My Mark VII's Trans took a dump and I need YOUR help!!!

[90LSC SE]

Guys and gals......

I must admit that I am truly disgusted.....

I've had two Mark VII's in my life and between the two of them I have been through 9 transmissions......NO LIE!

I don't have to tell you all how much the Mark VII means to me....you all know....

To make a long story short......I had an 89' LSC....the trans went....I went to AAMCO...that's all they do right??? well 8 transmissions later it still wasn't right....everything was wrong....I was losing sleep over it.....they had the car more than I did......I finally, over much distress decided to sell the car....the last iteration of the trans was good enough to sell, but not to keep....I couldn't go through it one more time....I knew she was going to blow again....it was just a time bomb waiting to go off.....so I sold it..............I have missed the car for 2 years...

I just recently had an opportunity to buy a 90 LSC SE....I swore that one day I'd own another Mark.....so I bought it!!!!

I love the car so much and I'm glad I bought it.....The prior owner said the trans was only a year old and I believe him.....he gave me the receipt......well guess what....that trans blew tonite.....overdrive is slipping like crazy....I nursed the car back to my homestate of MD from NC....in 3rd gear I made it!!!!!!!

But now.....I'm faced with the very scenario I was faced with 2 years ago........a beautiful Mark VII that needs transmission attention.......

I'm convinced that the GOD FORSAKEN 350 A.O.D. that Ford stuck in this car never belonged there.....it just doesn't work....at least not with much longevity of reliability.....certainly not for anyone that puts their right foot to the floor from time to time....it just doesn't work.....TERRIBLE TRANSMISSION...believe I KNOW!!!!!


Here's the question everyone.........I'm married to this car....dumping it is not an option.....I wouldn't want to even if I could....I love the Mark VII and I want to keep it.....

I can A. go to a speed shop and buy a serious beefcake automatic transmission with shiftkit this and beefy that....it'll probably last forever.....be capable of 400+ horsepower and allow quarter mile times of 10-12 seconds....whatever......

OR,

I can B. Convert my car to a manual T-5 transmission........Which will in effect be a "Mustang" if you will......at least have that mustang reliability....the T-5 is a great set-up..... I know.....

What does everyone think?????????? I know those of you who have converted to T-5's lovem'........and swear by em'...... I'm kinda leaning the way of a T-5.......I'm SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO tired of messing with transmissions.........I've been doing way to long.....I'm tired of paying for them too.....I'm willing to spend the money to do it right...........whatever right is......

And so I ask.....all of you........my fellow Mark VII lovers.........What do I do?????????Do I go for a beefcake auto? or do I convert to a T-5??????????? I'm kinda leaning towards the T-5.....I think a manual Mark VII would be both cool and rare......it'll really help the car move its heft.....

Guys, gals.......anyone and everyone.....please give me your opinions............tell me pros of bothe options and cons of both options..............what would you do??????? and why would you do it???????

Who would you have do the work? Are they reputable? Have they done it before? Do they warranty the work? How much?

I'm located in Baltimore, MD and I HATE with a passion the stock 350 A.O.D. from Ford......I will NEVER EVER again buy, replace, or ever acknowledge this lousy, crappy transmission..........

Those of you who know what I'm talking about........understand......those of you who don't........soon will.......may god give you the strength and courage to deal with it objectively........

Please help, any and all advice welcomed.....

What should I do?

Sincerely,

Brian
90 LSC SE (Parked....for the moment........)

[ohiolsc]

personally I would go for the swap, you will be happier in the longrun. not only are you fixing a age old problem but you will notice quicker times and better gas mileage. my only words of advice are, don't rule out the tremec. the 5 spd replacement right out of the cobra R is a lot nicer transmission than the t-5 and not much more expensive. Two to Four hundred bucks depending where you shop. I would say that this is the way to go.

------------------
Matthew "Amadeu5"

[mark7lover]

Well, your first mistake was going to Aamco (I hate those crooks). I got taken by them when I was 18 and will never give them another wasted minute. If they couldn't get it right after the second time you should have went somewhere else. I would pick another shop and check for opinions on the shop. If my transmission ever went out on the 91 Mark I know where I would take it right a way here in Omaha (Cottman Transmissions). Anyway I would have the same type transmission redone. I still have the original tranny in the 91 lsc with 133000 miles and it shifts great. I had a 88 and it had 121000 before trading it in and it ahifted unbelievably smooth. With the exception of the car going to into overdrive and if you know when to let it shift gears it is pretty well tuned. It is all about maintenace and finding a place that you feel comfortable with. It is only my opinion and I am sure it won't weigh too much. good luck

[This message has been edited by mark7lover (edited July 01, 2001).]

[BLUECOLLAR]

You just need to find a different tranny shop. If you choose to go the stock route, let me know, for $750, I know of a big place that rebuilds tranny's with a reman torque converter and checks them on a tranny dyno before letting them go. This catches any problems BEFORE its put in the car. There tranny's are warranted for 12 months 12,000 miles and if the tranny takes a crap under warranty, they will pay up to 5 hours R&R time and up to $32 an hour.

You need to make the decision if you want to go stock or modify it.

[90LSC]

I have never met anybody who was happy with AAMCO. NEVER. Find out who does the transmission work for the local P.D., as they are usually(not promising anything)reliable. ANY trans shop that has to redo a job more than once is fing up and needs to be taken to court.
The switch to manual is indeed tempting, and can sometimes be performed for less $$ than a AOD rebuild. I may very well make the switch as well but I want to save up to afford a T-56. OOhhh soome daaay.....
There are some guys running high horse Marks(strip and/or roadcourse)and their AODs are working just fine. I think it is ALL in the skill of the rebuilder.
It is ultimately your call....

[Charlie]

Better check you bushing on the cable that goes from the tranny to the throttel body. If it goes bad it makes the tranny work just like you decribed. No use changing trannys if it is just the little bushing. I got 120000 trouble free mile on my Mark's AOD and 153000 on the one in my 81 T-Bird.

[90LSC SE]

Would the little bushing allow trans fluid to spray out underneath the car?


How do I tell if the bushing is bad?

[stinkin' Lincoln]

I'll never mess with another AOD again...

I love a manual transmission, but even I am not the biggest fan of a T5...

if you want something that'll stand up to 400hp reliably, go with a TKO.

Forrest

[Charlie]

NOPE , The little bushing would not cause tranny fluid to spray out under the car. To look for the bushing follow the cable that runs from the tranny to the throttel body. On the throttle body end there is a fiber bushing that also acts as a clip. If there is play on the end or if the cable is unhooked the bushing is bad. sorry I can't explain it better. Sounds like you've got something else wrong anyway. When you say spray out under the car do you mean that you can see it squirt or does it just leave a puddel after you've stopped. There is 2 tranny cooler lines runing from the tranny to the radiator. If one of them was cracked possibly because the guy who put in the previous tranny weakend it and it just held out till now. That would explain your spraying fluid. If you drove it too long low on fluid you probley wrecked it anyway. It sounds to me like you found another bad tranny guy.Sorry But, I'm in a pessmistic mood today.

[Charlie]

This is a guess that is purty far out there. You said in a previous post that your leaking antifreez. You are also leaking Tranny fluid. Because the tranny has those lines running to the radiator could your leak be where the lines hook to the radiator? Sorry for the wild guess.

[pro-five-oh]

You know, Charlie might be on to something. http://www.lincolnsonline.com/ubb/smile.gif

I got a new radiator from Pep Boys for $98, a 3 core no less! Check with them and get a new one...90LSCSE, you might wanna check out this thread too.

http://www.lincolnsonline.com/ubb/Forum2/HTML/000384.html

[sotexlscman]

I am not too crazy about AAMCO either. I have been taken by them several times. Screw me once, shame on you. Screw me twice, shame on me! You would think with a national representation, they could not afford to do that to people. I am through giving them the benefit of the doubt. They are the only national tranny place in my area in South Texas.

Dean

[my88lsc]

thanx guys you totally ginx'd me... the trans in my new car just took a shit. it didn't go gradually just all the sudden....come to think of it it wasn't too long after i read the horror stories under this topic.....damn cars anyways.

[Lscman]

Brian,
My original AOD lasted about 130K miles, until 2nd gear clutch began slipping. Upon dissassembly, it was apparent the OD band was paper thin and would have failed soon. I spent about $700 for a competent rebuild. It has lasted 100K miles so far and shows no sign of wear or failure. The fluid is clean and has no smell. The longevity of a rebuild is dependent upon the skill of person rebuilding the transmission. I race my car for hours at a time at wide open throttle on SCCA tracks that require continuous upshifts and downshifts. Some of these tracks have 12 turns and I get 400 track miles per weekend. I have participated in about 100 events. We're talking 40,000 track miles!! The AOD is not a marginal or unreliable transmission. Go to another shop. For general info, you will ruin an old, neglected automatic transmission by installing fresh fluid. The new fluid is too slippery and will cause old, varnished clutches to slip and burn up. Either change the fluid religiously over the life of the transmission (which prevents varnish, wear and burning) or leave it alone.

------------------
Rick, Road Track Terror in my '88 Mark VII LSC. See ya at Northeast Events! Pgh, PA

[Guido]

For what it's worth, doesn't someone make a kit to install a chevy tranny to a Ford motor. I'll definitely look into that when my AOD dies. Even if it costs a bit more, it'll probably still be cheaper than a couple AOD rebuilds...and still no guarantee!

[Charlie]

Chevy made some purty good trannys back in the day. The 400 turbo was bullet proof. The 350 turbo wasn't bad. From what I've read the 700R4 may be OK but, not that strong. BUT, whatever you do, don't use a 200R4. I had a friend who's grandpa had one and it broke at 70000 and he drove like a grandpa. They shift up and down constantly over ever little bump. My brother lives on a slight hill on the highway. When they first came out you could hear them shift to get up that little hill. Than shift agin on the other side. You don't hear that much anymore they are all in the junk and replaced with something else like a 350 turbo. Most chevy over drive trannys are even worse than ours!

[Lscman]

Unless you have over 350 HP, the AOD is bulletproof. A different brand transmission is not the answer. Rebuilds that fail prematurely are due to incompetent technicians or ripoff shops that take shortcuts during repair to save money & time. In these cases, they are not replacing all wearable parts...only the one's that are causing the current symptom. In these cases, other marginal, nearly worn out parts continue to fail year after year. My advice is to buy a fresh AOD from one of the major mailorder reman outlets, if you only have crooks in your area. Most of those trannys are dyno tested and rebuilt from the bottom up with verified good parts and ALL new clutches, servos, seals and wearable parts. My transmission has seen thousands of brutal track miles at wide open throttle and about 10,000 forced downshifts with the shifter. A properly rebuilt AOD with $60 shift kit to reduce overlap will last well over 100K under weekend race duty conditions. The same can't be said for a T-5 that routinely spits 3rd gear unless granny shifted. I have rebuilt (and broken) many of those.

[This message has been edited by Lscman (edited July 05, 2001).]

[This message has been edited by Lscman (edited July 05, 2001).]

[pro-five-oh]

GM has made some good trannies, but if you want to keep an overdrive automatic...get a hi-po AOD. Do the reasearch, find a shop that has done a lot of AOD rebuilds, and spend the money!

Even dyed in the wool Chevy fans have admitted to me that an AOD can be built to handle some serious horsepower and still provides a comfortable cruise with overdrive.

There was one company that used to show a late-70s Camaro launching with an AOD in their advertisements. The car was halfway in the air and ran 11s(?) on an AOD. If I can still find that ad, I'll scan it in. It'll make an AOD believer out of anyone.

The more I hear everyone else's problems with their AOD rebuild, the more I appreciate my tranny.

[mdcluth]

Geez man! You need some serious therapy!
It's not your transmissions fault! I have 133,000 miles on my original AOD in my '86 LSC, and haven't had a lick of trouble with it, (knock on wood).
OK so I am a little nervous because I bought the car for $100 after it had been sitting for two years. It took almost four quarts of fluid to get it moving out of this guy's front yard when I bought it.
I know of a '90 LSC SE sitting parked in front of a local transmission shop, and has been there for two years. (I think I know what's going on there).
I can understand why the thought of another AOD in your car might give you nightmares, but I agree with LSCMAN. If you take it to a reputable transmission shop, or buy a quality reman transmission, you'll bee wiping out all those bad memories soon. I myself cannot see putting a manual transmission in a Lincoln. If I wanted a car with a manual trans, I would have bought a Mustang.
THat's just my opinion, and you know that old saying about opinions........

------------------
"Lincoln Moves Me"

[Guido]

mdcluth is right, the best tranny in the world is crap if not built right.
But except for the veeeeery few people who have good experience with them, I've heard nothing but bad talk about AODs. Even magazines trash them. It must be for a reason. GM's 200R is probably their worst tranny, but it still doesn't have the reputation of the AOD. Makes you wonder.
And I know a top quality Lentech will haul a$$, but the average person doesn't do much more than a shift kit and converter.
So far my AOD is running perfect (90k miles) but I am investigating my options for when it dies.
(Mmmmm, a race prepped TH350 for $600CDN sounds tempting compared to a similar $2000 AOD)

[Lscman]

Guido,
Yes, lots of AOD Mustangs have problems....when owners add blowers, GT-40 kits and other power adders to 10 to 20 year old tired cars with the original tranny & worn, glazed clutches. Keep in mind the NEWEST AOD cars on the road today are about 10 years old. The weak links in the AOD tranny are related to the 2 piece input shaft and the valve bodies design that uses the overdrive band to provide momentary "clutch drum braking" during forced downshifts. This has scared many people who read AOD articles. It has never affected my car and I can say in 15 years of track racing, I have NEVER seen another automatic survive as many events. Road Racing is the most abusive sport for an automatic because heat continues to build. Race sessions last 30 minutes each. I've seen Vette's with automatics last one session and get towed home. The 2 piece AOD input is reliable to 350 HP and can be replaced with a 1 piece setup, if the owner doesn't care about gas mileage or efficiency. The valve body design limitations are not a big deal for most of us and they can be addressed effectively with Baumann controllers. There are many racers running RELIABLE 10 & 11 second AOD's because they do not wish to forfeit overdrive. The $2000 AOD performance tranny's you mention have $650 variable stall torque converters that offer stockish driveability in an 11 second ride. Such driveability and efficiency is impossible with a primitive THM350. It will whip your neck at light throttle, attract cops and suck gas...turning 3000 RPM at 55 MPH with gears. There are tons of 8 thru 10 second trailered C4 race cars out there doing serious drag racing. IMHO, a THM 350 conversion is totally unnecessary.

[Charlie]

It depends on what you want to do with it. A race prepaired 350 turbo may only be 600. But by the time you buy the conversion kit, and the custom driveshaft, and build a new rear tranny mount, and build new linkage.you will have a lot of money stuck into it as well. Plus you lost over drive. As I said GM could build a good tranny. If you just want a daily driver and something to put your foot in once and awhile you can make the AOD hold up easy. If you read the right magizines you will see that they have several companys making kits out there for the AOD now. You must subcribe to Chevy magizines like Hot Rod. Also the 350 turbo though a good tranny was not great either. For some reason Chevy put them in a lot of 4 Wheel Drives. Around here where we pull heavy loads or grain and livestock. You have to replace your Chevy pickup tranny every 60000 miles or so. A after market cooler helps alot.I think we have gotten off 90 LSC SE main topic. The answer is that if he has his tranny rebuilt by somebody that knows what there doing he will be just fine. Besides I'm not convinced he just doesn't have a bad TV bushing and a cooler line leak.If he has other problems it is the fault of the tranny rebuilder. Although he may have drove home on the problem and burned up his tranny. If I were him I'd take it back to the rebuilder and tell them where to place it.

[pro-five-oh]

If the AOD design was made by GM and the TH350 was made by Ford, everyone here would be putting AODs in their Mark VIIs.

GM parts are more popular, and more people know how to rebuild a GM tranny. Plus they are MUCH simpler without an OD gear.

The problem is that the AOD is pretty new (1980) and downright scarce compared the the GM TH-line of trannies. Only certain places can build a good AOD, while almost everyone can go a GM tranny because of popularity.

If you want a cheaper tranny that sucks up gas, put a TH350 in your Mark. I do not know of a conversion kit for Fox Body Fords, and if there isn't you are gonna spend as much as I did on my hi-po AOD...and you still won't have a .67 OD!!!

I think if all of the AOD skeptics could come down to Houston and try mine out, you'd change your tune in a HEARTBEAT!!!

pro-five-oh
http://www.coolcats.net/photos/88sajx3.jpg
91 Mark VII BB with Cobra rims(sold)
88 Cougar XR-7 5.0 HO
15.0@93mph, 3740lbs
83 Continental 5.0 SLO
My Mark VII Page (http://www.geocities.com/motorcity/street/3545/mark.html)


[This message has been edited by pro-five-oh (edited July 06, 2001).]

[Guido]

Well, I know the newest AOD is old, but then so is the TH350. I know there will be people on both sides of the fence and just because 1 person says a particular part is amazing, or crap, that might not necessarily be the case. But I does make you wonder when so many people say negative things about that piece. My AOD runs perfect, but I still hear the stories, and they're starting to scare me. I wonder how many people here converted their Mark to standard. And how many more people would do it if they had the chance? It just makes me wonder. Some people said they lost "the Lincoln feel" but they're still glad they converted. Weird. There are 10 million more Camaros out there but I don't see people running to convert them to stick (at least not as "urgently"). And I assume more Camaros are pushed harder than most Lincolns.

Going back to the original post...it's true the main problem is the trans shop, but the first time his tranny went it wasn't the shop's fault. He's had the same problem in 2 Marks. I don't know if he has blowers or how he drives. I've seen more than a couple of this type of post here. Maybe the AOD is a good tranny, but not for a 4000lb car.

I would put my money on any average TH350 (or TH700R4 if you want to compare OD) against any average AOD. But like I said, done properly they're both good. But at what cost?

Obviously a TH350 will suck more gas while driving compared to an AOD but don't forget to look at the details...the tranny costs less, and how much did 90LSC SE lose in $, time, aggravation and sleep? It'll take a lot of time to lose that much just because you don't have OD (or lockup). Especially since OD is probably only used on highway driving. That's like 10% of my driving.
And for the people worried about fuel economy...a 2 ton, 10+ year old car is not a good choice.

(how come no one ever worries about fuel economy when changing rearend gears, adding fat tires, sound system, etc.?)

[Lscman]

It is apparent that 8 properly rebuilt AOD's did not fail in Brian's car. It is obvious to me that AAMCO screwed up royally, not Ford. If the same loser(s) rebuilt a THM350, I would not trust it either! As for Brian's recent purchase, the service and repair history is completely unknown. It could have happened to an Accord. In fact, Honda automatics fail like clockwork at 125K miles...just like mine did. I'd venture to say most 12 year old cars are sold/unloaded because they have an underlying problem...from Subaru's to Toyota's. My first hand experience with the AOD under severe duty use is very positive & the results speak for themselves (rebuild #1 at 130K and still running great 100K later). There are many kids buying old, worn out Mustangs and other 5.0L HO cars that experience AOD clutch failure. They have no idea what the transmission service history was on these old cars. Most nice looking, low mile clean Mark VII's were garage queens owned by elders that never saw over 1/2 throttle. I can only say that transmission trouble is to be expected on most of these cars, if you try to drive them in a sporting fashion. It is rare indeed when you discover the transmission fluid was changed every 25K or a quality reman transmission was recently installed.

>>Manual transmission conversions are far more popular in 5.0L cars compared to their 5.7L GM counterparts for a good reason, but it's unrelated to transmission durability. The '82 thru '93 5.0L HO loves a manual, due to the engine's very limited low RPM torque characteristics. GT40 coversions have even LESS low RPM power. Showroom stock quarter mile times for manual vs. auto HO's typically differ by a whopping 3/4 second. And that's comparing a 2.73 gear T-5 to a 3.27 gear AOD!! How much motor does it take to gain 3/4 of a second? A lot, which is why the manual conversions are done instead of a built 351W conversion. Not everyone wants 3.73 or 4.11 gears to reduce the deficit. AOD Mustangs run mid to low 15's while T-5's run mid 14's.
>>This is definitely NOT true when comparing auto vs. manual versions of the '85-'96 5.7L L-98 and LT-1 GM motors. The bigger cubes of the GM powerplant produces gobs of torque down low and torque converters take advantage of it. For this reason, GM 5.7L cars with automatics of various designs and vintages (unreliable to bulletproof) will produce similar straight line acceleration to their counterparts with a close ratio T5, Tremec 5 speed..or the T56 or ZF 6 speed manual. This applies equally to Vette's, Camaro's and Firebird/Trans Am's from '85 up. This makes a GM conversion from auto to manual a waste of time and money...for strip or street/stoplight duty. For Road Racing, the GM automatics fail miserably in both performance and reliability. That applies to the latest versions used in the 2001 C5 Vette and Chevy/Pontiac ponycars.

[This message has been edited by Lscman (edited July 07, 2001).]

[mark7lover]

We are not talking about transmission failure with 40-50k miles on it. We are talking about failure in the 100,000's. The Mark I have (91 LSC)- has original tranny in it at 133k miles on it. It shifts flawlessly! The fluid and filter have been changed religiously. I don't know how much longer the original will last. No one can predict it. I think a long time yet. I don't know how anyone can call AOD a crap transmission. Things die with wear. If something does happen I will go with the oem specs and know exactly where I will take it from past experiences and recommendations. For this car it will be worth it. There ain't very many around anymore! http://www.lincolnsonline.com/ubb/frown.gif

[This message has been edited by mark7lover (edited July 06, 2001).]

[Lscman]

Brian,
Getting back to the '90 failure, I have to ask: did you change the trans fluid? Changing the fluid in an aging or high mile car is a recipe for slippage. However, I'm guessing the car was sold when the owner noticed the trans slipping. If you buy a mailorder reman AOD from a reputable company, it should outlast the car.

[pro-five-oh]

Yeah, changing the fluid can be disaster in an old AOD. The factory one in my Cougar was still doing fine (still had 4th gear, etc) at 130k and the fluid was never changed.

[Lscman]

I was afraid to change the fluid in my original transmission, because it had 70K miles when I bought it and I was not the original owner and it smelled burnt. It also lasted 130K without a fluid change and it began slipping when the stupid TV cable grommit fell out of the throttle linkage and I tested it later at the drag strip. I can't imagine how long it would have lasted with regular fluid and filter changes & a good grommit, perhaps 200K.

[Guido]

Like I said, I'm sure everyone has heard both good and bad stories. Maybe I heard more bad stories than the AOD deserves. It just worried me when I moved over to Ford and started learning about these cars, a lot of people made a point of mentioning the AOD and its problems.

Anyway now I have a question...my '92 LSC has just under 100k miles and I know the fluid hasn't been changed in at least 5 years (about 10k miles, it's been stored). I was thinking of changing fluid...are you guys saying it might actually cause problems if I do that?

[pro-five-oh]

Well, in my experience changing fluid at high mileage is okay...probably.

I am saying this because I did it to my 83 Conti back in 1996...the tranny had 105k on it and it worked perfectly for another 14k until I stopped driving the car. (not a tranny related issue)

Anywho, after the fact I learned that changing fluid in an old AOD could be bad, so I refrained from doing so in the Cougar. You can do it and even get away with it, but I would not recommend it.

So I've been lucky twice...hmm...

[Lscman]

Guido, in my opinion...5 years and 10K miles is not too long. I'd change the fluid. Dropping the pan will remove about 60% of the fluid. Another 40% resides in the converter and it will not drain.

For general info, I have a good friend that rebuilt transmissions for a living at an independent shop. This guy was very sharp and learned it all on his own. He rebuilt everything from american rear wheel drive to new foreign front wheel drive, ANY brand. He told me older transmissions of varying mileage and duty will build up excess varnish and glazing on the clutches, if the fluid was not changed regularly...say every 50K. As you may imagine, transmission fluids lose their anti-friction qualities as they become abused. This is good! Neglected tranny's with varnished, glazed and/or burnt clutches need more friction to prevent slippage. If you install fresh, slippery fluid in a car that has not had it's fluid changed often, a "race condition" occurs. The race is...will the fresh fluid break down & remove the excess varnish off the clutches before they begin to slip? The answer is usually no because it can take years and most buildup & damage can not be reversed. The golden rule is NEVER change fluid in a neglected, higher mile transmission. Fresh fluid is too slippery and clutches will likely begin slipping. Once they do, you're SOL. If you are determined to do it anyway, his advice was to strain the original fluid with a coffee filter to remove particulate, dilute it with no more than 2 quarts of fresh fluid and reuse it. This will allow you to change the filter while maximizing the longevity of an older, neglected tranny. If the fluid is already bright red and does not smell burnt, you can assume a "normal" fluid change is safe.

[This message has been edited by Lscman (edited July 08, 2001).]

[Charlie]

LSCman I was told that our AOD's have a plug in the converter so that they can be drained as well. Do not know if this is true because I hire some one to do it.

[sotexlscman]

Hey Pro-five-oh,

Besides the nice Mark and Cougar, you have a really nice Continental. I have always liked those cars since they first came out. I had a chance to buy a low mileage old lady's car about twelve years ago. Unfortunately, logic and a wife won that battle. I was talked into buying a 1986 Chevy Celebrity S/W.(I should have been shot!!) I am a Ford nut and should have been put out of my misery, but with a baby on the way, the wagon was more practical.
Live and learn. The wagon finally died and I replaced it with a Crown Vic. Now we have a Honda Odyssey. My wife gets to drive that.(Oh darn!)

When I recently sold my other toy, a '65 Galaxie with a tricked out 428, I thought I was going to be put forth into the responsible, good family man role forever. The LSC I have is a lot more comfortable and reliable than my Galaxie. I wonder how a 428CJ will squeeze into the Fox body??? Can you imagine what the airbags would do? I miss that stump-pulling torque. What am I thinking? I forgot my responsibilities!
The LSC was exactly what the doctor ordered.

Anyway, that Continental you have included in the photo is a really nice looking car. I see a few of them down here in McAllen, but not very many. I'll bet there are a few locked away behind some garage doors.

Dean

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http://arterrata.com/mk7.jpg

[Guido]

Thanks LSCman, I'll take a good look at the fluid and proceed from there.
If it is a little on the "abused" side, what about if I replace about 1 or 2 liters at a time every 4-6 months or so? I wonder if that's better than doing nothing.

[pro-five-oh]

Sotex, you are killing me! My first car when I turned 16 was a '65 black/black LTD! I LOVE THOSE CARS!!!

I wouldn't bother with a 428CJ when you easily install a 460 in a fox body with little or no problems. Just add a set of ported Lincoln D0VE heads, mild cam,performer RPM intake and 750cfm carb to a 460 and you'll have a serious motor in a lightweight fox car. That's essentially the combo in my bro's 1978 Mark V and it has the nuts to blow away 440 Mopars in a 80-120mph run.

I couldn't imagine how fast that motor would be in a 3800 lb car. http://www.lincolnsonline.com/ubb/smile.gif

As far as my Conti, I absolutely love it. Unfortunately it looks better in pictures than it does in real life...it's had a pretty hard 18 years. I could go on and on about how cool I think these 4-dr Mark VIIs are...but you can just check out my Continental website.

www.geocities.com/motorcity/street/3545/conti.html (http://www.geocities.com/motorcity/street/3545/conti.html)

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pro-five-oh
http://www.coolcats.net/photos/88sajx3.jpg
91 Mark VII BB with Cobra rims(sold)
88 Cougar XR-7 5.0 HO
15.0@93mph, 3740lbs
83 Continental 5.0 SLO
My Mark VII Page (http://www.geocities.com/motorcity/street/3545/mark.html)

[mark7lover]

Pro-five-oh. I like that red Cougar! I had a 88 just like it with every option and a $4000 Alpine system to boot. I was really stupid when I traded that car in! Last time I say it it was hitting almost 200k miles. I traded it when I had 43000 miles. Anyway here is the pic. http://members.home.net/bpk8227/cats.jpg Bruce

[pro-five-oh]

NICE CAT!!! A fully loaded Cougar, huh? Well from that pic I see that you had the keyless entry, moonroof and luxury lamp group so your Cat checks out... http://www.lincolnsonline.com/ubb/wink.gif

The Cougars look great, and can easily be converted to 5.0 HO status. Not quite as confusing as the Mark's EEC-IV system and they a nicer gauge cluster...

But, getting back to the subject at hand, even Cougars have an AOD...

ARE WE DONE WITH THIS TOPIC YET????