how about a ford fairmont thread?

[The_Jeff]

I'll start with my dad's. He drove used fullsize body-on-frame Ford wagons all through the 70's. I remember the last one of these; I was old enough to roll down the rear window all the way.

We got this fairmont and I was immediately disappointed that the window only went down 60%. My mom said it was so I wouldn't throw ice scrapers out the window. Huh??

It was 1980. Dad special ordered this wagon with the 200-6 and 4 speed manual transmission. I found the window sticker and the base model was a little over $4k but this wagon was $6k. They really stuck it to you on options! And this price was with no AC, no cruise, vinyl seats, manual locks & windows, and that manual transmission! The dome light only had a door pin switch for the driver's door. It did at least have PS/PB and something bigger than the "pinto motor" as my dad snidely noted.

By the mid 80's the dealer vanished and was a grassy park! Dad alleged it was b/c of the "shady deals."

There was a gas crunch in 81-82 and the other car was a dodge omni 024 miser with the 50ish hp VW 1.7 (?) motor. Dad commuted in that leaving my stay at home Mom with the fairmont in which to drive us kids around. I would have rather ridden in the Miser even though it was a 2 dr hatch and I had to fold the seat back to get in/out etc.

The fairmont was mostly reliable. Bragged about not having the valve cover off. E-brake cables kept freezing up, plastic transmission forks bent or broke. Catco clogged up. Mom blamed the e-brake issue on the car being supposed to being equipped with an automatic transmission. Our driveway was on a slope and my dad had a wheel chock he carried with him. He'd open the door then roll back until the LF tire was hung up on it. Left it in gear with no e-brake and called it good. Several times with us kids on board he'd get in, put it in reverse, and gun the gas driving over the chock! A little numb to the physics of driving; usually with the clutch in on a hill you roll anyway.

He's still a bad driver today.

The heater core leaked mildly on the passenger floor. Hindsight says we missed an expensive trip to the mechanic to change that out.

Near the end I had my learner's permit and I preferred driving the Fairmont! It had usable torque for starting out in 1st gear unlike Mom's car, by then a mazda 323. The fox body platform held its own at 150k and still steered crisply. It had great visibilty and being a wagon I never had to guess where the rear was. In a memorable moment I was a rank noob driving on a quiet country road with my newly printed permit when a rolls royce pulled out of a side street right in front of me. I locked 'em up and missed the target.

It's funny how I thought they were beaters through the late 80s and 90s because of the vinyl seats and indifferent appearance/care. Now rolling chassis are starting to pick up in price for hot rod motor drops. The car didn't rust out in 13 years of Massachusetts winters, the doors always lined up; body was pretty nice except for chalky faded paint.

What finally did the car in was a clutch/trans issue that required it to be turned off every time it stopped so it could be jammed into 1st. We sold it to a guy with dental problems for $60 so he'd have more storage place on his property. He took the motor out and put it in an Thunderbird!!

Oil was GTX 10w40 and a fram filter. Dad did his own through the mid 80s then quit for some unknown reason.

 

[Chris142]

I had a exgirlfriend that had a 2 tone brown Zepher which was the same thing as a Fairmont.

It had the 200 and an auto trans.

She blew the upper hose coming out of Vegas. The "hot" light came on before she got to mountain pass but she kept driving it.

The car died at the bug check in Yermo. Some guy taped up the hose and put water in it. After getting home and getting the hose replaced she drove it another couple of years then sold it.

I saw that car around here for many years after she sold it.

 

[JTK]

Originally Posted By: eljefino
..Dad special ordered this wagon with the 200-6 and 4 speed manual transmission.


He's a step ahead of my FIL. My in-laws had a ~1981-82 Fairmont wagon with the 4cyl/4spd manual combo (2.5L maybe?). IIRC tan vinyl interior, no air, no power steering, no power anything. They drove that thing until they bought a new Buick Century in 1992. Even took family trips from Buffalo to Florida several times in it. It was brown. We used to call it the 'turd mobile'.

Joel

 

[The_Jeff]

^ I can picture that. In the era before clearcoat paint there were a lot of, er, organic colors. Dad's was dull blue but the top of the hood had a mottled brown effect from the engine heat.

 

[wander2039]

Hmmm now all we need is a Granada thread.. the first vehicle I ever rode in.

 

[The_Jeff]

Can we include granadas, LTD IIs, Zephyrs, futuras, mini-marquises and IIRC the 4 door Cougar?

 

[JTK]

My first car was a 1979 Grananda 2dr. It was white, red vinyl interior with the half vinyl top. No power options asside from power steering. In fact it came from the factory with no radio and originally had a woodgrain blank-off plate in it's place and had no vacuum booster for the brakes. Stopping was a double foot ordeal at times! I forget what size inline 6 it had, maybe a 250ci?. It had great low end, but that little single bbl carb didn't help much when you needed it.

Joel

 

[HM12460]

i had 3 of them. first was a 1979 2 door with the 2.3L engine. bought it in 1992 after i got out of the navy and came home to west michigan. it was a decent car. the next one was a 1981 or so that i bought at an auto auction for $400. i re-sold it for $900 just a few days later. didn't even have the title for it back from the state. i still it running around town on occasion. the last one was a 1981 also, with the 255 v-8. it was not a good car. in fact, it was a real pos. i traded it in for a 1991 grand prix in 1994. no more since. the red '79 2 door would've been an excellent candidate for a good stout 300 horse small block.

 

[CROWNVIC4LIFE]

Originally Posted By: eljefino

We got this fairmont and I was immediately disappointed that the window only went down 60%.


I could never figure out why so many people complained about windows going down 60%...I know General Motors had some in the late 70's and early 80's...I think the Buick Century was one... By then just about all cars had factory A/C so why on earth would you want to open the rear windows anyway...I don't recall anybody I know ever opening the rear windows after 1969...Even if you opened the front windows the people in the rear would be blown to bits.

I could never figure out why anyone would order a car without A/C...Even in the 60's...It was less then a 300 buck option.

 

[GMBoy]

Originally Posted By: eljefino
Can we include granadas, LTD IIs, Zephyrs, futuras, mini-marquises and IIRC the 4 door Cougar?

I had a friend who had a black LTD II with a 302 V8. Now that was a neat car! Forgot what model it was LTD GT or something.

 

[oilboy123]

My uncle had a 79 2 door Zephyer 4cl 4 speed. It would make cool Hot Rod. I also had an 83 4 door LTD 4cl automatic. Same fox body, not an LTD II. I have had parts guys tell me my LTD was a LTD II.

It's not an LTD II, it's a mini LTD......This is a LTD II http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_LTD_II

This was the car I had:
In 1983, the LTD was again split into two separate lines, with the LTD Crown Victoria remaining full-size and the LTD name placed on a mid-size car based on the Fox platform. The smaller LTD continued in sedan and station wagon forms through 1986, overlapping slightly with the first model year of the Ford Taurus in 1986, the car that became its successor.
Contents

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_LTD_%28North_America%29


Don't ever do a heater core job on it.

 

[mrsilv04]

I dated a girl whose grandmother had a Fairmont.

No A/C, no power steering... no power ANYTHING. It was a dark bronze two door with brown vinyl interior, with "dog dish" hubcaps.

 

[01rangerxl]

I actually kind of want to buy a clean Fairmont, Zephyr, or mini LTD and make a sleeper out of it. It would basically be like having a four door Mustang...especially with a 5.0 EFI mini LTD.

My dad hates these cars. He bought a '78 Zephyr wagon brand new. The carb had issues from the time it was new that caused it to stall. I don't think the car had all that many issues other than that, but it was a really annoying issue to have apparently. The car was traded in on a new '85 Cherokee before I was born. Both the Zephyr and the Cherokee were blue on blue, with vinyl seats, no AC, I4s, and manual transmissions.

 

[PT1]

My first car was a red 1960 Ford Sunliner convertible...LOL how about a thread for that?

 

[CROWNVIC4LIFE]

Originally Posted By: PT1
My first car was a red 1960 Ford Sunliner convertible...LOL how about a thread for that?


The 60 Ford Sunliner was one of the best looking cars ever...My dad a 60 Ford Fairlane 500 and it was the best car ever...No issues what so ever...I think it had the 302 engine in it.

 

[OVERKILL]

Originally Posted By: CROWNVIC4LIFE
Originally Posted By: PT1
My first car was a red 1960 Ford Sunliner convertible...LOL how about a thread for that?


The 60 Ford Sunliner was one of the best looking cars ever...My dad a 60 Ford Fairlane 500 and it was the best car ever...No issues what so ever...I think it had the 302 engine in it.


My dad's first car was a Fairlane as well with the I6. Thing was apparently invincible. Him and his brother abused that car to no end but were never able to kill it.

 

[RacerE7773]

I had a 78 fairmont that I sold to a dealer about two months after I got it. Valve cover gasket and electrical system issues. They sold it, and I saw it on the street once and that was 18 years ago. So it probably gave up the ghost soon after.

 

[65cuda]

Had a 78 Fairmont and it was one of the worst cars I had. 6cyl and auto with AC. Hard starting in the winter, died with the AC on, just enough paint to cover the primer and the sap would eat that away. The trunk didn't have a liner of any kind so when the stroller rolled around it put little dents from the inside out on the thin sheetmetal. Not one of Fords better ideas.

 

[PF52]

My dad had a Zephyr as a company car in 1981-1982; it rode nice and was pleasant to drive but was not suited for Chicago winters. First winter he had it, he tried bringing the battery into the house every evening. The next winter, he realized the battery wasn't the problem and installed one of those in-hose coolant heaters. It didn't help.

I remember one January morning in 1982; I had to get the '79 Nova out of the driveway to go deliver Sunday papers with it, but the Zephyr was blocking it in the driveway and being about -25 it wouldn't start (I recall this being either a record or near-record for that date). I squeezed around it in the snow and then caught [censored] in March when it melted and ruts were visible in the yard for months.

 

[javacontour]

I remember that winter. My '66 Nova would start when the '78 Zephyr wagon wouldn't.

We ended up taking the battery out of the Zephyr and putting it in the house until Mom was ready to go to work. The battery was insanely small.

I also remember that if you didn't follow the start procedure, it would stall 3x or more before you could go down the road if it was a cold start.

I think the cold start instructions were to pump twice and then start without touching the throttle to set the choke.

I never had issues when I drove it, but remember my mom having issue until she finally listened to her teen son and both read and followed the starting instructions on the sun visor.