Thunderbird thoughts

[JAYSILVER04]

I was thinking of a daily driver to keep miles off my MM. Any thoughts on 1995-1997 T-Birds with the 4.6 V8? Any known problems ETC..? I have always liked these cars. I used to drive one around on the weekends back in High-school for this chic that liked to get drunk and have me drive her and a friend around. I remember really liking the car. It could have been because my car at the time was a 81 Oldsmobile Cutlass Brougham with a 350 Diesel:eek:. Any thoughts???

[larryo340]

A T-Bird with the 4.6L is fun to drive, the V8 as you should know is pretty much trouble free. The V6.... not so much. They handle very well with the independent rear suspension, but could benefit with larger wheels and lower profile tires. Ttrying to pull into a driveway when it's wet out is an experience. As soon as the front is up the driveway and one rear wheel is unloaded you'll get lots of wheel spin, I've even seen it on when dry out. Other than that I really like them.

Let us know if you buy one.

[MO Merc]

The better one to get is the " sport option" 96 or 97 t-bird. Included this factory option gives you 16" wheels ( LX has 15" ) spoiler ( no 3rd light in the back window ) bigger front disk, tuned front and rear springs.
The V8 is lots of fun to drive. I rented a V6 once and it was a different drive. Traction control and ABS was also an option . It helps on that rear wheel spin, yes it happens on dry roads also.
Shop around and find the " sport " you'll feel the handeling and braking difference tha just an LX without.
Good luck:banana:

[Mike Poore]

Those with sun/moon roof options were Wabasto units, and they tended to leak.

[Leadfoot281]

Fun cars! I agree with everyone. Avoid the V-6.

I bought a '94 LX auto/4.6 with 88k miles for $1,500 and slapped 50k basically trouble free miles on it.

For some reason I went through front rotors every 25k miles. They are cheap and very easy to change though.

The door are heavy and will sag. New door pins will help...for a while. I believe the trouble is in the hinges themselves.

My trans started slipping at 120k.

Look for rust in the rear seat floor/rocker panel area. Seeing really clean ones with the rockers completely gone is very common here.

Other than that, these are great cars with a great ride, good performance and awesome interiors.

[Glenn]

Owned a 1996 T-Bird V-8 for 10 years. Very reliable car and good to drive with good power. The Sports T-Bird is by far the most desirable to buy but hard to find. The Pearl color is really beautiful.

Glenn :burnout:

[quota]

The engine is trouble free. But take care of corrosion !

JP

[MM03MOK]

Ordered a '94 SuperCoupe (3.8L supercharged V6) from the factory. She's still running with almost 160K miles on her.

[JAYSILVER04]

Thanks for all the input guys! Hopefully I will find one with the sport package. I'm really not in a big hurry, so I will take my time and find the right vehicle. I will be driving my 82 ElCamino once it cools off outside (no a/c). I hope to have one by next spring at the latest.

[JAYSILVER04]

how can I tell whether a T-bird has the sport package or not? Anything I should look for appearence wise?

[Green96]

I have a 96 V-8 (see the mods below). I would stick with a 96-97 to get the new style intake, the 94-95 had EGR problems and less power. The trans is better on the 96+ but there are still issues with the 1-2 accumulator piston. With the exception of brakes, I have basically turned mine into a sport model. I do have factory 4 wheel disc brakes (just smaller fronts than on the sport), 4-wheel disc are a must to avoid rotor warp. The 97 is the only year to come with a cup-holder if you care (the 96 technically came with one but it is useless). Also, the 96-97 were the only years to offer an optional 3.27 rearend (highly recommend it, mine has it).
They are also prone to vibration issues. Even the slightes issue makes them shake. Mine did, every time I would fix something it would get better but it was a long road to perfection. Once they get some miles on them the front end tends to clunk. Make sure the lines in the door line up with the rest of the car. If they don't it has door hinge problems as someone mentioned above. They are also doggy without a TC and a tune.
I am not trying to talk you out of the car, I love mine. I just want to make you aware of what to look out for. You will probably find a lot of them for sale on www.tccoa.com (http://www.tccoa.com)
Good luck.
Patrick

[Marauderman]

Here are two pics of wifes '97 T-Bird--Just turned 52K on the clock --with a V-8 ---Wife wanted a bit more power so we did the basic stage 1 MM package to her--, cooler plugs, lower stat , 410 gears and tune....WOW--This baby shoots outta the hole and revs like its got a 3K TC-----and fun to drive--Wifes loves it---She won't give it up for anything----Its a great fine if you can fine one--good luck...


http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x181/Marauderman1/100_4220.jpg
http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x181/Marauderman1/100_4217.jpg

[sconut1]

Marauderman.... NICE CAR!!! Both of them!! Your T-bird looks FANTASTIC in black!

Jaysilver04.... I owned a 1994 Thunderbird for nine years. I loved the car. I never drove mine in winter, so I can't comment about the rust problems.

The 4.6 is supposed to be a great engine in the Thunderbird. I owned one with the 3.8 V6. This motor isn't fantastic, but it's not as bad as some folks (not here) would have you believe. The big issue with the 3.8 is head gaskets. They tend to fail around the 85 to 100k mile mark. I didn't have any issues with mine until, believe it or not, the day I traded it in on the Marauder! But, if you can find one with new HGs or if your mechanically inclined, there are far worse jobs to tackle (rear spark plug replacement on a 1993 Sable with a 3.8...... kidding). BTW...no headgaskets issues on the Sable, and it's been in the family for 15 years now!

I loved my Thunderbird and I woudn't hesitate recommeding one with the V8. If you find one with the six, I'd check it out carefully, have a mechanic do a test for a leaking HG, and if it's ok, I'd go for it. I'd suspect the V8 is quite a bit more fun to drive though. The one fellow is right though...the back ends break loose very easily and the 3.8 will spin the tires, never mind the 4.6. Good back tires are a must. I guess I'm rambling. If you find a good car, buy with confidence. I've got nothing but good things to say about the Thunderbirds in the era you're looking at.

Oh ya.... Green96 is right..... if cup holders are important to you... buy a different car...lol. I really don't know what they were thinking there....

[UncleLar]

I had a 96 Cougar XR7 4.6 with the Bostonian package on it,silver with the black carriage top,the geometric wheels and the luggage rack on the trunk.I got it with a free extended warranty and they had to rebuild the trans and upgraded the accumulators to the better 97 style and I ran only MerconV in it and a big B&M trans cooler. It had traction control with the 3.27 gears and trac loc somehow from the factory.It looked like a 60 year old secretary's car but by removing the the intake silencer inside the right front wheelwell and dropping in a K&N panel filter and FRPP plug wires it surprised a lot of people.I belonged to TCCoA then and took it to the 2002 MN-12 Nat'ls and had the only Bostonian there.It was a fun sleeper. I sold it to a friend and when it had 180,000+ miles on it he ran it dry of oil on an interstate when an oil line broke.After he got it towed home and found&fixed the leak,refilled it with oil and threw in some Restore and it still ran fairly well.
but he traded it for a new Ford pick up.
BTW,stay away from the V-6.
And if somebody here put 180,000 miles on a S/C Bird and never had to replace the head gaskets you were truly lucky,replacing them is a job you DON"T want to do.
When,not if,you have to replace the warping rotors on an MN-12 the only ones that don't seem to warp are from Auto Zone.
TCCoA is a good place to look for a decent Bird or Cougar but they charge a membership fee which I still think was a bit stiff and "Sir William" is a bit freaking pompous.

[JAYSILVER04]

This might take me a while to get one of these. There aren't any in this area at all. Patience is a virtue!

[Aren Jay]

Great car as long as you don't get in an accident.

Crash tests show them to be bad. Mind you older Mustangs didn't crash much better.

[sconut1]

Uh....where did you get that info? Thunderbirds have a 5 star crash rating for both front passengers.

Have a look here:

http://www.safercar.gov/

I tried to post a link straight to 1994 Thunderbird, but it won't let me, so if anyone wants to try the link, click it, and then click on search 5 star safety ratings. Next choose class (passenger car), and complete the rest of the fields.