Wagons are scarce?

That Colony Park is gorgeous.... I owned more Fords than GM wagons .

 

Ok im back on the hunt, I found a wagon for sale (more details and pics to come). The seller is having an exhaust leak fixed and is going to shine it up for me so then me and my mechanic buddy can go look at it. I told the seller to take pics of the under carriage while its up on the lift and then contact me when the work is done. Once I go and look at it I will post pics and any negatives that I see so hopefully some members can help me with a reasonable price. The car is not listed for sale yet and I have the first look. Will update this thread as soon as I know when I am going to look at it.

 

Looking forward to reading the details....The wagon wouldn't be in Oregon, would it?

 

No its here in CT so I get to test drive it and see it in person which is important to me.

 

Good luck.

 

Millsy
Hope it works out for you, This time!

 

So the seller said the car was getting an exhaust leak fixed but I just asked if the muffler is being changed out. I also asked for a photos of the front and rear of the undercarriage from directly below, not sure if the car is still at the garage or not. I will be sliding under the car to check but pics would be nice with it being 20 outside. The car was always garaged but it also was driven in the winter months, not sure if all the time or not. I will get more details when we goto see the vehicle. Its a 1990 ford crown vic lx country squire. Here is the one pic I received via email. Please take a look and see if you see anything to worry about, THANKS.

 

Duel exhaust ... could have the tow package

 

I will ask but the seller is an older women, if she is not sure then what do I look for? I drove the car about 14 months ago and it drove great but she said some of the wood vinyl has ripped, the exhaust leak developed and the odometer stopped working about 2 years ago. She has a book which I have seen that has all the fill ups since it broke to try and estimate mileage. She says about 84,000 miles on it. She said after we look at it I can make an offer to her. She had overpriced it before so maybe she came to her senses but im worried she is emotionally attached and not in touch with price reality but she said she is selling it so cross your fingers. When I go I will take lots of pics and post them here to help with an estimate. The thing I will be checking is the rust, make sure its not leaking alot of oil and then hopefully it drives like it did last year, it definitely didnt need new shocks. Tires and electronics will also be checked. I will look for rust bubbling and check the dog legs. Anyone else have a list of what I should look for. I rode in wagons when I was a kid but dont know alot about them specifically.

 

The odometer gears on these get old, dry out, crack and break. They aren't too bad to replace. Pretty common issue.

The mufflers and tail pipes on my '91 CV were completely rusted out when I got my car and it was only 11 years old at the time and had spent its entire life in North Carolina. They apparently did not use stainless to build the exhausts for these. Either way the muffler shown in your picture is not original. The original mufflers have a hanger that bolts to the back of the muffler with a couple of screws. That looks like some sort of universal replacement muffler. What we can see of the floor looks pretty decent.

Open the front doors and check for rust in the door jamb below the A-pillar at the seam where two pieces of sheet metal overlap (it will make more sense when you see it). Set the parking brake, put your foot on the brake and shift out of park. The parking brake should automatically release. If not the actuator on the steering column might be bad and/or leaking vacuum. Check the TV cable plastic grommet on the throttle body lever to make sure it isn't cracked, broken, or completely missing. The power window motors on these are susceptible to the same issues of all Ford power window motors of this era. Again easy to fix, but a minor pain. Check all four door locks actuate when you hit the button. Moisture gets into the actuators and they lock up or can be sluggish.

I'd consider all of the above to be minor issues that can easily be fixed (except the TV cable grommet if it has been driven with it broken or missing). There isn't much on these cars that is very hard to fix.

 

Is the H-pipe/balance tube part of stock duals on these?

 

Yes

 

Ok I will add that stuff to the the list and just did a search on the TV cable and that sounds like a serious issue to run into. I didnt find any pics of where it is located, obviously it attaches to the throttle body but do I need to inspect the other side of the cable also ?. So I need to make sure it is attached and the grommet where it attaches either looks in good shape or it has been replaced with a steel/brass fitting? Thank you guys.

 

Ok so I am looking for something like this, its off a lincoln, I couldnt find a wagon pic. This shows a plastic attachment which is a NO NO, correct?