The transmission sometimes slips between third and fourth gears, causing a sort of "kick" to be felt by passengers.
The radiator was cracked, though this was the fault of the previous owner and not of Ford.
Inexplicable oil drip (I heard something about a bad valve causing the oil filter to balloon when the engine gets hot, I will look into replacing this valve).
This car has impressive styling, even for one 5 years old when purchased.
The wraparound dash is very impressive and modern in appearance.
Since I also own a 2000 F250, I find it humorous how many parts are carryovers (lock/window switches, dome light, etc).
Despite the slightly annoying shift gap in the transmission, the car runs extremely well. The 3.8L V6 without the supercharger performs very well once you get this 3600 pound car going; however it's initial acceleration from a stop tends to drive it to 2500 rpm or so with only casual acceleration, and it occasionally runs as high as 3000 rpm resulting in a somewhat over-aggressive sounding exhaust note that makes it seem more like I am trying to shotgun from rest to 60 instead of trying to accelerate at the pace of other traffic.
Other than the sluggish initial acceleration, I would say that the engine seems more powerful than its horsepower rating.
The bucket seats are very comfortable. The positioning of the cupholders is terrible, right at your elbow, although there is little room for cupholders elsewhere. The armrest in the rear seat is a nice touch; a fold down rear seat would have been useful.
Overall, a great car with a few minor problems (as any used car is bound to have its imperfections).
I had the same problem with transmission, but a flush, new filter and add "grease lighting" additive solve the problem, you might have to this every 20,000 miles.
I own a 1995 Thunderbird V8. I am having a really bad oil leak and antifreeze leak. Why? I heard something about my valve seat-what is that? How can I fix this. At first I had smoke whenever I took off from a stop, now I am having bad leaks. What do I do?
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