1988 Lincoln Town Car

[nfldfordltd]

I think the inlet is the driver side port on the heater core. The inlet should be the line from the intake and the outlet should be the line back to the pump.

Shit. I'll double check it and change it up if necessary. I started the engine while it was all took apart the weekend and a little bit of steam was coming from the hose on the passenger side so I assumed that was the 'feed' line. I'll double check it and change it if necessary now that the coolant is full.

[sly]

I think the inlet is the driver side port on the heater core. The inlet should be the line from the intake and the outlet should be the line back to the pump.

[cheaneyt]

Ocd isnt fun at times .I agree on the two list thing. That's how I do mine.

Sent while thinking of new mods for my 96 TC, using Tapatalk.

[nfldfordltd]

Heater core # 5 was installed yesterday afternoon. I made up a restrictor for the inlet line (hopefully it's the correct line, the one on the passenger side of the heater core) in the core by cutting a hole in the rubber end cap that came on the new core and put it back on, then slipped the new heater hose on over it. Hopefully this is the last time I have to take all that apart, as the the dash, heater box and plastic cowling along the top of the firewall are getting to be in rough shape from it all being taken apart so many times.
Next I have to replace the block heater, the section of heater hose from the under-upper intake manifold tube to the water pump on the front of the engine. Then I have to get a trunk floor for it (the one I was eyeing at the junkyard here has been crushed), cut that out and weld the new one in, replace the gas tank (I already have that ready to install), finish up the A/C restoration and get two new rear tires.
Speaking of tires, any suggestions on what size/type of tire I should get? I know there's a thread on that stuff, and I've been looking around here and there but I haven't been able to make up my mind as to what to get. I'm running new P225/70R15s on the front, I'd like to get something close to the same diameter and a little wider for the rear. P235 series tires seem to only be available for trucks, and I'm not really into that. Open to suggestions.

[nfldfordltd]

If I can get the local machine shop to attach the stock throttle linkage bracket to the HO TB when I see about boring the stock EGR spacer, I'm gonna do HO upper on mine, hopefully Mustang shorties/catless downpipes and rear end swap, I'm thinking any aero rear for the disc brake and I'll buy new 3.73 or 4.10 ring & pinion and Trac-Loc kit. That should be enough to keep me satisfied.

And possibly if I can find them in good condition, swap to cloth seats. The leather I have in mine is nice but I remember the cloth seats from my Vic were more comfortable, so I'd like to swap.

Your list is kinda depressing me, makes me think of all the stuff I need to work on after I get my car running. Stuff like the brakes that I've never touched, all the tune-up stuff, changing the fluids, and installing gauges to keep an eye on stuff and know something's wrong before it's too late. So much work, so little time and money, story of my life.

Didn't mean to get you depressed...but I could have done a bunch of mods to my car and ignored all the basic stuff. I believe in breaking stuff down into two lists: 1. Must do and 2. Like to do. I always take care of the stuff on the must-do list first, then if there's any resources left over (time and/or money) I shift my attention to the like-to-do list. That's why my car isn't nearly as fun to drive as a lot of other GMNer's cars, but I can road trip with relative ease and reliability. I'd like to do Scottfest some year when I can get my life in order enough to do such a long road trip. The joys of living in the North...I could have left a lot of the stuff alone and just let it go, but I want everything to work properly, some may even call me OCD lol.

[88Vic]

If I can get the local machine shop to attach the stock throttle linkage bracket to the HO TB when I see about boring the stock EGR spacer, I'm gonna do HO upper on mine, hopefully Mustang shorties/catless downpipes and rear end swap, I'm thinking any aero rear for the disc brake and I'll buy new 3.73 or 4.10 ring & pinion and Trac-Loc kit. That should be enough to keep me satisfied.

And possibly if I can find them in good condition, swap to cloth seats. The leather I have in mine is nice but I remember the cloth seats from my Vic were more comfortable, so I'd like to swap.

Your list is kinda depressing me, makes me think of all the stuff I need to work on after I get my car running. Stuff like the brakes that I've never touched, all the tune-up stuff, changing the fluids, and installing gauges to keep an eye on stuff and know something's wrong before it's too late. So much work, so little time and money, story of my life.

[nfldfordltd]

It's an 06 with the 4.7 V8 from the Tundra, 270hp/320tq and it's a low-end torque engine because it was designed for use in the Tundra for pulling. It's not the old wheezy V6's, it'll move lol.

Roger.

[88Vic]

I honestly can't see a 4-Runner being that much more ballsy than a box (unless it's modified or something) but I guess it's all about how it feels to drive.

It's an 06 with the 4.7 V8 from the Tundra, 270hp/320tq and it's a low-end torque engine because it was designed for use in the Tundra for pulling. It's not the old wheezy V6's, it'll move lol.

[nfldfordltd]

How much $ are these heater cores that keep failing??

Roughly $60 each. This last one cost about a little over $100 as I bought new molded heater hoses, all new clamps and had it all shipped here from upalong.
Coolant isn't very cheap either...lol
I'm down to under 4 hours work to replace a heater core now after having done it so many times.

[nfldfordltd]

Since Lincoln logs are harder to find, I figure I can get Mustang shorties a lot easier. Also since my exhaust is still almost new, I'll have a shop make catless downpipes that reduce to 2" and bolt it to my stock H-pipe. Then I'll just have to figure out what mufflers to get if it's too loud with just pipe.

This is all academic at this point, not sure if I'll keep the car if I can't put a new transmission into it cheap enough. I'll definitely need Mustang shorties and HO intake swap to make the car not such a turd, I'm used to the power of my 4Runner so it'll be hard to go back to such a slow car. I figure those mods and at least a K-code rear will be needed for me to be satisfied with it's performance, for now.

Beauty of Logs is they are direct bolt-on with no fabrication required. But if you have access to a muffler shop that will make the pipes for you then you're all set for Mustang shorties. I think I'm going to do 3.55 rear end gears in mine maybe next year, and do a EFI 351 swap as well if the stars align properly. I honestly can't see a 4-Runner being that much more ballsy than a box (unless it's modified or something) but I guess it's all about how it feels to drive. I'll try to get a video uploaded soon to give an idea about the sound.

[79lincolnlover]

How much $ are these heater cores that keep failing??

[88Vic]

Since Lincoln logs are harder to find, I figure I can get Mustang shorties a lot easier. Also since my exhaust is still almost new, I'll have a shop make catless downpipes that reduce to 2" and bolt it to my stock H-pipe. Then I'll just have to figure out what mufflers to get if it's too loud with just pipe.

This is all academic at this point, not sure if I'll keep the car if I can't put a new transmission into it cheap enough. I'll definitely need Mustang shorties and HO intake swap to make the car not such a turd, I'm used to the power of my 4Runner so it'll be hard to go back to such a slow car. I figure those mods and at least a K-code rear will be needed for me to be satisfied with it's performance, for now.

[nfldfordltd]

How does it sound with punched out cats? I've heard it doesn't sound as good as replacing them with a smooth pipe. I'm gonna stick with mine but if they start to clog, they'll be gone in a heartbeat.

I'm really happy with it, personally. The 50-Series Flowmasters make for a quiet idle but a distinct growl when you get into the throttle. They do kind of act like resonators a bit IMO. I'll try to make a video someday (not today, I have it all took apart to replace the heater core again lol).
But mind you I have never heard a box with pipe replaced cats so I don't know for sure. My truck has the cats gone altogether and replaced with pipe and it sounds pretty good with cast iron manifolds and regular single round muffler. Nice little chug-a-lug.

[88Vic]

How does it sound with punched out cats? I've heard it doesn't sound as good as replacing them with a smooth pipe. I'm gonna stick with mine but if they start to clog, they'll be gone in a heartbeat.

[nfldfordltd]

That new paint looks great. Hopefully for the money you paid, the paint shop paid attention to the small details.

Puh no! I had to remove the chrome myself before I dropped it off there.
I looked OK until I had it shipped from Goose Bay to Deer Lake in 2012. I asked it be but in an enclosed trailer, and the company put it on a flatbed, then hauled it over literally hundreds of miles of gravel highway. That resulted in approximately 200 chips in the paint and broke the windshield in 3 places. Couldn't get a cent out of the trucking company. I was (and still am) pissed.