First thing is first.
1. The Emmisions Calibration placard is avaliable from Four Eyed Pride (FEP), and, by exception report, you can find out what changed for gearbox, state and the B and X VIN codes engines. The right question just needs to be asked, and wammo!, you've got FoxChassis on the case.
The low mounts had placards like CJ 232 AB for 1982 CA emissions, the high mounts, IJ 204 AA for my 1981 CA emmsssions.
C and I govern the engine sub catagory type, the next were engine class and whatever engineering revision.
Right now, the info is there with Marti and FoxChassis. FC actually has a lot
more info because he can just ask, and a Four Eyed Pride membership will check, and return the info, whereas the Mercury records have been trashed, and the Marti reports are Ford based reports, and Ford decides to restrict certain detail on what info goes out. Real world info often beats the shoulda, woulda, coulda of the Corporate Engineering Editcts.
2. Past Precendent on vehicle emmissions. The CA and Hi Alt areas in the 78 to 79 3.3 liter T codes deleted the 3 speed column or four speed floorshift gearbox option, and replaced it with the C3 or C4 to meet the FMV emissions standards. If the car got an air pump, it was related to the addition of a manual transmission, which are dirtier than automatics due to lift off unburnt fuel emmissions during down changes.
3. After 78-79, air pumps were manadatory everywhere, and it was the mandatory secondary AIR that allowed the manual gearbox cars to pass emissions in CA and Hi Alt areas to CO. The difficulty in getting gearboxes probably governed the removal of the T4 for the 1982 Mustang and Capri 3.3. Apparently, the 4 speed floorshift option wasnt there for the 105.5" wheelbase Foxes for 1982, nor did the first of the X code 3.3 1983 LTD's and the last 3.3 1983 Fairmont/Zephyr have it.
4. Checking the CAFE fuel consumption figures for each year confirms what axle and transmission and emissions packages there were, which gives clues as to what combinations were actually avaliable.
5. Under Federal Motor Vehicle Emissions Law, each axle combo
had to have a CAFE and emission cycle certification. The Fox I-6 B and X code ratios of 3.08, 2.73, 2.47 weren't able to get a limited slip differential before 1981, and so the axle size could be 6.7 or 7.5", and the trans codes are very specfic for 80, 81, 82 and 83.
So a clue is for an alternative optional MPG figures showing another ratio or emmissions requirement.
The 1981 and 1982 and 1983 CAFE City and Highway MPG figures tell you what changes existed in all 50 States.
http://www.aboutautomobile.com/Fuel/1981/Ford/Mustang
http://www.aboutautomobile.com/Fuel/1982/Ford/Mustang
http://www.aboutautomobile.com/Fuel/1982/Ford/Fairmont
http://www.aboutautomobile.com/Fuel/1983/Ford/Fairmont
http://www.aboutautomobile.com/Fuel/1983/Ford/LTD
super4ord":d36ticnr said:
I just bought a Bright Bittersweet Orange 1980 Mustang coupe from a man in Irving Texas about 3 weeks ago. I drove it 194 miles back home to Oklahoma City. I really enjoy driving it!
It has the 200 6 cyl with the catalytic exhaust manifold, and the secondary lines to the manifold.
A previous owner removed the smog pump, but I think everything else is there.
It has the SROD 4 speed and 3.08 rear gears. It does have a catalytic converter under the car too before the muffler.
It has power assisted disc brakes, power steering & air conditioning. AC was nice on the trip back! The car has 20K miles on the odometer. I'm sure it must be 120K.
This is way too light of a car to need power steering. I oversteer the daylights out of it. I just changed to a smaller diameter aftermarket steering wheel. This has helped. More to come later
Darrell
I've driven and worked on nearly all Ford's 70's to 00's power steered cars from all over the world. The Australian Ford Fairmont GXL and Ghia, the European Ford Granada 2.8 Injection, the Ford Cortina 2.3 Ghia, the Australian Ford Cortina 4.1 Ghia were just the same; Ford decided on 4 pounds of rim pull stationary, and didn't much care if that dropped at 65 mph.
Jaguar did exactly the same thing with the V12 XK-E (E type), XJ-6 and XJ-S with Adwest power steering. It takes three out of theses six things to get artificial feel.
1. Front of the IFS steering gears create great stability, rather than rear mounted steering gear, which reduces understeer, and make cars fidigity.
2. Bishops variable ratio with increased sharpness as the steering wheel is turned
3. Rack and Pinion steering need Quality Assurance engineering normal distribution values less than one standard deviation away from the mean percentile of the SPR characteristics, and ex Rocket Scientist/ Ford systems engineer Chuck Misler from K house described the interplay between the torsion bar and sleaves and steering gear as " the most complicated feedback system around ".
4. Ackerman must suit the chassis wheelbase and track.
5. Castor built in to improve stablity
6. Engine or vehicle Speed sensitive power steering (over width tires can help dial it up for effort too)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eudfJPHf7DE
The early Fox had the first two pefectly arrayed, the last 4 were very wrong from 79 to 85, and corrected in stages.
1986 (First of three SPR and ratio and pump capacity changes, with the final in the 15 thou thicker torsion bar 2001 Cobra steering),
1987 (Ackerman and Castor)
and 1996 (dedicated Motorcraft C-III pump/Hydroboost split)
It had an appaling lack of castor, the wrong Ackerman on the 5" shorter narrow track 79-86 Mustang Fox, and the early Ford or TRW racks didn't have assured machining, so most of them were super senstive, as well as overtly light.
I spent one night listeing to a braodcast by Chuck Misler from K house, who noted how dand COMPLICATED the torsion bar feedback algorithim is (he called it a Nimmitz diagram or something) and then realised I could only do the track rods, caster, roller top, up size the tire size from 185's to 235 or 245's and nolathane the idler, track and new pitman arm on my power steered Falcon. Doing that, my steering guy was so delighted, he said "its very solid on the road, not like any normal XE Falcon powered steering car".
He then got my 1983 Cortina, and was amazed that I brought along a spare powered rack, rare as rocking horse sh!+, and my gear bearing housing was CNC machined from aluminum stock and sleaved with stainless steel. I asked him to "do the same with my TF Cortina as you did with my XE Falcon..dial up the castor and make it heavy on the road".
He said he couldn't because he couldn't change
the caster,
the camber,
the torsion bar size, or
the Ackerman,
and why the heck did it have a 1976 IFS cradle instead of the correct 1982 one?
So some Fords are REALLY hard to heavy up in the steering department.
My 1981 Mustang 3.3 was the same as the 1980 Mark II European Granada and 1982 TF Cortina Ghia V6.
I knew exactly why its was that way, its those 4 missing things above, so I spent from 2010 to 2015 just enjoying it, and learning to drive it with a delicate hand, like you'd drive a power steered V12 XK-E. The 200/60 hr 390's I put on it helped a little, the two realigments not at all, the new shocks and dropped tire pressures didn't help a bit.
Once you've driven a modified to H-E-A-V-Y weight power steering car with heaps of castor, race car style camber-in, and 235 section tires, you just make allowances when you get stuck with a ultra light rack and pinion power steering car. The 81 Fox Mustang I6, even at 95 mph, and on NZ roads, it was just magnificant, and you do "just get used to it". Its like going from a Ferrari Daytona to a power steered Chevette in some ways.
You won't understand it, but its the huge amount of impact harshness which so spoils the European Granada and Cortina, and all X shell Mustangs and Falcons. Even the 1980 US market X body Granada has some impact harshness, and its got ultra compliant controlled wheel recession tie rod ends. Bridge filler joints, cement exapansion cracks, kerbs, and gravel roads exhibited none of the choppiness you'd find in those..it is totally absent in the Fox. Enjoy it!
A/C is the one reason I wouldn't dispense with the factory iron exhaust header.
The only other way to keep it with headers is the low mount dealer Sanden like on Eric the Car Guys Fairmont 3.3