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Comments
It would be great to have this type of information to give you an advance idea of what a particular repair job is going to cost in labor.
If Ford ever announces a plan to phase out the Crown Vic I will stand in line to purchase two. For now insurance allowed us to upgrade from a 2000 Base to a 2004 LX loaded.
Cheers
Nice cars, but the Grand Marquis is such a solid, clean, honest automobile, the other two just seem too trendy and trying too hard.
And putting a limited slip in it has worked wonders on its winter traction issues... as long as I switch the traction control off...
Does anyone know if that can be permanately disabled and not cause the dash light to come on?
I just wanted to let you know that I have more faith than ever that the CV/GM is the toughest car around these days. I accidentally took my '04 CV off the edge of a truck loading ramp. My back bumper got hung up on the edge so that my rear tires did not contact anything (and I was in 2' snow). The bumper was all crinkled up - looked like heck - but after a few hours of help from my bro and dad, we got 'er free. Other than some scraping on the bumper plastic, the car is in perfect shape, and still runs like a dream. The plastic popped right back into its correct shape, and no metal parts were bent or broken underneath. I was really impressed, even if embarrassed for getting hung up there in the first place :P
So, to all those people who think that the bumpers on these cars are cheap (like I used to), I beg you to reconsider!
I do have to quibble with one issue - list price on these cars are so grossly inflated over what they actually sold for, it is not always a good comparasion.
My Mercury dealer called me and offered $6,500 off any new Grand Marquis on the lot - $2,000 extra rebate for current GM owners.
Anyone have an idea of how I can fix this problem? I am currently driving the car at altitudes above 7000 ft. But it reacts the same way at sea-level. Is this vapor lock or something else? The car has injectors and supposedly they shouldn't have these symptoms.
Motor Information also once published manuals that included flat rates. Check here: www.motor.com/
Having listed those, I should warn you that I learned many years ago, while working as an adjuster for several insurance companies, that flat rate manuals can have widely different flat rate times for doing the same job. The insurance companies often use the manual that lists the shortest flat rate time, but the repair shops often use the manual that lists the longest flat rate times. Also, there are "overlap" times involved when doing two or more jobs where the first task requires doing part of the other(s) as well. (For example, changing a head requires disassembling other things to get to it. The charges for getting to the head ought not be included unless the manual states those charges are not included in the labor for the head replacement.) I found some estimators were ignorant of that fact, while others were simply dishonest and hoping you didn't catch the scam.
But it is wise to have some idea what a job should cost you before going into a shop.
Good luck!
I got rid of my 1994 last October at 120,000 miles, and I did replace the front ball joints. Other than that, literally there was nothing wrong with the car - after 11 years everything still worked on the car.
My 2004 CV never gets a garage, unfortunately, but it never fails to start in humid 35 degree weather, slush 0 degree dankness, or -20 degree bitter cold (no block heater used!). You may have read my fun little story about driving my car off of a loading dock, too, with no ill effects (don't try that at home, kids!). Drove it home 40 miles as if nothing had happened.
The features/$ ratio would have been enough to win me over, if the looks didn't. Like you, I really think these are sharp-looking cars; the 2006 restyle of the Marquis is a bit tacky, IMO, but CVs continue to be great looking vehicles.
My Ford dealer is great, but I've never had a problem with my car, so I don't know how they are for warranty repairs. Hopefully you have the same experience!
That is a steal (value) in todays market. A better value might be a GM/CV coming off a lease that is several years old. They are typically used by an older driver, garaged and routinely serviced. The major hit on depreciation has already taken place.
I drove CVPI models for years (retired cop)and can attest for the beating these vehicles get on a daily basis. The 4.6 engines are bullet proof along with transmissions. If car companies want to test durability on a vehicle, give them to police/law enforcement agencies. That is the real-time testing ground for prolonged idling/high speed/stop & go driving.
Several police agencies in my state have put into police cruiser bidding that the vehicle is to be a Ford CVPI model.
What was even better was my Grand Marquis is an LSE, which is the one with the console and bucket seats. The dealer could not sell it because it did not have a bench seat, and the market for a Grand Marquis want a bench seat.
They are not a fadish or have cutting edge styling, but they are durable vehicles.
Just bought a Grand Marquis LS. Always have owned GM autos (e.g., Buick) in the past. But GM has all but abandoned RWD so I abandoned them.
Did not want to buy a foreign car. Made the exception for Canada.
The car is used. It is a gold ash 2005 with under 12.5K miles. Paid $14.7K.
Car has Michelins, leather, standard instruments (no electronic readouts for speed and miles), traction but not stability and no air suspension, homelink, etc., pretty much routine stuff I guess for an LS; no dual exhaust. I got all the manuals, large and small, with the car. There are five or six, I guess. Got the floor mats, three keys and two remotes. I liked the valet key . . . nice touch :-).
Did not pull the service history until AFTER I bought the car. Then learned the front rotors had been turned. Odd, but still would have bought it.
Before purchase insisted on "six side look". Dealer complied; put car up on lift for me. Spent fifteen minutes or more examining underside. No problems found. Did not even see anything which would qualify as marginal. Allowing for the miles, underside was like new.
Rest of the car also near new. A few scratches here and there, but nothing even remotely serious. It is a nice looking car.
No problems so far but have driven less than 100 miles. Fingers are crossed.
Are there any "standard" problems on the 2005's I should be on lookout for? Have the brakes been a problem for others?
Did I pay too much? . . . . get a good deal?
One last thing which was important to me: got a pretty good in-service date, I think, of 5/31/05. DID check the in-service date before buying the car. As you know, the three year factory warranty starts to run on the in-service date.
And the build date, also in May of 2005, told me the car has only gone through one winter . . . if you can call this a winter :-).
If this Mercury lasts like my 1978 LeSabre (also a four door) did I will be fine. The '78 has gone 150,000 miles with no unusual problems except a bad timing gear many years ago (fixed it myself). It has now largely rusted out which is MY fault. But it still runs and I hope to use it as a "winter car" to save the new GM from the salt.
Thanks for any feedback, and please wish me luck!
I haven't driven a V8 RWD car since I sold my 84 Crown Vic back in 1992 - been driving front-wheel drive 4s and V6s since. Man! What a ride! I never knew how "sport tuned" my Olds was until I drove this boat! Now instead of being tossed around on a bumpy road, I sit there and enjoy it!
I guees you can say I saw the light and came back to the fold!
Deke
Caddy, to their credit, seems to be trying to upgrade their models, CTS, STS, yet still hold onto an older design that is still sorta upgraded, the DTS...
Chrysler is bringing out a new Imperial based on the popular 300, and may have a future...
Unfortunately, my brother (the principle driver) is not a big fan of new Panthers, so we're getting a new Mazda3 GT to replace it. How's THAT for a gear change!
Say a little prayer for the fallen...
Either you Photoshopped the photo or that car is not really headed for the scrap heap. Where I come from, that's practically a new car. A MGM will go 200,00 MILES.
Let me try to respond in kind, to respond in the spirit of your post:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hi everybody.
Well, just ghastly luck this morning. Our otherwise pristine 2005 MGM with 10,000 miles caught a large bird dropping right in the center of its hood! I was horrified and my wife was traumatized by the event.
So that's it. Must chalk up our well-beloved 2005 as just another casualty of springtime. We'll be trading it in on a new 2006 tomorrow at our local FLM dealer. We will certainly miss the car, but who could tolerate an automobile with a bird dropping this large, nearly an inch across, right on the hood in plain sight!
Dear God, life can be so cruel sometimes.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
OK bottom line I don't know what you do for a living. But unless you are a professional photographer you REALLY have missed your calling.
If Barry Bonds had as a ball player the natural ability you have as a photographer, he would not have needed all those steroids.
The car LOOKS beautiful, and the miles are VERY low. I certainly can understand how you will miss it. I would too.
I very recently was forced to retire my 1978 LeSabre with 151,000+ miles. Replaced it with a MGM. But my LeSabre does not look half as good as your car. Just the rope holding up the rear bumper alone would give you a hint re its true condition. So would the large rust spots. My LeSabre looked like your car about fifteen years ago, and has given fifteen solid, low cost, years of service since then. It never was in the shop during that time.
If my 2005 MGM goes south at 70,000 miles I bought the wrong car.
To me, at that point, it'll just be broken in!
BTW thanks for the compliments on my photography skills; who says the camera can't lie?
1. New '06 GM GS. At 50+ MPH I noticed slight vibration in the steering wheel. Could be that the car was sitting for a while and the tires developed flat spots. Either way, it was disappointing on a new car with 10 miles.
2. New '05 Crown Victoria with the Sport package. This one was horrible. The car had slight shimmy in the steering wheel (not quite as bad as the GM) but the real problem was the transmission. As I pressed the gas pedal down at about 40 MPH, the car hesitated for about 2 seconds before downshifting, creating a dangerous flat spot. Did this repeatedly. When the A/C was turned on, there was this loud annoying rattle somewhere inside the A/C vents that would not go away. And how is it that this fully loaded vehicle had no tachometer with the sport package and dual exhaust, while base '06 GM did?
This is not a good report card for Ford quality. This perhaps explains the $ 7,500 worth of rebates and incentives on the GM and steep discounts on the CV as well. I would have loved to buy that CV at $ 22k but this test drive experience is one of the worst ever with a new car.
Anybody have any comments on these issues? At this point I am ready to write off these vehicles from my consideration list.
The oil level gauge in the pre-'06s should really have been an oil pressure gauge; that, too, would be useful information.
As for your test drive results, I drove an '05 with 18,000 km on it and it was a total dream. Same with my '04 when I first drove it. Perhaps the Talbotville workers are throwing in the towel and giving up on the slow-selling Panther. There can't be much incentive to get the quality right at this stage, which is really sad. Hopefully you can find a late model CV/GM that has been screwed together right!
I get 20-21 mpg, no matter what, when the sticker said 17/25...I was told by the dealer that the LX Sport with the higher rear end ratio is doomed to get lower mileage, but if that was the case, how could they put a 17/25 sticker, knowing it would never break 20-21???...I realize that it is "approximate" but the highway isn't even close, and I drive over 80% highway interstate running...
Whether I go 55 65 or 80, gas mileage does not change...it is 20-21...altho beats the hell out of 17...
I am starting a new thread because my problem is not the same and I do not want to mess up the other thread or put it off topic. Mine is also a "problem" related to shifting. But it is the other side of the coin.
I am new owner of a 2005 GM LS. I like the car so far but I have not driven it very much yet. Bought it with roughly 12,400 miles on the clock. It was a Hertz car.
I live in a hilly region but I would like to be able to use the overdrive more than I can now. The car shifts too aggressively for my taste from OD into high when I am going uphill. I don't care if the car slows down a bit and I'm willing to feed more gas when going uphill. But the car wants to use a lower gear, too, and it downshifts regardless my wishes and preference.
This has gotten to the point that recently I have been turning off the OD to squelch the downshifting tendency.
But what I REALLY want is a situation where I can force the car to REMAIN in OD, at my option.
[To its credit, and to my relief, the car has no discernable tendency to downshift further, into second gear. Thank God for small blessings.]
There was mention of "training" in the other thread. Am I missing something here and/or do I need to be doing something differently to get what I want? I am new to the car and new to Mercury so certainly there is a lot I do not yet know. Is there a way I should be "training" the car to do what I want and behave as I wish?
Any counsel will be appreciated. Thanks.
Instead of tromping on the gas pedal to initiate a downshift, Lock It Out of Overdrive just before you would tromp on it. If you still need more RPM's - move the Selector Lever to "2".
It's a great tranny if you change it's oil when the shudder begins.