Memories of my 2007 Grand Marquis

[Falcon_LS]

I was just posting a picture of the newer instrument cluster on the 2006+ models and had a trip down memory lane. Thought I'd share some pictures.

This was a GS Convenience model I bought on 16 June 2007 with 12,000 km (7,500 miles) on the odometer. It had a leather wrapped steering wheel, Premium sound system, power driver’s seat, cloth Town Car seats, dual exhaust, power adjustable pedals, keyless entry with driver’s door keypad and quite a few other features. At the time, I had a deposit on an LS version equipped with the Handling Package, but I had to give up some cash for a family emergency so I got this one instead.

Initially Vibrant White, I later had the car resprayed in Ford's Arizona Beige. The previous owner drove the car to and from Saudi Arabia a few times and the paint had its share of sand blasting from all the storms it had seen. I also favored the beige more, and that was it. There is something interesting about the build date though. This car was built on 18 September 2006, whereas my current 2001 Grand Marquis is built on 18 September 2000. Talk about coincidence. Anyway, onto the pictures.

Something I came up with in Photoshop:

Unfortunately 6 months after I bought the car, it was rear ended by a semi on the highway. My family made it out safe, and the car did its job of protecting them. But I still miss it.

 

[Y_K]

Love the seats.

 

[Hokiefyd]

Looks nice. I think beige/tan/gold is a classy color.

 

[440Magnum]

Originally Posted By: Y_K
Love the seats.


Same here. The usual front sofa is my only real gripe with the Ford and Mercury branded Panthers. With seats like those in a Grand Marquis or Crown Vic and I'd be in heaven...

 

[Falcon_LS]

Originally Posted By: Hokiefyd
Looks nice. I think beige/tan/gold is a classy color.


Thanks, it certainly is!

Originally Posted By: Y_K
Love the seats.


Originally Posted By: 440Magnum
Same here. The usual front sofa is my only real gripe with the Ford and Mercury branded Panthers. With seats like those in a Grand Marquis or Crown Vic and I'd be in heaven...


Yes, those are Town Car seats which have been standard equipment on export models since 1999. My '01 also came with 40/20/40 Town Car seats:

They're extremely comfortable, even after long trips.

 

[huffmuds9320]

Looks great. The interior and car paint color go together nicely. Is there a middle seat in the front?

 

[simple_gifts]

Is that considered a camel interior?

 

[CROWNVIC4LIFE]

My sisters 07 G.M.Q.LS seems more comfy then my 05 CVLX..But I have no complaints on my 05.

I asked my sister the other day when she plans on selling her 07 G.M.Q.LS and her answer was never..She keeps on top of the maintenance.

I wish all the Panthers down here came with rear a/c like your car has.

 

[Falcon_LS]

Originally Posted By: lpcmidst128
Looks great. The interior and car paint color go together nicely. Is there a middle seat in the front?


Thanks! Yes there is a seatbelt in the middle, its designed to seat 6.

Originally Posted By: simple_gifts
Is that considered a camel interior?


The 2007 had a Light Camel interior. Nice color, although a pain to keep clean. The 2001 has a Medium Parchment interior, which my 2003 also had.

Originally Posted By: CROWNVIC4LIFE
My sisters 07 G.M.Q.LS seems more comfy then my 05 CVLX..But I have no complaints on my 05.

I asked my sister the other day when she plans on selling her 07 G.M.Q.LS and her answer was never..She keeps on top of the maintenance.

I wish all the Panthers down here came with rear a/c like your car has.


Not long ago I drove a friend's Grand Marquis LS HPP, which he imported from Arizona. I actually found the seats to be comfortable, although I couldn't get used to the split arm rest.

That said, keep up the maintenance on these cars and they will last a very long time!

 

[Colt45ws]

Yeah, I like that single arm rest a lot better. I want to put a Sport center console and seats in mine.



Great looking car! Too bad about it being lost but like you said, it did its job.

 

[Falcon_LS]

From what I have seen, the bucket seats on the LX Sport and the LSE are exactly the same.

When I'm done with all the rest of the modifications, I'm going to get new OE seat forms and possibly leather seating surfaces along with '03-'10 head rests.

 

[DSteven]

Nice car! Last Sept, I rented a 2011 Grand Marquis with only 340 miles on the odometer. It handled quit taut nimble, and was well optioned, with leather, nice wheels. I was shocked, driving west on I-10 at higher speeds loaded with 5 people and luggage it returned 27.6MPG! I checked the axle code. It was a 2.73 open differential, BUT it had traction control, so not quite a one-wheel-wonder.

What is preferred on these cars, an open differential with traction control, or limited-slip? Does the traction control force it to spin both tires if it becomes stuck in snow?

 

[Falcon_LS]

Originally Posted By: DSteven
Nice car! Last Sept, I rented a 2011 Grand Marquis with only 340 miles on the odometer. It handled quit taut nimble, and was well optioned, with leather, nice wheels. I was shocked, driving west on I-10 at higher speeds loaded with 5 people and luggage it returned 27.6MPG! I checked the axle code. It was a 2.73 open differential, BUT it had traction control, so not quite a one-wheel-wonder.

What is preferred on these cars, an open differential with traction control, or limited-slip? Does the traction control force it to spin both tires if it becomes stuck in snow?


Thanks! 2003 and newer models equipped with a 2.73 gear ratio are well capable of acheiving really good gas mileage. My '07 used to get 9.3 km/L on average, and it was also equipped with a 2.73 rear end but with dual exhaust. My '01 is equipped with a 3.08 rear end (conventional), and I get about 8-8.2 km/L when driven sensibly.

I personally prefer an LSD on these cars, although the newer cars are equipped with ESC as standard as per government regulations if I'm not mistaken. Traction control will only serve to apply the brakes and reduce torque AFAIK, and will not spin the left rear wheel if the car is equipped with an open differential, but someone with more info might chime in.

That said, in the snow, I think a few sandbags in the trunk would be beneficial, along with a decent set of snow tires.

 

[Colt45ws]

Traction control tries to keep slip below a certain percentage, and will apply the rear brakes and reduce engine power (by toying with timing and fuel on 04-down and direct throttle control on 05-up) to do so. Should say that it will cause the left rear to spin as it will use the characteristic of the open diff to send power to the wheel with the least resistance. Basically, only activate the brake on one side to force power the other direction.
I run around in the winter with an open diff with no traction control and some blizzaks. I can almost plow snow. I dont use weight either, just keep the tank above 1/2 full.

 

[01rangerxl]

Great looking car!

Panther cars have a rare appeal that you don't see with many models of cars. My dad is a baby boomer hippy who owns a Honda Civic Hybrid, but he loves Panther cars. Whenever he rents a car, he always goes for a CV/GM. He has never owned one "because of the V8," but he definitely likes them.

What's interesting too is that as much as people knock American cars for reliability and quality, these have a huge appeal in one of the harshest climates in the world. People I know who have moved from the middle east to the US still prefer RWD Ford cars. One of my good friends is from Lebanon, and it seems like everyone in his family owns a 4.6 Mustang...not a Panther, but many things in common.

 

[Falcon_LS]

Originally Posted By: 01rangerxl
Great looking car!

Panther cars have a rare appeal that you don't see with many models of cars. My dad is a baby boomer hippy who owns a Honda Civic Hybrid, but he loves Panther cars. Whenever he rents a car, he always goes for a CV/GM. He has never owned one "because of the V8," but he definitely likes them.

What's interesting too is that as much as people knock American cars for reliability and quality, these have a huge appeal in one of the harshest climates in the world. People I know who have moved from the middle east to the US still prefer RWD Ford cars. One of my good friends is from Lebanon, and it seems like everyone in his family owns a 4.6 Mustang...not a Panther, but many things in common.


I know I'm barking up the wrong tree here, but I still think it was a bad move by Ford to kill off this platform for many reasons. If we were to put the fleet market in the US aside for just a moment, you would be hard pushed to find a house that doesn't have a CV/GM parked in front of it in Saudi and Kuwait. A Camry with an I4 costs more than a Crown Vic here, and people just like being able to get a reliable V8 and RWD for a cheaper price. They take whatever you throw at them, and even with the terrible gas they just keep on trucking. The older GM B-bodies were loved for exactly the same reason. Parts are also available everywhere, and you'd be hard pushed to find a mechanic who refuses to work on these cars.

Maybe I'm just hard headed about change and old fashioned with my way of thinking (I'm 26), but new cars just don't appeal to me as much as this platform does. The design is unique, they've kept them 'simple' in comparison to the new offerings and they just do what they're supposed to do perfectly - take you safely from A to B. I just don't care for having a space shuttle dashboard with a thousand buttons and all the fancy gadgets and gizmos.

Also, before they started decontenting the daylights out of these cars, they were also quite elegant. You don't have to be an American to appreciate traditional American design and those all-American traits (e.g. column shifters) are slowly becoming a thing of the past. I just feel American cars have lost their 'identity' and have become rather bland.

 

[CROWNVIC4LIFE]

Originally Posted By: Falcon_LS


I know I'm barking up the wrong tree here, but I still think it was a bad move by Ford to kill off this platform for many reasons. If we were to put the fleet market in the US aside for just a moment, you would be hard pushed to find a house that doesn't have a CV/GM parked in front of it in Saudi and Kuwait. A Camry with an I4 costs more than a Crown Vic here, and people just like being able to get a reliable V8 and RWD for a cheaper price. They take whatever you throw at them, and even with the terrible gas they just keep on trucking. The older GM B-bodies were loved for exactly the same reason. Parts are also available everywhere, and you'd be hard pushed to find a mechanic who refuses to work on these cars.

Maybe I'm just hard headed about change and old fashioned with my way of thinking (I'm 26), but new cars just don't appeal to me as much as this platform does. The design is unique, they've kept them 'simple' in comparison to the new offerings and they just do what they're supposed to do perfectly - take you safely from A to B. I just don't care for having a space shuttle dashboard with a thousand buttons and all the fancy gadgets and gizmos.

Also, before they started decontenting the daylights out of these cars, they were also quite elegant. You don't have to be an American to appreciate traditional American design and those all-American traits (e.g. column shifters) are slowly becoming a thing of the past. I just feel American cars have lost their 'identity' and have become rather bland.


I agree with you 100%..I do not see one car I really want right now after the Panther platform dies.

I notice some agencies down here [like Miami Beach] trying to get their hands on as many CVPI'S as their budget will allow before the Panther line shuts down.