1982 Mercury Marquis

[marquis_82_withneons]

dammit... i was a hair too late on that..

im gonna try to run the 16" explorer rims with lower profiles on them. i think it will be an interesting combo. any spring advice?

[marquis_82_withneons]

update: got tires on the way, and front ES poly stuffs.. but im racking my brain trying to decide on the springs. i have it narrowed to 2 options but im on the fence.. what say you gents?

1000 & 200?.. or 925 & 175?

was leaning toward the 1000/200, because i plan on some added weight. but i fear if will be too much over stock.. i want to retain a little comfort, but its not that crucial because racecar.

[gadget73]

Whats stock? Those are a good option.

[marquis_82_withneons]

oodles of progress on the racecar last night. finally got dad new shop stereo hooked up and then we tackled the poly control arm kit! could not be more pleased with how it went together. weve done it once now, so hopefully i can convince him to do the same for his 84 Vic wagon.

for anyone considering the 92-97 poly kits from energy suspension for use on a box.. i would highly recommend it. there was talk of there being a PI kit and and non-PI kit. mine is the non-pi kit. part number 4.3150.

also got the new tires for the rims. Hankook optimos H727. wife has the same model line on her fiesta and the handling/ride quality is quite nice. these are 235 60 16, shoutout to 87gtvic and his Brown Blob for the tire size suggestion. center caps were from a mountaineer on ebay for 20 bucks.

[87gtVIC]

Looks gorgeous. I like those wheels.

[marquis_82_withneons]

im super psyhed man, cant wait to see what these look like.

[Grand Marquis GT]

I dig the Mercury caps!!

[marquis_82_withneons]

many hours in the garage last night got me about 60% done with the front end. control arms are in with the new poly stuffs, spindles, ball joints, and a shock.. next up is the other shock, repack the wheel bearings, PI sway bar, and then brake pads.

was really hoping to get some tru-coils in there, but finances say otherwise at the moment.

pics are coming

[marquis_82_withneons]

after dumb shit in life seems to take up all your time.. the ol girl still there when i need her. shes dirty, shes rusty, shes slow, and shes in pieces. but hot damn shes slowly making progress. i have a trac-lok showing up today hopefully. gonna be tearing the old garbage out this weekend. still trying to sort a gear set, and with any luck, finishing suspension soon. anyone in the northern indiana area, shoot me a PM, i could use a wrenching buddy that enjoys RWD v8's. LMAO!

[87gtVIC]

Still loving the way those wheels look on her.

[marquis_82_withneons]

Still loving the way those wheels look on her.

love the wheels, the caps turned out well after alot of hand work. tires, good ride and handle nice, but still too much wheel well gap for me.

im hoping sorting the suspension will get the look im after, but i fear what i want is gonna be far too expensive for mere asthetics. the current height is about where i want it, but its on cut stockers up front and wasted stock rears on air shocks. LMAO. and if i replace with tru-coils, i figure the height will come up about a half inch or so which is no bueno for me... however in the current configuration, the control arms are angled upward slightly which is going to negate all the mods ive done for handling and stiffness.

[marquis_82_withneons]

progress is slow like usual. slowly acquiring all the parts for the 5 spd swap. and now i have all the rear end components for my limited slip disc brake setup. final setup for the axle are as follows

-PI rear sway bar
-boxed in rear control arms
-donor axle from 96 grand marquis (3.08 open) non-abs with disc brakes.
-smaller diameter brake booster from same 96 marquis. (so i can route the clutch cable)
-8.8 ranger trac-lok unit. (ranger is 28 spline, explorer is 31) will need a clutch pack rebuild kit
-explorer gears, scored a nice minty set of 3.73s
-TWO pass. side brake hoses so i can retain the T mounted to the diff housing.
-new caliper pins

things i need...

-poly bushing kit for rear axle
-rear pads for disc brakes
-sort the park brake cable because racecar
-paint up the axle

im sure theres other things. like been wandering what my options are for the driveshaft. ill have the newer diff flange, so should i change that to my older original flange? isnt a draveshaft swap needed for a t5?

[87gtVIC]

No driveshaft swap needed with the t5 install with a mercury or a ford. You may run into issues with a town car because their AODs start out life with a longer tailshaft.

[marquis_82_withneons]

thats good to know. so just the difference in flange then? which would i be better off going with. i know the newer ones have a different pattern. ill probably use my original 82 flange.

[marquis_82_withneons]

Well boys.... it is here.... I finally scored my t5

good friend found it on his Volvo forum and sent me the info. Picked it up today in Ohio, nice little road trip. Pulled from an 89 fox in fully working condition, Comes with a 302 bell housing, pro 5.0 shifter, and a ford performance t5 rebuild kit. All for 300 bones. Solid deal I'd say.