Advice: Looking at a 68,000 mile 1992...Air Bag light flashes intermittently?

[molson63]

Hey everyone. Looking to replace my 1989 Grand Marquis and I found a 1992 one-owner near my house. 68,000 miles, $2,000. The usual scrapes on the four corners but no dents, dings or rust. Everything looks good. Not smoked in. Electronic dash, factory dual exhaust, towing package, leather, both seats power, auto-level suspension. All of that works. Frame has surface rust but no rot-through. It is flaking quite a bit though. The brake and fuel lines will need to be replaced but the pan is spotless. Engine is very clean, no sign of oil anywhere (but it was not steam cleaned or anything). Converted over to 135a, original window sticker, thick file of records regarding maintenance. BUT...Air Bag light flashes intermittently. No pattern to it, really. It might blink on and off two or three times, then go off for a little while, then flash again. Did that consistently throughout the test drive. Does anyone know what this might mean, cost wise? The owner's manual said it indicated that it needed servicing. The owner suggested it just needed to be "reset," but that doesn't sound right to me? Any thoughts on that, and what should I look out for when it comes to this particular year?

[sly]

it should flash a 2 digit code. Depending on what that code is will tell you what all is possibly wrong with it. You can unplug the airbag module (after disconnecting the battery and then tapping the brakes after a minute) and drive it without the airbag active. The light shouldn't be on then either.

[pantera77]

Check that frame out really good, especially the pass side bulkhead. My new 92's was just scaly and passed the finger test, but one I got it home and gave it the hammer test it failed miserably. Had to cut it all out and weld new metal in. 79-02 frames just rot out so bad in the salt belt. If you buy it, replace the fuel and brake lines and oil undercoat the hell out of it. Remember, it's easier to keep a rust free car from rusting, then it is to keep a rusty car from getting worse. Both my front fenders just had little bubbles before last winter, and now both are fingerable.

[molson63]

Thanks, guys. Having seen your picture, Pantera77, and knowing that the frame on the car I looked at had even more surface scale, I took a pass. But then as is so often the case I was driving to an appointment yesterday and passed a 2005 Crown Victoria Police Interceptor from California not ten miles from my house. I pulled in, talked to the owner, did a bit of research and offered him $1000 cash this morning for a very clean 148,000 mile car. He accepted the offer and I have a rust free base to start from when I pick it up tomorrow. Now I'll just have to find some plugs to cover the weird holes in the sides of the rear doors...

[DerekTheGreat]

Cool. Can't beat a clean, rust-free, running & driving vehicle for $1,000.

[Mainemantom]

The 2005 CVPI if well maintained is a good car. Post pictures please. $1000 is an excellent price. Make sure you clean out under the front seats, take out the rear seat and clean that area out and make sure the trunk is clean . There may be stuff still there that you may not want. You might even find out what agency it came from. Make sure the rear inside door handles work. Those holes in the front sides of the rear doors were for the police door locks . You may have to make a junk yard run to get the original inside door hardware

Thanks, guys. Having seen your picture, Pantera77, and knowing that the frame on the car I looked at had even more surface scale, I took a pass. But then as is so often the case I was driving to an appointment yesterday and passed a 2005 Crown Victoria Police Interceptor from California not ten miles from my house. I pulled in, talked to the owner, did a bit of research and offered him $1000 cash this morning for a very clean 148,000 mile car. He accepted the offer and I have a rust free base to start from when I pick it up tomorrow. Now I'll just have to find some plugs to cover the weird holes in the sides of the rear doors...

[Kodachrome Wolf]

Those holes in the front sides of the rear doors were for the police door locks .

I'm wondering if he was talking about the exteriors of the rear doors. If you remove the side moldings on the Aeros and Whales, the rear doors have a small oval shaped hole about an inch long towards the B-Pillar that is covered by the molding.

If that's the case, I'd just go down to the junkyard and grab some civvy trim, looks better than the bland CVPI trim IMO.

[GM_Guy]

. But then as is so often the case I was driving to an appointment yesterday and passed a 2005 Crown Victoria Police Interceptor from California not ten miles from my house. I pulled in, talked to the owner, did a bit of research and offered him $1000 cash this morning for a very clean 148,000 mile car. He accepted the offer and I have a rust free base to start from when I pick it up tomorrow. Now I'll just have to find some plugs to cover the weird holes in the sides of the rear doors...

Thats a good sign, the surprise-find car usually turns out to be the better car.

Alex.

[Mainemantom]

Never knew that about a hole under the molding. Most of the CVPIs had the rear door moldings on. I learned something new.
Many people do not know about the extra lock hole on the inside front jam of the rear doors. That was an ordering choice That's why I mentioned it.

I'm wondering if he was talking about the exteriors of the rear doors. If you remove the side moldings on the Aeros and Whales, the rear doors have a small oval shaped hole about an inch long towards the B-Pillar that is covered by the molding.

If that's the case, I'd just go down to the junkyard and grab some civvy trim, looks better than the bland CVPI trim IMO.

[molson63]

I will post pictures soon. I’m the third owner so any ‘fun’ surprises the authorities left behind are long gone. I need to replace the left front fender and paint the roof. New tires are on, new battery is installed. Windshield was installed today, alignment and rear seal Thursday. Battery hold down, side marker lens, license plate frame, reverse radio harness and stock AM/FM cassette/CD radio are either here or on the way. There was a reason it was just $1000! The car desperately needs a good cleaning and I've made a start but am nowhere near done. Mechanically it appears to be excellent and, best of all, rust free. Runs, steers, rides and stops nicely. I've got a friend who has a black Crown Vic taxi of the same vintage but it is eaten up with rust underneath. He is going to derby the car this summer but before then I can swap whatever parts I want, including the slotted steel wheel I need (one of mine is bent and can't be balanced), LF fender (although if it proves to have cancer where it can't be seen I'll opt for a new one), rear bumper cover and more, no charge. By the time I'm done the car should be pretty solid. At this point I would like it to be less "cop car" looking so I'm toying with the idea of making an "LX Sport" out of it by carefully removing most of the police-specific parts, storing them safely away, and swapping in the sport package parts. If I use a slightly earlier vintage Grand Marquis wood dash trim piece I can even leave the trunk release button right where it is in the middle of the dash. That all depends, though, on finding a wrecked LX Sport or Marauder with the console/shifter parts I'll need. There is a console listed on eBay right now but it doesn't have the shifter or linkage. I've got another friend with a salvage yard and several more in the area to scour, so I'll keep my fingers crossed. More to come!