Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

My 1987 Mercury Colony Park

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

    Ya know, for metal shavings in the rear end you could take an old harddrive and get the magnets out of it or use any other real strong magnet and throw it on the cover & drive around for awhile. It'll attract the shavings & keep 'em there until you decide to drain & refill again.
    1985 LTD Crown Victoria - SOLD
    1988 Town Car Signature - Current Party Barge

    Comment


      Originally posted by DerekTheGreat View Post
      Ya know, for metal shavings in the rear end you could take an old harddrive and get the magnets out of it or use any other real strong magnet and throw it on the cover & drive around for awhile. It'll attract the shavings & keep 'em there until you decide to drain & refill again.
      I actually picked up some strong magnets the other day from work. I'll toss them on the cover before my trip on Wednesday.


      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


        Tinkered about with the wagon today. I need to get my tachometer setup inside since I think the idle is a bit low. I cleaned the Ford IAC that was on it. I tried a IAC from work, and it couldn't make it idle without loping up and down after the car went from high idle to low idle. Idled fine in gear, for whatever reason. Anyway, I'll return that since it's not doing me any favors. Only reason I looked at the IAC was the idle has seemed just a touch when everything is at operating temperature, and the other day it stalled going into reverse with the A/C on. Cleaning the IAC seemed to have helped, but it's still not quite 100%, but is better than before. I may try finding another Ford IAC and cleaning it up really good.

        Driveability has been otherwise good since I've gone over the other components. I haven't had any issues with the distributor since the latest one went in and I got the timing set with a light.

        I also looked into seat belt replacements for the interior. Nick gave me good driver and passenger side belts that actually retract worth a damn. The current ones are very lazy, the passenger side being worse than the driver's side. Sometimes they don't even like retracting when the door is opened the way they're supposed to. I'm going to clean them up and get them swapped in. I'm also going to find what I did with the little vinyl ends that go at the floor bolt. The current ones are crumbling away and look bad. I'm also going to get the center front seat latch installed, since that has been absent since I got the wagon.

        I was also poking around under the front seats since a little flap that's supposed to be attached under them had come undone. Once I got them refitted on both sides, I noticed a lot of wires under the passenger seat. I finally found where the two A/C compressor connectors had run off to that Nick had collected some time ago. Maybe I'll keep those to the side for a "just-in-case" situation or if anyone ever needs one.
        Last edited by Kodachrome Wolf; 10-13-2017, 04:14 PM.


        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


          If you can't find a Ford IAC, see if you can find a Hitachi one. Hitachi was Ford's supplier for the style IAC that is used on the SEFI 5.0 and 4.6 cars. I have one that I bought for my '97, it had all the same casting marks as the original one aside from the absence of the Ford part number. That was after having the same surging problem with a aftermarket one a few years back that resulted in me cleaning and reinstalling the original one every few months until it simply would not function properly anymore. Hitachi part worked flawlessly out of the box, and continued to do so when I installed it in my '98 despite being the "incorrect" part for a '98.
          -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


            I had a similar problem, the car would surge a bit as the idle tried to come down from the fast idle setting. Initially I just threw money at a Motorcraft part but it had the same issue. Left it alone for a while and then found a nice original one at a yard, took it apart, cleaned it up, lubricated it and the stepper motor and all has been fantastic since. Try giving that route a go and see what happens.
            1985 LTD Crown Victoria - SOLD
            1988 Town Car Signature - Current Party Barge

            Comment


              I've been kicking around a air pump bypass belt for a few weeks now. The wagon hasn't really had a problem with its air pump since I've had it, but there's three glaring issues. First, it's not hooked up to any air tubes since the cats are missing and the lines are absent; Second, Nick gutted it while he had it because it starting making noise, so it actually doesn't do anything useful; Third, it's functionally dead weight being spun by a belt.

              So today, I yanked that thing out of there and got rid of some unnecessary tubing.







              The air pipe coming off the back of the heads is still in place. I've got a small piece of the thermactor hose still in place with a plug in it.

              The original vacuum setup had a three line check valve coming off the cruise unit. One line ran to the firewall, the other towards the air pump. The air pump's line also had a check valve. I removed the three line check valve and replaced it with the air pump's check valve since it operated in the same way the other did and I did not need a third line going anywhere.




              I do need to re-tension the A/C belt. It's not squeaking, but the bolt that faces the radiator is missing. The rear bolt is in place and can be tightened to hold tension. Since the other bolt is missing, the tensioner is ever so much at an angle, which will wear the belt out much like the other one I took off. I'll grab one off a junkyard car, unless someone knows the type bolt I need for it. I will admit that tensioner wasn't the worst thing I've had to work with, but getting at it with the air pump removed made it a lot easier.

              I'll also be replacing the engine-to-frame ground strap and the negative battery cable terminal soon. The engine-to-frame ground strap is laughably small. The one from an Aero RCU is beefier, and I may just use a spare one of those I have laying around.


              Edit:
              Also, for anyone wondering what belt I used, I used a K060563 belt. You may see it in a few other number configurations, like 6K563, but the takeaway is it's a 6 rib belt that's 56-7/8" long. That gives you just enough to slip the belt under the tensioner pulley. If that belt was any shorter, it would of needed serious persuasion to get it in place.
              Last edited by Kodachrome Wolf; 10-16-2017, 04:59 PM. Reason: Information


              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


                That small one made it so that car run. When I bought - there was a broken ground wire somewhere. Which would you do? Put an AutoZone ground strap on or find the broken ground ?

                I used some cheap wire to just test how the car ran between the motor and the frame and that made it fire up like a champ. It's not really going to change anything but you certainly can change it if you want. The cable that was on that car originally had the POS screw on battery terminals:
                http://www.autozone.com/batteries-st...171017115838:s

                These are crap. Don't use them.

                NAPA sells soldier on terminals that look and work like factory. Or I used a negative terminal with a ground wire off of it to connect to whatever the car wanted under the hood (I forget the cable).

                I remember that bolt missing for me too - but didn't care to deal with it or I forgot to.

                This is why I have a whiteboard now with a todo list for each car
                -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 used the brass (marine) screw on terminals on the 93 and have had no issue. Battery is 8 years old on that car and finally starting to show weak cell signs. The terminals are at least 5 years old.

                  +1 the lead screw on terminals do suck very much and are only good for about a dozen bends (tighten down/loosen up).

                  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


                    I have no plans on using those lead terminals. Had one on the '97, and it was bad. The only issue I've run into is the negative terminal's bolt will just spin unless you put a wrench on both ends (also, the cable sheathing is pulling away). I was planning on using the compression nut type I used on the '97. It's a copper terminal, and holds up really well. A little pricey, but the quality is there.

                    I want to try and improve grounding on the vehicle. I know engine-to-frame won't be one to help me much with stuff inside the vehicle, but it's a start for the long run. I need to find the one for body-to-frame since the dash lights like to pulse with the turn signals or if you hit the horn.


                    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


                      Step up the ground from the core support to the battery. Helps a lot. Also, 3G or 2? When I stepped up to a 3G all my dimming light problems went away.
                      1985 LTD Crown Victoria - SOLD
                      1988 Town Car Signature - Current Party Barge

                      Comment


                        Originally posted by DerekTheGreat View Post
                        Step up the ground from the core support to the battery. Helps a lot. Also, 3G or 2? When I stepped up to a 3G all my dimming light problems went away.
                        Understood. I noticed the tiny little extra ground cable that comes off the negative terminal and runs off somewhere. Looks like it has an inline fuse. The '97 has a beefier one that attaches to the fender.

                        I'm running a 3G alternator. It definitely keeps up with all the electrical loads. Headlights and such don't dim, blower stays strong, but since I've put LEDs in the instrument cluster, you can tell every time the signal light flashes as they dim and come back up with each cycle, or anytime I brake. Doesn't bother me much, but I'm sure it would drive somebody up the wall if they saw it. Maybe I'll go back to incandescent bulbs there since they're a little less bothered by minor load changes.


                        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


                          Hmm, that's odd. I'm no electrician but I've never seen someone fuse a ground..

                          I've got NFC on the LED's in the cluster or why they're dimming. Maybe one of the more technically advanced peeps on here could have a work around for that, like installing a capacitor for the cluster's illumination lights that would help keep the supply of juice to them constant?
                          1985 LTD Crown Victoria - SOLD
                          1988 Town Car Signature - Current Party Barge

                          Comment


                            Originally posted by DerekTheGreat View Post
                            Hmm, that's odd. I'm no electrician but I've never seen someone fuse a ground..

                            I've got NFC on the LED's in the cluster or why they're dimming. Maybe one of the more technically advanced peeps on here could have a work around for that, like installing a capacitor for the cluster's illumination lights that would help keep the supply of juice to them constant?
                            Its actually kind of interesting too me. In my (not so expert) experience LEDs are actually less sensitive to voltage fluctuations. They require less power to light up, so feed them anywhere from 9-14v and they produce pretty much the same light output, this is why they don't always dim properly with an old school dimmer switch.

                            As for battery terminals, I've always liked the factory-looking strap ones like these: linky. Solder or crimp on a eyelet on the cables and bolt it to the terminal, best part is most fit in the factory plastic terminal covers Ford used on the Aeros. With them bolting onto the cables, they are quick and easy to replace should the need arise.
                            -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 DerekTheGreat View Post
                              Hmm, that's odd. I'm no electrician but I've never seen someone fuse a ground..

                              I've got NFC on the LED's in the cluster or why they're dimming. Maybe one of the more technically advanced peeps on here could have a work around for that, like installing a capacitor for the cluster's illumination lights that would help keep the supply of juice to them constant?
                              It's weird. So the negative cable looks like it was replaced at some point because it looks like one you can get from a parts store. It has the main cable which grounds to the block, then there's a small 12 or 14 gauge wire that comes off of it, a butt connector, then that's attached to what appears to be a glass-type fuse holder (one of those plastic cylinder type ones; black in color). That wire continues into a loomed harness immediately thereafter and disappears.

                              I'm thinking I may need to add a battery ground to core support cable based on how things look. Unlike the Aeros and Whales that have the negative cable that goes down to the chassis and the other smaller cable that goes to the fender, this one just has the cable to block and then the other small wire that goes somewhere. I know on my friend's C1500 his small negative cable that went to his fender came out of the battery terminal and caused the gauges to behave weirdly if you turned the headlights on.


                              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


                                Yeah, my car had a 14ga wire that went from the core support to the battery. I stepped that up to welder's cable when I put the 3G in along with the radio. Could be what your car needs.

                                Like BigMerc96 said I wouldn't think the LED's should be sensitive to voltage fluctuations but maybe if there's a bottleneck at the ground situation... Again, just a laymen here. I can barely take a piss without getting any on me...
                                1985 LTD Crown Victoria - SOLD
                                1988 Town Car Signature - Current Party Barge

                                Comment

                                Working...
                                X