1985 Ford LTD LX | Retro Review
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- Опубликовано: 29 сен 2024
- The rarely seen 5.0 powered 1985 Ford LTD LX would be a super fun project to add a bunch of performance mods to and amaze some fools. First things first, I'd have to black out that chrome greenhouse trim. -Ben
Show 414 | Originally Taped 02-26-1985
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I just realised that Rockstar used this as the cop cars and taxis in GTA Vice City
I remember being a really little kid and thinking "COP" whenever I saw one of these LTDs, just like how for a long time everyone thought anyone in a Crown Vic were cops, these cars had that same presence.
When I first started driving the Jacksonville Sheriff's Department used the Caprice as their default car. Day or night I knew that headlight profile as soon as I saw it in my mirror. Sometime in the late 80's they started the shift to Crown Vics.
@@christopherconard2831 kentucky sp only used the big crown vic ltd so i never saw alot of these growing up.
Personally never seen a cop fox body. Crown Vics on the other hand …
@@fantom5894 ive seen them just never had them in ky well state wise anyway. the local depts have had everything in the world as police cars. dodge rams jeeps olds cutlass salon 4 doors. intreptids etc....
Now it’s white explorers
Awesome power from that 5.0 liter Ford LTD LX Car
I had a white one, jacked up the rear with air shocks, nice looking car
My parents had a 85 ltd but with the 3.8 v6. My parents had it until 93 when they gave it to my sister and it got totaled. Didn't have 100,000 miles on it and still ran great. Ford should of had the option to get a 5 speed in the ltd lx.
In an alternate universe Ford never made the Taurus and the LTD was produced for the remainder of the 80s with only a V8 engine and it easily beat the Accord and Camry in sales
Um, no
Since this was faster, cheaper and had super high reliability (for an American car), I would have picked this over camry/accord. Then when Taurus came out reliability dropped to just average, making camry/accord no brainer choices.
In 1984-85 these were the third best-selling cars in the U.S.
At the time the Accord had been made for 6 years and was on a 93 inch wheelbase and weighed less than 2,000 lbs. The Camry started in the 1983 model year and was about the same size. Has anyone looked at the size of the current Accord and Camry? The current Accord is 3,600 lbs and the wheelbase is 110 inches. My Grand Marquis has a 114 inch wheelbase. Again, these were the third best-selling cars at this time. Looks like Honda and Toyota just keep making them bigger and bigger. I had customers with Tauruses (Tauri?) That 3.0 Vulcan was cast-iron and it held up, the transmission was another story. I think they kept that engine until they dropped it in 2007.
This remember to me the taxi and police cruiser from Grand Theft Auto Vice City.
The manual squeeze thing to control seat support is absolutely bizarre, I don't think I've ever seen that in a car before.
It was in many cars including some Toyotas. If my recollection serves me check out the Toyota Supra of the '80s as well. Looks like a blood pressure pump
The Dodge daytona Turbo Z from 1984-1988 had these pumps for lumbar support as standard eqipment.
This was basically a 4-door, LWB Mustang. It actually had very good performance for 1985.
My brother had the mercury version as a company car back in the day. 80’s were a bad time unless your ride was a Regal.
I loved this car !! We drive these when I was in the Air Force… I can’t find these anywhere
Geddy up Kramer!
I remember that movie D.A.R.Y.L had one of these running from the cops on 2 wheels. Made me want one lol.
EPA MILEAGE: ⛽
16 CITY 🏙 22 HIGHWAY 🛣
Opel called, they wanted their Senator back
Cool pist, but Axl Foley could easily disable it by sticking a banana in its tailpipe !
They did offer a performance version with black trim the 10 hole wheels and the mustangs 5.0L and I think you could get an SROD 4speed. Not very many were built. The engine and trans in here were from the Mustang with an auto.
This video is literally about the car you're talking about. Although none of these came with 10-hole wheels (or any other 15" wheels for that matter).
@@ltdscott
Yes they did. For a year or 2 there was a “sport” version or something like that. They had the 4bbl, 5 speed and 10 hole wheels. Very rare vehicle. I e only ever seen one.
@@dodgeguyz Absolutely false. I'm a former Ford tech and have owned 3 LTD LXs. I guarantee I know more about these cars than anyone here. The LTD LX as shown in this video was as "hot" as the LTD got. No Fox LTD ever came with a 4 barrel carb or 10-hole wheels. And the only way you could get a manual trans was with the 4 cylinder.
@@ltdscott
You may want to dig a little farther into your brain. They made them. Not a lot but they are out there! I know as much as you do, in particular the Fox Body cars!
@@dodgeguyz Please, provide *any* sliver of evidence of this. You won’t find it because you’re wrong. I’ve run a website dedicated to these cars since the early 2000s and run a Facebook group for them. Look at my username here. The “ltd” part of it is no accident. I don't proclaim to be an expert in many things, but I am most certainly an expert on these cars.
Ooooooooh I’d love to find a mint LX…
Throwback😎
5:41 the back door molding trim is already falling off. 🫤 or the door has fell down.
would like to see a lowered, fat-tired coyote powered project car
Imagine if the Taurus was rejected by the public. We probably would’ve been driving boxy cars well into the 90’s, and the “jellybean” look wouldn’t have come around until the millennium.
My love affair in the 80s
Great 80's sleeper! Thanks for highlighting this awesome classic!
I JUST saw an immaculately maintained one on the road on Tuesday night. I haven’t seen one in years.
I saw one on LA craigslist about 4 years ago, I didn't even know they existed so I thought maybe it was a dealer package like the old California Special Mustangs.
Hard to believe these existed at the same time as the groundbreaking, stylish and modern Taurus.
They kept these on in case the Taurus flopped. Remember, the Taurus was a big gamble for Ford.
Taurus was way better! I loved the 85 to 91 body style as well as the 96-07s. My Dad had a loaded silver 96 GL with grey marble cloth buckets with floor shift, duratec 3.0 and dual exhausts was a slick looking pretty fast car. Also later got an 2001 Mercury Sable LS Premium with every option equivalent to the Taurus SHO. Then later which is now my car and its still in perfect condition a 2010 Fusion Sport loaded all were "silver bullets" btw!
@@andyinlv1975 ahh, yes. I see, which makes sense.
This was essentially a Ford Fairmont with a facelifted nose and tail. The LTD was the best selling car in the U.S. in 1984 and 1985. Bob Bondurant used these for his driving school. I had one of these when it was new. 1986 was the last year when they discontinued it and brought out the Taurus. Great video!
@@andyinlv1975 And it COULD have flopped. The Taurus seems so modern for an '86 car because it was a success and influenced US car styling for years after. So, today it seems to be a "natural". However those of us who were car buying age in 1986 remember that it's styling was polarizing at the time. I was 24 (prime car buying market demo) at the time and 86 was the year I went shopping for my first NEW car, And I thought the Taurus was, if not "ugly" ,then damned weird looking (I thought the Mercury Sable was even WEIRDER). I ended up buying a car that also all new for 1986: A Buick LeSabre coupe. Not EVERY buyer of a new Buick then was a senior citizen! The LeSabre looked (to me..) like a car, And the Taurus wasn't even available as a 2 door. a big negative to me then. (There is an '86 LeSabre review on this channel, Mine was the same but mine was blue instead of red.)
It's a shame they didn't offer disc brakes all around, a 5 speed manual, the instrument cluster from the newer T-Bird and also Mustang's 4 bbl carb 5.0 from '85 (That had 210 hp). This would have eaten many new performance cars' lunches for the period with that engine
I don’t think even the Mustang GT got 4 wheel disc brakes until 88? 89? Sometime around there from what I remember. I know the SVO had them much earlier.
@@stevend3753 94 was the first year of discs in the back, other than the cobra
If you could find one of these, all your wishes could come true. Being a fox body based car there's a lot of options for bolt ons available.
@@m6780 Absolutely - just wondering why Ford didn't go all the way with these from the factory. Only reason I have is "Nothing should beat the Mustang" which was Ford's thinking just like GM's thinking with the Corvette
One thought in the back of my mind has been to find a decent LTD LX (if that's even possible 36 years later), or a base model fox body Ford LTD or Mercury Marquis sedan, or for ultimate sleeper appeal, a wagon, and do all of those upgrades. Maybe get a wrecked Mustang and Thunderbird for a parts car and do all of those upgrades you suggested to make the ultimate LTD LX clone. Maybe for something really interesting, swap in a 2.3 turbo from a Thunderbird Turbo coupe, make an LTD SVO! But it would be for nostalgic reasons, as modern cars are safer, more reliable and handle better. Many mainstream everyday cars and minivans would make waste to an LTD LX, but for the mid 1980s, coming out of the Malaise Era, this car really stood out. Too bad it didn't catch on, and Ford didn't seem to promote it much. I guess because they knew the Taurus was about to be released.
Finally! Ever since MW started the Retro Reviews I've been waiting for the LTD LX. These cars were relatively unknown for a long time, but the surge of popularity in Fox Body Mustangs has now put the spotlight on some of the other "odd" Fox cars and given them the credit they deserve. I've owned three of them total since 1998 and am currently in the process of dropping in a 347 stroker in the one I have now, backed up by a manual trans and 4-wheel discs.
aaaaaay I wouldn't mind seeing a little video of that sometime in the future...maybe? **wink wink nudge nudge**
Sounds like an amazing sleeper
Brings me back to highschool. Had one of these back in the day. Even the silver. Memories bigtime!
you lucky american school kids.
I owned a 1984 LTD Brougham with the 3.8L central fuel injection V-6, AOD transmission for over 20 years. Mine was like the Energizer Bunny, 305,000 miles on the original drive train and going strong. If it had been the LX, I would still have it.
Solid dependable cars
Did you take immaculate care of it?
The oil was changed every 3000 miles.
Kevin Sigurdsen-I had one like yours for 12 years.But because I live in the snow belt the road salt ate it for lunch.I wish I could have kept it.
I had an 85 marquis, same engine. Leaked oil like crazy but never broke down.
0-60 in 8.7, 16.5 at 85 mph was impressive in 1985 for a midsize sedan. The BMW 533i did it in 8.3, 16.4 at 85 mph, the 528e in 10.3, 17.5 at 79 mph. Granted the LTD LX's chassis was made of linguine compared to the BMW's but they didn't really compete (I'm sure Ford ads stated otherwise though 😁)
And it is not difficult to increase the power of this engine substantially.
And the BMW cost probably double the LTD. But it looked heaps better too.
And granted that 533i probably meant a manual, euro spec, no emissions equipment version. In reality both would be neck-to-neck if not for a small edge to the LTD
@@MrCarguy2 Nah, those figures are both for US-spec 5-series models (from R&T tests), the 528e was called the 525e in Europe.
This was fast for that era. The 302 was a great motor. Had an '88 Grand Marquis with this motor. 25 mpg on the highway, 0-60 right about 9 seconds, still didn't burn or leak oil at 160K miles. The most comfortable vehicle I've ever owned to this day, smooth, easy cruising.
The SHO before there was an SHO.
Pretty much in a way.
I remember as a kid my family had the mercury marquis brougham or as some called it “baby marquis” version of that car with the 3.8 liter V6. Brings back memories.
Had one also, until the 'cash for clunker' program
I had a gold 1984 "baby Marquis" although it was column shift and had the 3.8L EFI. I loved the car and eventually rust and steering gearbox went so I got a Grand Marquis in 1997. Still own that one.
Back in the early 90s I owned a Canadian-only Marquis LTS which was the Mercury brother to these. Fun, super rare car.
Thank you so much for uploading this!!! In 1985, my father had a Ford LTD LX as a rental car. He, and 12 year old me loved that car. My father was in the market for a new car, but could not find an LTD LX for sale. He should have asked the rental car company if he could buy theirs. Instead, he settled for a 1986 Mercury Marquis with a 3.8 liter V6. It was a huge disappointment. He traded it in soon after for a 1987 Mustang LX notchback 5.0 V8 with a 5 speed. A better mid-life crisis car, lol! Now that I'm middle aged, I wouldn't mind an LTD LX, but I imagine finding one now is even harder, especially one that is stock and roadworthy. I see the LTD LX as a precursor to the Ford Taurus SHO a few years later... a mild mannered looking sedan with subtle styling cues and a sleeper powertrain.
find an LTD and do the engine swap from a Mustang. You could even do it with a wagon and keep the family happy, lol
@@MrTaxiRob Yeah, that too! I just like wagons, always have, even before they became cool. Also adds to the sleeper element!
Everytime I see this generation Ford LTD/Mercury Marquis, I imagine Eddie Murphy stuffing bananas in the tailpipe.😆😆😆
After years of no performance from Detroit, this was a welcome sight. Although it’s numbers were slow compared to today, in 1985 they were great. I looked at a .LTD LX at a Ford dealer back 1985 and really wanted it but my need for a pickup was greater.
I love the cornering lights, rubber wheel covers, & blood pressure cuff style lumbar inflator bulb. I was thinking this looks like a 4 door Mustang, then John says it's the same platform.
A common nickname for the this car is "4 Door Mustang"
4 door foxbody
Pretty much every early '80s American Ford bigger than an Escort and smaller than a Crown Vic was on this platform. The nut job living in my brain thinks building a Lincoln Continental "LX" out of the Mustang parts catalog is a good idea.
Edit: Left out the word "early". Don't want Tempo and Taurus fans to roast me.
Serious performance for 80s..
the original mustang sedan lol. a foxbody sedan lol
Gotta love how John slaps that Cop Car Light on the roof cause that's EXACTLY what it looks like!! Ford should have tricked this out a little more including some decent Sport Wheels and better seats and a Gauge Cluster worthy of a sportier car..
True, considering they were going after BMW and/or Mercedes at the time. The magazines, which fawned over BMW back then, actually were impressed with these, but did give them a little flack for the trim and whatnot.
@@culcune If they were chasing after the Germans then Ford should've made a Lincoln Continental LX. If nothing else it would've given the Mark VII LSC some company in the showroom.
@@mattdavis9601 Lincoln was still going after the geriatric set, which was the same demographic as Cadillac. A performance Lincoln was not really on the agenda until the 90s. Even the Mark VII was not going for younger drivers at that time. I guess I made it seem like Ford was targeting BMW and/or Mercedes, but what I meant was they were trying to insinuate their car could keep up or beat the German competition, not so much that they were trying to lure buyers from the BMW showroom to a Ford dealership. This car was the first performance sedan that Ford had in the US, and the magazines took note. I do recall the magazines actually giving the Mustang decent reviews as far as interior being kind of 'German-like'. Remember, the magazines were fawning over German cars, so with the magazines always comparing American cars to German cars, and actually hinting that they liked certain American cars in a German-car kind of way, then Ford would latch onto that.
Wow, and just one year later they'd debut the ground-breaking Taurus!
Ford really did their homework on this 85 LTD LX with the 5.0L V8 under the hood. It's just like driving a four-door Ford Mustang GT. Next to the last 2017 Twin Turbo V6 Ford Fusion, This was my ultimate favorite car back in the 80s, even my next door neighbor had a Brougham version with the 3.8 liter V6. If this car was in my possession now, it would be a 5-speed manual, Mustang type rims from 1993, much firmer suspension, and quad exhaust spaced out from the rear, overall the car looks sinister.
Would be nice with the latest '01 RWD 5.0 Explorer drivetrain. Should be a dropin.
@@alb12345672 Did the Explorer use what were up to that time aftermarket Mustang heads, the GT40 heads?
@@culcune Yep, I think 97+ had the GT40 heads.
These retro reviews are great. All of the forgotten cars in the evolution from early 80’s to what we drive now. So many incremental steps in the process. American cars certainly are much more drivable now. Just as John stated about the early LTD’s light as a feather, numb steering and soft, floaty suspension were 2 of the reasons my dad rushed out and bought a 1965 LTD as soon as they hit the showroom floor in September of 1964. A living room coach on wheels and it was still in good condition 20 years and over 100,000 (can’t remember how many) miles later. Everything still worked.
I could not stand when he would always bring up euro cars when comparing it to the US cars; euro cars are overpriced garbage
I'm over all of the LS swap in these and old fox body's. The winsor is more than capable of making great power. They sound awesome too.
Not everything needs an LS.
ford dont ever need a gm engine
@Joshua C: Anyone who LS swaps this should be crucified.
Coyote or 5.4 4-valve swap > LS swap for this kinda thing anyways if one must swap the 302 out for a modern engine. Even a 2.3 EB or 3.5 EB would be really good to swap into one of these as far as making it lighter on its feet while making similar or better power than the 302.
@@DFX4509B coyote is so expensive is why you dont see it. me i think a stroked windsor would be just as good at a much cheaper price.
@@jeffreyrigged I'm pretty sure you could pull a 5.4 4-valve out of a wrecked first-gen Navigator though, or even just pick up the engine by itself at a scrapyard, if you wanted to go that route, a whole lot of 5.4s in 2-valve, 3-valve (don't recommend unless you're swapping in some hot cams that require a VCT delete, look up about the cam phaser problems the 5.4 3-valve had as to why), and 4-valve configurations were made, but building it up for high performance might be a bit on the pricy side as is true with Modular engines in general though.
I guess maybe a stroker 302 or 351 might be as good as a 5.4 4-valve or a Coyote for less then.
At 5:39 he says “it’s a 6 passenger bargain.” That’s a mistake because it’s clearly a 5 passenger model.
About 20 years ago a guy I know offered to give me a running 1984 LTD LX. I had 9 vehicles at the time and stupid me I turned down his offer.
The four door mustang.
Four years later, Ford was producing the Taurus SHO with power and sophistication this LTD could have only dreamed of!
My parents had a 79 Zephyr with the carburated 5 liter and an 84 Marquis (the small one). Even though the (slightly) older V8 produced the exact same power as the 3.8, it sure felt faster. It was also a more fun car to drive than the newer car. Where the Marquis had an edge over the Zephyr was in assembly quality. Even new, the Zephyr looked " thrown together ".
Hell yeah dude! Haven’t seen one of these in forever, and the rare LX version with the 5.0! Thank you Motorweek!👍😊
5:39 Six passenger? Who's sitting on the floor shifter?
We Had a FORD CUSTOM SEDAN POLICE UNIT. 1970 Unit. When I was a kid. We grew up in that car. The only option it had was Power Steering. White on Black Interior. It was bullet proof. Me and my brother wrecked it. It took a HEAD ON CRASH! My head hit the windshield when my brother crashed into a PICKUP TRUCK. He HIT A NISSAN HARDBODY. The radiator was Busted. The Fan was Jammed up. The Police put a Gun To my Brother. That's been a long time ago. But I'm at peace with it all. Stupid Drunk Teenagers we were. 35 YEARS ago. ✝️💖🌈😭
Vice City anyone?
Finally somebody mentions it. Makes me wanna paint it to the VCPD colors just for the pure nostalgia.
Amazing how slapped together and boring looking cars were back in the day. Yet people scrambled to get them.
The Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing can’t hold a candle to the Ford LTD LX. Remember when we made REAL sport sedans?
(I’m kidding lol)
These were very good cars:; I drove an 83 model LTD with the straight six engine and it lasted 275,000 miles before I go turned it in only cos the AC compressor locked up!
I owned a 1985 LTD LX for a few years. I had big plans on updating it, but sold it when we moved. I still have other sleeper fox bodies though.
Even rarer is the Canada-only Mercury Marquis LTS...
true! a unicorn, for sure!
Also in much smaller numbers.
I've seen wagon versions with the 5.0 H.O engine dropped in, and the full Mustang dash bolts right in, too.
wow the mustang sedan
165 hp Ooof
245 lb ft that's alright
Never did like these gussied-up Fairmonts. Wish they had kept that name instead of abusing the LTD name.
6 passenger car? With console shifter? How?
'Murica
It wasn't, but you could get a "normal" LTD with a front bench seat.
The LTD from 70's was far away more beautiful and better. This one looks like a bigger Del Rey
Well, the Del Rey had its charm, didn't it?
And a few months later the 5.0 got a rerate to 180 hp when it picked up the Mustangs tubular exhaust system. Wonder if that made any 0-60 difference.
Probably one of the best sedans of the 80s, but six people in it?
i know right?
It has bucket seats in the front, so I would say 5.
Six passengers. This model had the Trunk Monkey option.
First car I ever drove was the Murcury version of this with the 3.8 V6, the Marquis. I don't remember much about how it drove, mainly because it was the very first thing I ever drove, but I still remember the car. My father, normally a Chevy man, actually liked it for the most part.
I have honestly never seen a single one of these anywhere. not even in museums. a rare car for sure.
Last one I saw was an ex-cop model that was in an impound lot with "Evidence" & tamper tape on it, probably 5-6 years ago
How many cars from 1985 do you see anywhere?
@@mrHoppedupford I lived in Washington State for years. Owned an '85 Gran Fury cop car I dailied to work (14 miles RT) for years. Have a "76 Travco. Got a '76 Valiant V8 a couple years back (both are NC vehicles now) that is solid & the interior isn't baked out of it.
0-60 in 8.7 secs for a mid-80s full-sized sedan is pretty darn good.
Wow, much quicker than I thought. You could surprise a few with this bad boy. A 5 speed swap, and a few upgrade that the Mustangs 5.0L got, and this would be a real sleeper.
Can you post your retro review on the 300D 2.5 Turbo Mercedes (1990-1993)?
Another one of the millions of Ford cars built on the Fox platform, and every one of them should have had a panhard bar laterally locating the rear axle. I had a 5.0 4 speed 1979 Mustang Indy Pace Car and I discovered that when cornering hard the rear axle moves at least one inch in either direction and it also yaws.
You're not wrong, the addition of a panhard bar to my LTD LX greatly improved handling.
Those rubber wheel covers seem like they’d dry out, crack, and fall off within 20 years.
They're actually bonded to the wheel face and survived pretty well.
I felt you were going to say "20 months"
Nope never cracked even years in direct sun
The Ford Taurus SHO’s wayward older brother.
Very cool sleepers. One of my high school classmates in 1994 had one, easy to do burnouts. My mom had the 1985 station wagon with the 3.8 V6, and even that had some good torque...now put this 5.0 engine in that car and you'd have quite the unique sleeper wagon.
My grandparents owned the wagon version.
The only thing I remember about it clearly was how much better the air conditioning in it was better than the air conditioning in my father's BMW.
It was a boring car but it was relentlessly reliable and easily went 200,000 miles before my grandparents finally replaced it.
Ford doesn't even make a car anymore. Other then the Mustang of course
Total production figures for 1984 and 1985 were 5,287 units combined: 1,920 for MY1984 (between March-August 1984) and 3,367 for MY1985 (September 1984-August 1985).
Given the relative light weight of the early Fox chassis cars, the 81mph trap speed suggests that this thing was probably only making about 140hp, not the rated 165.
4 wheel drive Magazine used to give rear wheel Dyno figures when they tested vehicles. A 88 Bronco with the multi port 5.0, factory rated at 185 hp, put 103 to the ground. Took 10.5 seconds to 60. I've seen Dyno tests on stock 200's used in Mustangs and Mavericks, factory rated in the old system at 120 hp, they put 65 horses to the ground. A 70 Maverick with three on the tree did 0-60 in 12.3 and with automatic it took 14.5.
A four door Mustang.... people would've remembered it had they just called it a 4 door muscle car.
Funny, they’re doing that today with the Mach-E and everyone is saying “but that’s not a Mustang!”
@@ericfitzgerald9139 they could've done what Mopar did with their Charger/challenger offerings.
My 1st car was Dad's passed down 1983 Ford LTD station wagon. I had a love/hate relation with the car. It was sloppy on turns and slow but started fine everyday. I had no idea they had a V8 LTD! Love Motorweek, been watching for 25 years.
the charcoal one in the studio is a 1985 model....the silver one on the banked track is a 1984...the lower exterior door trim is the giveaway
Good eye! Although it does have the 1985/86 grille and tail lights, so I'm sure this was a pre-production model using leftover '84 body side moldings.
they only made like 3400 between 84 and 85, Ive seen 2. I wish I could find one now that wasnt overly priced
Lol love the blues brothers reference.
Cop engine, cop suspension and cop tires
8.5 to 60 is pretty not bad!
I’ve always liked this model. Hard to find nowadays.
That was the sleeper car of the 80's. Too bad it was available as a late 84 and 85 model only.
3.6 NECK SNAPPING seconds! 😅
Ford strongly continued discontinuing Panthers in early 80's because of fuel prices and severe recession, and this car was a stopgap until Taurus was ready. Ford did good job updating Fairmont to make LTD competitive with GM's A and G bodies of the era. I wish Ford had stuck with RWD mid-size cars, but understand the trend of the time was FWD.
PASSING 40-55 MPH:
3.6 SECONDS
Actually pretty good. Look at what a K-car, Fairmont, or Caprice were doing. Unfortunately most cars of the era were absolute slugs. Yes, there were occasional special editions, but 90% of buyers never even considered them.
Today we laugh at these cars, but manufacturers at the time were just beginning to figure out how to both get power and comply with emissions regulations and CAFE standards.
A detuned Police package.
The Ford LTD Fourth Generation was used by Nathan PAPD, James CBCPD, and Julio Hermendez for Coliras Aurora.
Awesome! Rubber wheel caps...different. at least they wouldn't shatter!
Its merely a 4 door Mustang
Ah, the good old days of a federally mandated 85 mph speedometer. I wasn't sure what that was supposed to accomplish back then, and I'm still not.
I worked at a high volume, big city Ford dealer for a couple of college age years in the mid '80s while waiting for my real career to open up (thank goodness it did). A twin to the car in the video was one of the twelve-ish new cars on the huge showroom floor pretty much for the entire time I was there. Same color, 5.0 under the hood, the whole deal. It along with a couple of SVOs were on the floor I believe the entire time I worked there, waiting without success for a buyer to come along. Like the SVO, the LTD was a bit of an odd duck niche vehicle without a real market, slotted in between the Crown Vic and the Fairmont/Tempo. Then the Taurus came along and made the LTD an even tougher sell.
I guess Ford held onto the LTD for a couple of model years longer just in case the Taurus introduction crashed and burned. Spoiler alert: it didn't.
At 3:17, "A fast quarter mile of 16.5 seconds." Dear all that is unholy. How have times changed. If you were to tell me people, back in 1985, they would be hard pressed that the ICE is dying and 2.0L turbo four cylinders, with double the power of the 5.0L V8 on the LTD LX are ubiquitous in the car industry... and we still don't have flying cars.
I LOVE IT!!!! THE PERFECT FAMILY AUTO CROSSER!!!!! THIS LTD CAN BE UPGRADED USING MUSTANG COMPONENTS!!! THIS WOULD MAKE A GREAT PROJECT CAR TODAY!!!!!! THANKS FOR SHARING!!!!
Love these retro reviews. It is so fun to dive into the cars of yesteryear to see how far things have come, in particularly how much smaller cars were in the 80s and 90s compared to today.
This thing is sexy. Also the preffered choice of the VCPD and the VC Cabs
Cop car from Vice City.