Lovin' my 1991 CP

[mashaffer]

I joined this forum a while back to sculk about and learn about Panthers as I was considering getting one. Well I did finally get one. I flew to Oklahoma City to pick up a 1991 Mercury Colony Park and drove it home to Northern Indiana the next day (950+ miles). I knew that I was going to love that car when I got home and still felt fresh enough to drive a couple more hours. On the trip home I lost OD due to the notorious TV bushing problem (should have checked it before I left) but seems to have avoided damage as it is working fine after I had my mechanic replace with brass bushing.

It was worth the trip as the car had virtually no rust. A couple of spots on the radiator support where coolant had spilt (had my mechanic clean off and hit with some rustoleum to nip that in the bud). A few other bits of surface rust around the trim and in the inside bottom seam of the door should be easy to put right with out major effort.

Has a few mechanical issues that one would expect from a 23 year old car. I have already got the A/C leaks fixed and refilled as well as brakes. Badly leaking PS pump is next on the list. Cosmetically the worst problem is the totally trashed di-noc. I will probably remove the old and touch up the underlying paint (twilight blue) untill I can scrape up the money to replace it.

Once I get the little niggling things taken care of I will probably look to convert to dual exhaust (2 1/4 inch with H pipe seems appropriate) and possibly some improvement of the torturous induction path taken by the cold air intake. It is already the quickest car I have driven in quite a while but I am looking to maybe improve milage a bit and get a little more vigor in the 50-80 passing range. I am getting 12 or 13 mpg in town and average 19.5mpg at a steady 70 to 75 mph.

Will post more pics in an appropriate forum at a later date.

mike

[pantera77]

If it's rust free that's what counts! Looks in good shape!

[slack]

Sweet! Congrats on the car and welcome to the panther club!

[89TownCar]

Don't see many CPs around here..or any box Panthers except for the odd MGM. Sweet wagon!

[Hearsesrock427]

Dude, that thing is SICK!

I've never seen Midnight Blue on a Grand Marquis wagon before- only on sedans. To say it looks good on a wagon would be a huge understatement. I love how it changes from dark blue to black depending on the ambient light conditions.

And wow, that interior looks super clean and in great shape overall (save for the front seats, which is to be expected after 23+ years of service). No cracks in the dash pad either.

I'm guessing that your '91 MGMCP is an LS trim, as evidenced by the fact that it uses something other than velour for the interior. (Velour was standard on GS trim, and Leather was standard on LS trim IIRC). Them turbines complete the package. They look mint too! No signs of pitting or anything.

You mentioned it's pretty much rust-free. I'm assuming you know of the MGMCP water pocket issue in the tail lights? I recall sly mentioning it in an older thread. (I'm sure other members can chime in and fill in the gaps. I'll do the best I can in the meantime.) Basically Ford was lazy, and put MGMCP tail lights in a space that was designed only for LTDCS tail lights. So the MGMCPs would get small water pockets, and the tail light housings would slowly rot from the inside-out. It's an easy fix if you tend to it early from what I've read.

Regarding the cold-air-intake: http://mymiata.paladinmicro.com/K&NComments.htm

The more you know. I'd be amazed if you picked up any power at the dyno with that snake oil.

You want to make some real power gains, you change out stuff like the intake plenum and intake runners. Possible options include 5.0 equipped Explorers, 5.0 equipped Foxes. You mentioned an H-pipe dual exhaust system, which is always a good idea. There are also more performance oriented headers (such as 1990 Town Car headers known colloquially as "Lincoln Logs") that weigh less and make more power than the awful stock headers. There's tons of other stuff available, such as performance camshafts, higher rear gear ratios, shift reprogramming kits for the AOD, etc.

[mashaffer]

Thanks for the kind words guys. I like the blue also but have discovered that it shows the dust, pollen, and rain spots something terrible. Guess it will force me to keep her clean and waxed.

Yes unfortunately the leather is in pretty bad shape. That will probably be a bit expensive but they are a really comfortable place to park my tush.

I did not know about the tail lights. Thanks for the tip. What is the best way to check that out? Just remove the lenses and look?

As for induction I didn't expect a filter to do much but instinctivelty the factory cold air intake looks restrictive with the bends through the air box and then flattening out into the flat plenum that goes up and over the radiator. I was thinking along the lines of what Pantera77 did on his 87...



I am not looking to get hotrod performance gains just a bit more squirt on the top end and if possible some fuel milage improvement. Will have to pick at it as funds trickle in. Thanks again.

mike

[79lincolnlover]

Welcome! Will this '91 be your daily driver or a weekend toy?

[mashaffer]

Daily driver. My only car right now and for the foreseeable future.

mike

[Hearsesrock427]

@mashaffer: Quoted post from sly on the tail light water pockets/general rusting issues: "the rust spots above the taillights are due to the fact that the mercury used the ford body and just filled the larger holes with sheet metal and welded it in to make the tail lights fit. The welds are probably rusting out from the inside. A little body work will fix it up, and properly sealed, won't need to be touched again."