1996 Ford Thunderbird LX 3.8L from North America

Summary:

Great with a little money for racing parts

Faults:

Nothing has gone wrong with my thunderbird LX yet and notthing seem to be going wrong with it.

Hard to find some good engine racing parts for the 1996 thunder bird LX.

General Comments:

The thunder bird LX 3.8L has some power under the hood and I have beaten every Honda I have raced. I have beaten a number of other cars as well with the stock engine. Right now I'm working on lowering my thunder bird and keeping the V6 engine, but upgrade the parts inside of it, but for a race car and with a little money ill give it a 8 out of 10.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 22nd March, 2003

1996 Ford Thunderbird LX 4.6 from North America

Summary:

Very tight in the handling department, and fun to drive

Faults:

The paint on the hood needs some help.

General Comments:

This car is fun and it handles well, almost to well.

The best part of this car is the race like cox-pit which is very easy to use wile driving alone. Also the feel of the car's handling gets better as you go faster. That's the best part of the whole thing, because if the car didn't have the control to match the power it has it would be no good. But in this case the handling is grate, and so is the performence of the motor. All I wish for is some way to take out the 105 Mph govner, because I think the motor has so much more to offer at higher speeds.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 17th March, 2003

16th Dec 2004, 17:00

Alright well you don't necesarily need your gov. You can actually remove it without it doing any damage to your car. I am planning on removing mine within the next month or two when I get my supercharger in!!!

3rd Mar 2006, 14:36

You can remove the governor, but remember it is there for a reason. The drive shaft is not designed for speeds over 105 and will cause heavy damage to your car if it is pushed too far. If your desire is speed, upgrade to the Mark VIII aluminum version.

1996 Ford Thunderbird LX 3.8L V6 from North America

Summary:

Fun to drive, worth the occasional maintenance

Faults:

Motor mounts had to be replaced, and transmission had to be flushed due to occasional violent shaking of car at and above 35 mph. ($500) Covered by 5,000 mile used car warranty.

Rear calipers were frozen, and had to be replaced.

Front rotors need replaced.

Cannot turn off car with key. The plastic shaft which pulls the ignition switch back is broke. Ford wants about 300 dollars to fix it.

Stock CD player sometimes refused to play or eject CD. To fix that I got a sears card and replaced the CD player, and ended up spending around 700$ on other stereo stuff. (My most costly maintenance so far). I enjoy it though.

General Comments:

I love driving my car. I am Six foot Seven, but once I get my right leg underneath the steering wheel, I am comfortable and all is good. I love the low to the ground feel I get while driving, and the four wheel fully independent suspension makes for a super smooth ride.

Gas mileage is about 300 miles per tank.

Car handles great, and has the best acceleration after 40 mph.

There are lots of things you can do to upgrade this car pretty easily.

Only problems with my car are with the transmission. Has delayed shifts, and has hard, loud shifts from reverse to drive, and drive to reverse.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 28th February, 2003

21st Aug 2003, 09:29

I had a 1996 Thunderbird LX, and ended up having about $1800 worth of transmission work done at around 70k miles. Definitely a problem. Car handled beautifully- with ABS and traction assist, I easily handled her in the severe snowstorms we had this winter, and when she slipped, she caught herself quickly.

Gas mileage, for me, was not impressive. However, I also upgraded the stereo (had no cd), put in new speakers, and she was a lot of fun. My biggest complaint was the size of the vehicle after my son was born. Getting him in and out of the backseat with those long doors was a hassle, I always had to park in the back of parking lots because the width of the car with the doors open is astronomical. Definitely a nice ride, though.