Is my Engine any good?

[Anonymous]

I have a 1982 Ford Granada Station Wagon (my first car ever) with an inline six, 3.3L 200 CID, 1 BBL Holly 1946 Carb and C-5 3 speed transmission. It has about 166,000 miles on it. I want to upgrade most of the engine and Transmission. Could I still get good performance out of them with these many miles? Someone screwed up something in the engine because I have to rev the engine to about 1400 RPMs to keep it running when the engine is cold. It's supposed to be 650 RPMs at idle. It stalls out sometimes but nowhere near what it used to when I first got it in '98. My family thinks I should junk this car ('cause it's not a chevy ) but I'm not! I've heard stories of people wishing that they didn't get rid of their first car. Thanks for any help you guys can give me.

 

[rbohm]

8) that is a good combination, though i dont particularly care for the granada front end styling. it is basically a fairmont wagon though which i like. your six can make some pretty good power. at 166k though i would freshen it up while adding a good cam like a comp 260 grind. have the head rebuilt, and install a weber 2bbl carb either with an adaptor, or have the head machined wo you can bolt the carb on directly. add a good header like azcoupe sells and dual exhaust, and you will have a fun utility car to drive. might even make the chevy people in the family eat crow, and turn them into ford guys.

 

[MustangSix]

Another sleeper Fox-body!

Almost everything designed to fit a 79-93 Mustang will literally bot to this car. You could concievably end up with a GT station wagon! Imagine this thing with the suspension lowered a bit, Bullitt wheels, and 13" brakes showing thru!

The engine is probably a little tired at 166k. There are probably a few vacuum lines that need to be repaired and replaced. Get a good manual and start tracing and get the engine tuned back to stock specs. Try a little more ignition advance than the book calls for, and if you can, free up the exhaust system.

 

[Anonymous]

A GT Station Wagon, that sounds really cool 8) ! What parts would just bolt on from a Mustang? Are there any MSD distributors for this engine? I found a distributor from Mallory. A Vacuum Advance Unilite for Ford SB 1962-'80 for $215.99. Which is better MSD or Mallory (or any others)? I don't have any experience with ignitions and what to look for. I think at some point the suspention decided to lower its self. You put a little pressure on the rear bumper the whole just sags down so I'll have to get some new struts and springs or something. At 65 MPH forget about using the CD player, the interior shakes really bad. What would fix this?

 

[Asa]

for the ignition system, look up the duraspark II information in the tech section of this site
for what would bolt up, almost anything suspension-wise will, go pick up the current Muscle Mustang $ Fast Fords magazine, they've got a 4-door Fairmont that has a Mustang front clip, and all suspension stuff from a mustang as well (too bad the engine is a V8 ), it's basically a 4-door mustang, tres bizare
the vibration can be many things... might be tires out of balance, might be something wrong with the drive-train, might be anything, can you give us more info?

good luck
evan

 

[MustangSix]

You've already got a Duraspark II on that model. It's more than adequate as it is. Just make sure it's in good working order as part of a good tune up.

Mustang GT steering, brakes, rear end, springs, suspension. You could even do a dash swap if you were ambiitious.

 

[Anonymous]

I haven't noticed any thing wrong with the drivetrain. It's possible but I just haven't noticed it. The car pulls to the right when driving. My best guess would be that the problem is in the suspention. Maybe an alignment will fix it. I need new tires too. They are almost Drag Slick tires. I accidently did a near 180 turn into the ditch on a gravel road a few years ago. We live in a rural area. The front bumper hit a dirt mound and stopped the car from going any further into the grass and possibly prevented the car from rolling. The ditch was pretty steep and was about 40 feet from water. I was pretty suprised that there was NO DAMAGE ! I probably didn't give you any more good info about my car.

 

[Anonymous]

Well to address your stalling. I don't think it's an engine problem. I think you have a bad choke. If it runs ok when it warms up, then that's what it is. If you plan to hop this engine up, you will want to go to a 2 or 4 barrel, or several 2 barrels. Then you can forget about that problem.

Rant about the car itself & auto design in general...

Disclamer: The following is just my opinion. I am a Ford lover, but as an industrial designer, I have high standards for the aesthetic appearance of vehicles, appliances, furniture, buildings, etc.

However, I would hesitate to put any money into a car like a granada, a fairmont, a pinto or most any 1973 to 1990 American car that is not some limited production, high performance model,(like the Levis edition Gremlin). Daily driver, great. Steal parts for an older car, even better. But no amount of engine building on a Grenada with a six will increase it's value. I realize that for many, these are for driving, not investments. But someday you may want or need to sell the car & you will have like $2-3K into it & be able to sell it for $800. If you start with something that is more desireable & fix it up, you'll most likely get your money back out & definitely have less people asking why the hell you'd dump money into something with no value.

We love to trash talk Ricers. Well this is very similar. A ricer will buy a $2000 used Hyundai & dump $5k into wheels, tires, exhaust, suspension, neon crap & stereo trying to make an Acura out of it. Is it worth$7k? No. It is now worth about $1200. $7000 buys a pretty decent used car. I pass up tons of cool vinatge cars that, with a little TLC, could double my money & have a sweet ride in the mean time. You want a badass wagon? There's a totally restored 1968 Country Squire Woody Wagon in my neighborhood for sale. About $6k. 390. No mods necessary.

IMHO, with the exception of the Tbird, Ford (& most US autos) design went down the crapper by 1966. Bloated bodies with no interesting lines or details. Interiors went south in 1964. Plastic & fake wood, etc. Look at a '63 & '64 anything & see the difference in the details. 1966 was the last beautiful Tbird, 1970 was the last cool Tbird. 1972 was the end of true muscle cars.

Funny aside:
In 1978 high school drivers' ed, we had 2 kinds of cars we got to drive. Both were leftovers from a nearby dealership. Ford Fairmont 4 door sedans with whatever the smallest engine available was. Couldn't get the stupid things up to highway speed (which was only 55 then). Sorriest pieces of crap I ever drove & they were new. Our other cars? 2 Trans Ams with 6.6 liter engines. Holy crap! I almost got kicked out of class for doing burnouts & going way over the speed limit all the time. I was back in the Fairmonts in no time;-(.

I know I'm a snob about car design, but c'mon, Fairlane or Fairmont, What looks better? No contest. You know I'm right. Yes you do.
Flame away,
David K
1963 Comet Convertible

 

[Asa]

dkcomet, i got one quote that destroys your theory:

My family thinks I should junk this car ('cause it's not a chevy ) but I'm not! I've heard stories of people wishing that they didn't get rid of their first car.

but for the most part i agree with you...

 

[Anonymous]

Well, I wasn't addressing the 1st car issue at all, so that quote doesn't "destroy" any part of my theory. & it's not a theory really, it's more of a statement of opinion, taste & value.

If you are attached to it sentimaentally, well, keep it, hop it up, whatever. If I had that car as a 1st car, I'd be able to move on. But I can relate. I wish I still had mine. It was a 1971 Mazda 1800 wagon. The 1st non rotary Mazda to hit the US & only 200 were brought in. Only in Oregon & Washington for some reason. It was a cool looking car for Japanese cars of that period. It looked more like an Alfa & was fast as hell. I don't think it will ever be collectible, but I still wish I had it in original condition. If I ever see one in good shape, I will buy it.

David K