Not so rare 2 hour rule

"The Opponaut formerly known as MattP123" (mattp123) 08/28/2016 at 07:53 • Filed to: None

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Old shot of my hooptie.

Sovereign, Purveyor of Coupes > The Opponaut formerly known as MattP123 08/28/2016 at 08:01

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I want to polish your headlights.

Seriously though that Era of ford headlights sucks. I can drive with my brights on in the Lincoln (actually, I have to if I feel like seeing) and nobody notices.

The Opponaut formerly known as MattP123 > Sovereign, Purveyor of Coupes 08/28/2016 at 08:16

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This picture was taken maybe 6 years ago... I polished them last summer:

I do appreciate the offer, fellow purveyor. I get the same urge when I see a red car faded to a chalky pink.

Schaefft > The Opponaut formerly known as MattP123 08/28/2016 at 14:32

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I want an early 2nd gen GrandMa like yours. They just look so stylish in my eyes.

The Opponaut formerly known as MattP123 > Schaefft 08/28/2016 at 16:42

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I have another in much better shape. For being built months apart they have aged and feel quite different. But I love them both. 10/10 would buy another.

Sovereign, Purveyor of Coupes > The Opponaut formerly known as MattP123 08/28/2016 at 19:28

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Very nice! Looking good.

Schaefft > The Opponaut formerly known as MattP123 08/28/2016 at 21:44

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Nice, the blue one looks fantastic. How noticeable is the difference between both cars, do they really feel different?

The Opponaut formerly known as MattP123 > Schaefft 08/29/2016 at 20:00

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The blue one was built first and bought new by my grandparents in late summer of 1991 and it has only 81500-ish miles. It was used exclusively on weekends for the first six years or so until my sister got her license and the family needed an extra car. At that point it became my mom’s DD for a few years until I got my license. The white one was bought used in 2002 with 96,000 miles as my first car. My mom worked at my high school so we commuted together in the white one, at which point the blue one was retired to weekend duty for my grandparents for about the next ten years. The white one was parked for a good amount of time while i was in college and it would be rotated with my sister’s hand me down beater Cavalier. I miss that car sometimes. We’re the type of family that keeps cars until they are undrivable so we rotate them in and out of service. The blue one seems to have become my summer DD and the white one is my winter beater. Anyway, the white one now has a lot of miles. The odometer stopped over a year ago at 148,788.

Besides the differences in mileage and history, the blue one has digital dash, full power with lumbar driver and passenger seats, automatic climate control, and later converted to dual exhaust. The white one has analog dash, only power driver seat bottom (manual back and no lumbar), standard climate control but upgraded stereo, passenger airbag, and the air suspension with thicker sway bars, keypad on the door (which I love!) but single exhaust and I put on the larger police size tires. The white one rode so much nicer with the air suspension but it failed a few times and now has coils in the rear.

Besides the white one riding nicer, the seats are much more broken in, lack lumbar and seem to position differently being only partial power adjustable. The steering feels like it requires more effort in the white one. Maybe that’s age, or maybe its the tires. Oddly enough, the light gray interior in the blue one has not held up as well as the dark navy in the white one, despite being a garage queen. The transmission in the blue one lets you shift out of park without the brake, the white one won’t let you. The automatic climate control sucks. The fan won’t come on until the engine warms up enough to give you the temperature you’ve set it at. So if you want heat on a single digit Chicago winter day, you have to set the thermostat to lukewarm then keep bumping it warmer to hot as the car warms up. With the standard climate control you can just slide the temperature to hottest and the fan will come on right away. Lets face it. When it’s 3 degreest outside and you’ve just finished cleaning the snow off your car, you will gladly let the car blow 40 degree air rather than wait for the automatic climate control to give you the 85 degree air you set the thermostat for.

So, if you’re looking to pick one up... go for:

Air suspension if it works, premium sound, digital dash, basic climate controls, larger tires (the extra room under the car makes oil changes easier), and either seats will be comfy, more so if they’re broken in.

Fun fact: these cars have an ash tray in the dash and one in each rear door. But no cup holders. You’ll need an aftermarket cup holder of some sort.

Schaefft > The Opponaut formerly known as MattP123 08/30/2016 at 13:12

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Very cool to read about them. My Mark VIII still has air suspension on all 4 corners. I replaced the rear bags already but need to source a decent set of Motorcraft front shocks now that don’t cost a grand. Definitely wanna keep it as its one of the things that sets the car apart from others. My Olds Aurora has rear ashtrays as well, Olds even added cigarette lighters for both rear passengers. Pretty awesome to have an additional set of power outlets.

A friend of mine currently plans to buy a ‘97 Grand Marquis in dark green that seems to be in excellent condition. I am more of a b-body guy when it comes to 90s fullsize cars but I’d definitely be interested in owning a pre-fl 2nd gen as well, they are such cool cruisers.

The Opponaut formerly known as MattP123 > Schaefft 08/30/2016 at 15:33

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I remember the commercials where the mk8 speeds under the bar. I thought was the coolest. I like the look of the 95-97 the best but would love an 03 up with the advancements and 20 years worth of working out the kinks.