1997 Ford Crown Victoria LX review from North America

Besides routine maintenance repairs, the failure of the nylon intake manifold and a rear swaybar link were the only other repairs. Under hard acceleration, the cross over from each cylinder head can fracture, and it did. I had to fix it myself, I was able to get it back on the road the same day it failed.

From previous experience, the car will need new shocks and springs around 140000-160000 miles. Also, it seems than when one steering or suspension part fails, they are all about ready to go. Not very expensive to replace, but annoying. See how much it costs to repair a BMW 540 with the same mileage. Good luck.

The car is very comfortable to drive, very smooth, very little steering effort is needed at low speeds. I drive a lot for work, 3-5 hours per day, and it usually gets around 18.5 mpg in the city. If I go on a trip, it will get 25-26 mpg. The car has a 2.73:1 open axle, so it's not super fast off the line. It feels very good at high speed and can pass well. Respectable handling for its size, and the suspension is very strong and can take a tremendous amount of abuse without breakage.

I sold my 95 Crown Vic after I bought this one. It had 216000 miles on it. The car ran, stopped, shifted and the A/C still worked. What more can you ask for.