Looking to purchase 1992 Thunderbird SC Automatic - any advice?

Jeff Junk

Registered User
The body and interior are spotless.. But I noticed while driving, the temperature meter gauge was up high.. do these cars run hot? I also noticed when coming to a stop I felt some kind of electronic movement under the brake pedal.... Any ideas?? This vehicle has been sitting in a controlled environment garage for a while..
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If there are no brake warning light(s) on it is likely the power brake electric pump/motor you feel running through the pedal.
The accumulator may be getting weak & will need replacement, but thats cheaper then some of the other components of the
master cylinder/abs/power brake unit & still available.

Over heating could be-worst case scenario blown head gasket/cracked head which depending on mileage these engines are known for.
-best case scenario a bad thermostat or plugged rad from sitting &/or poor cooling system maitenance. Could just be a incorrect guage too, but I've never ran into that.
 
Wow, thanks for the quick reply!! There are 78,000 miles on the vehicle.. The oil looked clean.. but still that is definitely a concern..
 
Did you hear electric fan come on? Does A/C work-fan runs while its on also.
oil condition isn't always a good indicator of a blown gasket. Check for bubbles
over flow or rad(dont take cap off unless cold.)
 
I didn't notice any bubbles.. The radiator was a bit low on coolant.. the overflow was low too.. but the vehicle has been sitting awhile. I didn't notice any visible leaks.. I drove the vehicle twice.. The first time the meter gauge seemed fine.. a few days later I drove it again and noticed the meter on the high end after just driving it down the street..
 
The a/c was working and running while driving it the first time I took it on a spin.. And do you mean the fan behind the radiator?
 
Yes, the rad fan. Just thought maybe it wasn't coming on & you were stop & go driving or idling a lot- so little air flow through rad.
The fan will also run any time A/C was on. May be the 2nd time you drove it you didn't have the A/C on? So fan wasn't on & that why it ran hotter?
It should still come at 200 degree's with or without A/C running. Maybe just a bad coolant switch?
 
The second time I drove it I did not have the a/c on, correct.. and I didn't check to see if the rad fan was running or not.. at the time I was processing quite a few thoughts.. I think I'll ask the seller to have the cooling system checked out and see what he says.. Thank you - you gave me a better idea of what to look for and expect.
 
Maybe thats all it is then, the coolant temp isn't signaling the fan to come on.
The 1st time you drove it A/C was on, so fan ran & coolant temp stayed normal.
2nd time, no A/C so no fan. See what opinion others on this site have though.
 
I hope that's it.. I noticed a lot of stuff on this site can only be viewed by "Members" only... but I don't see any option to become Member....
 
What I normally do after inspecting everything visually is take her on the highway and do a full wot run to top speed. If it has any issues you'll know.
 
Click on register at top right of page(between log in & search)
There was only the option to Register as a "Registered User".. nothing about becoming a member.. Under your name it says "SCCoA Member".. under mine it says Registered User.. Therefore I am unable to view the Member Threads on the Home Page..
 
What I normally do after inspecting everything visually is take her on the highway and do a full wot run to top speed. If it has any issues you'll know.
There are some issues I wouldn't want to find out about at or near top speed. Not knowing condition of brakes(flex lines especially) tires, suspension/steering components(ball joints, tie rod ends,etc.), trany or diff low on oil. Some stuff you just can't tell by doing a visual inspection. I know of a guy that had the diff lock up(low oil) during a "test drive" before buying it at 110MPH. Ended up going through/over guard rail & rolling 6 times (they think) He's still making payments to the owner of the car & the county roads dept.
 
It's an older looker but I wouldn't pay more than a few grands for it, they overcharge a lot for these in good condition when in reality owners know they haven't been worth much during the past decade.

Auto means sluggish 4-speed with the relaxed timings, you want the man. 5 for the performance side of the things. It will bring the pedal to the metal far more significantly when needed driven be aggressively. This car gets up to full torque somewhere around 2.5k RPM, meaning you want that performance and not with the lackluster transmission.

It's also heavy so keep that in mind. If you're looking at paying any form of bigger, more significant cash than a few grands, I'd suggest looking elsewhere. Something like an EX37 could be had for $7-8k when looked good enough.
 
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