kishy's 1991 Grand Marquis

[kishy]

hm, I think thats a little different than the older steering shafts then. I definitely do not remember an external band looking thing on mine.

I would expect the 90-91 part to be whatever the aeros use, or closer to it than the boxy-box part.
Looking at the 88 in the junkyard earlier, I saw that this shaft is significantly different on the pre-90 cars.

[kishy]

Tonight, I installed the reman steering gear. I used a TRW pitman arm that I had hanging around.





I used 5/16"-18 hardware to reassemble the coupler/guibo thingy. I used 1-3/4" long bolts because I had them; 1-1/2" would have likely been fine, but since I had the extra I chose to double-nut them. These fasteners backing out would cause complete disconnection of the steering column from the gear, so they are fairly important.



However, this choice causes the factory-installed plastic shield to keep grease off the coupler to no longer fit, so I may re-evaluate this. On the other hand, with a dry steering pump and gear, it's possible it won't really get all that nasty particularly fast.



Also, located and mocked up the gauge pods. Given that I have a police speedometer, and only the left half of it is useful, I'm inclined to go with the variant that puts the gauge on the right side. Not a perfect solution but one that works.





As for the steering stuff:
I ran the engine and kept topping up the fluid until all the air seems to have gotten out.
It sounded miserable until the air all bubbled out, but we're back to very very quiet, with good assist, and no apparent leaks now, which is fantastic.

Since the hoses were new just before I last drove the car, I'm leaving those alone.

"Might as well" also change the idler arm since I'm here and I have one, and it'll be the last piece of the front end that's still original, but it's not clear to me there's any benefit if it isn't obviously flopping all over the place, which it isn't.

[Mainemantom]

The gauge pods I have are not the police type. Just the aftermarket One or three gauge pod. Don't think I have a two gauge pod. It seems you found one to use.

[VicCrownVic]

I'm a little late to the party. +1, the 90+ steering shaft is different from the pre-'90 shafts. The one on The Ice Car will collapse like it should which made changing the steering gear box easier compared to changing the steering gear box on The Scab. The Scab's steering shaft is seized. I can actually feel the steering column/wheel move toward me during hard breaking. (Apparently there must be enough body movement relative to the frame?)

I would also expect at least an aero steering shaft to be a direct swap, and honestly wouldn't be surprised if a whale shaft would also swap in.

I have a gauge pod that mounts above the rearview mirror in the '98, Autometer Gauge Works 18018 (4 spots for 2 1/16" gauges) http://www.grandmarq.net/vb/forum/te...94#post1217894. It is designed for some model year range of Super Duty that I can't recall and can be had in 2-4 gauge configuration. The original person I got the idea from used a 3 gauge pod in a box wagon. Not sure how awful a 2" to 2 1/16" adapter would be (Autometer P12467). Could a potential solution if you find you don't like the current setup you have but want to keep the same gauge(s).

[gadget73]

if the whole later shaft will swap that would make doing a late model steering gear swap a little less annoying.

[kishy]

The only gauge I am likely to have when this batch of work is done is the oil pressure gauge. The tach is dead and I'm not particularly interested in replacing it. Not a fan of pillar pods, and unless I also do the warning light, the gauge must be directly in front of me, so up above the mirror or down below the dash are both options I don't really like. Since I'll only have one gauge, I think the column pod is a good choice. Or, just keep the gauge where it is. All it blocks is the odometer which I don't need to see constantly. There are no major mileage milestones coming soon.

Tonight, I put the hood ornament back on and took the car around the block. Did a little one-wheel-peel rather successfully. TV is way too low on this for my preferences, but it was set by a transmission shop with a gauge to specs. I'll probably bump it up at some point. I've gotten way too used to AODs that hold gears the way I want, and this isn't doing it.

The steering, on the other hand, feels absolutely incredible. It's just about silent, it's pinky-finger-light, and it feels about as tight as it should be.

The weak looking passenger headlight burned out minutes after the photo was taken.

[DerekTheGreat]

Damn.. That looks like ~$1,000 worth of labor! If I wore a hat, it would be off for you. It's nice when after a bunch of work there's a very noticeable improvement.

So you said "R" on the temp gauge is roughly 210 or 220F? I never knew that, but will try and keep it handy amidst the bowl of soggy Cheerios that is my brain. However, I wouldn't expect the average person to know that. For me, numbers are important as a frame of reference. They let a person know just how serious the temperature situation is and if they need to react. For all I knew, the red portion of the temp gauge could've been 220.

[gadget73]

Not sure if I've actually driven a "by the book" calibrated AOD. Most of them shift early and mushy, and I've never known if thats just the stock setting, something that happens with age and cable stretch, or someone's bad job of adjusting it. I crank the pressure so they downshift with some pedal and aren't in overdrive before I hit 40. Even without adding any horsepower, having a trans that responds to throttle input and doesn't lug the engine makes it a whole lot faster.

[DerekTheGreat]

I let that Mark VII I had for a while shift late & hard as that's the general consensus around here about AOD's. It smoked the OD band several months later. Meanwhile, the AOD in my Town Car, which I set to factory specs some 30 or 40k miles ago is still going strong as ever. If I'm barely on the throttle, it will shift into OD around 40 or 42mph. If I don't want OD, I leave the lever in D. Downshifts fine as needed.

[sly]

When I had the boxes... I always set the AOD to shift a little later (tighten up the TV cable about 1-2mm) but not late enough to be harsh. It was enough to feel the engagement. Never had any trans issues after that and put over 60K miles on that after initial rebuild/upgrade to wide ratio gears in the 88.

[gadget73]

The trans in the white car has 235k on it. I recently swapped a valve body with a shift kit in it, plus its running more TV pressure. The valve body swap was mostly done to fix a problem with a dragging forward clutch. If the trans in that car pukes I'm blaming it more on the stuck check ball than me screwing with it. Besides, with a quarter million miles its more amazing that it works than if it failed.

[kishy]

Tonight, I tidied up the garage from the Focus projects, got that one back outside, and started looking at some parts for two upcoming 91 projects:

Window motors. Both front windows are dead. Both have been junkyard swapped at least 3 times in my ownership of the car. The mid-89-91 window motors are, in my experience, trash. The rear doors currently contain the weird Dorman multi-vehicle motors, which are slow and underpowered, but work.

I have a couple smooth running motors that just need gear rehab, so I should be able to piece something together once I find my bag of the gear plugs.



Oil pan. I don't want to poke the pan and possibly cause it to fail, but looking at it, I really don't trust it to go back on the road. That rust goes deep and a lot of layers have flaked.

When I bought the fancy chrome transmission pan, I also bought a fancy chrome oil pan. I have an oil pan gasket in the tote of gaskets. No real reason not to move forward with that. Will need to borrow back my engine crane from the friend it's on loan to, but he confirms it's easy to get to where it is.

Some considerations: I had purchased the version with the hole for the oil level warning light switch. It looks like 10-years-ago-me planned ahead and found a low oil switch to put in that hole. I think my thought process had been using the now-disused oil pressure light with the float, but now having more knowledge/context than I did back then, I know there's a module that drives the oil level light, and I suspect there may be a bit of nuisance flickering if I just wire it directly as the oil level naturally fluctuates and splashes around.

Damn.. That looks like ~$1,000 worth of labor! If I wore a hat, it would be off for you. It's nice when after a bunch of work there's a very noticeable improvement.

So you said "R" on the temp gauge is roughly 210 or 220F? I never knew that, but will try and keep it handy amidst the bowl of soggy Cheerios that is my brain. However, I wouldn't expect the average person to know that. For me, numbers are important as a frame of reference. They let a person know just how serious the temperature situation is and if they need to react. For all I knew, the red portion of the temp gauge could've been 220.

Shrug...it's a fair bit of work, sure, but I made a decision recently that I want some more seat time in this car, and if it sits forever without getting the work done, that'll never happen. Digging into it and re-familiarizing myself with this car, it really doesn't need anything I can't do, except the body work. With my present skill set, anyway.

I seem to remember R being the normal spot it hung out at. Not exactly sure, but the basic idea is that if you know where it normally points, and you know the cooling system is working properly when the gauge is pointing there, it doesn't matter if it's numbers or letters or colours or little pictures of cute animals, really. Which I guess is an argument in favour of warning lights, but the temperature that triggers our cars' lights (260ish?) is so high that you're already beyond danger by the time it turns on.

Not sure if I've actually driven a "by the book" calibrated AOD. Most of them shift early and mushy, and I've never known if thats just the stock setting, something that happens with age and cable stretch, or someone's bad job of adjusting it. I crank the pressure so they downshift with some pedal and aren't in overdrive before I hit 40. Even without adding any horsepower, having a trans that responds to throttle input and doesn't lug the engine makes it a whole lot faster.

This will be in OD by the time you hit 40...km/h. Not cool. Don't like it. Shifts have some feel, and it doesn't feel slippy, but it's a total slug unless you're really into the pedal to keep it in a lower gear.

I let that Mark VII I had for a while shift late & hard as that's the general consensus around here about AOD's. It smoked the OD band several months later. Meanwhile, the AOD in my Town Car, which I set to factory specs some 30 or 40k miles ago is still going strong as ever. If I'm barely on the throttle, it will shift into OD around 40 or 42mph. If I don't want OD, I leave the lever in D. Downshifts fine as needed.

There's a balance to be found, but the basic idea is that a firmer shift is a faster shift. The sooner you engage a gear, the less time the parts spend slipping. A soft shift is soft because there's overlap where parts are, in essence, working against each other.

I simply won't use OD unless I know I'm going to be cruising at a speed appropriate to stay in it. Letting it go in and out as TV dictates in regular traffic is a recipe for a lot of wear, and by many accounts the AOD has an OD band that is undersized to begin with so there isn't a whole lot of wear possible before it's toast.

[kishy]

I borrowed back my engine hoist from my friend, and set about the oil pan replacement.
Car on ramps. Engine mounts unbolted. Engine hoist hooked to a chain bolted down to a couple of intake manifold bolts (but they're upper to lower bolts, which thread into aluminum).
Pan is off. Gasket is a newer 1-piece silicone rubber part, so someone has been here before. edit: after further reflection, I think that's actually RTV.
Unbolted the oil pump pickup, it's sitting loose in the pan.
Engine is up as far as I dare with that chain and those lift points, but it just isn't enough room.
I've seen references to people doing this with the engine in the car, but I have serious doubts it's going to work.
There's a thread on CVN where it is mentioned that it can be done in-vehicle, but all the relevant detail about how to achieve it is missing. https://www.crownvic.net/ubbthreads/...t&Number=16262

Obviously, need more lift, but trying not to destroy a bunch of stuff in the course of getting there, and I don't like my lift point at all. I just don't know of anything better.

Not really keen on separating the engine and transmission at this time, so not really sure what I want to do now. Probably going back out to stare at it for a while.



(the hoist is no longer at the side, the actual lifting was done from the front)

[kishy]

I did think to scrape the rust off the oil pan. It isn't as bad as I thought, but it's still pretty scaly. Since I have an oil pan on-hand, it seems wise to continue.

I read a few references to people doing oil pans in-vehicle. Sounds like the wiper housing needs to come off the cowl to get it lifted high enough. Well, at least on a 91, that part doesn't appear to be removable, and if it is, the dash has to come out first, so...no. Decided engine removal was the only way to move forward.

Where things sit presently:
Cooling system is drained and radiator is out. Upper intake is removed. Chain is bolted to the 4 outer corner holes for mounting the upper intake. I figure if I mess up these threads, at least they're easy to get to for doing a helicoil or similar.
Bellhousing bolts are out. One was missing. Starter is out.
One bolt/stud is undone on one cat. The other 3 bolts are still attached, to be wrestled with tomorrow. The 2-cats-per-side setup makes this somehow even more frustrating and awkward than the older 1-cat-per-side setup.
Transmission jack is pushed up against the transmission.
Debating undoing the converter bolts so the flexplate comes free, or pulling the converter out with the engine - latter makes a big mess, former is more labour-intensive.
I should note, some firsts here for me. I have never pulled one of these engines and have never separated any automatic transmission from any engine.

Time for bed.

[Tiggie]

I've always left the converter in the trans and separated them at the flexplate. The last two pulls/installs I did with the trans attached still. It was not as fun to get out put the reinstall was much easier than playing the engine/trans line up game.