LTDMan's '87 Mercury Grand Marquis LS (Big Red) *DUW*

[LTDMan83]

Really nice work mang!!!! I like the CAI too. Have you figured out what to do with the coolant tank/washer fluid reservoir? I'm thinking of using some sort of canister for both and fudge the that washer fluid plug-in somehow.



Packman

Thanks Mang. I had planned on a 90 TC Rad Reservoir, but if one is no where to be found, then I will be doing what I did on my last car. Which can be seen HERE in post#8. As for the washer reservoir, I've been eyeing some of the ones that the newer Chrysler minivans have, as it looks like I will be able to easily mount them in a remote place, out of sight. The plug is simple to modify to work as well.

[LTDMan83]

Big Red's 3rd Major Update.

This will be Big Red's Final Update, before I start the Bodywork/Paint stages of the car.


DS Rear Quarterpanel Power Antenna Install

This came about as a result of how much I hate having a front fender mounted antenna on any of my cars. It detracts quite a bit from the cleanliness and smoothness of the entire Front Clip, imo. So I Installed a Towncar Rear Power Antenna.



Rear Quarterpanel mount Power Antenna, Trim, and Hardware, from an 88 Towncar.



Long Antenna Cable from the same Towncar, and 18ft Custom Power Harness that I made re-using good stock 14ga wire that I gutted from my the Interior of my parts box. That Co-ax Antenna Cable was a serious bitch to pull out of the Towncar in the junkyard, as the factory ran it up through the top of the dash with all the other wires, after taking some of the dash apart I got it out.



Front Power Antenna removed from Big Red, and a shot of the hole which will be Shaved.



Removed the wiring, and plugged the hole in the firewall with a fresh Body Plug. Will be a good place to run a amp power wire through in the future, as well.



After much measuring, I took the plunge and drilled/dremel'd the hole. Came out perfect, as it usually does when you take the time to measure from all angles.



Then, here is the PITA part, there is a support bracket in the way inside the quarterpanel, which needed to be clearanced. The red line shows where the bracket originally came out to. The Dremel took care of it, after about a 1/2hr of grinding. Coated all the bare metal with Por15 afterward to prevent rust from forming.



Power Antenna Installed, and all wiring ran (which took quite a bit of time), but she works!



Put a nice bead of silicone around the inside and outside of the base, to keep it water tight.



Interior panel Installed, (Big Red had none previously), the only mod required to make it fit flush around the power antenna, was to push the cardboard panel around the base of the Power Antenna so that it wraps around it, and then move the location of the very bottom screw to hold it in place. I did this on my last box as well, and it does look factory clean once the bottom carpet is installed.



Power Antenna Trim Installed, and everything buttoned up. It works perfectly, and it came out right the first time, I'm happy with it.










Interior Updates:


Relocated the Tach a couple of inches over to the left, so that I could see the speedo better.



Installed good Front Door Switch Panels in both doors, and I can now actually lock the front doors. Yay for working locks! Also Installed a good DS Power Window control switch, as the old one would only work when it wanted to.



88+ Lighted Woodgrain Armrest Inserts, installed in both front doors, to match the back.



Also installed some rubber Bump Stops in the stock location for the trunk hinge arms, as it's originals were MIA.



Installed a Tripminder. It was seriously easy, even for someone with very limited wiring experience like me. I found the VSS Signal wire in about 10 seconds, next to the ECM under the dash. The only hard wire to find was the Fuel Flow wire, which in this case was hanging from the ECM Harness in the engine bay, with its original colors apparently long faded away.



Then after taking it apart and cleaning the button contacts, it works perfectly! Not sure how accurate it is gonna be as far as MPG, with the HO engine and Mustang ECM though. A very easy and worthwhile upgrade none the less. Spent a grand total of $5 (tripminder+ wiring supplies) to install this.



Also, while I had the dash trim off installing the tripminder, I took the time to remove the Stainless Steel trim plate and polish it, to a nice and shiny finish.



Installed. I would like to find another nice Stainless piece in the junkyard sometime, and try my hand at polishing it to a mirror finish, and then maybe use some blue leds to light up the clear plexiglass piece from the inside, controlled by a on/off switch.










Exterior Updates:

Got a decent Hood for Big Red, from an '87 Marquis that I found in the junkyard. It's not perfect, but is in better shape than the original, and something that I can work with. It's important to me to have my replacement body parts come from the same year car, anytime its possible, so that was a factor in choosing this hood.





Also had to replace the malfunctioning DS Turn Signal bulb housing. I got another DS turn signal housing from a junkyard '87 Grand Marquis, and wierd it up, only to find it had the exact same problem as the original one did. So I had to install a perfectly working one from a LTD Vic. It is exactly the same as the marquis one, but not as long. Now I don't have to constantly pull it apart and mess with it, to get it to flash.








Engine/Maintenance Updates:

Also did some more maintenance:

Greased Entire Chassis
Installed New Front Shocks
Replaced Thermostat/Both Bypass Hoses & Lower Radiator Hose
Replaced Trans Cooler Line Quick Connects
Changed the AOD's Fluid/Filter

Also installed a good, clean, and non-leaking Condenser. So that it will already be in place for the future R-134a A/C System. I have a good Compressor in storage as well.



After getting everything hooked up, I took her for a spin, and noticed that the engine felt like it was getting a pretty weak spark, so I decided to install a hotter coil (which I already had), and relocate it to the DS Fender liner while I was at it. The old coil must have been pretty bad, because the engine has alot more power now, all throughout it's 4K governed rpm range. I made the mistake of buying the chrome version of the coil though, so now the housing is rusty. It will be painted along with everything else, at some point in the future.










Next up, I will be finally getting to the fun part. Ripping off the Vinyl Top, doing the Slicktop Conversion, and working the entire Body over, to get it smooth and ready for paint. I have the Headliner removed from the car, and am gonna start the Vinyl Top/Trim removal procedure tomorrow, on sunday. I will have High Quality pics of all the Bodywork phases of the car, from start to finished product. I'm gonna be putting in some hard work on her over the next 4-5 months, so hopefully she will be one gorgeous Box by the time I'm done.


Stay Tuned.

[Jason_GMQ91]

Very nice work!

[87gtVIC]

Cool. looking good.

[p71towny]

You're a boner. That "daily driver" is turning out nicer than my cars. Bastard. Really tho, good work.

[LTDMan83]

Thanks Guys.

You're a boner. That "daily driver" is turning out nicer than my cars. Bastard. Really tho, good work.

lol, thanks Chris. To be fair though, this box was already around 65% done and maintenanced when I got it, so that has saved me alot of work and time. If this had been an untouched, original, 200K box, then I would have still had a shitton of work ahead of me. I am very thankful for that, as I wanted something that I could drive, more than I have to work on.

At this point, I think it's safe to say that I have really fallen in love with this Car. It feels like the first time all over again, lol.

[packman]

Awesome work!!! I have the coil on the pass. side fender. I'm wondering with the stock set-up, would the coil be set up in front of the upper intake like my '92 Ranger? Somehow I don't think the inner fender well is the stock location.



Packman

[87mercman]

.... I am very thankful for that, as I wanted something that I could drive, more than I have to work on.

At this point, I think it's safe to say that I have really fallen in love with this Car. It feels like the first time all over again, lol.

I'm glad you're getting to love her as much as I do...

I'm also thrilled to see all the progress you've made, tis quite grand...

[LTDMan83]

Awesome work!!! I have the coil on the pass. side fender. I'm wondering with the stock set-up, would the coil be set up in front of the upper intake like my '92 Ranger? Somehow I don't think the inner fender well is the stock location.



Packman

Thanks mang. On stock CV's/GM's the Coil is bolted to the A/C Compressor Bracket, in front of the left side of the upper intake. I have seen some PI models which actually had the coil mounted on the DS of the Frame Rail, right in front of the brake lines. Some Towncars came with the coil mounted on the PS inner fender, as well.

I'm glad you're getting to love her as much as I do...

I'm also thrilled to see all the progress you've made, tis quite grand...

Thanks Chris! She has definitely crept her way into my heart over the past few months. These cars seem to have a way of doing that with people.

[gabegt90]

looks great brandon nice progress so far. so when do you project to start daily driving it after you get the body work done 6 months?

[LTDMan83]

looks great brandon nice progress so far. so when do you project to start daily driving it after you get the body work done 6 months?

Thanks Gabe. If everything goes according to plan with my Time & Money, I hope to have her completely worked-over, painted, and ready for the road by December of this year. From that point on the other upgrades will happen, like 3.55's/Trac-Loc, R-134a A/C install, GT-40 Intake/Heads/Explorer Cam etc... Since I will also have a Backup DD as well, taking it off the road for awhile to upgrade it, will be no problem.

[cld783]

perfect time to take a picture

nice work.

[79lincolnlover]

Looks like your hard work is paying off!

[p71towny]

Also installed some rubber Bump Stops in the stock location for the trunk hinge arms, as it's originals were MIA.

I must grab those, though I've NEVAR seen a panther with em.

[LTDMan83]

Thanks Guys.

I must grab those, though I've NEVAR seen a panther with em.

I thought that all Boxes came with them, maybe not. I can get you a set from the yard, if you need em. Without them you get metal on metal contact, between the hinge arm and mounting bracket.