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These are the directions without the pictures. That way you can gauge whether you want to tackle it. It's fairly easy to remove the front bumper cover, just 2 bolts on either fender and six screws underneath, then slide out and disconnect the fog lights. You'll get a chuckle out of what I call the "boogie board" material used for the 5mph impact protection. It's actually called engineered expanded polystyrofoam.
The side skirts do not require drilling. They attach in the stock locations as the black stuff that's down there now.
It does help to have a helper though, since someone should help hold the side rockers off the ground when you install it.
There is nothing on the kit that really requires drilling. It's a very well engineered kit. Remember that CDC specializes in making kits like this for dealer add-ons so they keep the connecting points identical to stock.
Brian
akirby,
I have done more than look at an LS suspension. I have completely removed one. So don't get all cocky with me. Unless you studied automotive engineering, like some of us, but from your comments it shows you are not.
The newest Civic still has double wishbones in the rear but they have replaced the front double wishbones with a strut/wishbone setup.
Don't take my comments as implying that there is something wrong with the LS suspension or the Civic is all that. From a performance point of view nothing is better than double wishbones front and back. However, don't get to thinking that the LS suspension is way better than the competition based off of some marketing spins. Many other cars use double wishbones front and rear with anti-dive and anti-squat geometry. And probably 70% of expensive cars now use aluminum suspension links.
This LS suspension hype reminds me of when the G35 first came out how everyone said that it was a leap forward in tech because it had the FM (front mid engine) platform. I stated that other cars have been doing this for years (in fact with the engine even closer to the axis of rotation) they just did not coin it and hype it. When challenged I mentioned the S2000, Corvette and others and the hype has died.
Since sophisticated is such a subjective term it's pointless to argue about it. While it may be true that all double wishbone suspensions have some anti-dive/anti-squat capabilities I believe the LS takes this to a higher level. Have you ever done a 60-0 panic stop in a LS? Have you ever seen one and compared it to other sports sedans? I have and it FEELS and LOOKS to me like the LS stays almost perfectly flat while the competition dives at least a couple of inches. A stock Civic probably dives 4-5 inches. It's almost scary how level it stays. That's not hype - it's performance. If you don't believe me go drive a LS and try it.
Just out of curiousity - what would you consider MORE sophisticated than an all-aluminum, double wishbone front and rear suspension? I'm just trying to understand your yardstick for these things.
As I said I like the LS, its suspension and know of other cars with similar suspension. You think it has the most sophisticated suspension ever conjured up. Great! Now lets move on with our lives.
So what's your point babylou? . . . please enlighten us poor, dimwitted folks here with your vast knowledge, and save us the hyperbole about your engineering degree.
Also, with regard to your comment about the "heft" of the LS, it was recently shown on this board to be very similar to it's most direct competitors.
He also "completely removed (an LS suspension.)" No mention of replacing it though. Perhaps he works at a boneyard?
BTW, babylou, can you enlighten us with the names of a couple of cars whose suspension is as sophisticated as the LS and does not dive and squat under acc/deceleration please? Oh and below $40,000. I'd like to drive one myself.
I think we made our point.
On another topic, no my windows didn't fall. Never have. Never will now (finger's crossed) as my service dept agreed to replace both rear window regulators when I brought Red in for service on Tues. She's now ready and I'm waiting for a shuttle to pick me up to go get her. Guess I can't complain too much about my dealer's service.
George
Six miles later I saw in my headlights (not Xenon, I might add) a person standing in the highway (where the posted speed limit was 55) holding a Stop sign. I came from the 55 (or so) to dead stopped in very short order. He didn't have the faith I did in the LS suspension/brake system, so ran out of the road. I was at a dead halt 20 feet from where he was standing, and much more worried about the car behind me than hitting him.
My only regret in this is that I woke my son, who was recovering from his sleep deprivation, fairly common in college.
The car stopped level, straight and short. No magazine photographers were present to document how it compares to the other 10.
More's the pity.
About an hour ago, two black LS's passed me going in the opposite direction. They were clearly LS's, and in the few seconds I had to observe, they registered as being different from those in my memory.
The only specific I can provide is that the lead car had its headlights on, and I would bet a lot of money that they were HID.
"The newly patented rear suspension has high-anti-lift geometry (115%) to promote rear-end squat when braking".."both ends of the car move towards the road under braking giving the driver the secure sensation of moving downward rather than being pitched forward".
If the design is as common and not unique as the Civic why did LM do the patent?
It's like saying all McPherson strut systems are equal because they are McPherson strut systems. Comparing the M5 strut system to a Mercury Capri strut system is still like comparing apples to oranges.
I have thoroughly enjoyed my '00 LS V8 and don't know what I'll do when my lease is up in about 60 days. Its depressing that LM has allowed something with so much potential to fall to the back of the crowd.
Just had to give you a hard time brian. I concur though... Anybody comparing the LS to a CIVIC likes peacepipes a little too much..
Putting on my SNELL SA2000 helmet on now. Yikes I don't have one crap!
Regards,
Airwolf
This link has something on the GM 5 speed automatic that I came up with. Not based on anything real though.
I actually meant the older Capris
Ahhh, the silly things you do when you're young and don't care about things like ride quality! Oh wait, I still do silly things!
Brian
Guess what? The placement was G35, CTS, LS, 530, E430. Isn't that funny, when you compare the same priced LS (and CTS for that matter) to larger and more expensive cars it rates higher. Does that mean the cheaper and smaller a car is the better it is?
Oh, and yes I am a degreed engineer and the reason I yanked an LS rear suspension is because someone at my company totaled his and we yanked it thinking it would be good for a street rod.
As an example, in the June R&T, the $35K 122bhp Lotus Elise beat all of the high powered sports cars on a race track. But then it weighs only 1900 lbs.
Acceleration has more to do with horsepower to weight ratio, though, torque, and the nature of the torque curve and weight are more telling (it's just harder to quantify . . . hence the reason for hp/lbs reference). Generally speaking, the horsepower to weight ratio favors smaller cars; and, for mass produced cars, smaller cars also tend to be more affordable and have a broader market appeal. Easy to see why there are so many more small "performance" cars than mid to large size "performance" cars.
"Improved 3.9L 32V DOHC 8-cylinder aluminum V8 engine with variable cam timing ((!!!)) and electronic throttle control for improved engine performance, power, torque and fuel economy. 274 HP @ 6000 rpm (SAE) AND 270 LBS of troque @ 4000 rpm. Select-shift transmission (SST) now optional. All-speed traction control. Newly- styled analog instrument cluster including tachometer. Improved cloth sunvisor with covered vanity mirror."
Brian, you forgot "ease of parking".
From what I have found on the internet the 2003 LS-V8 will have 2 step VVT, similar to the original Jag 4.0. The updated Jag 4.2 has infinately variable valve timing.
So, if the present 3.9L is optimized at 4500 RPM, where its torque peak is, then one could expect the 2nd step of the VVT to provide similar performance at 4000 - 6000 RPM. The 1st step of the VVT would then be optimized at a much lower RPM, lets say, 1500 - 2500 RPM.
Thus we could expect a lot more torque at lower RPMS than the present 3.9 V-8. Since the present 3.9 has about 220 ft lb at 1500 RPM, 240 ft lb at 2000 RPM and it actually dips to about 230 ft lb at 3000 RPM, then VVT should get rid of the 3000 RPM dip and deliver a lot more bottom end and just plain feel stronger as the RPMs build.
If those #'s are correct there isn't much of a difference in peak torque. 270 ft lb vs 267 ft lb on the 00 (4500 RPM) & 01 LS and 262 ft lb, on the 02 LS. Since I imaging few of us spend a lot of time at the torque peak RPM of 4500, the name of the game is broadening the torque band.
I know this is not much of a news flash, but I do not recall this subject being discussed here.
Car looks great (especially in the Southern Cal sun)!
so you're farther up the torque curve, making the engine feel a lot more responsive.
I do a lot of driving on country back roads where you are typically going 40 - 60 MPH. I use 4th most of the time as it bumps the RPM high enough get rid of the 1700 RPM cam chain whine and as you noted the LS is a lot more responsive.
I have not seen any significant difference in gas mileage in 4th vs. 5th at these speeds again leading me to conclude that the 3.9L V-8 was optimized for 65 - 70 MPH in 5th gear (2000-2200) RPM to get the EPA highway mileage as high as possible.
I can't wait to test drive a 2003 with VVT and see how it feels.
By Alex Armitage
Dearborn, Michigan, June 15 (Bloomberg) -- Ford Motor Co. will cut 980 jobs as the automaker eliminates a shift at a Michigan plant that makes Lincoln automobiles, the Detroit-Free Press reported, without citing anyone.
The shift at the Wixom, Michigan, plant produces the Lincoln Town Car, Continental and LS, the paper said. The facility, which employs 3,875 workers, has two shifts that make the Lincoln products and two that produce the Thunderbird. No Thunderbird shifts will be cut.
Wixom is one of 18 Ford plants that is cutting jobs or being closed as part of a plan announced in January, the Detroit-Free Press said.
The Lincoln Continental, a luxury car, is being phased out, the paper said. The shift will be cut Sept. 9.
ps. Hope this does not affect quality for the the 2003 production run.
The down side of using D4 in town is when I forget to shift it to D5 when I get out on the open road. The engine is so smooth and effortless that I've driven 20 miles or more at 70+ in 4th gear without noticing it, till I happen to glance at the tach.:)
When my LS was new I had quite a bit of lifter noise. The lifter noise gradually went away. Since it tuned 10K (a long time ago) the lifter noise has faded away.
Actually D4 & D5 are pretty close together in ratios in the 2000 & 2001 models with a .75 D5 OD ratio.
When they finally changed the OD to .71 for the 02 model I was hoping that the rear end would change to 3.58 for the V-8 as .71 * 3.58 = 2.54:1 verses .75 * 3.31 = 2.48 which would give pretty similar D5 final drive ratios. But I guess that Ford is struggling for every hundreth of a MPG that they can get.
We can only hope that the 03 VVT improves mileage enough that they could put the 3.58 rear end in the V-8 (& how about 3.77:1 with the V-6) which should make it a real screamer with the improved engine.
Also looking forward to testing the 03 LS with the new trannie ratios.
2002 Lincoln LS 4DR SDN MSRP: Contact Us
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Body Style: V8
Exterior: Vivid Red Clearcoat Metallic
Engine: ENGINE-3.9L SEFI 32V DOHC V-8
Transmission: Manual
Fuel Type: Gas
Speeds: 5
Mileage: 27
Doors: 4
Stock#: 00006222
VIN: 1LNHM87A02Y673052
Located at: World Lincoln Mercury Snellville
World Lincoln Mercury Snellville
1575 Scenic Highway
Snellville, GA 30078
Phone: (770) 972-2277 Fax: (770) 972-7858 Email: Contact Us