1990 Thunderbird SC Auto Parts Car - Rusty - Runs - ABS good - PHL suburbs - $300

S_Mazza

Registered User
Edit: The car is sold.

Hello SCCoA,

I am a long-time board member that hasn't posted here in a while. Sadly, my 1990 Ford Thunderbird SC has rusted to the point that it won't pass PA state inspection. Both rockers panels are perforated (inside and outside). There are some other small rust holes on the body, and one in the trunk floor. Because of these reasons, I am asking only $300 for the car.

Edit: Just to clarify, the car's not a wreck. It's fixable if someone welds and wants a project. It's just that, with the mileage and the condition, I am thinking it's more likely to get parted out to fix something fresher. If you buy the car, it's your choice! It did pass the emissions portion of the PA inspection, but not the safety part, as mentioned above.

There are some good things about the car. First, it runs and drives. (It was my daily driver until about 1 year ago, and has been driven occasionally since then.) It has about 225,000 miles on the original engine. The transmission is an AOD that was rebuilt about 100k miles ago, but it shifts fine. Head gaskets were replaced in about 2010. The car does not lose coolant or burn much oil. The ABS works on the car, including the pressure switch for the firm ride. The suspension is in decent shape, with newer ARC shocks all around. Front LCAs and UCAs have been replaced (a couple of times). All 4 brake pads and calipers were replaced a couple of years ago.

Some other minor details: Moonroof. Titanium cloth interior. Dash is decent, and I don't think it's cracked. This is the dash with the extra storage cubbyhole over the glovebox. Most of the upholstery is in nice shape, but there are a few rough spots. The headliner is shot. The driver's seat bottom cushion is flabby. Some interior plastic panels are cracked. The firewall has a minor crack (like many or most SCs of this age), but that doesn't seem to be any trouble. The clearcoat is shot on the car (like many or most red Fords of this age). The VSS gear is the wrong one so the speedometer reads about 6/5 the actual speed. The cluster was replaced and the odometer was never adjusted, but it's pretty close to correct at this point (the car "caught up" because of the VSS gear). The blower rattles like crazy, but makes boost. It has a welded raised SC top and a steel 10% pulley.

A Moates Quarterhorse is on the car right now, which I was planning to remove and sell, but I could leave it on the car for some extra money. I have a few other unneeded parts lying around - some new, some used. I am not including any spare parts with the car, but would sell them for a fair offer. These include some gray front seats in decent shape (not sure on the tracks, though), one or two front fenders in good shape but need paint, an aftermarket front bumper reinforcement, a Motorcraft reman steering rack, some new front brake rotors, and some other stuff I don't even remember. I will probably make a separate sale thread for the spare parts later.

Edit: Some pictures have been added at the end of this post.

I would like to give the members of SCCoA first crack at the car before I list it on Craigslist or take it to a junkyard. But I need to sell the car before the end of the year. If you are interested, please send me a PM or reply to this post. Thanks.

Edit: The car is sold.

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Sad to hear, Steve. :(

Is this the only SC you own....are you getting out of the SC world?

I'm working on figuring out a cheap daily driver for me when we move further from town...I may be interested if someone else doesn't jump. With the QH included too.
 
Hi Matt,

Thanks for the kind words. It is my only SC, at least for now. (Uh-oh, did my wife overhear that?) ;) I am sad to let it go, but "life happened" when our second child came along a couple of years ago, and I just haven't had time to put much effort into keeping the car going. Work has been very busy the last couple of years. And now we are welcoming a third child in the spring, which is great news, but I will certainly not have more free time!

I feel a bit guilty that I went all "ghost" on this board, but things have just been hectic. I may browse the board a bit in the future just to see what is going on. I would like to have an SC again at some point in the future.

Also: I am adding pictures to the first post, and a little more explanation about the car.
 
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I'll take it. I have a bunch of things going on this weekend, but I can probably come pick it up one day next week, if that works for you.
 
Hi Mikey,

Ok, great. I am sending you a PM with my email and phone number so we can discuss timing and details.
 
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