1993 Ford Thunderbird LX 3.8 V6 from North America
Summary:
Expensive to maintain, always has something wrong
Faults:
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.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No
Review Date: 5th June, 2001
11th May 2002, 18:39
Well, maybe the reason that your car is having such problems, is that you don't take car of it! Do you drive the heck out of it and don't take care of it? Just Wondering. It sounds like you don't give a hoot about your car.
3rd Sep 2004, 18:53
Please consider yourself lucky. Read my story- Head gasket at 59,317. The 1993 did not qualify for a recall- only the 1994 and 1995. And the grommet on top of the transmission went at 85,000 miles. Two major expenses! Oh, now at 107,000 miles the rod bearing went. In my opinion I wish my Thunderbird has done so well.
10th Sep 2007, 23:55
Your review would be better understood and more effective if you would separate out those things that normally go wrong from those that don't. For example, it is not unusual for the Alternator/voltage regulator and the battery to go out by 96,000 miles. Nor is it, by a long shot, to have to replace rotors by 100,000 miles. Replacing the transmission fluid at 100,000 miles? It should have been done actually earlier. The rear transmission mount could be from road conditions, overly aggressive driving, and so on.
You see, the problems that shouldn’t have happened, such as the blown head gasket, and leaking brakes, AC and especially the burning oil problem, get lost in all the other stuff. People who read the first problem, “Voltage regulator, battery and alternator replaced at 96,000 miles say, so??? In addition, you making a big deal of those problems referenced in the 1st paragraph indicate that maybe you don’t know what to expect out of a car and, by extension, perhaps don’t know how to take care of a car and thus, brought about SOME, not all now, of the problems on yourself through improper maintainence. I point this out because I have read so many unfair reviews where it seems that people are expecting perfection from their cars. Good luck with your car.
9th Jun 2001, 18:30
This is a '94 bird. Not a 93.