Expert: William Forster - 11/11/2006

Question
I happen to have so loved my '98 Escort wagon that when I drove it to death I bought a used duplicate (in the vast So'Cal. aftermarket) far less used--in fact, still quite cherry.  The one I enjoyed for years had a roof rack, and it now sits undrivable in my back yard.  The "younger" one is now my primary personal transportation, but it lacks a roof rack.  How possible, how costly would it be to cannibalize the roof rack from the old one that I'm going to junk?  Would I have problems or high expenses with the interior headliner installing it onto my fresher duplicate model that lacks original equipping with roof rack?


Answer
Hello Don! I never worked on an escort roof rack. Maybe i can help. First, remove the old rack. The center slats may just be 2 side taped on the car. The perimeter rack, or the main portion, is surely bolted down. Some racks are bolted from the top down, into threaded inserts. It may take allen wrenches, or more likely torx bits, to remove it. The threaded inserts are a problem, they take a special tool to install them. It may be difficult to locate a tool, much less the inserts. Expect to pay 50- to a hundred dollars for a tool kit. You can try to nut and bolt it down, but you will need to take down the headliner. If you go that route, use nylock nuts. They will keep it from working loose. If the center slats are 2 sided taped on, they will ned cleaned of all tape residue. You can use a wire wheel on a grinder to remove 90%of it, but don't dig the plastic. Leave a little adheasive on them. Then, take some 3M adheasive remover, available at stores like Napa, saturate the moldings with it, then take a dull knife, and scrape off the glue. It will take several applications. Let the moldings blanch out overnight before trying to re-tape them with 2 sided tape. The moldings won't stick to the tape if you don't let the cleaner evaporate out of them. Bill