Mercury Grand marquis - Should I buy one?

[greenwar]

I have never owned an american car.. I know its sad, but I want that to change. I am primarily interested in a Caprice Classic, but also considering Crown Victorias and Grand Marquis. I want something large but not filled with luxury stuff that keeps breaking.

I know fomoco trannies are known for their unreliability. How did your Grand Marquis or Crown vic tranny treat you?

I am reading reviews online, but would like to get some first hand experience from Grand marquis/crown vic owners. Please also include what are the weak points of these cars.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Black88GTA]

96 - 98 Crown Vic / Grand Marquis / Town Car and other cars with the 4.6L V8 had problems with crappy plastic intake manifolds that were prone to breaking. $800 - $1200 to get fixed. I think some models with this part were recalled, although I'm pretty sure not all of them. My dad has a 97 CV with 130,xxx miles on it and he hasn't had any real problems with it yet, except for that intake manifold thing.

We used to have an 88 Grand Marquis, with the 5.0L / AOD combo. Transmission was crap, but the motor was excellent.

 

[greenwar]

Any idea of the 4.6L motor in the 92 Grand marquis had the plastic intake manifold in it?

 

[Black88GTA]

Originally posted by: greenwar
Any idea of the 4.6L motor in the 92 Grand marquis had the plastic intake manifold in it?

Not sure. Although, a quick google says that the 92 Crown Vic had the 4.6L V8 (not the older 5.0L)...so it is a possibility. If you're seriously considering buying it, I'd definitely find out if the defective part was used on that model, and if so, whether or not it has since been replaced with the updated metal one.

AFAIK, that was THE biggest issue with those cars.

 

[greenwar]

I just checked online. Consumerguide mentions that 96-01 Crown vic and grand marquis used the plastic manifold. The Grand marquis I am considering is owned by my friend. I will try to get a maintenance history from him. Thanks for the inputs Black88GTA.

 

[thedarkwolf]

Pretty sure 96 is the year that had the intake problem and it was fixed in 97 but I am not positive on that My dad's 96 t-bird with the 4.6l had that problem but lucky for him it was covered under a recall. Other then that they are extremely reliable cars. Same engine and trans in the vic and t-bird and his t-bird made it to 270k miles, he drives a lot. They do have some problems with torque converter shudder which can be annoying but doesn't actually hurt anything. His did it for about 150k of those miles and the engine is what finally killed it when the head cracked probably cause my mom was driving it at the time and over heated it.

 

[FelixDeCat]

:thumbsdown:

If youre a 80 year old man or woman, that is the car for you.

 

[uberman]

Your point about the transmission is correct. I own a 1992 Crown Victoria and a 1993 Mercury Marquis. The Crown Victoria had a new tranny put in at 80,000 miles. The Mercury Marquis had the tranny go out at 15,000 miles. For whatever reason I prefer the Crown Victoria. It has a 4.6 L engine. It's got power a lot of power and is comfortable on long drives. I get 20 to 24 miles to the gallon on the highway.

BTW, the Lincoln also has the infamous tranny problem. I'm very happy with the cars. I feel they're as comfortable as a Mercedes. Mercedes are very inexpensive in Germany relative to what they go for in the United States. The rear wheel drive is a plus and is preferred by police departments and people towing trailers.

They are luxury cars, smooth, quiet and fast. The new Crown Victorias are kiddie cars. Other than the transmission problems I've had no other major repairs.

The 1992 Crown Victoria has a plastic air intake; however, since I've swapped intake manifolds on cars before I don't see how one could be made of plastic.

A really nice feature of these cars is that several people can travel in comfort and are not treated as second class citizens by being placed in the back seat.

I also vacillated over the Caprice and the Crown Victoria, but that would involve major typing, if you want I'll post it. Let me know.

 

[probzy]

Just buy honda or toyota. It's dependable.

 

[thedarkwolf]

Originally posted by: uberman

The 1992 Crown Victoria has a plastic air intake; however, since I've swapped intake manifolds on cars before I don't see how one could be made of plastic.

Manufactures have been using plastic intake manifolds for awhile

 

[dabuddha]

I have a 1998 Grand Marquis and I used to be ashamed of driving it around. Whenever me and the wife would see another grand marquis, it'd be an old couple and they would gawk at us. Now I really don't care anymore. It's a very comfortable car but it's huge and a pain in the butt to park in the beginning.

 

[jemcam]

Originally posted by: probzy
Just buy honda or toyota. It's dependable.

Just go away thread crapper.

 

[Toastedlightly]

I have a 1977 Caprice Classic you could buy...

Hell, I'm even in the Twin Cities

(I know... 92+, *sigh*)

 

[Toastedlightly]

Originally posted by: jemcam

Originally posted by: probzy
Just buy honda or toyota. It's dependable.

Just go away thread crapper.

But this is ATOT! Remember that what the group things is right!

/sarcasm

 

[greenwar]

Originally posted by: Toastedlightly
I have a 1977 Caprice Classic you could buy...

Hell, I'm even in the Twin Cities

(I know... 92+, *sigh*)

Hey man, if your 77 has alright miles and tranny in good shape and the price is right we can hook up. Post me a pm with pictures, prices and specs. I actually might have seen your car in CL. Is it a silver one?

So the tranny is a dog in the 92+ grand marquis? Anybody else had transmission problems?

 

[shoRunner]

Originally posted by: FelixDeKat
:thumbsdown:

If youre a 80 year old man or woman, that is the car for you.

true, why would anyone want a grand marquis

 

[nakedfrog]

I didn't treat my 77 Grand Marquis well at all, and all I ever had to do was replace the battery. But that was also during a horrible cold snap.

Originally posted by: shoRunner

Originally posted by: FelixDeKat
:thumbsdown:

If youre a 80 year old man or woman, that is the car for you.

true, why would anyone want a grand marquis

Because they're good cars.

 

[greenwar]

Let me answer why I want it. I want a heavy rear drive sedan which runs on 87 octance to replace my last front drive sedan. Also grand marquis, crown vics or Caprice are reliable American sedans and run for a while if they weren't abused.

 

[greenwar]

Originally posted by: uberman
Your point about the transmission is correct. I own a 1992 Crown Victoria and a 1993 Mercury Marquis. The Crown Victoria had a new tranny put in at 80,000 miles. The Mercury Marquis had the tranny go out at 15,000 miles. For whatever reason I prefer the Crown Victoria. It has a 4.6 L engine. It's got power a lot of power and is comfortable on long drives. I get 20 to 24 miles to the gallon on the highway.

BTW, the Lincoln also has the infamous tranny problem. I'm very happy with the cars. I feel they're as comfortable as a Mercedes. Mercedes are very inexpensive in Germany relative to what they go for in the United States. The rear wheel drive is a plus and is preferred by police departments and people towing trailers.

They are luxury cars, smooth, quiet and fast. The new Crown Victorias are kiddie cars. Other than the transmission problems I've had no other major repairs.

The 1992 Crown Victoria has a plastic air intake; however, since I've swapped intake manifolds on cars before I don't see how one could be made of plastic.

A really nice feature of these cars is that several people can travel in comfort and are not treated as second class citizens by being placed in the back seat.

I also vacillated over the Caprice and the Crown Victoria, but that would involve major typing, if you want I'll post it. Let me know.

Uberman, please post your long post..

U mentioned your crown vic has a plastic air intake. Did you mean to say plastic intake manifold?

Waiting for your post. Thanks for chiming in.

 

[Iron Woode]

I own a 1987 Crown Vic and its a fine car. AOD is a fine transmission. The only problems reported were with the pre-88 AODs in the 5.0 Stangs.

Treat a car well, and you'll have few problems.

If you want real opinions on Crown Vics and Grand Marquis, try http://www.crownvic.net.

 

[LordMorpheus]

a 92 will NOT have an all plastic manifold - they came later.

The Panther chassis is rock solid, there is a reason almost every police force ran them until recently, and most still do. Grand Marquis is a good car.

It's easy to work on, boatloads of space everywhere - front seat, rear seat, trunk, huge amounts of space.

Can't speak to the ride, but my town car rides like it's floating over the road.

Go for it.

 

[BatmanNate]

I had an '82 CV. The 302 was a dog and the car got horrible mileage, sucked to park, and the transmission had problems picking the right gear on freeway onramps. However, it was extremely comfortable to ride in, great for long trips, easy to work on, and nobody every tried stealing it or breaking in. I :heart: bench seats. Dunno anything about the new ones though, sorry.

 

[fbrdphreak]

Where's the guy on here who has a 24/7 hard-on for his Grand Marquis? There's someone on here...

 

[Iron Woode]

Originally posted by: BatmanNate
I had an '82 CV. The 302 was a dog and the car got horrible mileage, sucked to park, and the transmission had problems picking the right gear on freeway onramps. However, it was extremely comfortable to ride in, great for long trips, easy to work on, and nobody every tried stealing it or breaking in. I :heart: bench seats. Dunno anything about the new ones though, sorry.

That's why the 302 was changed drastically in 1986. Its not just a 302 with EFI stuck on it. Heads, intake, cam, valvetrain, pistons, etc... all different from your 302.

My 302 (5.0l) makes 160 HP and 280+ lbsft torque.

Mileage: 18 City and 28 Highway. Not too bad for fullsize, V8, automatic sedan.

The new ones have better HP and fuel economy. But my CV can still beat them in a race.