I was outside taking pics for another thread, so I figured I would take a pic of this too.
I had never seen a plain XR-7 wheel with no cruise buttons. And I had never seen a turn signal lever with the cruise controls on it. This 85 XR-7 I have has this weird combo.
In all the 9 other cougars I have owned, and all of the ones I have seen in the junk yard, I have never seen this combo.
I assume it was cruise that was added later, but the lever does have the ford logo on it...
(pardon my dirty car, and yes my glovebox has a tan handle...)
CoogarXR
my 85 xr7 has the same wheel with no cruise whatsoever, then again my cougar's 5 speed too
I thought that was a later style wheel? My 86 has the A frame type wheel
Maybe dealer added cruise? I'm more confused about the turn signal and wiper controls being on the same side! Seems really akward. My TC had the wipers on the the right, out of the way.
That is a factory non-cruise 2-spoke sport wheel with the dealer-added cruise control system. I don't know if I'd call either of them "rare" but they're both not real common.
FWIW I'd tend to think the Ford dealer cruise control system might be a tad more reliable in the long run, due to its standalone setup (no contact pins on the steering wheel, etc.). Fewer wires to get pinched. ;)
Thanks, I figured it was the dealer-added cruise, I just had never seen one. This car seems to not have a lot of options. It has power windows and mirrors, AC, and that's about it. No power locks, manual seats, no intermittent wipers, etc. I'm glad to have power windows again, leaning my fat ass over the console in my 83 to reach the passenger window crank is getting old :hick:
I don't know if that cruise works yet. I still have only rode around the neighborhood (no highways). I need to get off my lazy arse and get some plates for it, heh.
CoogarXR
Yeah, definitely let us know how that works. I'm hoping it's not as jerky as the factory cruise control can be when you set the speed.
Your car didn't seem to have any preferred equipment package (PEP) so all options were either standalone or part of the XR7 package. Still, you could get a rather stripped-down XR7...I've seen them before and it always confused me LOL.
Mine is a non cruise car as well. Yours looks to be similarly equipped as mine is.
Side note: Do you have dual power seats? Mine does. Thats about the only thing that looks special on mine.
wow,
talk about "not in the EVTM". I wonder if its in a shop manual somewhere.
Nice to know stuff.
Seems like the solution to use that 85-86 Capri wheel as I've always wanted to do...
Too bad I sold the PRISTINE one I had...:mad:
I saw an 87 base 3.8 T-bird at the yard once with the same dealer cruise set up. It had power windows and locks but that was it. The rest of the stuff was manual. Hell I don't think it even had a tape deck just an AM/FM radio.
On the jerky factory cruise control: I thought it was just mine :hick:. Every time I set the speed it jumps up about 2-3 mph. Now I know it's not just my car.
Really? I've never seen that, every Thundercat I've owned (an 85 T-Bird V6, an 88 Cougar V8, an 87 Sport, an 88 T-Bird V8, and an 87 TC 5-speed parts car) had the wipers and turn signals on the left. The only lever on the right in any of my cars was the column shifter in cars so equipped (all but the Sport and TC)...
CoogarXR, you do have an oddly optioned one, don't you? I note it also doesn't have pulse wipers...
I've had quite a few Fords over the years and it seems like the late 80's to the mid 90's Fords had this prob but maybe it was just me.
You can have cruise with a manual. My grandma had a 91? tracer with crusie and a stick.
Is the wipers on the right hand side a 83-84 thing?
Of course you can have cruise with a manual. Most 87-88 TC's have cruise. In fact my 88 5.0 with the swapped-in T5 still has cruise, including the clutch-kill feature. My just-bought daily-driver Saturn has cruise and a stick as well.
As for the wiper stalk thing, according to this image from Coolcats the wipers were on the left, just like the 85-88:
(http://www.coolcats.net/fox/images/83interior1.jpg)
I'm confused by that statement too...I have never seen anything hanging off the right side of the column aside from the column shifter if so equipped. I can't see how it would even work, to be honest...the wiring would be backwards. Plus the column shifter mechanism wouldn't have any room. And with the ignition cylinder and switch in that area, I wouldn't think anything else could be placed next to it and not burn up LOL.
Now that I think of it...was there a Fox car with the turn signal and/or wiper on the right side? I can't recall any.
I know a lot of newer cars have the wipers on the right and the turn signals on the left (my Saturn is like that), but most newer cars have floor shifters. I've never seen a Fox like that tho...
The stalk mounted cruise control switch is definitely a dealer installed accessory for cars not having factory cruise control. I went scavaging in a salvage yard last week and came across at least three of these stalks. This is good if you like the three spoke SVO wheel or one of the older three spoke sports steering wheels Mustangs used.
I would really like to do away with the cruize on the wheel. I just hate cruise as its own stalk though. Makes me feel like I'm driving a chevy work truck.
The dealer installed cruise switches are integrated into the turn signal lever, so there is no additional stalk for itself!
DOH! The cruise doesn't work. I'll have to check the fuses (but I'm sure it won't be that easy...). then figure out how it works.
CoogarXR
Found out why the cruise doesn't work... The lever isn't connected to anything! The wire runs down the column and ends in a plug not connected to anything (and nothing within reach to connect it to).
Weird!
CoogarXR
There is supposed to be a small black electronic control box to the left of the steering column where the wires go to. Blue and black wires IIRC...