DPDISXR4Ti

It'll still be the Turbo Lima motor, but stroked to 2.5L. Nope, still gonna have IRS; not all 8.8's were solid axle, so an IRS 8.8 Pumpkin is available. Of course, that doesn't mean it's at all "plug & play"! Tranny will be a T5. The stock 5-speed T9 was probably more prone to failure than the C3 Automatic. It's too bad the bean counters had their way with the Merkur program. The car was castrated by the time it got over here.

No, only the Europeans got the 4x4 version of the Sierra. It would have been nice if I could have adapted the 4WD from the Brat, but that would have taken the project to a whole different level of complication and the parts just aren't strong enough. As it is, I'm going to be dropping in a custom-made Ford 8.8 rear-end assembly into this.

No problem - I'm with you. But short of buying up every Merkur about to get junked, and then finding an appropriately-zoned place to store them, well, you get the idea - the supply far exceeds the demand. It's the same story with most cars this age. The measurements work out really well, which is what caused me to give myself the "green light" on this project. The XR has a nice horizontal ledge from the B pillar back, and the "reverse ledge" on the Brat in the same area will sit right on top of that (I'll cut the Brat body right under the reverse ledge). I suspect that the B pillar will be the toughest part, as the angle to the roof line is steeper on the XR. The consistent theme will be to retain as much of the XR body as possible, to maintain the structural integrity.

Well, both cars were on the way to the junkyard until I stepped in. The Merkur was literally hours away from being sent to it's final resting place. The Aussie Ford utes were very much the inspiration for this project - here's their most recent version - yet another cool car from down-under that we'll never see here: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v148/DPDISXR4Ti/FordF6Tornado.jpg The Baja was somewhat of an inspiration too, and it did make me consider using a Merkur Scorpio as the platform and go the 4-door route. But the dimensions just didn't work out right.

Well, Paul "insisted" that I post some pics of my project, so I'll start with the Photoshop Mock-up of what the end result should look like: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v148/DPDISXR4Ti/XR-br4ti2.jpg If only it was that easy in "real life". Here's where the project stands at this early stage: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v148/DPDISXR4Ti/XRBRATi-3.jpg

Okay, gotcha'. I was just figuring that seam was done that way for strength. I can't imagine a butt weld would be nearly as strong as an over-lapping pinch weld. However, if I was to clad the inside panels with diamond plate that came up over that shoulder, it might make it into a non-issue. It would also mean the diamond plate would just need a single 90-degree bend. Again however, this approach only works if I just address the area where that seam is horizontal. As far as welding and warping is concerned, this might be a good time to consider using a panel adhesive instead. The stuff that's on the market today really is incredible, and we're not talking about a structural panel here, so it's do-able. I'd probably use the access panels to lay a bead down from the inside before cutting the pinch weld off. Too bad I don't have a rotisiere to roll the car upside-down for that task, and let gravity be my friend! Appreciate the feedback - keep it coming...

I think that would help, but only a little, as the two pieces of sheet metal, now made "one", would still be sticking up in the air looking silly and vulnerable to bend-over damage. Thinking about it some more, a better idea with the diamond plate might be having it come up from the inside and then put a "box" over the seam (two 90-degree bends). The edge that touches the outer body would get a piece of rubber molding over it to protect the finish. Again, I'd have to stick with the original molding up and over the top. Keep the ideas coming....

Let's face it, the Brat bed is sorta whimpy. The thing that bothers me the most is the way the factory spot-welded the inner to outer sheet metal, leaving that exposed seam. That type of joint is meant for the BOTTOM of a car, not the top! Oh sorry, they did put some cheesy trim over it that easily gets damaged the first time you lean something more than 10 pounds on it! Has anyone built anything to go over that seam and make it a bit more "industrial strength", both in appearance and function? Unlike a conventional truck, the challenge with the Brat is the way that seam zig-zags right up the roof line. I've thought about using diamond plate panels that cover the inner sides of the bed and tailgate, and then make a 90-degree turn, butting up against the seam. Can't say I'm thrilled with that idea - I'd need to finish it off towards the outside somehow. But again, that approach would only be viable for the section of the bed where the seam is horizontal. Maybe I use the cheesy OEM trim from that up and over the roof? Can't imagine I'm the first one to contemplate this. Has anyone done anything unique and/or even given the idea some thought? One additional note, just to raise the bar a bit... I do still want to be able to use the cap on occassion.

The trim is held in w/ Phillips head screws - no issue there (if there is, stop and go lease a new car . It's the removal of the ignition switch itself where you get to deal with the two head-less screws. I removed one at a junkyard using a pointed drift and a hammer. The bolts weren't all that tight, so it was relatively easy to get them turning. Obviously you'd want to replace them with "normal" headed bolts. My plan was to replace the whole switch with a better quality one removed from a later car (junkyard car had the key in ignition), but I scrapped the car before getting to that point.

Thanks Noah, that's what I needed to know.

I should have pointed out that I wanted to pull the motor and tranny as one unit, hence the desire to knock the axles out. Okay, I've clearly been exposed now as not really being a Subbie-dude. I tend to use AWD and 4WD interchangeably; I know it's not right, but I guess I've never bother to understand the difference. Wanna splain 2 me???

This has probably been covered, but I didn't find anything useful after doing a search. I'm looking to remove the half-shafts from the '85 Brat so that I can pull the engine. What's the easiest way to do this? I'm guessing they have pins like the rears, yes? If I just knock the inner pins out is there enough play to get the shafts out and yank the motor? Thanks....

Thanks for the feedback. I'm aware of the practical approach that works, but was also curious what the law actually indicates. I'm remembering now a televised documentary piece which indicated how some states were very lax about "rebuildables", and the deaths that resulted from shodily repaired cars. Related footnote... I recently discovered that starting about 1998, the VIN stickers on the door jam will read "VOID" once removed. At least for Ford's they do - not sure how widespread the change was.

Anyone know where the VIN is imprinted into the body on a Brat? I'm not talking about the tag on the dashboard - that's easy. I'm talking about the ID number that is usually imprinted into the floor pan somewhere. On a related note, any idea what the law indicates when combining two vehicles into one? I have valid titles for both, and I could make sure the VINs on the car match. I suppose from a practical matter, nobody's going to care about a 20 year-old car.

There are better products than POR-15. I can't recall the name off-hand, but the one I prefer is much better as a primer, since the top-coat will adhere to it. POR-15 is too slick for good topcoat adhesion, and it doesn't hold up well to UV uncoated..

I had actually completely forgotten about the adjustment feature! That's done via that bolt in the center, right? Threaded all the way down is the stiffest setting, pushing the height up, right? Thanks!

Wow, that was easy! Just completed the task in less than 45 minutes. One of the axles was a bit frozen in place but with my friend Mr. Crow-bar and Mr. BFH, I had it out pretty quick. Without the drivetrain, I'm gonna guess this thing weighs less than 150 lbs. I think I'll forget about the idea of making the width of the trailer an even 48" width and just mount the side-rails directly to the original body mount locations. This will give me somewhere around 42" width, which is still wide enough to fit my ATV.

Thanks very much for the detailed info - perfect! I'm trying to decide if I should bother moving the wheels out about an inch so that the width of the trailer would be exactly 48" rather than the ~46" that it would be if I left them as-is. I suspect that I don't want to mess with the hub to spring lever arm interface area, so wheel spacers and longer studs would be the likely route I'd go. People do the oddest things with these cars, don't ya think???

Thanks for telling me what I wanted to hear! So do I just remove the 5 bolts on the diff side and the shaft come out? Do I need to drive that pin out near the back side of the hub?

Yes, I'm converting the rear-end assembly from a '85 Brat into a utility trailer. The torsion bar spring setup makes this a very viable project, I think. I got the whole thing dropped out of the "parter" yesterday with little fanfare. Obviously I won't have a need for the differential or half-shafts for this project, but I'm trying to determine now if the half-shafts play a significant role in the fastening of the hub to the control arm. It appears that they may, in which case, I'd probably need to remove them and cut them down to a stub, if only to serve in a fastening role. Originally, I was figuring to just remove the half-shafts and fabricate some plates to cover the voids, but I'm not sure now if that might be a viable approach. Can someone who knows these rear axles give me a quick lesson on their removal? That might help me to figure out what's going on with this setup. I searched, but most of the R&R lessons seem to be focused on the fronts. Thanks...

You're out of luck unless you're so desperate that a rusted out tailgate would be of value to you.

Interior from one was completely gone; I don't recall what the color was of the other one. That one had gotten an odd-ball re-paint of flat black and gray. You're dreaming on the roll bar, push bar goodies question....

I seem to recall seeing some other EA81 vintage stuff - it wasn't what I was looking for, so I wasn't paying very close attention. Of course, I found all sorts of stuff that I wasn't really looking for. Anyone ever use an external wastegate from an Audi 5000T? Can you say, "EGR valve, that'll be $5 please?"

Just thought I'd let y'all know that there are currently two ~'85 Brats at the infamous Harry's U-Pull-It in Hazleton PA. Both are located about in the middle of the foreign car section, and they both exhibit typical rust decay, which is probably what put them there. The interior of one was completely gutted, the other was still mostly there, although both had been picked over.

Thanks to XSNRG for the info on those screws that look like rivets! Using a good quality pointed punch and hammer, I was gradually able to get the screws rotating out. One suggestion in hindsight, get them both loosened together rather than taking one all the way out first and then going after the other. The second screw took way longer since the assembly was flopping and rotating all over the place. I haven't yet determined if this switch will swap into the Brat readily. I can tell you that the 5 wires coming off the back of the switch are a heavier gauge than the ones found on the Brat. They're all black with either a white, yellow, blue, or red stripe; the 5th one is solid black.