Ford Thunderbird

keeps you from putting car in gear unless brakes are pushed. I have been doing that wanting to put the truck in gear but it is not happening. It is still stuck in park.

Blower motor is usually behind the dash on the passenger side. Try removing the glove compartment to access it. If the blower isn't working, it could also be the resistor block (more likely to burn out than the motor itself). One blown resistor could keep the blower from blowing at all. Check that first (look for scorching and test with a test light). It's a pretty easy replacement and if the blower is not getting current replacing the motor won't do you any good.

If your T-bird is an automatic, try checking the transmission fluid level.( running, in park, engine warm) If low fill to full line. If the gear selector will not move, then it is possible you have a problem with the shift-interlock or the cable and/or linkages. If your T-bird is a manual, first check fluid in the clutch master cylinder. ( on the firewall near the brake master cylinder) If low ,add to the full line with brake fluid. (DOT 3 I believe) It's possible you could have a bad clutch master cylinder, or a bad clutch slave cylinder, or a worn clutch. Maybe even an internal problem in the transmission itself. Hard to tell without more information, such as; manual or automatic transmission, is shift lever moving but car won't move (a/t), is the transmission grinding when trying to put in gear ( manual ). These are just a sample of things one needs to know to "TRY" to diagnose your problem. Hope this helps.....

The Thunderbirds use the F 16. In 2009 the Thunderbird F16s were updated with more powerful engines which brought them up to par with the rest of the active F16 fleets currently in service.

I have done this several times to my 1964 Thunderbird. It's a bit of a struggle at first - it takes a little leverage and strength - but after the first time, the second and third times are easier.

The rear seat bottom is attached to the body frame with just two "spring" loaded metal clamps; not bolts, no screws. Two bars under each side of the seat, part of the seat springs, are hooked on two metal grips, bent slightly forward, that are part of the frame. This creates enough tension to hold the seat in place. The tension is strong, the resistance is firm.

Put the front seats forward. Climb into the back of your Tbird and sit on the center console facing the rear window. Here's where the work begins (watch your back): Grab the back seat cushion from the bottom and with a good tug pull OUT and UP. You will feel resistance. It might take several tries to gain confidence and get to get the hang of a good YANK. When the seat springs free - it will happen suddenly.

The seat rest in a pocket of the rear frame. With a good tug, the seat will come completely free in ONE BIG PIECE and you can now remove it from the car. Have fun getting out yourself. I guess removing the front seats would make this process easier.

Each of the two separate rear seat backs are held in position with two "spring" loaded metal clamps (top of seat) AND two self-tapping screw-head bolts (bottom of seat). Undo the bolts and the seat will drop from the clamps.

One last thing. To remove the rear seat backs you must remove the side arm rests. Two large screws, hidden by two color-matching plastic tabs, hold the arm rests in position. It requires an upward angle to remove the screws.

That's it, again, watch your back tugging out the bottom seat cushion.

clean your maf(mass air flow sensor)

Many auto parts retailers will let you use a scanner, in the hopes that you'll be buying parts from them. Depending on how busy they are, you might even find a clerk who is curious/helpful enough to offer assistance connecting and reading the code. Check the big "chain" auto parts retailers such as Checker, Kragen and Auto Zone. Even if they won't help, they usually have a "loaner" that they'll let you use in the parking lot.

Follow the top radiator hose back to the engine. This is where the thermostat is. Remove the 2 bolts and there it is.

If you not the original owner! Make sure someone has not ran a direct wire and bypast your thermostat. If they have, take it to a dealer and have it rewired. If it is a direct wire job.. It is a FIRE WAITING TO HAPPEN !!! It is normal for the fan to run continuously when the A/C is on. Turn the A/C off and see if it then runs when you first start the engine. If so, then the thermal switch may be defective.

dot 3

This is a trick that I have only seen my Dad be successful at. Take a short hose and insert it into the tank, begin sucking on the hose until you "feel" unfortunately most people end up tasting not feeling the gas. When this happens lower the hose below the tank and the gas will syphen out. Good luck and be ready to gag and rinse.

The worst part about replace a freeze plug on ANY engine is getting to it. You need to remove whatever structures are blocking the freeze plug, whether it's the starter, manifold or who knows what. At that point, just remove the old freeze plug, using whatever means you feel is necessary, then clean the hole and press in a new one. It's actually quite simple. If you have specific questions, you can purchase a book from your auto parts retailer. Also, sometimes the sales people at auto parts retailers are good sources of specific information. Also, you can often purchase good, self-sealing "Universal" type freeze plugs that install a little easier and seal a little better. Good luck.

well, i have a 2.3 turbo thunderbird, and the most i know is there is a "pink, black" wire that is the main power, to find that, you access the trunk and bolted behind the seat is 2 metal boxes, undo those and you should be able to find the wire and follow it to the relay

The relay should be under the driver seat on the floor its a little black box with a plug on one end

It has 160 hp and top speed is around 115 to 125 but dont exceed posted speed limit. If you really want to see how fast you can go head out to Bonneville Salt Flats. No speed limit there!

Found some relevant posts in newsgroups. This is what 2 other people have said.

> I was wondering if anyone might be able to point me in the right direction > here... my girlfriends 1993 Tempo (Auto trans/2.3L engine) seemingly has a > bad neutral safety switch. While before she was able to jiggle the shifter > to get it going, it is now beyond that point. Does anyone happen to know > whether the switch is mounted on the inside with the floor shift or if its > underneath on the transmission itself?

The switch is mounted on the top of transmission. The shift linkage goes through it, so you have to remove the linkage. Not hard, three fasteners. One for the linkage, two for the switch.

Easy to get to, just make sure you buy one before you try to get it replaced. It's a LOT easier to have an idea on how it's attached before you try removing it. It's right by the linkage kinda below the throttle body, on the driver's side lean over and look down in a hole where you see a bunch of linkages. My 1993 Tempo had the same problem. It took 5 min to replace and the switch was $15.

"john smith" <e...@yahoo.com> wrote in message Hi there one last time,

Ok I found the switch and it is located as described above. It isn't in the most user friendly place to work on and despite having instructions on how to adjust it ( i will put them at the end) I decided that it would be too much work to try. Instead I decided to bypass the switch. It only took five minutes and barely required any cursing at all.

Step 1.

Unplug the connector on the neutral start switch.

2. There are 4 wires going to this connector. Cut the end two, strip them and connect them together with an alligator clip. If the car starts now those are the right two wires. It was the outside end two on mine, i think the red and white but not sure about the color.

3. Tape everything up and make sure the new loose wires are out of the way.

4. MAKE SURE YOU ARE IN PARK! OR NEUTRAL! BEFORE STARTING THE CAR FROM NOW ON! IT WILL START IN ANY GEAR NOW!

If you were able to disable the switch then you should be smart enough to operate your vehicle without this safety device but make sure you warn anyone who drives your car and be extra careful from now on. THAT SWITCH WAS THERE FOR A REASON, but if your car is as much of a wreck as mine i understand why you wouldn't want to replace anymore parts.

Incase anyone is interested here are the instructions from the book for adjusting and testing the switch.

To test the neutral start switch connect the probes of a continuity tester or ohmmeter to the outside two terminal blades there should be continuity between these blades in neutral or park.

To adjust the Neutral start switch, loosen the bolts, place the lever in Neutral position and insert a no. 43 (.089 inch) drill bit into the adjustment hole, then tighten the bolts.

I hope that helps someone.

Cheers Jay in Ottawa

In a 1996 Ford Thunderbird :

In the fuse panel under the instrument panel , to the left of the steering column

( on the fuse panel it is marked SEAT / LOCK , it is a 20 amp fuse for the power locks , power seats , and decklid release solenoid )

If you e-mail rtaylor@walcottcollision@netins.net he might be able to help. (it may take about a week for him to reply if he does their very busy and his e-mail is always full..^^"")

OBD I, but for the most part, you can use OBD II

Ignition module on Ford Tempo. First things first, pull the interior trim panel off from under steering wheel, this should expose the screws from the panel on the top part of the column. You will need an inverted Torx bit to remove the old module, be sure the key is in the ACCESSORY position. The new module after market or ford part should be preset in this position as well. be sure the contacts or clean in the column and plug the new one in, pretty simple once the panels are removed and visible.

Ford Tempo uses TFI ignition, 4-cylinders used a Dist. mounted module. V-6's may be on the Dist. too. Or may be remote mounted.

There 6x8's front and rear

There is a flasher unit under the dash at the fuse panel but there is also a flasher relay PAC in the trunk just ahead of the spare tire mount. If you replace the underdash unit and it still don't work then check the connections to the relay PAC in the trunk. If that looks good then the relay PAC is bad. New electronic units are still available.

It depends; what year is the T-bird?, what year is the Explorer?

Some T-birds have 4 lug wheels, these will not fit. Some Explorers have 16" wheels, minimum (15's won't clear the front brakes). Most T-birds have 15" five lug wheels.

Also, check the wheel offset might stick in or out too far.

the chime would stay on if the keys are in the ignition (but the car turned off) and if the door is ajar to warn that the lights are still on

According to my Chilton's Auto Repair Manual :

For a 1970 Ford 390 cubic inch / 2 bbl carburetor ( the 5th " character " of the VIN is a " Y " )

( 270 horsepower at 4400 RPM and 390 ft lbs torque at 2600 RPM )