Rescued 94 T-Bird project

[lilhen]

Figured I would start a thread on my journeys of my first thunderbird I have ever owned have had plenty of mustangs.
I picked this bird up from a buddy of mine for $650. Some one pawned the title and decided not to pay. Right place right time so I scooped it up as fast as I could. Payed what was needed to cover the books.
Needed a battery and seemed like a starter when I went to look at it. Came back and picked it up the next day.
Installed a new battery, starter, and about a gallon of transmission fluid and she fired right up.
In the process of restoring the interior as the motor seems healthy on the short drives and the transmission shifted fine. Definitely not going to be a long distance car for awhile till I get to freshing everything up with the motor and transmission.
Had electrical issues when I got it. Key pad, power side mirrors, interior lights did work. Tracked that down to a blown fuse and a shorted wire in the doom light housing. Got everything functional as far as lights radio and keyless entry.
I'll try to update my progress as it's made waiting on parts to ship or become available.
First part I had to order was the front grill emblem. Was able to scoop that up off of eBay in the original OEM packaging. Just arrived today.

 

[1997ThunderbirdLXV6]

Door cloth still present. Solid car!

And chrome wheels!

 

[theterminator93]

Always a pleasure watching another MN12 get saved from the jaws of death.

 

[Trunk Monkey]

Wow! That car’s had a hard life. So glad it’s in good hands. You’ve already done a great job bringing it back to life.

 

[lilhen]

Door cloth still present. Solid car!

And chrome wheels!

The doors cleaned up well a long with the rest of the panels.
Are the chrome wheels scares nowadays? Haven't dog into the stock wheels much. I will be taking them off in a few months going to do the brake hud and caliper swap so minimum I got to go with are 17's.

 

[1997ThunderbirdLXV6]

I'm not even sure if chrome was a factory option on that model year. They're more common on 96/97, though still rare.

Unless the cloth inserts have been re-glued, they're extremely prone to falling off. Better never touch them.

 

[lilhen]

Wow! That car’s had a hard life. So glad it’s in good hands. You’ve already done a great job bringing it back to life.

Thanks. The pictures I got before I bought it had cinder blocks sitting in the front seat. I might have the pictures some where I'll try and find them.

She was definitely was rode hard and put up wet.

 

[lilhen]

I'm not even sure if chrome was a factory option on that model year. They're more common on 96/97, though still rare.

I'll have to look into that for sure. I figured it was a common option. I pick my self every day for selling the original pony wheels off the 91 mustang.

Unless the cloth inserts have been re-glued, they're extremely prone to falling off. Better never touch them.

I believe that. Had to remove the door panels to fix a few wiring issues. Did the mod to the window regulator but found some aluminum bushings off of Amazon. Cut them down a bit. Think it was about 8 bucks on Amazon for enough to do two windows.

 

[1997ThunderbirdLXV6]

What window mod is that?

 

[lilhen]

What window mod is that?

Sorry should have been a little more detailed. The window motor mod.
I found a steel bushing mod on TSTSNBN. After reading it they listed the bushing dimensions and I found a set of aluminum ones about the same size.
Figured it's lighter and a softer metal than steel, but harder than plastic.
If/when they fail I'll get pictures of the carnage but as of right now it works flawless. I had to grind them down a little. Didn't put a mic. on it just trial and error till they fit. Sorry they are about 13 bucks for the pack so around 7 a window.
Below is the link to Amazon.

https://a.co/d/f2W99J3

 

[Vicinity]

This looks fun. Aside from Zep have I havent seen many pics of the interior gutted

Unless the cloth inserts have been re-glued, they're extremely prone to falling off. Better never touch them.

Yeah the pics are an odd combo of garaged and seasoned. Maybe the windows were tinted a while back and kept closed

 

[lilhen]

This looks fun. Aside from Zep have I havent seen many pics of the interior gutted

Carpet had to be cleaned but wasn't able to save it. Planing on going with OG colors inside based off of door codes. Trying to keep everything as close to original as possible with exterior paint and interior trim.
Had a fun time getting the carpet out. No way in hell was I about to pull that dash

 

[XR7-4.6]

You’d actually be surprised how straight forward the dash is to pull given what you’ve already done. With the seats out of the way it’s borderline easy!

 

[lilhen]

You’d actually be surprised how straight forward the dash is to pull given what you’ve already done. With the seats out of the way it’s borderline easy!

I took a look at it and it's not as bad as I thought. Might have to pull it have a blend door issue I think, car has AC but it's stuck on heat. Had it working at one point but it acted up again.
Think I'll pull the dash when I go to lay the new carpet in it and take a look at the climate control box

 

[lilhen]

Added some LED lights to the interior got to order the rear lights from Amazon I think can't find the bulbs to fit.

 

[XR7-4.6]

I took a look at it and it's not as bad as I thought. Might have to pull it have a blend door issue I think, car has AC but it's stuck on heat. Had it working at one point but it acted up again.
Think I'll pull the dash when I go to lay the new carpet in it and take a look at the climate control box

YMMV but I found a way to get to the blend door without pulling the dash, but just lowering the glove box removing the passenger AC ducting and pulling out the passenger airbag. Gotta remove the screws with a box end wrench but they’re coarse thread so it doesn’t take very long

 

[lilhen]

YMMV but I found a way to get to the blend door without pulling the dash, but just lowering the glove box removing the passenger AC ducting and pulling out the passenger airbag. Gotta remove the screws with a box end wrench but they’re coarse thread so it doesn’t take very long

View attachment 13257View attachment 13258

First off had to look up what YMMV meant
Secondly that interior looks flawless.
Well definitely have to do this when I get back from out of town. Thanks for the info and pics for reference

 

[1997ThunderbirdLXV6]

YMMV but I found a way to get to the blend door without pulling the dash, but just lowering the glove box removing the passenger AC ducting and pulling out the passenger airbag. Gotta remove the screws with a box end wrench but they’re coarse thread so it doesn’t take very long

View attachment 13257View attachment 13258

What black paint was this again? It's remarkable how stock that looks.

 

[XR7-4.6]

What black paint was this again? It's remarkable how stock that looks.

Duplicolor HVP106. It’s labeled as flat black but it’s really satin like the factory finish

https://www.amazon.com/Dupli-Color-EHVP10600-Black-Performance-Fabric/dp/B00098PO3G

 

[1997ThunderbirdLXV6]

That's what I used on many interior projects before, including my Mark VIII headrests. Excellent paint, but pricey. I'd like to find the same quality finish and adhesion in a less expensive paint.

 

[XR7-4.6]

That's what I used on many interior projects before, including my Mark VIII headrests. Excellent paint, but pricey. I'd like to find the same quality finish and adhesion in a less expensive paint.

Pricey but for interior paints it’s a bargain compared to SEM or Eastwood and based on how well it’s held up just as good

 

[lilhen]

Pricey but for interior paints it’s a bargain compared to SEM or Eastwood and based on how well it’s held up just as good

Eastwood paints are expensive as hell. I priced them out when I went to redo a boat years back.

 

[XR7-4.6]

Eastwood paints are expensive as hell. I priced them out when I went to redo a boat years back.

Yeah if you’re going for an exact shade color match or need them for a very specific specialty finish they’re very good. In my case just needing “black” the duplicolor met and exceeded my expectations, in fact the sheen is better than the airbag which actually was SEM I did probably 15 years ago(it’s held up great but I’d like to refinish it with the duplicolor)

 

[lilhen]

Past three days took the car out for a shake down. Runs and pulls strong. Did city driving the first day and the past few highway/City and stop and go rush our only issue I found is after she is warmed up, she will randomly stall out. Noticed a little surging when sitting still and in gear.
Took mass air flow apart and it was clean. Throttle body is pretty dirty. Cleaned it up a little bit. Based off the throttle body think the IAC might be a little gummed up also.
Transmission takes gear great and pulls as I would expect.
Suspension is definitely worn but handles better than I thought it would for a 30 year old car. Definitely a fun car to drive.

 

[1997ThunderbirdLXV6]

Suspension is definitely worn but handles better than I thought it would for a 30 year old car. Definitely a fun car to drive.

My suspension is mostly original, except for the ball joints/control arms, yet this is one of the best-handling cars I've owned.

Well, ok, I'm exaggerating. Most of my other cars were brand new and probably held the road better and were undoubtedly more secure.

But you can't argue with the Thunderbird's basic design. RWD, pretty wide, pretty low, pretty long, IRS. On dry pavement, this car feels so neutral around a corner; it's a joy. Now on wet surfaces, I drive with extreme caution; I just don't know what the rear end is up to.

 

[lilhen]

Now on wet surfaces, I drive with extreme caution; I just don't know what the rear end is up to.

Had a pop up thunderstorm yesterday driving it home and definitely started taking it easy. Car didn't feel right.
Found the issue with the idle. Forgot to get pictures of the parts but throttle body looked like it hadn't been cleaned since 94. Bad gaskets on both the throttle body and IAC. Also found the plastic air pipe from filterer to the throttle body has a massive crack in it. Sealed everything back up and idle came back to normal.
What is everyone running for aftermarket air intake?

 

[1997ThunderbirdLXV6]

Had a pop up thunderstorm yesterday driving it home and definitely started taking it easy. Car didn't feel right.

It's RWD without modern nannies. So you adapt your driving as needed to road/weather conditions. Like every conscientious driver did before stability control was a thing.

throttle body looked like it hadn't been cleaned since 94.

Hmmm. Wonder what mind looks like. Is the gasket reusable if in good condition? I wouldn't mind taking the TB off to take look inside.

What is everyone running for aftermarket air intake?

I don't know about that. However, one easy mod on the existing unit is the removal of the portion below the sheet metal, the silencer, which is somewhat restrictive. On the V6, at 3,500+ rpm, it produces a "healthier" sound; no discernable difference at lower rpm.

 

[lilhen]

s RWD without modern nannies. So you adapt your driving as needed to road/weather conditions. Like every conscientious driver did before stability control was a thing.

Most definitely I have had a sold axel mustang for years learned the hard way a few times.

Hmmm. Wonder what mind looks like. Is the gasket reusable if in good condition? I wouldn't mind taking the TB off to take look inside.

If it has never been replaced I wouldn't. Mine snapped when I pulled it was more like plastic at this point.

I don't know about that. However, one easy mod on the existing unit is the removal of the portion below the sheet metal, the silencer, which is somewhat restrictive. On the V6, at 3,500+ rpm, it produces a "healthier" sound; no discernable difference at lower rpm.

I'll look into that tomorrow. Been doing shake downs for the past few days fix one thing and another pops out. Expected out of a 30 year old car

 

[theterminator93]

Historically the most popular setup for the 94 was to convert to the 96+ style top end and use a PI intake. The genuine Ford intakes aren't sold new anymore so you'd have to source it from a salvage yard. They do make new intakes that will fit, but they perform about same as the factory MN12 intake does which leaves little point in going through the effort. TFS intakes or power adders are the less common alternatives, but they are most often accompanied by other work.

 

[lilhen]

Historically the most popular setup for the 94 was to convert to the 96+ style top end and use a PI intake. The genuine Ford intakes aren't sold new anymore so you'd have to source it from a salvage yard. They do make new intakes that will fit, but they perform about same as the factory MN12 intake does which leaves little point in going through the effort. TFS intakes or power adders are the less common alternatives, but they are most often accompanied by other work.

Lower is fine it's the plastic plenum from the air filter to the throttle body that is broken. I got it secure but it won't last. I'll break it back down at some point and post some pictures of it.
Been looking at the pi head and intake set up on Facebook also junk cars that have the parts for cheap. Not trying to go into the motor yet as it runs fine for now.