burning a hole in my pocket

[sendo]

whats up, getting my tax return and it burning a hole in my pocket, i am so ready to buy a sc but there are so many i see 89 to 95 i dont know which one to get:confused: can you guys help me out what is a good year, and what to look for.
thanks, Sendo

[Jake]

The year is going to be up to you. I personally like the 89/92 models. Things to look for tho would be your ABS lights, harmonic wobble, excessive white smoke from the tail pipes, engine knock, take it for a decent drive to check for shift problems and to see if it throws a check engine light. Make sure the speed odometer is working because they are known to break, if it doesn't no big deal because mostall SC's are going to have high miles on them. Good luck finding your supercoupe.

[skydivr7673]

they were all good years. The difference under the hood is that the 93-95 models had a redesigned supercharger, and so there was about 20 more horsepower. My first was an 89 and I just bought a 95 this past week. I would say buy whichever one you think looks better, because the later version looked totally different inside and had some changes outside too. I never drove one that I didn't like.

The head gaskets are a thing to keep an eye on--these cars are prone to head gasket failures. Aside from that, there are a few recalls on them--you can check the VIN # with Ford to see if the one you want to buy has had the recall work done yet. This link will allow you to check the recalls that were issued for whatever year car you find....

http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/problems/recalls/recallsearch.cfm

It really is a great car--for the few little quirks they have. I have owned Trans Ams, RX7s, Fieros with a V8 shoehorned in the back....the list goes on and on. And this car is seriously the most satisfying car to drive IMO.

[95pearlbird]

A lot depends on what you plan on doing with it. Leaving it semi-stock and enjoying its high speed cruising capabilities, or ;modding it up for a lot of HP to run 1/4 mi. drags and stop light-to-stop light action. You can go either way.How fast do you want to SPEND?
If you want a burn-out car get a manual, if you want comfort, go with the automatic. I think the earlier 89-91 and 92-93 are better for the "dragger."
As stated above, the 94-95 models will have more HP due to the use of rotor coatings in the supercharger, and also have improved headgaskets. They also have a nicer looking interior, in my opinion. I also like the body style a bit better,they are just a little "smoother."
Also, how important is a sunroof to you? Personally, I think it adds a bit of "luxury", and I like it, but many don't care for them.

You will pay the most for a '95 5-speed Manual, as there were few of them built(under 600 all year). A good choice is to look for 94-95 models w/ auto trans, under 120,000 miles.Expect to pay from 5000 to 3500 for one in nice condition. The more miles on them, the cheaper the price, but you can see from this site, ALL of them are "KEEPERS".
Some have lots of problems, some have none. Who can explain that?

For colors, don't get black if you live in the Southwest(HOT), Red is always an attention-getter(COPS at high-speed, watch out!), and the purple is probably the most rare on the SC. My personal favorite is the pearl opalescent, thats what mine is, and I get so many remarks about how it catches the light.Its also the only color that was a special option. Try to find one thats been garaged, because otherwise the clear coat is likely to be peeling.
Last but DEFINITELY not Least, if you are not mechanically inclined, pass and go for a regular V-8 T-Bird. There are many complex systems on these cars, thats what makes them so good!They were ahead of their time in many respects.The flip side of that coin is that if you don't consider yourself a mechanic or a hot-rodder, you are not going to know where to start when you go to work on it, and many so-called "mechanics" that you take it to, will know far less about your car than many of the people here. If you end up getting one, we'll see you back here OFTEN. It's a special community of High-Performance (SUPERCHARGED) Ford enthusiasts! VIVA SCCOA!!
BEST OF LUCK with your Choices! :)

[sendo]

going to post in other topic

[89cougarxr7]

how much do you want to spend? i have an 89 cougar xr7 5spd that im considering parting with. i want it to go to a good home and know its gonna be well maintained. email me @ destructopenguin@suscom.net if you are intereseted in talkin about it.

[sendo]

I finally got one! a 95 SC/auto it has 118,000 all stock except the exhaust. reading a lot in this forum now I am scared that the Harmonic Balancer going to fall off. I checked it and it is tight, should I still change it? still have some money left any ideas on what to do next?
here are some pics

[CMac89]

Looks very nice. Could you try to get some day light pictures?

It depends what you want to do. Do you want to do mods that prevent future problems or do you want to modify it for performance?

You can still do the simple mods like an intake, remove the air silencer, a blower pulley, a double intercooler or atleast a fan, a Mass Air Flow, throttle body, etc... Since you have the good style blower you can have it ported, if not, do it yourself if you have the skill and equipment to do so. You can also buy a Magnum Powers inlet plenum or just port your stock plenum.

What is all included in your exhaust system?

The balancer's are weak, but you might be able to last a while with it. If you would like to, you can get a BHJ balancer for around $320.

[sendo]

Thanks CMac89, looking at the exhaust the headers and cats are stock then they welded bigger tubing all the way to the back to some flowmasters.

do i need to change the headers and cats?

[boommerextreme]

I bought a 90 35th, moon roof, 5 speed, yesterday. I need some little stuff for it anyone know were I can get it? Will the 93- 95 supercharger fit the 90?

[sendo]

is it bad to keep these stock manifolds and cats? or is there still a chance to blow the head gasket?

[90XR7Cougar5spd]

I would get rid of the Stock cats. That stock exhaust manifolds are good, just get rid of those cats and put on some hi flow cats.

[CMac89]

Get rid of those stock downtubes as a whole. They are the whole reason to upgrading exhaust.

Wynn is making exhaust including downtubes and Hi-Flow catalytic converters. If you have emissions then you will need cats, but if not then don't worry about them.

Here is the link of the person building exhaust: http://www.sccoa.com/forums/showthread.php?t=73371

His website is at www.texasthunderbirds.com. His phone number is on there also.