1999 astro cargo build thread

[stent]

I have a friend in Steamboat and they got over 6".

that is great news !! and it travelled cross-country and back special delivery to reach me !
thanks leeann

[Leeann_93]

She was pretty excited about it, mostly because of the chance to dampen the fires, but that also means skiing isn't that far off...

[stent]

on my last page i posted a picture of a cruise control module, cable & wire harness that i bought on a JY trip, with the intention of installing it in my van.
here's a closer-up pic of the JY module and cable :

JY cruise box

even though my '99 cargo van doesn't have cruise control, the factory underhood wire harness & connector for cruise control were pre-installed.

harness & plug already in van

my van's unused cruise control module plug has a dust cap, so the male insert part of it has stayed clean all these years :

capped plug in van

test fitting the plug - goes right in !!

it fits !!!

my van doesn't have a tilt steering column :

original steering column

i believe all of the vans of similar age to my van ('99) that had cruise control also came with a tilt steering column - the part numbers for multi-function switches with cruise control that i've researched all seem to reference to tilt columns. i never found a cruise control with non-tilt column combo.
so instead of getting a switch with cruise control and trying to fit it to my non-tilt column i got a JY tilt column with cruise switch.

JY tilt column with cruise switch

JY column

i got really lucky and found a column with the key - with the key it's easy to take out the lock cylinder, so i can swap my original lock cylinder over and hopefully not have any problem with the vehicle anti-theft triggering.

with the key !!!!!!

the JY won't sell a column that still has an attached air bag. to get the airbag off you need to turn the wheel to get to the clips that hold the airbag to the wheel, and you need the key to release the wheel lock to turn the wheel, another reason to find a column with the key. this column also has the thicker, upgraded steering wheel. if my cruise control deal turns bogus, i'll still have a nice column setup with tilt & fat wheel. :

airbagless, upgraded wheel

i cut the JY column's wire harness on the van side of the big connector to compare it all against my van's original harness. i hope the factory prewired my van for the cruise control here like they did under the hood - we'll see & i'll report back the findings.

chop chop

the little white-tipped pin sticking out is a piece i bought after reading the factory service manual section on removing the steering column - the pin is for keeping the column outer tube and the steering shaft from twisting around too much and damaging the air bag coil while the column is disconnected from the dash & steering box; i don't have the manual with me but i'll elaborate on this point later.

pin closeup

safety pin

i'm in the process of adding some other things in my van that i might need to "roll-out" the dashboard for (tweeters, switch harnesses for rear heat & AC, rear defogger main feeder, power seat harness, stereo preamp leads up the a-pillar; and i need to make a decent sized hole in the firewall somewhere for a +feed wire for 2 amplifiers). anyone who's "rolled-out" an astro dashboard knows what a chore it is to do, so i only want to do it once - the best time for this is when the steering column is completely out. i practiced the "roll-out" on a real beater van at the JY, so i don't feel guilty about the destruction. plus i spent some money, and the steering column i took out is laying in the back seat with the dash air ducting if anybody wants it :

stripped

i'm sure the entire dash unit was designed for quick and easy installation on the assembly line, but to service anything in it will probably suck. several pieces of plastic air ducting are intertwined with each other and the front & rear of the unit. a complicated, full width aluminum casting blocks access to most everything. the clump of wiring is between the back side of the aluminum piece and the ductwork.

dashout

i won't know if this adding-on of all of the cruise control components will actually work until i try it. i think i've got all of the pieces (assuming i don't ruin the van's original shift cable), and the other things i want to do at the same time are all about ready to go. it might be a while before i do the swap/install though because i'm not into working in the cold with no garage, the date is halloweenish, the van is my daily driver, and everything works as is.

[dcsleeper]

looks like you're doing a proper job! thumbs up!

a complicated, full width aluminum casting blocks access to most everything. the clump of wiring is between the back side of the aluminum piece and the ductwork.

hat pic made me cry a little..

[sixsix]

Goodness, that is quite ambitious...
- Thanks for the Tips on the Keyed column and that Special 'Cheater Pin' that noone knows how to get a hold of ...

- ha ha, Thanks and I understand not telling all your secrets or even 2 or 3...
LOL

[stent]

sorry for the tears dcsleeper...........
this is what i got from my JY dashboard attack :

hackjob

it's the underdash fuse box, with a few intact circuits and everything else cut off as pigtails. the van this is from is a 2003, it's not quite the same as my 1999, but i can use it. nothing else was available at the JY to play with when i went. when i see a 1999 show up i'll look at it too but be more gentle.......
the long purple wire going to the black connector is the +feed to a dutch door rear window defogger grid. i can't find any harness or connector related to rear dutch doors on my barn door cargo van where it would show up at the passenger side kick panel, but i will need a working rear window grid feed wire in this location to power the passenger side mirror elements for a heated mirror project i've been working on. the purple wire runs from the underdash fuse box, behind the big aluminum crosspiece in the dash assembly, and to the black connector at the passenger side kick panel, so to try and confirm my guess about the wire run and get the actual wire out in one piece, i flopped the whole dash assembly out and made a mess. i cut off most everything else because the more wire the more $$$$ charged at the JY.

purple wire

missing connector

awhile back i bought an HVAC control from another JY passenger van that had dutch doors with the electric rear window defogger.

r.def !!!!!!

R.DEF!!!!!!!

the above 2 pics show the JY dutch door HVAC control mounted in my barn door cargo van and plugged into my so-far untouched dash harness, as part of my plan to use the rear defogger timer & switch for controlling and powering heated mirrors. note that i got the rear defogger indicator light to come on just by pushing the button, and the built-in timer turns it off like it's supposed to. this partially prewired stuff is really fun to explore. i'm not exactly sure yet what has been powered on/activated to complete a circuit to get the indicator light on, but it's a great sign, because it means i should be able to use circuits and fuses that are already in the van, rather than add-on everything. i did some pics & writing about this project on my page 3 but put it on the back burner when i couldn't find the purple wire in my van.
i had previously found an actual labeled 10A heated mirror circuit, mostly prewired, already in the van (see my page 3). according to the service manual for a '99 van, the mirror circuit splits off from the rear defogger circuit between the defogger switch and the underdash fuse box. when the mirror heat circuit comes out of the fuse box there is a splice somewhere that splits the feed to two connectors, one at the drivers side & one at the passenger side kick panels (note : in the 2003 fuse box i got, the mirror heat feed wires are no longer present, the mirror heat circuit is not labeled, but it's just hiding, you can still do the same thing, i'll explain when i get pics of what i'm talking about). for my project the total current draw of the 4 velvac elements i'll be using (see page 3) is over 10A, so i need to do something else because i don't want to overload the circuit (it might be fine with a 15A fuse instead of a 10A, but i'm being conservative). so my plan is to run the purple wire i bought at the JY, from my fuse box (which does have a spot marked for a 30A rear defogger circuit, see pic of my fuse box on my page 3, it's kinda grainy to say for sure, but that fuse socket might not have any wires in it, i need to play contortionist & verify), to the passenger side kick panel to power the 2 mirror elements on that side, and use the existing 10A mirror heat circuit i found in the van for the 2 mirror elements on the driver side. i'll leave the existing passenger side connector unused, then i won't worry about any current overdraw on the 10A circuit wires. i haven't tried to dismount my van's fusebox yet and turn it around backwards to see what is actually back there - if the holy purple wire IS there and i just couldn't find the other end, then i think it will be easier to connect the one i bought to the fusebox and do my own wire run. this little project is one of the main things i want to have ready to go when i change out my steering column.

hi mike, for you i will reveal my secret. i got 2 of the pins on ebay, one for the van's original column & one for the JY column. i'm at work now & my service manual & info about the pin is at home so i'll update later for you. the mess of wires & the fusebox in the pics above is why i was figuring out how to draw arrows on johnny & telly. i finally got a printer with a built-in scanner, so i need to do some scanning, pic taking & marking up of pics, then i'll come back & add to all of this.

[stent]

Goodness, that is quite ambitious...
- Thanks for the Tips on the Keyed column and that Special 'Cheater Pin' that noone knows how to get a hold of ...

- ha ha, Thanks and I understand not telling all your secrets or even 2 or 3...
LOL

hi mike,
here's scans out of the '99 manual for removing the steering column that mention the pin :

pin thing 1

pin thing 2

it's a kent-moore tool, part number J-42640 :

pin

[stent]

here's a couple of wiring diagram page scans pertaining to the mirror heat circuit from the '99 manual :

i'll mark up copies of these and add accompanying pictures for an explanation of what i'm doing when i get a chance.......

[AstroWill]

Might want to try out https://www.pinta-project.com/

It's a really super simple image editing program that makes marking up images a breeze.

[sixsix]

Might want to try out https://www.pinta-project.com/

It's a really super simple image editing program that makes marking up images a breeze.

Thanks Will, I have been looking for something effective other than Adobe crap.
I almost feel compelled to use our store-bought Photoshop Elements ...
- even though it is a pain in the arse for simple stuff.

[stent]

SUCKO !!!
the van left a piddle puddle of anti-freeze on the ground at work this morning.
i put it up on ramps & took a look......

my first guess is the water pump is leaking - then a fast commute blew part of the mess rearward - oh well, the leaking anti-freeze is loosening up the gunked-on power steering fluid thats been slow leaking for years.
i am surprised that the front of the engine & the harmonic balancer look dry.
the hose connections look good.
the radiator looks good.
the biggest drip location is above the oil cooler lines towards the front of the engine - see the first pic - makes me wonder about freeze plugs - ugh.
i set an appointment for monday morning at the neighborhood goodyear store for a pressure test and let them find out exactly what happened & what needs fixing. i'll pay some $ for the pros-to-look-at-it-first and have them tell me about it, but i couldn't isolate the leak with a drop light & eyeballs, too much stuff all packed together under a short hood.
i guess i'll do the labor for whatever the fix is as soon as i can unless we get an arctic blast - i know that paying for a shop to dig down into the front would = a big $ ouch. i had previously planned to change the power steering pump, water pump & do an alternator upgrade all at once myself anyway, just not next week. hopefully i can limp around on the side streets without buying stock in Prestone till i know what i need and get the parts.

[dchan51360]

Most LAPS have free tool borrowing programs. Check and see if they have a radiator pressure tester.

You just get the system full, connect it to the radiator cap and pump up the pressure. You can usually find where it's dripping.

FYI very often the weep hole on the water pump will start to leak but by the time you stop and check it, it will dry off because it's so hot. Everywhere it's sitting on grease covered areas, it will linger. The pressure tester would help you find this.

I've also seen where the little plastic drain/stop cock at the bottom of the radiator, on the passenger side of the radiator, will loosen or the o-ring will start to seep. and as you said driving fast will blow any fluids dripping around in there all over everything else.

Good luck and good hunting!

[sixsix]

Is that a FRAM oil filter there... not that it has anything to do w/ a bummer leak n' all...

[stent]

Good luck and good hunting!

thanks dchan!!

[stent]

Is that a FRAM oil filter there... not that it has anything to do w/ a bummer leak n' all...

"fWAAAHm"

[stent]

got the shop diagnosis this afternoon : leaking lower intake manifold gasket.


i guess that explains why i didn't see a big mess on the front of the engine when i was hoping for a water pump leak...

my first order of business now is a major steam cleaning - the whole top of the engine is filthy, way to dirty to be exposing its innards's.

i can fix the van at work - we have a little storage area that i can nose the van into - it might go in to behind the front doors & still have some working room in front - but it's primitive, i'll have to rig up heat, light, etc.

i'll have to decide how far to go with repairs - intake gaskets, injector spider, valve cover gaskets, i've got tune-up stuff that i can install. my self-imposed dilema is that what i've really been wanting to do is install a Mercruiser Marine MPI intake setup and run it with a "0411" computer. i can do the mechanical installation but don't know how to interface & tune the computer - dang it !! - if this was summertime i could just ride my bike while i figure it out.

the van is my daily driver, i don't want the downtime to drag on & on at this time of the year, so i need to get to it, whatever i decide to do.

after i saw the first puddle, i filled the coolant tank up, and i've used about 2/3rds of the tank in about 40 miles.

has anyone tried re-torquing the intake manifold bolts to coax out a few more miles while the plan of action is being formulated ?
any comments are welcome

[AstroWill]

i'll have to decide how far to go with repairs - intake gaskets, injector spider, valve cover gaskets, i've got tune-up stuff that i can install.

Done in a day. If you are going down the the lower intake gaskets, I would upgrade the spider, and use all the gaskets that come with the kit.
Gaskets> https://amzn.to/2JavZxC
Injectors with bracket> https://amzn.to/2J6lVWH

My self-imposed dilema is that what i've really been wanting to do is install a Mercruiser Marine MPI intake setup and run it with a "0411" computer. i can do the mechanical installation but don't know how to interface & tune the computer - dang it !! - if this was summertime i could just ride my bike while i figure it out.

That sucks because now would be a great time to do the upgrade if it's in the plan. Could run the same size injectors as stock if they are available but that adds cost. Go with an adjustable FPR...

the van is my daily driver, i don't want the downtime to drag on & on at this time of the year, so i need to get to it, whatever i decide to do.

Some will say not to use stop leak additives, even though some engines come like that from the factory. I would be willing to do that to get me through the winter knowing that I was going to tear it down and fix it come summer.

[stent]

thank you for your thoughts on the matter AstroWill, i really appreciate them !!
and happy turkey day everybody !

[stent]

Some will say not to use stop leak additives, even though some engines come like that from the factory. I would be willing to do that to get me through the winter knowing that I was going to tear it down and fix it come summer.

additives like these ???

https://www.amazon.com/K-Seal-ST5516-Pu ... aks-pcr-20

https://www.amazon.com/K-Seal-ST3501-Pe ... TEB7S9VMCJ

[AstroWill]

thank you for your thoughts on the matter AstroWill, i really appreciate them !!
and happy turkey day everybody !

NP, and ditto.

There are many options, just make sure to follow the directions to the letter.