1993 Ford Thunderbird LX review from North America
"Expensive to maintain, always has something wrong"
What things have gone wrong with the car?
Voltage regulator, battery and alternator replaced at 96,000.
Blown head gasket replaced under a recall at 98,000.
Replaced a rear transmission mount at 99,000.
Rear brakes had a leak, replaced pumps and hoses.
Have attempted to fix the A/C 3 times, still doesn't work. Heater occasionally has the same problem.
Ford tried to sell me new motor mounts when I had the A/C fixed. My mechanic verified that that was a lie and there wasn't a problem with them.
Warped rotors at 100,000.
Replaced the transmission fluid at 100,000.
Button on shifter broke off at around 105,000.
Replaced rack and pinion at 110,000 due to bad bearings.
Currently burns oil approximately 3 quarts every 1000 miles. I believe due to bad rings when it was replaced under recall. Working to get Ford to claim responsibility for problem.
Mass airflow sensor suspected to be bad. Ford says not to replace this until they know what's wrong with the engine.
The battery is dead, and the car has a suspected bad voltage regulator and/or alternator.
Suspect that by the time Ford fixes the ring problem they will have broken about a dozen additional things.
General comments?
Great car aside from the mechanical problems.
I love the ride, extremely comfortable. I get the tires balanced every 3000 miles and you can't tell the difference between 25 MPH and 95 MPH, it's so smooth. Handles nicely and gets good gas mileage.
Has a decent amount of power.
The paint is nearly flawless and the interior only has a few small blemishes.
Recommended reviews
| Nice car to look at, but a nightmare to own |
|
| Junk it before it swallows your wallet!! |
| Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? | No |
| Year of manufacture | 1993 |
| First year of ownership | 2000 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2001 |
| Engine and transmission | 3.8 V6 Automatic |
| Performance marks | 8 / 10 |
| Reliability marks | 7 / 10 |
| Comfort marks | 10 / 10 |
| Dealer Service marks | 0 / 10 |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 5 / 10 |
| Overall marks (average of all marks) | |
| Distance when acquired | 95000 miles |
| Most recent distance | 112000 miles |
| Date of Entry | 5th June, 2001 |