Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Saved from the Demo Derby: 1990 Country Squire

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

    Nice job on bringing it back to life..... Now it looks be in better shape befitting of an LS swap
    1991 Mercury Grand Marquis LS Colony Park - 5.0 V8/AOD - acquired from TecNickal
    sigpic

    Comment


      Glad to see its sticking around. That wagon looks GREAT. I have all but three of my cars on classic car insurance (Haggertys). 66, 89 and 90. Less than $200/year on each with full coverage on every one. Haggerty never even asked for pics of the 89 or 90!

      Now just need to sell a couple of the newer cars to get them off of my primary daily coverage (2x 2003 Town Cars and a 2003 BMW).
      -Nick M.
      Columbia, SC

      66 Squire, 89 Colony Park, 90 TC, 03 TC, 06 TC, 07 TC (2x)
      03 BMW 540iT, 07 Toyota Tundra SR5 Dbl Cab/5.7 2WD

      Comment


        Originally posted by DerekTheGreat View Post
        Every time I see a >1987 box wagon I can't help but think how cheap Ford was. They got the revised front end but nothing whatsoever was done about the aging ass end. Least the could have done was make the bumper flush like the front.
        Look at the back and the rear 3/4. Imagine if the rear bumper was only as wide as the outer edge of the tail lights. It'd throw off the proportions even on a steelside. It'd be like '98+ with the whale tailed booty going on. Narrow before the rear wheel arch, gets a bit wider at the wheel well/arch, and then narrows out again. I don't think the wagons were expected to be sold for as long as they did- remember the new panther platform in '79 was hot on the heels of the gas crises and nobody knew 100% if people would continue buying big cars and/or if fuel prices would drop to sane levels again. Anyway, what if we did the opposite of making both bumpers flush- make them both big wraparound/cow catcher type! Mount an '87- front bumper so it more or less matches the rear. Imagine you'd need some sort of custom bumper filler panel (think slack tried mix and matching '87- and '88+ on his '89 and ran into that problem) but imagine it'd look sick.

        +1 on late model Ford wagons KW. They tended to not have drastic cosmetic changes in a given model's production run. Saves money and they figured it wouldn't hurt sales enough to make it a net loss, so to speak. See the same thing with the roundy Escort wagons.

        '89 Grand Marquis "Ebyt", '85 Grand Marquis "Eva", '94 Caprice "Kira"
        '84 Town Car "Stacy", '79 New Yorker “Anita", '93 Town Car "Kelly"
        '80 Mark VI "Allie", '94 Grand Marquis coming June, '79 LTD-S "Oksana"

        Comment


          I am either slow or have too much other crap to do. Or both. Well finally got the intake and valve cover gaskets replaced. Replaced all hoses except lower radiator hose which will get done when I fix the power steering leak. New plugs and wires. New crankcase breather. Fresh antifreeze. New vacuum hoses. New blower motor resistor.

          Engine wasn’t spotless inside but not the worst either.

          Old intake gaskets were old felpro, so someone has been there before.

          Seven plugs were autolite, well used at about 0.065 gap. One was a Motorcraft at about 0.085 gap. I assume that’s original. It was the one behind the smog diverter valve.







          Next up is power steering pump reseal. Or maybe fixing the lock actuator so that the wife can actually open her door from the outside. I could play the gentleman card and say I don’t want her to have to open the door herself?




          Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
          1990 Country Squire - weekend cruiser, next project
          1988 Crown Vic LTD Wagon - waiting in the wings

          GMN Box Panther History
          Box Panther Horsepower and Torque Ratings
          Box Panther Production Numbers

          Comment


            I have a sneaking suspicion that she wont buy that line.


            Nice work! Getting at those spark plugs behind all that smog stuff is NO fun at all. Funny that they never replaced the "hard to reach" one.
            ~David~

            My 1987 Crown Victoria Coupe: The Brown Blob
            My 2004 Mercedes Benz E320:The Benz

            Originally posted by ootdega
            My life is a long series of "nevermind" and "I guess not."

            Originally posted by DerekTheGreat
            But, that's just coming from me, this site's biggest pessimist. Best of luck

            Originally posted by gadget73
            my car starts and it has AC. Yours doesn't start and it has no AC. Seems obvious to me.




            Comment


              Geez that plug isn't THAT hard to get at, but lazy is lazy. Anyhow, glad to see you moving forward on her. Fun what you find when you dig into these suckers isn't it?

              Comment


                They must have moved the smog stuff around '90. Did a tune up on my buddy's '89 and '91, the '89 was easy peasy, the '91 we had a heck of a time getting to the 1 plug behind the smog stuff. IIRC we got it out with a few extensions and a swivel thru the wheelwell. I never directly compared the 2 cars under the hood, by time we were working on the '91, his brother had taken over the '89 as his DD.

                He also has the record for the worst plugs I've pulled from a running engine. 1st was his '97 Town Car which we pulled all 8 original plugs from at around 180k and they were just plain worn out with gaps large enough I never bothered measuring. That car had 3 replacement wires on it, so I expected at least a couple replacement plugs but no. The other was the plugs out of the 260k mile Tahoe his Mom was driving. It had a bad miss, was barely running. Pulled 8 plugs out of it, of 3 different kinds, and 2 or 3 of them had no, zero, none, of the porcelain left around the center electrode. We put 8 fresh ACDelco plugs in it with new wires and cap/rotor. He called me when he was driving it home and proclaimed "the truck has a horesepower!".
                -Steve

                2006 Audi A6 S-Line FWD ~132k miles, stock.
                1998 Mercury Grand Marquis LS HPP ~102k miles, slowly acquiring modifications.
                1997 Lincoln Town Car Cartier ~145k miles, Ported Plenum, Gutted Airbox, Mechanical Fan Delete, Contour E-fan Retrofit, Dual exhaust, Cats ran away, KYB Gas-A-Justs, P71 front sway bar, air ride reinstalled, Blinker Mod, Projector headlight retrofit, Caddy 4-note horn retrofit, Wood rim steering wheel, rustbelt diet plan..
                1996 Mercury Grand Marquis GS 117,485mi. R.I.P. 7/14/12

                Comment


                  Originally posted by knucklehead0202 View Post
                  Geez that plug isn't THAT hard to get at, but lazy is lazy. Anyhow, glad to see you moving forward on her. Fun what you find when you dig into these suckers isn't it?
                  Having a 1/4 ratchet and short extension or deep socket helps loads for getting that resistor pack out.

                  Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former. -- Albert Einstein
                  rides: 93 Crown Vic LX (The Red Velvet Cake), 2000 Crown Vic base model (Sandy), 2003 Expedition (the vacation beast)
                  Originally posted by gadget73
                  ... and it should all work like magic and unicorns and stuff.
                  Originally posted by dmccaig
                  Overhead, some poor bastards are flying in airplanes.

                  Comment


                    Getting to #8 spark plug can be difficult and sometimes it sticks so get out the 1/2 in drive with the conversion to your socket and you will get it out.

                    Comment


                      Power steering pump resealed and reinstalled.

                      Passenger Front window motor and lock actuator replaced. Window motor was a Cardone reman; someone replaced it before with a “Ford Remanufacted”, circa 1995. It was rusted inside and where there was supposed to be grease, only yellow dust existed. So Cardone got the job done for now.

                      Replaced really old wiper “blades”. More like metal frames because the rubber was nearly gone.

                      Drove a bit today, to the gas station for the first time ever. Gas gauge works... ehhh moves. Still not sure if the sending unit is in upside down or not. Must be right because it went from 1/4 to 3/4 with five gallons. Hmmm.

                      Power was totally unimpressive. Seems less than before tune up. I think someone the sheer joy of driving someone 60mph that hasn’t been that fast under its own power in a decade maybe made me think it was initially faster. Advanced the timing a bit as I may have gotten a tooth off during the intake gasket job.

                      If weather permits, it’s time for a big twenty mile trip tomorrow. With the family inside.
                      1990 Country Squire - weekend cruiser, next project
                      1988 Crown Vic LTD Wagon - waiting in the wings

                      GMN Box Panther History
                      Box Panther Horsepower and Torque Ratings
                      Box Panther Production Numbers

                      Comment


                        Twenty mile trip last week was flawless, so ventured out about sixty miles today.

                        The good: “Power” is back after timing advance. Ride is amazing. And it’s very quiet at all speeds up to 75mph, which is as fast as I’ve gone. I am liking smooth and quiet. I have enough rough and loud crap in other rides.

                        The bad: “Power” is still lopo.

                        Needs shocks. I’m afraid the Motorcraft extra HD’s in my basement are going to kill the smooth factor.

                        Rear drums were very hot. Not smelly, but hot. Backed off the adjustment a bit with good results thus far. Heat, but not heat radiating through the wheels and burning to the touch. Master cylinder did not get replaced so maybe that’s the culprit. There is hardly any brake drive, which makes me think the back brakes are doing more work.

                        Filled with gas tonight up to a full tank. Gauge seems okay.

                        May be time to try the Febreeze for cars. This thing is still a bit musty inside.
                        1990 Country Squire - weekend cruiser, next project
                        1988 Crown Vic LTD Wagon - waiting in the wings

                        GMN Box Panther History
                        Box Panther Horsepower and Torque Ratings
                        Box Panther Production Numbers

                        Comment


                          If the musty smell persists, you might want to try some DampRid if they still sell it. Used it in my late grandmother’s house before it was sold for moisture control. Helped remove that musty smell from the house since it was sitting empty.


                          My Cars:
                          -1964 Comet 202 (116K Miles) - Long Term Project
                          -1986 Dodge D-150 Royale SE (112K Miles) - Slowly Getting Put Back Together
                          -1987 Grand Marquis Colony Park LS (325K Miles) - April 2017 + September 2019 POTM Winner
                          -1997 Grand Marquis LS (240K Miles) - The Daily Workhorse & March 2015 + January 2019 POTM Winner

                          Comment


                            Its still sold. Park it out in the sun with it if possible, the heat helps bake out the moisture.

                            Don't discount the center brake hose as being the problem with the rear drums either, especially if you've replaced the cylinders and other hardware, and assuming the shoes are in there the right way.
                            86 Lincoln Town Car (Galactica).
                            5.0 HO, CompCams XE258,Scorpion 1.72 roller rockers, 3.55 K code rear, tow package, BHPerformance ported E7 heads, Tmoss Explorer intake, 65mm throttle body, Hedman 1 5/8" headers, 2.5" dual exhaust, ASP underdrive pulley

                            91 Lincoln Mark VII LSC grandpa spec white and cranberry

                            1984 Lincoln Continental TurboDiesel - rolls coal

                            Originally posted by phayzer5
                            I drive a Lincoln. I can't be bothered to shift like the peasants and rabble rousers

                            Comment


                              You may want to open the back hatch and look in the floorboard were the third sets of seats are. Usually water fills up in there or in the sale pockets under the rear windows.
                              -Nick M.
                              Columbia, SC

                              66 Squire, 89 Colony Park, 90 TC, 03 TC, 06 TC, 07 TC (2x)
                              03 BMW 540iT, 07 Toyota Tundra SR5 Dbl Cab/5.7 2WD

                              Comment


                                I appreciate all the feedback on the sniffiness. The smell seems to be coming from the carpet which makes some sense because this is the same car that sat around for who knows how long with the back left door window out of it. At some point, I think i’ll pull the carpet and pressure wash it after some soap action.

                                Ordered a master cylinder tonight. Drove it yesterday 20 miles. Rear brakes hot enough to smell, and this is right after adjusting them loose. Hoping it’s the master cylinder, or maybe my new 15/16” wheel cylinders misbehaving. I do not see a proportioning valve or distribution block.

                                Also pulled codes for fun and got an all clear 11 KOEO and a 33 KOER. Will investigate a bit further but it sure runs good.

                                Oh yeah, cruise started working. I like things that fix themselves. I suspect a crusty contacts in the switches or steering column.
                                1990 Country Squire - weekend cruiser, next project
                                1988 Crown Vic LTD Wagon - waiting in the wings

                                GMN Box Panther History
                                Box Panther Horsepower and Torque Ratings
                                Box Panther Production Numbers

                                Comment

                                Working...
                                X