After putting 400 miles on my 79 B yesterday I started thinking about
just how reliable has the car been compared to my wifes 89
aeroshit,,,opps star. I bought the B in Sept of 94 and have put almost
30,000 miles on it It has always started without a whimper even in
winter when it can get down in the teens I t has never left me stranded
except the very first night that I bought it but that's another
story.The first thing i did was have the left motor mount replaced I got
screwed on that one because I didn't know how to do it and so I paid
$200 labor (ouch!!)Could have done it now for $15.When I had it a couple
of months it would suddenly die but always started again replaced old
electronic module for $90 from VB.A few months later the clutch started
feeling weird replaced slave cylinder $65 A few months after that the
clutch went soft again replaced clutch master cylinder( I know I shoulda
done them both at same time )$90 Next came the U joints which I again
paid to have done $90 As you get on a learning curve thanks to this list
you don't have to pay the labor costs.I've had to have some muffler work
done for total of about $75 over the years The worst thing that happend
was the exhaust manifold cracked luckily I had a spare one and did it
myself cost $5 for new gasket.Total of about $615 in 3 years and would
have been less IF I had done some of it myself,of course I put some
other money in it to make it better like tube shocks,V8 bushing
,minilite wheel but this is just how much it cost to keep the car
running.NOW my wifes Aerostar We bought it about the same time it had to
have the starter replaced and the flywheel AFTER the new starter took it
out $450.....It nedded a transmission rebuilt..$1400 ..brakes that only
last 10,000 miles tires that aren't much better water pump which I
cahnged myself on Thankgiving Day took all day it has 4 million bolts
holding it on and they are all different sizes!!So Iv'e probably dumped
close to $3000 keeping the supposedly reliable Aerostar running!So I
believe the bad rep our LBCs get is exactly that a bad rep These cars
are just as reliable as the next car but just need a little maintenance
to keep them up and are much more fun to drive,the main difference is
when a newer "reliable "car breaks down it costs a whole lot more to fix
it .I know when I go to work tommorow and tell my friend I drove the B
400 + miles they will say"You drove that far in one of those"I'll just
smile and know the truth about our friends.
Pat 79 B
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