1987cp's new '81 LTD 2-door

[gabegt90]

nice day time shots of the 81. mike I didn't know there were no chrome stocks on your 81. Plus that's the first time me seeing that different wiper stock.



mang that's alot of vaccum lines


Love this pic

[1987cp]

Well, I think my wife is beginning to get rather annoyed with both me and the new car. I made the mistake of driving it tonight to return some videos. Even left it running to help ensure lack of trouble when I came out. Came back out, threw it in reverse, and sure enough, it died and wouldn't restart. Wife came to rescue me and bring me home. I went back over with the ignition system from the '87 and successfully fired it for a brief period of time, but it died and became reluctant to crank over, so I figured maybe the battery just hadn't been charging. Came back home and begged my wife to drive me back over there again (reluctantly) with a charged battery. Tossed the battery in and it clicked and would not crank. So either a) the starter is fried or playing the stuck game older starters sometimes like to do that can be temporarily fixed by a smack with a big hammer, or b) the engine guts themselves are suddenly seized up. I alerted the video store staff about the vehicle and plan to return in the morning with a) a hammer and b) a known good starter. Wife's family never dealt with anything remotely like this because they always just bought brand-new cars.

[1987cp]

nice day time shots of the 81. mike I didn't know there were no chrome stocks on your 81. Plus that's the first time me seeing that different wiper stock.

Glad you liked the pics! Yeah, that base-model interior is really different. I'm sure you know exactly what I was used to for the first several years with the '87 - tilt wheel, delay wipers, cruise control, trip odometer (apparently an extra-cost option in '81!), chrome this, fake wood trim that, power locks, power windows, power mirrors, power plush split bench seat .......... :p

[torquelover]

I've been stranded by brand-new cars with less than 15k on them more times than my POS has ever failed me. Is your ignition system okay now? I might have a Jacobs Powerpack hanging around somewhere...

[1987cp]

I've been stranded by brand-new cars with less than 15k on them more times than my POS has ever failed me.

Somehow I'm not completely surprised - but then, don't you know, it's still under warranty and you have full insurance coverage including towing ........ :p

Is your ignition system okay now? I might have a Jacobs Powerpack hanging around somewhere...

This particular setup has been working well for me in the other car, so it should be sufficient to get me back home at the very least. If only the starter hadn't finally decided to die after endless cranking cycles .............

Is the Jacobs what you had on your car prior to the Crane box?

[Archangel]

Mike, if I were you I'd find someone with a big truck and tow the car home and not drive it till all old ignition stuff is gutted and something known-reliable is installed. Alternatively just swap the engine in, and be done with it!

[1987cp]

Yep, that's sort of what I'm starting to have in mind, sweeping the garage and getting on with the engine swap ....... it's way too easy to get used to most of the rest of the car being so nice and forget it might quit providing transportation at nearly any time!

[torquelover]

The only times a new car has failed me were on vacations/long weekends. Having a warranty and towing reimbursement doesn't help in this situation as the trip is then a bust. Worst thing I had to do was pull apart a head of my then new '96 Infiniti G20 on the side of the toll road in Ohio to remove a shattered rocker arm so that I could limp the car the rest of the way to Ohio, and then back to Indiana. You should have seen the look on the service manager's face when I had to pull a zip-lock baggie containing the rocker bits out of my pocket to convince him it failed. There were bubbles in the casting . Then there was the time my brand-new '02 Camry decided to grenade it's differential on the way to pick up a girl on our first "Other friends not coming along" date. I still remember the phone call:

"Hey, my car blew up. Sorry I'm late."
"What car? The new one? I thought it was a Camry? Those things break down? Are you really stranded?"
"Yeah, I know. Can you drive tonight? The tow truck said it would be about 45 minutes to an hour or so..."

Needless to say, we didn't go out that night, and we didn't last long. It wasn't the car's fault though. I'm a prick.


The Jacobs has a long history. It started out in a friend's Mustang LX 302 and then made it into his Scorpio (the vomit one). After that was gone it was in his 300ZX. I had to send my Crane HI-6 in to get it checked out when I started to have major ignition stumbling over 2500 RPM so the Jacobs went into the POS for a bit. Worked really well, but there was no rev limiter. As you saw before, the HI-6 is back in the car after it was sent back with a clean bill of health. Turns out my old alternator and external regulator problems were the misfire culprits.


Sucks about the wifey having to rescue you. Your garage isn't comfy enough yet to live in so you better behave. Maybe it's time for a:



and a hitch for the 1987cp. I have thought about one of these, but I only have one vehicle that can tow a car, and that vehicle is the most likely car needing to be towed.

[1987cp]

Totally (see my "tow bar tech" thread in the suspension forum). Oddly, Scott-mang said he's got a U-Haul dolly he bought and uses constantly, while another guy claimed that a tow dolly will somehow damage the vehicle being towed.

[torquelover]

Smashing the car because the tow dolly is too narrow sucks. Have to check for Box friendly width before purchase I guess.

[Dave84]

Totally (see my "tow bar tech" thread in the suspension forum). Oddly, Scott-mang said he's got a U-Haul dolly he bought and uses constantly, while another guy claimed that a tow dolly will somehow damage the vehicle being towed.

i pulled my 80 home with my 84 merc on a tow bar, and no damage done, both cars still drive

[Grand Marquis GT]

Ok, so i'm not too sad about the clears.

But what about those cranks for a trade?

[Dave84]

hey tom, im going to that yard next weekend, how much would u be willing to pay if i can afford to grab the wind up regulatord out of a 2 dr thats there?

[gadget73]

Hm... well, turns out I couldn't find the Black Magic or the Meguiar's ... I wiped it down with silicone lubricant for the time being, but I'll have to make sure to get some real vinyl protectant on it in the near future.

.

hope you don't plan on painting the car, like ever. once that silicone gets on the paint, you're pretty much done for. it will fisheye like a bitch.

[gabegt90]

Totally (see my "tow bar tech" thread in the suspension forum). Oddly, Scott-mang said he's got a U-Haul dolly he bought and uses constantly, while another guy claimed that a tow dolly will somehow damage the vehicle being towed.

reason being scott scraps a lot of parts cars for coal money lol