daveromanjr 64 Posted September 19, 2014 Report Share Posted September 19, 2014 Ever since I was a little kid I've wanted a nice, big Town Car. The needlessly large, overly luxurious sedan is unlike anything else on the road but I just couldn't justify buying a rear wheel drive car while having to deal with snow where I live. In February I got a 2012 Escape Limited and a while back I was keeping an eye on Craigslist for some sort of Panther to show up that would be worthwhile. What I came up with is this, a 2003 Lincoln Town Car Signature. Has a moonroof and CD changer, I think that's pretty much about it option wise. 63k on the clock, it was built and sold in Canada but shortly thereafter it came to the states and at 7000 miles was sold to the 2nd owner. He had it for a while until he passed away and then his son had it. He was selling it just because they have too many (8!) cars. As with any used car there are a couple nitpicky issues. The stick-on chrome on the bottom part of the doors on the passenger side must've gotten tapped with something as it sticks out a bit. Its still secure but it'll probably get replaced. The rear park assist works here and there, that seems to be a common problem with this car. The parking brake needs adjusted. There are a couple cosmetic issues but they're very minor.... oh and I busted the driver's door cubby button. It still works but slides out when the cubby is open so I just have to be careful. Drives fantastic, shifts great, rides amazing. For what I paid I got one hell of a good car that needs relatively no work at all! Well minus the missing "R" in the TOWN CAR emblem. Somehow I'll learn to live without until I find a replacement R. I went out to get some pictures tonight, here are a few... I can't remember if I posted anything about my Escape. I haven't had a chance to get pictures of the Escape and Town Car together, but I have to admit they make a nice fleet for my driveway. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mmmfloorpie 110 Posted September 19, 2014 Report Share Posted September 19, 2014 Wow that steering wheel has a lot of buttons... Now dats class! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stocker 126 Posted September 19, 2014 Report Share Posted September 19, 2014 Ooo... that's nice. it was built and sold in Canada Interesting - I thought they were all built in Wixom regardless of destination until the plant closed. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
-chart- 287 Posted September 19, 2014 Report Share Posted September 19, 2014 Wow that steering wheel has a lot of buttons... Now dats class! Typical Lin. The cruise is hard to get used to. Radio and climate are ok. -chart- Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Bull Geek 812 Posted September 19, 2014 Report Share Posted September 19, 2014 Congrats on the car. When I was looking for a Town Car, trying to find a black interior was next to impossible in non L form. Anytime I found a black interior with a factory moonroof, it was originally starting life in Canada, then imported to the USA. Somehow mine started life in Chicago, I have yet to find another that has. The chrome I don't think was factory down on rockers/lower doors and B pillars. That was something they did I think on 2005 or 6 models. At least all 1990 Town Cars until the last 2007, were made in the Wixom Michigan plant. Town Cars were made not just for US Market, but for Canada, some countries in Europe, etc. Sticker for VIN on door jamb just indicates it was manufactured for Canadian market. Town cars made for 2008 model year thru last one were made at the Crown Vic plant in Canada. To fix your park assist, buy 4W1Z-15K859-BA (this works for 2004 and 2005 models). They all puke. TASCA Ford has it the cheapest. Remove the 2 bolts/screws that attach undercarriage splash shield to the bumper/bumper cover, fold the plastic down. Remove the 2 10mm nuts, then I think it's a 3rd 11mm nut, remove connector and drop the module down. Make sure all bolts and mounting points are clean and tight as one of them acts as a ground for the module. The radios in these cars are junk. There are chips on circuit boards with cold solder joints that fail inside. Mine has AM/FM sometimes. Also have issues with the subwoofer cutting out/amp. They all do it, just poor soldering jobs. The 03s have a random issue where they will make 3 dongs everytime you start the car even with the seat belt buckled and all set correctly. No fix and no one knows why. The headliner does not stay attached up, the velcro glue used to hold headliner to roof fails, so you have both pieces of velcro stuck together on the body torn from headliner. nice design. Power pedals will fail. Plastic gears crack. A guy on mercury marauder makes a replacement brass gear that will outlast the car. Watch the upper ball joints...the boots are usually torn. If torn, just have mechanic install new boots only...no need to replace if bearings are fine. If you have ANY noise from the rear, like a hum or a drone, you need to replace your axle shafts and bearings. It's not the tires (as the Ford dealer suggested I bought my Lincoln from)...if left untouched, otherwise you'll damage the carrier with time from the tiny metal fragments inside the differential housing. Ford had a silent recall on private passenger, and a full recall on police cars. TSB applies otherwise for this. Do get this done. If you want to gain traction lock/positraction for winter driving, a junkyard carrier from inside a differential housing of a car that had it can be made to work. Your car may have it already...easy to check...turn off T/C, and step on it in some sand/dirt/gravel. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
daveromanjr 64 Posted September 23, 2014 Author Report Share Posted September 23, 2014 Thanks everyone! The chrome was aftermarket on this car. I like the chrome at the bottom of the doors and the chrome around the windows is growing on me. So far the radio has been good, the CD changer didn't have a magazine in it and the owner was surprised it had a changer in it so I'm thinking it hasn't been used during their ownership since 7000 miles. Hopefully it'll still work. It did have a busted passenger front spring, it is getting both front springs replaced. Next year I'll tackle the rear park assist, repair the aftermarket chrome and also keep my eye peeled for the release latch that I broke on the driver's door cubby. They're ~$80 online so hopefully I can find one cheap in a yard sometime soon. Oh, and a new "R" so I'm not driving a Town Ca. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Bull Geek 812 Posted September 24, 2014 Report Share Posted September 24, 2014 It's the Boston Edition. No R, they all seem to Drop it. 4 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Brian_05_SEL 1418 Posted September 24, 2014 Report Share Posted September 24, 2014 It's the Boston Edition. No R, they all seem to Drop it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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