Introducing my 1985 American ford ltd sedan

[Ianlea73]

This had been on marketplace for ages & I was slowly watching the price lower to a more affordable price. It turned out to be a 6 minute drive from my house so it was rude not to go take a look. I'd promised myself before I was 50 I'd either build a kit car or buy a yank tank. I turned 50 last October!!

It was imported, Registered & lived on an American Air force base for over 20 years.

Previous owner bought it as a father son project but unfortunately, his son became ill so his health became the priority. 

The car needs all new brakes, wheel cylinders, shock absorbers etc but luckily that's all supplied.

Biggest stumbling block is the 3.8 V6 engine has single point injection & this seems to be playing up. Apparently it ran perfectly well when parked up but now splutters & dies.

So I'll definitely be looking for advise on the 308 Windsor engine issue.

It can't be too much as the car has a genuine 37000 miles in the clock!

The car is so clean it still has most of its factory decals. No rusty holes just mild surface rust.

The lower trim has been removed & all holes welded up. I'm going to colour match the lower section then use steel wool & soap to nib off any surface rust on the body, then boiled linseed oil & white spirits as a varnish

My plans are to sort the brakes, suspension & get it running however I've been advised to rip out all the smog stuff & then look into getting the 14" factory steel wheels banded so I can use the oem P slit hubcaps. 

Enjoy & any feedback & help with the engine issue would be great & how to remove the smog stuff.

[Jim Bergerac]

Oof, love this. I have a soft spot for these unloved 80s era yanks.

[D.E]

Cool! It's probably the influence of GTA Vice City and watching many 1980s American action movies, but this model LTD just screams "undercover cop" to me.

[Ianlea73]

4 minutes ago, D.E said:

Cool! It's probably the infuence of GTA Vice City and watching many 1980s American action movies, but this model LTD just screams "undercover cop" to me.

 

[danthecapriman]

That is awesome! Such a cool looking ‘going to town rig’!

I bet the lower side trims were removed because they always seem to funny and start curling up and peeling off on this sort of age car. Sticky steering wheels seem a common problem too.

Cant wait to see more on this.👍

[Schaefft]

I heard they make great taxis.

Nice find, certainly don't find many LTDs in the UK!

[eddyramrod]

James Bond car!

Roger Moore, A View To A Kill.

Cue John Thompson...

[tooSavvy]

Steaminn...... 🚀🔥

🚙💨

[Datsuncog]

Oooft! Now there's a winnermobile, right there!

Looking forward to the troubleshooting and eventual triumphant recommissioning of this fine slab of Americana. Magnificent.

[Bren]

I read about the ones some police forces had -  5.0 with a manual gearbox.

Apparently they went very well.

[andy18s]

I seem to remember from many a Junkyard Digs video that these share the platform of the Foxbody Mustang,so easy to upgrade?

[sierraman]

When it’s done make sure you grow a big ferret like tash, a black suit and a thin tie and drive round like Lt Castillo in Miami Vice. I think at one point these were offered by Ford in the U.K. under the personal import scheme? 

[Ianlea73]

6 hours ago, andy18s said:

I seem to remember from many a Junkyard Digs video that these share the platform of the Foxbody Mustang,so easy to upgrade?

Yep nearly all parts are interchangeable. 

[Ianlea73]

6 hours ago, sierraman said:

When it’s done make sure you grow a big ferret like tash, a black suit and a thin tie and drive round like Lt Castillo in Miami Vice. I think at one point these were offered by Ford in the U.K. under the personal import scheme? 

I don't know if it relates but on the v5 it states ' customs concession, visiting forces.

[High Jetter]

There are a lot of holes in the n/s suspension turret - are they factory or a result of target practice?

[Ianlea73]

Sorted through all the spares today & other than brake pads & rubber brake lines everything is here to sort the chassis. I played around inside the car & noticed 2 scary things. Thr Heater control heat/cold lever is stuck in the middle & under the bonnet it looks like the heater matrix pipes have been removed!

Also grabbed a pic of the oem wheels & the P slot hubcaps. The wheels are a massive 14x5 et28. I really like the hubcaps so I think eventually I'll get the wheels banded & refit the hubcaps & a fat sidewall tyre.

 

[Ianlea73]

31 minutes ago, High Jetter said:

There are a lot of holes in the n/s suspension turret - are they factory or a result of target practice?

The same holes are on the other turret too, just hidden behind the mass of wiring. Luckily I don't think this was a farm target practice kind of car.

[ProgRocker]

Nice! I like the styling of these Ltds. There's a road test of one on the Motor Week YouTube channel.

Reminds me a bit of the GM Opel Senator A  or Vauxhall Royale saloon in appearance.

[SEATMad]

Cooorrr this is incredible! Great purchase!  

[sierraman]

2 hours ago, Ianlea73 said:

I don't know if it relates but on the v5 it states ' customs concession, visiting forces.

I don’t know about that but I know that years ago you could buy Australian/American Fords via special order, this included Mercury Monarchs etc. 

[egg]

'customs concession' might have meant no VAT to pay, like our overseas forces (used?) to get.

[Ianlea73]

I found the original ford dealership badge in the car.
Fred Jones ford dealership are based in Oklahoma so confirms the smog sticker for Oklahoma in the windscreen making the car built & owned in one state before export to the UK.
It turns out Fred Jones was the biggest ford dealership in America at one point & is still in business today.

[egg]

I like the picture used on wikpedia for this model - looks like a large Solara to me!

[Popsicle]

On 11/02/2024 at 15:07, Ianlea73 said:

Sorted through all the spares today & other than brake pads & rubber brake lines everything is here to sort the chassis. I played around inside the car & noticed 2 scary things. Thr Heater control heat/cold lever is stuck in the middle & under the bonnet it looks like the heater matrix pipes have been removed!

Also grabbed a pic of the oem wheels & the P slot hubcaps. The wheels are a massive 14x5 et28. I really like the hubcaps so I think eventually I'll get the wheels banded & refit the hubcaps & a fat sidewall tyre.

 

Cracking looking motor, love the P slots, be great to see it up and running.

[Pieman]

Love American cars regardless of age, looking forward to seeing this one's progress!

[AndyW201]

On 11/02/2024 at 17:19, sierraman said:

I don’t know about that but I know that years ago you could buy Australian/American Fords via special order, this included Mercury Monarchs etc. 

I remember the Australian LTD being in the UK Ford brochure in the early '80s. A not-very-successfully stretched and tarted up  Falcon XD.

 

[sheffcortinacentre]

Yes foxbody based, std ford 4x108 stud pattern parts wise rockauto is your friend for std parts, Def bin the smog gear, carb may benefit from a rebuild/overhaul if it's been stood..

Check for vacuum leaks  , tons of hoses on this era engs.

These engs are prone to head gasket failure but being ohv simple swap.

If it enforced it will have not been sold new via UK dealer , non olive drab vehicles  where usually military police/ambulance issue , low milage is indicator of on base use my F350 was  40 odd thousand seem stuff virtually only just in double figures , regret not buying the one with 17 k on it mate has a V8 TD  Chevy ambulance ( ex marines) with 23K with no paperwork ( so wasn't allowed to be road regd)  bought for £500 from salvage collected from a base ( saved on "handling " fees)that all the running gear is going in his camper.

[Ianlea73]

5 hours ago, egg said:

I like the picture used on wikpedia for this model - looks like a large Solara to me!

I just googled a talbot solara & the side profile is very similar!

[Ianlea73]

12 minutes ago, sheffcortinacentre said:

Yes foxbody based, std ford 4x108 stud pattern parts wise rockauto is your friend for std parts, Def bin the smog gear, carb may benefit from a rebuild/overhaul if it's been stood..

Check for vacuum leaks  , tons of hoses on this era engs.

These engs are prone to head gasket failure but being ohv simple swap.

If it enforced it will have not been sold new via UK dealer , non olive drab vehicles  where usually military police/ambulance issue , low milage is indicator of on base use my F350 was  40 odd thousand seem stuff virtually only just in double figures , regret not buying the one with 17 k on it mate has a V8 TD  Chevy ambulance ( ex marines) with 23K with no paperwork ( so wasn't allowed to be road regd)  bought for £500 from salvage collected from a base ( saved on "handling " fees)that all the running gear is going in his camper.

I've tried Google to see how or what to remove smog wise but literally no information. 

The carb is actually single point injection so I was looking to possibly remove & fit a carb but again I don't know enough to know what carb to go for.

Rock auto seems massively cheap. £13 for a brake caliper, plus post & tax but still really cheap.

That's interesting info on the 'on base' use. I think this was imported & did very few miles over here.

[Frogchod]

I second Rock auto... 

Order Sunday and you'll have the bits by Thursday 😊

Oh, and pre pay import duties at checkout to avoid FedEx handling charges and daft made up customs charges.