KW's 1979 Ford LTD Landau

[Kodachrome Wolf]

I really don’t want to change much of anything with this car. Plan on sticking with the 14” wheels and leaving the exterior about as is. Maybe remove that trunk accent bar since it’s ruined. I will probably put factory style turn downs for the exhaust on over those tips, but that’s just preference for me.

Similar opinion with the interior. It’s great as it is. Just need to figure out what to do about the floppy sun visors. Perhaps the only thing might get added is just a standalone temperature gauge mounted down low like on the ‘87.

I do have a question for anyone that’s dealt with the early steering wheels. The cruise switches are still intact, but I’m well aware how fragile they are and I dare not try pressing them. Would the later style with the switches on the lower spokes swap or are the shafts different? I know I’d probably have to recolor a replacement wheel, but I would like to see if the cruise control works.

[Tiggie]

The replacement switches for your current steering wheel are fairly common on eBay. https://www.ebay.com/itm/33531493955...mis&media=COPY

The 79/82 used a splined shaft to mount the steering wheel, 83/89 uses just a shape thing that I think only lets you put the steering wheel one way. You can swap the upper shaft in the steering column to make it work with the newer wheel.

[gadget73]

The later are still splined but its got one missing or one fat. Forget which but its got a gizmo that only lets it go on one way. I suspect the wheels will not swap, or if they will it will go the wrong way.

[87gtVIC]

I really don’t want to change much of anything with this car. Plan on sticking with the 14” wheels and leaving the exterior about as is. Maybe remove that trunk accent bar since it’s ruined.

If you do this be careful.

When I removed mine back in08/09 for a respray of the entire car it did lift the paint and revealed primer. Did not matter in my case but something to be aware of. Definitely understand you wanting to remove it but proceed with great caution and care when doing so.

[Kodachrome Wolf]

The replacement switches for your current steering wheel are fairly common on eBay. https://www.ebay.com/itm/335314939556?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=L5UF071VQA-&sssrc=4429486&ssuid=soV3li9vT6C&var=&widget_ve r=a rtemis&media=COPY

The 79/82 used a splined shaft to mount the steering wheel, 83/89 uses just a shape thing that I think only lets you put the steering wheel one way. You can swap the upper shaft in the steering column to make it work with the newer wheel.

Honestly, a little shocked to see that. Kinda figured those would have gone the way of the dodo at this point. Guess I'll order up a spare set and perhaps will up the effort to ever try testing the existing switches, lest the initial attempt causes them to explode.

Good info on the steering shafts. I'll probably leave enough alone with that considering I'm not totally up the creek on switch supply right now. Maybe I'll pull and upper and a wheel should I see a good '83-'89 donor should I ever need to actually swap anything to the later style.

If you do this be careful.

When I removed mine back in08/09 for a respray of the entire car it did lift the paint and revealed primer. Did not matter in my case but something to be aware of. Definitely understand you wanting to remove it but proceed with great caution and care when doing so.

Good to know. Perhaps I'll leave it then as it is for now. Wonder if the old coating that has peeled on it could be cleaned off and maybe something wrapped around it? Anyway, doesn't affect much right now except from a very minor appearance standpoint.

Very nice LTD. I really like the wheelcovers. That style was an option. I believe the mileage is 37,000. The first number would sit a little back from the others if it is over 100k miles. The seats look original which is amazing. Is the am/fm radio a stereo or mono ? If the orange dot on the right side of the dial isn't there, it is a mono radio. Crank windows are cool. Another cool item is the full across floor mat. A big plus is a steering wheel that is not cracked !
Is the gas fresh ? Bad gas could be part of the problem. The visor issue was very common with the early LTD/MGM. I don't see lighted visor mirrors, so that will be easy to redo. Do the headliner at the same time for a color match.
Best wishes for your purchase. At least it is in good hands.

AM/FM Stereo. Wasn't 100% when I saw it in photos, but I fired it up when I was checking the car out and was pleasantly surprised how decent and warm it still sounded. I will very likely just fit the antenna inline aux adapter I like using that hides cleanly behind the dash and you just tune into a specific station so you can use the factory head unit with your phone.

Unfortunately the steering wheel is cracked at the back of the upper left hand spoke. It's not immediately visible, but I think that was the worst of it.

Gas looks good. It's got a plastic fuel filter I plan to swap for a metal one, but the fuel looks fresh and doesn't smell funny. I know the brake booster is definitely leaking and I don't think that carb was adjusted well at all. I'll get my vacuum gauge and timing light out to start verifying things. I'm thinking with the fixed booster, going through the vacuum lines, and new intake gaskets, that'll probably solve some issues there.

Visors are plain. Passenger visor had a factory mirror that fell off and is in the glove box. What's the usual fix for the floppy syndrome, or would a little Google-fu work to my benefit?



Applied for adding this to my Hagerty insurance policy. Hopefully I'll hear back something tomorrow so I can take the paperwork in Wednesday and get the registration sorted out.

[DerekTheGreat]

Pictures aren't loading for me, but I'm always eager to look at a box.

[sly]

Pictures aren't loading for me, but I'm always eager to look at a box.

You may need to allow insecure items in your browser settings for this site.

[VicCrownVic]

Should you decide to try swapping to the later steering wheel at some point, here is some of what I learned:
https://www.grandmarq.net/vb/forum/t...ft-interchange

https://www.grandmarq.net/vb/forum/technical/box-tech/drivetrain-chassis/48405-early-steering-column-parts-diagram-or-shaft-separation-advice

[gadget73]

does the visor have a screw in it near the end that mounts to the roof? Some older ones did, snugging the screw up fixes the floppy problem.

whats the factory fuel filter situation on these, just one at the fuel inlet ? Just want to make sure there isn't a second ancient filter underneath somewhere to cause you grief. Should normally only be on the pressure side of the pump. Filters on the suction side cause a lot of problems.

[Kodachrome Wolf]

does the visor have a screw in it near the end that mounts to the roof? Some older ones did, snugging the screw up fixes the floppy problem.

whats the factory fuel filter situation on these, just one at the fuel inlet ? Just want to make sure there isn't a second ancient filter underneath somewhere to cause you grief. Should normally only be on the pressure side of the pump. Filters on the suction side cause a lot of problems.

The visor just has a spring with a washer and metal hold down fingers at the top. Likely what I could do is attempt to increase spring pressure by trying to adjust the hold down washer by either adjusting those fingers down a bit or rolling them up straight and adding an additional washer. I also did a little reading about fixing the floppy fold down component too, which is apparently just lightly compressing the visor between two blocks of wood in a vice, then reinstalling to the shaft. Apparently that applies enough tension back to the shaft to prevent the visor from just falling down.

Initial inspection I noted there was a new fuel pump fitted. I haven't traced beyond the pump, but the only filter I'm aware of is on the pressure side, not the suction side. There is also the filter that fits to the carburetor. I do want to swap the inline filter that's underhood to a metal one instead of the plastic one. Just don't like plastic near heat like that.

[Mainemantom]

What I did with the visors is replace them with a later model. If you do this you will need the plastic pieces which attach to the headliner at the center area. Junkyard visors would work since the fabric will need to be replaced., Maybe add the lighted type? You might have the visor wiring inside the A pillars. Many of the panthers I have worked on did. Recovering the lighted type is labor intensive. I have done it without using a sewing machine.

[gadget73]

one in the carb is what I'd expect, not one inline plus one in the carb. Maybe see if the one in the carb has been removed. I'd probably ditch one or the other.

and yeah plastic filter on top of the engine bad juju.

[Kodachrome Wolf]

one in the carb is what I'd expect, not one inline plus one in the carb. Maybe see if the one in the carb has been removed. I'd probably ditch one or the other.

and yeah plastic filter on top of the engine bad juju.

I went back and checked the one photo of the engine I took. The carburetor does not have the filter at the fuel inlet, just the inline one.

All the service bits arrived while I was out of town, so I went through those to make sure everything was correct. I'll probably get that job underway Saturday. Definitely going to straighten up a few things underhood done likely by the prior owner, namely getting the spark plug wires cleaned up and in organizers as they should be along with routing the pump to carb fuel hose more appropriately.

Nick is also grabbing a few bits off a '87 Marquis on his travels that will get swapped onto this car. He found a good battery hold down, vent visors (pending he's able to recover them without it being too much trouble), and an electronic clock since the analog model has failed and seems to be unique to like '79-'80 cars. Later ones have a different connector and are marked "Quartz." That might be the most radical change to the dash I'm willing to do just so I can keep time without spending an arm and a leg for the early analog clock.

[gadget73]

its quite possibly just seized up. Depends on the specifics but many early car clocks were spring wound with a little solenoid that would fire and re-tension the spring when it wound down. If its one of those, someone that works on clocks may be able to service it. Usually they just need cleaning and lubrication.

[Kodachrome Wolf]

Secured a Marti Report for kicks.


Dealer is long since gone, but now the MURPHY 369-7376 written on the owner's manual makes more sense. Honea Path was only about 20 miles north from Abbeville where I purchased the car. This car was never very far from where it was new its whole life.