This all began on April Fool's Day, 2017. One of my buddies sent me a link to a craigslist ad, saying to buy the car for him, and that he'd buy it off me later. I chuckled at first glance- it appeared to be a whackered-out '03+ Crown Victoria. Nothing special, they're a dime a dozen unfortunately. But it's 99% rust free 2011 Crown Victoria, which is a pretty solid choice in its own right- all the Crown Victorias for USDM were either police cars or taxi cabs after model year 2008 or so, so it's got the heavy duty frame and lots of heavy duty parts from the factory. So it'll stand up the rigors of prolonged spirited driving pretty well out of the box, moreso with upgrades (more on that later!). Price is $800 OBO! Worth checking out at the least.
The more I scrolled through the pictures, the more curious I got. This 2011 looked different from other whales; the proportions were fucking perfect! It's as if the rear doors were longer, or something. So I zoomed in on the side profile picture, and then it hit me. This is a LWB Crown Victoria. Purpose built taxi with longer rear doors, and longer frame versus the other Crown Victorias. Which means better ride quality and better looks. Plus the hilariously good handling and braking of '03+ panthers with requisite upgrades (255/50/17 summer tires, addco swaybars, metco watts linkage & rear control arms, aluminum driveshaft, hawk brake pads, etc.), meant that they'll dodge deer and grip around tight bends with the best of em'. It's an '06+ so it's guaranteed to have 31 spline axles too! And so on. No wonder why my friend wants this one so bad.
So I call the owner the next day and we get to talking about the car. He explains how he bought it after it was retired from taxi service, and that he can't afford to keep two daily drivers going at once. Said he'd rather fix up his '04 CVPI, and use the money from selling the '11 toward meeting that end. Told him I'd be by after work to come check it out.
Well, the ad wasn't lying. Car was rust free- you could eat off the frame. Door jambs, wheel wells, and suspension components too. Steering felt amazing too. Get a non VAPS '03+ and you will understand what I mean. (If you have VAPS just pull the fuse and/or unplug the EVO valve!) Quick, light, fast steering all the time. Whether it's on center or loaded up, it just feels fantastic. Can always tell what the front wheels are doing. Can just huck the car into turns of all angles and diameters. Love it! Brakes felt good enough to drive home but definitely in need of upgrades, maintenance, and the like.
On the minus side, interior was a combination of whackerized and trashed. Transmission took too long to go into gear, and shifts were delayed. Had an exhaust leak, which made for interesting sounds and odors. Had a god-awful $40 rustoleum black paintjob, with overspray and just very shitty finish all around. Assorted dents, dings, scratches. Battery was pretty weak, and alignment was WAY off. 2.73 open rear end. And that stupid fucking whacker equipment everywhere. Ughhhhhhha.
Despite this, I was head over heels for Briana after a couple miles of driving. As bad as I felt about buying a car out from under one of my best friends, I knew he'd understand. He was the one who got me into '03+ panthers, and he knew my next project would be a '90-94 Town Car or an '03+ Crown Victoria/Grand Marquis! So I tell the seller to keep his emergency equipment and take $200 off the asking price. He agrees, so I zip over to the bank to retrieve money. As I'm driving back the guy texts me, saying he took the plates off the car, and he wants to keep the 17 inch steelies that he advertised the car with. He says he'll throw on a set of 16 inch steelies with bald tires (Okay, that's how you want to play it!) I counter with a good set of 17s go for ~$200 at the wreckers. Set of used tires are about $300. Tell him we're now at $300 cash money today, take it or leave it. He takes it, and I arrange for Briana to be towed back home the next day.
Call my friend who linked me to the ad and explain everything. He's not overjoyed, but he also knows I'd go all in with Briana, and that a late whale was in the running for my next project. I promised to let him take the car on some of his favorite roads once it's all up to snuff in late July. And that the next project he picks up, I pay its first year of storage, wherever it may be. Good enough, we say!
So that brings us to present day. Since I bought the car in early April, I've ditched the SRS/airbags, ditched the rocker trim, and changed the oil.
I have all of these parts ordered, or in my possession already:
-17 inch CVPI steel wheels
-LED taillight kit, with new housings & bulbs.
-Brighter headlights
-Stewart water pump
-Cloyes timing chain
-KYB heavy duty McPherson struts
-Addco sway bars, front and rear
-Hawk HPS pads
-LPD transmisson cooler
-LPD power steering cooler
-Trick Flow 6 quart 4R70W pan
-Jones 2.5 outlet exhaust tips (for later)
Then it's off a local shop that has a good track record with panthers. They'll install the above parts (save for the exhaust tips), flush fluids, check lines, check wheel bearings, etc.
Meanwhille I'll be buying more parts! Should have all these ordered by the end of the month:
-Metco rear control arms
-Metco watts linkage (plus ARP hardened mounting studs)
-BBK ceramic coated long tube headers
-Lunati torque cam
One more stop to the aforementioned local place to install the control arms and watts linkage. Then it's going to be at the speed shop for headers installation, plus a custom 2.5 inch exhaust.
Then after all that's done, I'll set aside money for the following (not like I'll have anything better to do after she's parked for the winter anyway!)
-COMPLETE repaint in dark blue, with some accent striping
-3.27 locking rear end
-Poly body mounts
-Digital dash, preferably a complete swap from a '90-'94 Town Car. I even have all the parts!
-Custom aluminum or carbon fiber driveshaft- anyone have a source for these?
-MegaSquirt! Or SCT X4 tuner if I'm not feeling overly spendy.
I'll keep you all posted as this daily driven deer dodger gets the HR427 treatment!
The more I scrolled through the pictures, the more curious I got. This 2011 looked different from other whales; the proportions were fucking perfect! It's as if the rear doors were longer, or something. So I zoomed in on the side profile picture, and then it hit me. This is a LWB Crown Victoria. Purpose built taxi with longer rear doors, and longer frame versus the other Crown Victorias. Which means better ride quality and better looks. Plus the hilariously good handling and braking of '03+ panthers with requisite upgrades (255/50/17 summer tires, addco swaybars, metco watts linkage & rear control arms, aluminum driveshaft, hawk brake pads, etc.), meant that they'll dodge deer and grip around tight bends with the best of em'. It's an '06+ so it's guaranteed to have 31 spline axles too! And so on. No wonder why my friend wants this one so bad.
So I call the owner the next day and we get to talking about the car. He explains how he bought it after it was retired from taxi service, and that he can't afford to keep two daily drivers going at once. Said he'd rather fix up his '04 CVPI, and use the money from selling the '11 toward meeting that end. Told him I'd be by after work to come check it out.
Well, the ad wasn't lying. Car was rust free- you could eat off the frame. Door jambs, wheel wells, and suspension components too. Steering felt amazing too. Get a non VAPS '03+ and you will understand what I mean. (If you have VAPS just pull the fuse and/or unplug the EVO valve!) Quick, light, fast steering all the time. Whether it's on center or loaded up, it just feels fantastic. Can always tell what the front wheels are doing. Can just huck the car into turns of all angles and diameters. Love it! Brakes felt good enough to drive home but definitely in need of upgrades, maintenance, and the like.
On the minus side, interior was a combination of whackerized and trashed. Transmission took too long to go into gear, and shifts were delayed. Had an exhaust leak, which made for interesting sounds and odors. Had a god-awful $40 rustoleum black paintjob, with overspray and just very shitty finish all around. Assorted dents, dings, scratches. Battery was pretty weak, and alignment was WAY off. 2.73 open rear end. And that stupid fucking whacker equipment everywhere. Ughhhhhhha.
Despite this, I was head over heels for Briana after a couple miles of driving. As bad as I felt about buying a car out from under one of my best friends, I knew he'd understand. He was the one who got me into '03+ panthers, and he knew my next project would be a '90-94 Town Car or an '03+ Crown Victoria/Grand Marquis! So I tell the seller to keep his emergency equipment and take $200 off the asking price. He agrees, so I zip over to the bank to retrieve money. As I'm driving back the guy texts me, saying he took the plates off the car, and he wants to keep the 17 inch steelies that he advertised the car with. He says he'll throw on a set of 16 inch steelies with bald tires (Okay, that's how you want to play it!) I counter with a good set of 17s go for ~$200 at the wreckers. Set of used tires are about $300. Tell him we're now at $300 cash money today, take it or leave it. He takes it, and I arrange for Briana to be towed back home the next day.
Call my friend who linked me to the ad and explain everything. He's not overjoyed, but he also knows I'd go all in with Briana, and that a late whale was in the running for my next project. I promised to let him take the car on some of his favorite roads once it's all up to snuff in late July. And that the next project he picks up, I pay its first year of storage, wherever it may be. Good enough, we say!
So that brings us to present day. Since I bought the car in early April, I've ditched the SRS/airbags, ditched the rocker trim, and changed the oil.
I have all of these parts ordered, or in my possession already:
-17 inch CVPI steel wheels
-LED taillight kit, with new housings & bulbs.
-Brighter headlights
-Stewart water pump
-Cloyes timing chain
-KYB heavy duty McPherson struts
-Addco sway bars, front and rear
-Hawk HPS pads
-LPD transmisson cooler
-LPD power steering cooler
-Trick Flow 6 quart 4R70W pan
-Jones 2.5 outlet exhaust tips (for later)
Then it's off a local shop that has a good track record with panthers. They'll install the above parts (save for the exhaust tips), flush fluids, check lines, check wheel bearings, etc.
Meanwhille I'll be buying more parts! Should have all these ordered by the end of the month:
-Metco rear control arms
-Metco watts linkage (plus ARP hardened mounting studs)
-BBK ceramic coated long tube headers
-Lunati torque cam
One more stop to the aforementioned local place to install the control arms and watts linkage. Then it's going to be at the speed shop for headers installation, plus a custom 2.5 inch exhaust.
Then after all that's done, I'll set aside money for the following (not like I'll have anything better to do after she's parked for the winter anyway!)
-COMPLETE repaint in dark blue, with some accent striping
-3.27 locking rear end
-Poly body mounts
-Digital dash, preferably a complete swap from a '90-'94 Town Car. I even have all the parts!
-Custom aluminum or carbon fiber driveshaft- anyone have a source for these?
-MegaSquirt! Or SCT X4 tuner if I'm not feeling overly spendy.
I'll keep you all posted as this daily driven deer dodger gets the HR427 treatment!
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