Post a picture you took today

[Little Ice-Cable]

Saw this today.

 

[theterminator93]

Yeah... litterbugs are everywhere.

Oh wait - a nice 97 Sport!

 

[XR7-4.6]

With organic clear corners

 

[XR7-4.6]

Took the Cougar with me today seeing as the tomorrow looks like it’s going to be rainy(the horror, I know). Never really got a shot of the gauges in action at full temp

 

[Kenz]

Looks sweet! Do the left two gauges have Chevy bow ties in the middle?

 

[XR7-4.6]

Looks sweet! Do the left two gauges have Chevy bow ties in the middle?

LOL That occurred to me after I got them! Autometer makes similar branded gauges and it is odd the sport comp IIs logos do look bow ties in profile, proving once again the automotive aftermarket has a Chevy bias

 

[Kenz]

I'll buy your 4 valve off you when you pull it out for the LS swap.

 

[1997ThunderbirdLXV6]

But what to make of this climate setting?
Fan at full blast, temperature at 60°, which presumably inhibits any blend door activity (or is there a "LO"?), and PANEL = A/C off. Just open the windows!

 

[XR7-4.6]

I'll buy your 4 valve off you when you pull it out for the LS swap.

Maybe after I’m finished paying off mortgage I took out for the 4V comp cams and SCP Kooks

But what to make of this climate setting?
Fan at full blast, temperature at 60°, which presumably inhibits any blend door activity (or is there a "LO"?), and PANEL = A/C off. Just open the windows!

View attachment 14522

They were open! I like getting outside airflow through the vents as well.

That’s the minimum temperature setting on the SATC, the equivalent of setting the manual middle dial to full blue. It’s stupid and misleading and I’ve come to hate SATC in general. Find me a 3 knobbier where the red hasn’t faded and I’ll convert back!

 

[1997ThunderbirdLXV6]

a 3 knobbier where the red hasn’t faded

Mine was like that when I bought the car. Alas, no more...

 

[XR7-4.6]

Mine was like that when I bought the car. Alas, no more...

Mine was mint too before I converted, and I have no idea what happened to it. I never throw out stuff like that but I’ve on and off searched for it in boxes for years hoping I’d get lucky.

 

[Kenz]

Mine was like that when I bought the car. Alas, no more...

Did you find an unfaded one or restore it? Mines a bit faded and I would consider fixing it. OTOH I have come to terms with the fact that it is a 30 year old car and some parts are going to look worn out.

Somewhat off topic but relevant for when it's hot out. I discovered last month that closing the center dash vent and drivers side dash vent results in good airflow through the crotch cooler vent. It's especially nice when the inside is still cooling down on a hot day...... it blows the AC right at you. Also airs the car out well when driving, about as well as the floor setting

 

[Vicinity]

Have you ever noticed that the direct contact AC air to skin has some faint and mild burning sensation?

Is there an existing write-up for the various HVAC controls I can study? I've got some questions otherwise that will take time to frame up

 

[1997ThunderbirdLXV6]

Did you find an unfaded one or restore it?

No, it was literally unfaded and original, thanks to the original owner garaging the car.

Is there an existing write-up for the various HVAC controls I can study? I've got some questions otherwise that will take time to frame up

Not sure, but do ask. How complicated can it be?

 

[XR7-4.6]

No, it was literally unfaded and original, thanks to the original owner garaging the car.

The lack of lightfast pigment is unique to the HVAC too, the hot bottom fades out on the SATC ones too(though not as noticeable as the manual ones). I’ve never seen faded out tachometer redlines or “not norm” marks on other similarly printed faces in the cluster, so they must have come from a cheap supplier.


If I ever find one I’m converting back and draping a black cloth over it every time I park outside lol

Have you ever noticed that the direct contact AC air to skin has some faint and mild burning sensation?

No lol quite frankly I’m spoiled enough by my Focus which has so much more oomph to its blower output I have to hold my hands up to the vents in the Cougar at max to even tell if the AC is even working after I turn it on, let alone feel any kind of burning sensation from it.

It’s a pretty straightforward operation, AC draws in from the cowl, max AC recirculates interior air, panel draws on outside air that can be blended with the heater core, floor same, panel AND floor is actually AC even though it isn’t marked as such and defrost is self explanatory.

The middle knob on manual controls operates the blend door, separating the evaporator or outside air from the heater core to varying levels, as do the hot and cold buttons on SATC

The fan speed knob is fan speed (duh). Manual uses a series of resistors in the heater box linked directly to the switch to control fan speed, auto uses a pulse width modulated controller to do the same thing, but in auto mode uses interior and exterior sensors to determine its speed(as does the previously mentioned hot/cold settings)

 

[1997ThunderbirdLXV6]

In other words:

Switch	Recirc. Door	Air Conditioner
MAX A/C	closed	On
A/C	fresh air	On
PANEL	fresh air	Off
OFF	closed	Off
PANEL & FLOOR	fresh air	On
FLOOR	fresh air	Off
FLOOR & DEF	fresh air	On
DEFROST	fresh air	On

What's interesting about this setup is the inherent element of babying the driver, as in deciding for the driver what makes/doesn't make sense.
European cars of the same time were usually set up differently with one switch to control air flow plus separate buttons to turn the A/C on or off and to choose fresh or recirculated air.