the only thing i would change on the 1983-88 thunderbirds /cougars would be a wish for ABS brakes :bowdown: did the 87-88 turbo coupes have it? these cars ride well and the mileage aint that bad .
they look great too:D:D: too bad ford let these beauties go !!
or has someone done a retrofit of ABS to their car:bowdown::bowdown::bowdown:
just thinking is all ................
the 87-88 turbo coupes had it. but trust me you don't want it. the system takes up way to much space under the hood. and i believe getting parts is begining to become a nightmare.
Yes, 87-88 TC did have it. Neener neener.
if you really want em, look into swapping the sn95 stuff over. the swap has been documented a few times on fox mustangs
Yup. ABS has saved my skin already with this car.
Still have the ABS here and enough parts to keep it going for some time to come... Have never needed it, but I make a panic stop every once in awhile to be sure it still works...
That's the thing about ABS. No one really needs it.... until they lock up the front brakes because someone made a left hand turn in front of them on the highway.
....and they suddenly realize they have been coddled buy luxury their whole driving existence and have no idea what threshold braking is, or how to do it :shakeass:
+1 I've only had one car with abs, and to be honest, I prefer them without.
x2 :bowdown:
if you believe you need abs brakes then you probly DO need abs brakes. learn to brake :P
Ever hear of panic stopping? The vast majority of people have never taken their car to that threshold and wouldn't know it until they passed. I've only ever had 3 cars with ABS, so I've hardly been coddled. For the record, cars with ABS can stop within a much shorter distance than those without, and that's when tested by professionals who do this every day, and therefore know what threshold braking is. It's the same kind of argument people made for Carbs, or Seat Belts. My wife drives our Vue, which doesn't have ABS, and I know that when the time comes, she won't be thinking about threshold braking, and will lock up the tires and skid into Gord knows what. BTW, we live in a 4-season climate, so ABS is pretty much a necessity when the snow flies. Threshold braking doesn't do you one bit of good on snowy roads.
:flip:
whoa. lil defensive there
my point exactly.
as for the rest of your post, seems like you took my comment a bit personally....
Well, it did come off like someone was telling me I don't know how to drive my car, and that I was coddled by luxury. I don't exactly get warm fuzzy feelings when I hear things like that. I'm over it, though. Have a good one.
"Quick to anger, quick to laugh,
quick to fight, quick to forgive."
- Garnet Rogers
:cheers:
Speaking of someone taking a left turn in front of them:
My 17 year old son was driving yesterday in a 1992 Buick Century (green car) and a 82 year old lady turn left right in front of him in her 2002 Buick Park avenue (white car). She was going to her hair appointment because she can no longer raise her hands up over her head to wash her hair (but for some reason she thinks she can still drive). I think both cars were totaled; I'm sure mine sure was. No one was hurt and this is a very good thing.
The cops did not give the old lady a ticket but I bet if the tables were turned and Sam turned in front of her he sure would have a ticket.
Don't know if ABS would have saved the day or not? But I know that in 1994 they started to put ABS in the Century.
The 1992 is a common car and easy to replace (but I doubt they give me much more than $1,000 for it since it had some previous damage to the right rear door. But it only had 96k miles on it, was very clean, and ran great. Will be very hard to find another in same condition.
Would have been terrible to wreck a classice T-bird/Cougar.
As a side note all the ABS stuff went bye bye on my 1987 Turbo Coupe; took up too much room and way too many wires.
TED
And just about no one can deal with the effects of unequal traction situations where one or more wheels is on a surface that is more slick than the rest, as in the case of ice, snow, or water on the side of the road but not in the middle. Remember too that most ABS systems monitor each wheel, and not the system as a whole. Try that during "threshold braking."
The biggest demonstration of what ABS can do though comes not in stopping distance, but in your ability to be both stopping at a maximum rate and still be able to steer. As ABS monitors each wheel, and it keeps all of them from sliding, it leaves traction for guiding the vehicle away from the impending collision.
Shiny Side Up!
Bill
thats what i was thinking about Pro... still being able to steer. thats why i like ABS :)
When I test drive a 87-88 TC, the ABS is the first thing I check to make sure it still works.
Works great in auto-x too. ;)
I had considered putting ABS in mine for that reason. Since I have the ABS exciter rings at all 4 corners anyway (just not all installed yet on the front).
Cad T-bird, I have a friend who was turning left into his work and washiznit on the left side of his 69 GTO by a little grey haired lady. Ripped the entire front sheet metal and left front suspension off his car and sent her into a light pole. He got the ticket for failure to yield the right of way. This was in Texas. Go figure.
Oh ya, did I mention that she was going the same way he was!!
i dont know what the turbocoupes had but most ABS brake systems of the day were rear wheels only, definately not like the "monitor everything and even uses the brakes for you at all wheels" systems of today.
as for steering while braking cant say much there since its either one or the other for me, usually the other :burnout:
Most of the import and pick up truck stuff was rear wheel only, but pretty much all of the US ABS equipped cars were 3 or 4 channel systems. The 3 channel systems were used on RWD solid axle vehicles where, due to the tendency for them to become tail-happy, you could treat the rear axle as one unit.
Shiny Side Up!
Bill
My Durango has that 3 channel systems. It was a little disconcerting when it worked the first time. Winter time in Chicago :punchballs: now NWI Indiana :punchballs: :punchballs:
That's not the case. Otherwise, how would it help you steer if the front wheels were allowed to lock up? I doubt it's independent at each wheel, but the fronts definitely are ABS.
my 90 f150 only has rear channel abs. and yea. the fronts do lock up in the snow.
Pumping the brakes always worked for me. :dunno: Manual ABS FTW!!
Yes, and that is the best alternative when ABS is not present, but ABS will allow for a quicker stop and more control than pumping the brakes. Even the more primitive ABS systems can cycle the pressure on a given wheel several times per second, while the average human might get once per second.
Shiny Side Up!
Bill
Yeah, the rear "ABS" systems used on trucks were an extension of the weight shift systems utilized on many imports, particularly German imports.
On the "weight shift" systems, the amount of weight shift was monitored mechanically via a brake bias valve operating off of the rear axle. As the rear of the vehicle would lift, the bias valve would reduce the pressure to the rear wheels to reduce the chance of premature rear wheel lock up that might lead to a "spin-out."
Of course a pick up truck is subject to extremes of chassis loading with the bed being anywhere from empty to overloaded, each radically altering the overall vehicle braking dynamics from what would be expected in a different loading situation. To remedy this and yet at the same time keep costs down, many manufacturers introduced rear wheel only ABS systems on pick ups. The systems were much more cost effective than the old weight shift systems, and much more effective at preventing rear wheel lock up as well.
Shiny Side Up!
Bill
+2 FTW. :burnout::burnout::shakeass:
Same here, when I'm driving the Saturn.
my 1989 continental has 4 wheel abs and dual air bags :)
cepting its not working right now . oh well still got the cougar !
I'm wondering if the 87-88 XR7's had ABS.
Nope, they are just Merc's version of the '87-'88 Sport...
Dunno if it was clearly stated but the TCs ABS control all four wheels and AFAIK all wheels have independent control...
I'm really glad for those of you who can modulate the breaking pressure when someone pulls out in front of you necessitating a panic stop...
Right on. Thanks Tom.
That's one of those things I consider to be great in theory, but not guaranteed to be what would happen when the fear of hitting a one tonne object is telling you to brake. When you're on a track, your mind is in race mode. On your daily commute, your mind is in cruise mode.
It works good, trust me.
Not having to think about pumping the brakes lets you concentrate on other things in a panic stop. And being able to steer as well is all the better.
the only time I have wished I had ABS was while turning and stopping while it was slick or icy. And even then, I would take my chances. I don't like other things controling my car while I'm driving.
ABS doesn't control your car. It allows you to in extreme conditions.
You carb'd or efi? Electronic or mechanical ignition?