[tubman]

Congratulations on a job well done! Quick, too! It would have taken me at least two weeks to do what you did.

[Mart]

If you had the original ring gear on the shelf, were you previously running with a mismatched one?

Really glad you have fixed it though.

[glennpm]

Excellent job done!