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  1. #1

    Default 1980 Mercury Zephyr project

    I feel like this is the time to introduce my Zephyr. I'm a commercial driver for Auto Zone, and one day I noticed this dilapidated 4 door Zephyr sitting behind one of the shops I deliver parts to. Because fox chassis reasons, I asked the owner if it was for sale, and he said make him an offer on it. I asked if he had a title for it, and he said he did. Well, after some negotiation we settled at $350. For my $350 I received a severely neglected, 1 owner, 1980 Mercury Zephyr 4 door showing 95,000 miles. It hadn't been tagged since 2005, and I later discovered it hadn't been driven since 2005 either. I also discovered that mice made their way into it during that time. They didn't chew wiring; they had plenty of seat foam, insulation, and cardboard to chew instead. Their nest was under the back seat, which makes sense because they entered through the fuel overflow hose hole in the trunk which was wide open because previous owner removed the grommet. Two days before Christmas last year I had it towed to my Dad's house a mile away, and I took these pics the day it arrived.









    That's all for now, stay tuned more to come.
    Matt
    1984 Thunderbird -- 1989 302 HO, GT40 heads w/ Trick Flow springs, E303 cam, Edelbrock Performer 289 intake, Edelbrock 600 4bbl, 85 Mustang dizzy, Jegs o/r h pipe, Dynomax mufflers, Mustang AOD & shifter, Mustang 8.8 w/ 3.73s, Mustang front & rear sway bars, KYB 87-88 TC struts & shocks, and Mustang 11" front brakes.

    1988 Mustang GT hatch -- Explorer intake, GT40 heads with Trick Flow spring kit, Crane 1.7 rrs, E303 cam, 70mm MAF, 70mm throttle body, o/r H pipe, Dynomax mufflers, Kirban Kwik shifter w/ Pro 5.0 Deluxe handle, clutch quadrant & firewall adjuster, and 3.27s
    (86 Mercury Cougar 5.0, 89 Lincoln Mark VII LSC 5 speed, 80 Mercury Zephyr 4 door) sold

  2. #2

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    Nice! Great deal. What are your plans?
    82 ford fairmont futura
    quicktime turbosystems 70mm turbo
    10.67@128.38

  3. #3
    FEP Senior Member roadkill's Avatar
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    Nice save!!!
    1985 Mercury Marquis LTS... "The Unicorn"
    1978 Fairmont... 306 and a C4.

  4. #4

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    Quick inspection upon arrival:

    hood release handle is broken
    someone tried to open the hood from outside the car and broke a bunch of stuff in the process
    Driver's rear door doesn't open
    no brakes
    very stale gas
    front frame rails ok
    floor pans ok
    mouse toilet

    Short term goal: resuscitate

    These pics are from a month after I got the Zephyr. Gave the outside a good scrub. I removed the interior and cleaned the floor pan and trunk pan with bleachwater. We were in the process of trying to get it to start. Tried and failed. That is when I discovered the reason this car probably stopped being driven 10 years ago. Someone had replaced the timing belt and managed to get the cam 90* out of time. After that was fixed a shot of ether and it fired up until the ether burned up.











    What was done to get it back on the road?

    replace inside door handle on driver's rear door
    driver's headlight bucket
    pour atf into cylinders and spin motor by hand
    put engine back in time
    fuel tank dropped and cleaned
    clean and refurb sending unit with new sock and float
    new fuel neck and sending unit seals
    tune up
    rebuild carburetor
    new fuel pump
    fuel filter
    replaced hood release cable and latch
    new metal brake line under back seat
    new front brake hoses
    new tires on phone dial wheels
    new rag joint
    various bulbs and sockets
    replaced cowl vent
    installed new acc carpet
    new turn signal switch and stalk
    refurbed gauge cluster and replaced bulbs
    replaced dash pad with better one
    recovered the headliner
    cleaned the seats with purple power and reinstalled them until I can get something better
    Last edited by 5.0 bird; 04-06-2016 at 08:19 PM. Reason: remember stuff
    Matt
    1984 Thunderbird -- 1989 302 HO, GT40 heads w/ Trick Flow springs, E303 cam, Edelbrock Performer 289 intake, Edelbrock 600 4bbl, 85 Mustang dizzy, Jegs o/r h pipe, Dynomax mufflers, Mustang AOD & shifter, Mustang 8.8 w/ 3.73s, Mustang front & rear sway bars, KYB 87-88 TC struts & shocks, and Mustang 11" front brakes.

    1988 Mustang GT hatch -- Explorer intake, GT40 heads with Trick Flow spring kit, Crane 1.7 rrs, E303 cam, 70mm MAF, 70mm throttle body, o/r H pipe, Dynomax mufflers, Kirban Kwik shifter w/ Pro 5.0 Deluxe handle, clutch quadrant & firewall adjuster, and 3.27s
    (86 Mercury Cougar 5.0, 89 Lincoln Mark VII LSC 5 speed, 80 Mercury Zephyr 4 door) sold

  5. #5

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    Current State

    Specs:

    Zephyr base model
    polar white exterior and sand vinyl bench interior
    2.3 4cyl
    C3 automatic
    3.08 axle 7.5"
    a/c
    power steering
    power brakes
    AM 8 track with one speaker

















    wiper blades
    steering column cover
    replace plastic front rollpan air dam thing under bumper
    repaint it
    seats
    fix blower motor
    repair windshield washer
    license plate light

    Long term plans:

    Explorer 5.0 with cam and 4 barrel
    WC T5
    8.8" axle
    sfcs
    better brakes
    appear slow

    This cool stuff came with the Zephyr.

    1 owner







    This tag was wrapped around the front seat springs along with the build sheet which is crumbling so I left it.
    Last edited by 5.0 bird; 04-09-2016 at 09:46 PM.
    Matt
    1984 Thunderbird -- 1989 302 HO, GT40 heads w/ Trick Flow springs, E303 cam, Edelbrock Performer 289 intake, Edelbrock 600 4bbl, 85 Mustang dizzy, Jegs o/r h pipe, Dynomax mufflers, Mustang AOD & shifter, Mustang 8.8 w/ 3.73s, Mustang front & rear sway bars, KYB 87-88 TC struts & shocks, and Mustang 11" front brakes.

    1988 Mustang GT hatch -- Explorer intake, GT40 heads with Trick Flow spring kit, Crane 1.7 rrs, E303 cam, 70mm MAF, 70mm throttle body, o/r H pipe, Dynomax mufflers, Kirban Kwik shifter w/ Pro 5.0 Deluxe handle, clutch quadrant & firewall adjuster, and 3.27s
    (86 Mercury Cougar 5.0, 89 Lincoln Mark VII LSC 5 speed, 80 Mercury Zephyr 4 door) sold

  6. #6
    FEP Power Member Fearnot's Avatar
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    She's looking good! Ten holes just make anything look better - good call.
    88 Turbo Coupe auto
    88 Turbo Coupe 5spd
    79 Fairmont Futura 4.6
    79 Capri RS - 2.3/5spd restomod
    80 Capri 5.0/5spd project
    79 Zephyr Z7 factory 5.0 sunroof
    79 Pace Car 5.0/5spd project
    85 LTD LX factory 5spd?(not documented)
    86 GT conv 5.0/5spd
    79 Pace Car 2.3/4spd - needs new home

  7. #7

    Default

    They traded in a Chevy LUV pickup for the Zephyr.
    '88 Mustang GT convertible, T5, 3.08:1 gears. 5.0 Explobra Jet: A9L Mass Air conversion, Fenderwell Mac cold air intake, 70mm MAF meter = 4.6 T-Bird/Cougar housing + '95 Mustang F2VF-12B579-A1A sensor, aftermarket 70mm throttle body and spacer, Explorer intakes, GT40P heads with Alex's Parts springs and drilled for thermactor, Crane F3ZE-6529-AB 1.7 "Cobra" roller rockers, Ford Racing P50 headers, Mac H-pipe, Magnaflow catback, Walbro 190 LPH fuel pump, UPR firewall adjuster and quadrant with Ford OEM cable, 3G conversion ('95 Mustang V6), Taurus fan, rolled on Rustoleum gloss white paint...
    Past Four Eyes: Red well optioned '82 GT 5.0, Black T-top '81 Capri Black Magic 3.3L 4 speed, Black T-top '84 Capri RS 5.0 5 speed.Over 200,000 miles driven in Four Eyes, and over 350,000 in Fox Body cars.

  8. #8
    FEP Power Member 83gtstang's Avatar
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    Default

    Love the car! Ten holes are very cool on these cars.

  9. #9

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    Great start! Looking forward to following this one.
    Brad

    '79 Mercury Zephyr ES 5.0L GT40 EFI, T-5
    '17 Ford Focus ST
    '14 Ford Fusion SE Manual

  10. #10
    FEP Senior Member roadkill's Avatar
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    Default

    Ten holes!!! Looking good!
    1985 Mercury Marquis LTS... "The Unicorn"
    1978 Fairmont... 306 and a C4.

  11. #11

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    Thanks guys, it was on a one way trip to the scrapyard if someone didn't save it. Having access to salvage cars has been a big help for parts too.
    Matt
    1984 Thunderbird -- 1989 302 HO, GT40 heads w/ Trick Flow springs, E303 cam, Edelbrock Performer 289 intake, Edelbrock 600 4bbl, 85 Mustang dizzy, Jegs o/r h pipe, Dynomax mufflers, Mustang AOD & shifter, Mustang 8.8 w/ 3.73s, Mustang front & rear sway bars, KYB 87-88 TC struts & shocks, and Mustang 11" front brakes.

    1988 Mustang GT hatch -- Explorer intake, GT40 heads with Trick Flow spring kit, Crane 1.7 rrs, E303 cam, 70mm MAF, 70mm throttle body, o/r H pipe, Dynomax mufflers, Kirban Kwik shifter w/ Pro 5.0 Deluxe handle, clutch quadrant & firewall adjuster, and 3.27s
    (86 Mercury Cougar 5.0, 89 Lincoln Mark VII LSC 5 speed, 80 Mercury Zephyr 4 door) sold

  12. #12
    FEP Member 9D83's Avatar
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    Default

    She came up nice! Shows her clean lines in 9d

  13. #13
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    82GTforME's Avatar
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    Default

    Great background story about the car. That's a lucky Zephyr because no one else may have ever given that car love again!

    I'm sure those metal tags were on pretty much all front seats. Cool the build sheet was under there. Our two '79 San Jose built coupes had them under the driver's seat but it doesn't sound like Dearborn cars did. Have you done the VIN breakdown to figure out where this car was built?

    Good luck with the rest of the project.
    Quote Originally Posted by Travis T View Post
    I think this is my favorite car on the site right now.
    Quote Originally Posted by BLUECRAPI
    This is the best thread on the internet.
    Darran
    1982-1C (Black) GT T-Top:http://vb.foureyedpride.com/showthre...he-Road-Thread
    1986-9L (Oxford White) SVO: http://vb.foureyedpride.com/showthre...d-did-1986-SVO
    1979 (85:Tangerine) Coupe (my son's): http://vb.foureyedpride.com/showthre...gerine-Machine
    1979 (3F:Light Medium Blue) Coupe (one day to be my other son's!) http://vb.foureyedpride.com/showthre...um-Blue-Bomber!

  14. #14

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    Quote Originally Posted by 82GTforME View Post
    Great background story about the car. That's a lucky Zephyr because no one else may have ever given that car love again!

    I'm sure those metal tags were on pretty much all front seats. Cool the build sheet was under there. Our two '79 San Jose built coupes had them under the driver's seat but it doesn't sound like Dearborn cars did. Have you done the VIN breakdown to figure out where this car was built?

    Good luck with the rest of the project.
    Thanks, I was wondering what that tag was. Here's the VIN breakdown

    0 - 1980
    E - Mahwah New Jersey assembly
    32 - Base 4 door Zephyr
    A - 2.3 4 cyl
    610262 - serial number

    DSO -26 Memphis

    The door tag puzzles me though. Under radio it's blank and under Sunroof it has a 0? Maybe the radio code was typed under the sunroof spot? If that's true, however, then the code manual doesn't list a radio code 0. Just 1-9.
    Matt
    1984 Thunderbird -- 1989 302 HO, GT40 heads w/ Trick Flow springs, E303 cam, Edelbrock Performer 289 intake, Edelbrock 600 4bbl, 85 Mustang dizzy, Jegs o/r h pipe, Dynomax mufflers, Mustang AOD & shifter, Mustang 8.8 w/ 3.73s, Mustang front & rear sway bars, KYB 87-88 TC struts & shocks, and Mustang 11" front brakes.

    1988 Mustang GT hatch -- Explorer intake, GT40 heads with Trick Flow spring kit, Crane 1.7 rrs, E303 cam, 70mm MAF, 70mm throttle body, o/r H pipe, Dynomax mufflers, Kirban Kwik shifter w/ Pro 5.0 Deluxe handle, clutch quadrant & firewall adjuster, and 3.27s
    (86 Mercury Cougar 5.0, 89 Lincoln Mark VII LSC 5 speed, 80 Mercury Zephyr 4 door) sold

  15. #15

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    Since I last posted here I did some research about the door tag, and I learned that the blank spot under the radio section means it was ordered new without a radio. This makes sense because the antenna is different than normal F/Z antennas. It's an add-on type with the hooks on the bottom that was probably installed at the dealer when they installed the glorious AM 8 track radio. The 0 under the sunroof section, I'm still not sure about, but it probably just means it was ordered without a sunroof.

    I made some more progress since last time.

    I removed the AM 8 track radio because having no radio somehow felt like an upgrade. I plan to get a nice shaft mount 4 channel am/fm cassette to replace it. Radio delete plates would be stock, but I need tunes.

    New wiper blades

    All of the tail light sockets were losing connection internally so I replaced all of them and wired in a replacement for the missing license plate light.

    replaced the cracked front bumper

    Traced a major vacuum leak to the gasket between the egr spacer and the intake so I replaced the gasket

    Deleted EGR

    Put on a new upper radiator hose

    Did a compression test and got 130, 130, 120, and 125 psi

    The only good steering column covers I could find were floor shift so I just used one of those and made a hole for the column shifter.

    It felt good to drive it around today. Got some new pics.









    Sign of the Cat
















    Ride engineered just like almost every other car, but only Mercury has a badge on the dash as a constant reminder.


    Matt
    1984 Thunderbird -- 1989 302 HO, GT40 heads w/ Trick Flow springs, E303 cam, Edelbrock Performer 289 intake, Edelbrock 600 4bbl, 85 Mustang dizzy, Jegs o/r h pipe, Dynomax mufflers, Mustang AOD & shifter, Mustang 8.8 w/ 3.73s, Mustang front & rear sway bars, KYB 87-88 TC struts & shocks, and Mustang 11" front brakes.

    1988 Mustang GT hatch -- Explorer intake, GT40 heads with Trick Flow spring kit, Crane 1.7 rrs, E303 cam, 70mm MAF, 70mm throttle body, o/r H pipe, Dynomax mufflers, Kirban Kwik shifter w/ Pro 5.0 Deluxe handle, clutch quadrant & firewall adjuster, and 3.27s
    (86 Mercury Cougar 5.0, 89 Lincoln Mark VII LSC 5 speed, 80 Mercury Zephyr 4 door) sold

  16. #16

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    Good progress! Yeah, i had to do the taillight socket thing too.
    Brad

    '79 Mercury Zephyr ES 5.0L GT40 EFI, T-5
    '17 Ford Focus ST
    '14 Ford Fusion SE Manual

  17. #17
    FEP Power Member Fearnot's Avatar
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    Great job of saving this one. She's come a long way in a short time. Love the 10 holes with the Mercury caps - nice touch.
    88 Turbo Coupe auto
    88 Turbo Coupe 5spd
    79 Fairmont Futura 4.6
    79 Capri RS - 2.3/5spd restomod
    80 Capri 5.0/5spd project
    79 Zephyr Z7 factory 5.0 sunroof
    79 Pace Car 5.0/5spd project
    85 LTD LX factory 5spd?(not documented)
    86 GT conv 5.0/5spd
    79 Pace Car 2.3/4spd - needs new home

  18. #18

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    Thanks! I'm looking forward to getting the bodywork and paint done on it in the next couple of months. It's not gonna be anything fancy, we're just gonna sand it, fill in the dings, primer, and single stage white.

    Here's the latest progress. It was time to deal with the dead blower motor. And since I was replacing the blower motor I should replace the heater core while I'm there. And since I was replacing the heater core I should pull and inspect the heater box for any mouse nests.

    I'm glad to say there were no mouse nests or chewed up wiring in the dash, just a few turds I vacuumed up. I did however, find that someone at some point had pulled the factory heater core out, soldered up the leaks, and put it back in. Shockingly, it was leaking. Why they didn't just replace it, I have no idea.









    Here's the heater box removed. What dark surprises lurk within? Luckily just a couple mouse turds.








    It's all back together now and the Zephyr now has a working heater and blower.
    Last edited by 5.0 bird; 05-15-2016 at 10:00 PM.
    Matt
    1984 Thunderbird -- 1989 302 HO, GT40 heads w/ Trick Flow springs, E303 cam, Edelbrock Performer 289 intake, Edelbrock 600 4bbl, 85 Mustang dizzy, Jegs o/r h pipe, Dynomax mufflers, Mustang AOD & shifter, Mustang 8.8 w/ 3.73s, Mustang front & rear sway bars, KYB 87-88 TC struts & shocks, and Mustang 11" front brakes.

    1988 Mustang GT hatch -- Explorer intake, GT40 heads with Trick Flow spring kit, Crane 1.7 rrs, E303 cam, 70mm MAF, 70mm throttle body, o/r H pipe, Dynomax mufflers, Kirban Kwik shifter w/ Pro 5.0 Deluxe handle, clutch quadrant & firewall adjuster, and 3.27s
    (86 Mercury Cougar 5.0, 89 Lincoln Mark VII LSC 5 speed, 80 Mercury Zephyr 4 door) sold

  19. #19

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    The last time I updated this in May I thought we would have the Zephyr painted during the summer, but as usual life things happened that put it off. Now it looks like next spring most likely. I've been on the search for an 87-93 Mustang drivetrain donor also. I'm hoping to find a wrecked one cheap. 5.0 automatic.

    I did make some progress in other areas!

    In July it developed a problem where it would drive about a half mile and die, then it would sit for 5 minutes, start up and drive another half mile and repeat. I thought this might be the ignition module so I put a new one on, but it didn't help. It ended up being a fuel starvation issue because the fuel pump lobe on the auxiliary shaft is wiped. An electric fuel pump fixed the problem.

    After I replaced the heater core everything else in the cooling system decided to start leaking so it got a new radiator, rad cap, thermostat, thermostat housing, upper and lower radiator hoses, and heater hoses.

    The passenger side inner tie rod was shot so I replaced it.



    Found a 2004 Mustang with medium parchment interior at the parts u pick with good front seats so I got those and some seat tracks from an '86 Mustang, and threw them in the Zephyr.

    Also bought some new seat belt receptacle sleeves since it still had the bench seat belts in it. Problem is, I found out bench seat belt receptacles are longer than bucket seat belt receptacles. So I went back to the parts u pick and got the seat belt receptacles from the '86 Mustang so I could use the sleeves I bought.










    I also got a front valance! I found one on a Fairmont at a junk yard last spring, but I left it because some of the mounting tabs were broken off. I thought surely I'll be able to find another one in better shape online or fep. Nope! 8 months later nothing so I went back and grabbed it. Only $10 so no biggie. If I run across a better one fine, but this one will do for now.



    One other thing, I ordered a new Grant steering wheel from Jegs, but when it arrived the rim was cracked in 3 places so I'm waiting for them to send another one. When it gets here I'll post a pic.

    Some exterior pics.






    Matt
    1984 Thunderbird -- 1989 302 HO, GT40 heads w/ Trick Flow springs, E303 cam, Edelbrock Performer 289 intake, Edelbrock 600 4bbl, 85 Mustang dizzy, Jegs o/r h pipe, Dynomax mufflers, Mustang AOD & shifter, Mustang 8.8 w/ 3.73s, Mustang front & rear sway bars, KYB 87-88 TC struts & shocks, and Mustang 11" front brakes.

    1988 Mustang GT hatch -- Explorer intake, GT40 heads with Trick Flow spring kit, Crane 1.7 rrs, E303 cam, 70mm MAF, 70mm throttle body, o/r H pipe, Dynomax mufflers, Kirban Kwik shifter w/ Pro 5.0 Deluxe handle, clutch quadrant & firewall adjuster, and 3.27s
    (86 Mercury Cougar 5.0, 89 Lincoln Mark VII LSC 5 speed, 80 Mercury Zephyr 4 door) sold

  20. #20

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    Time for another update!

    Got the Grant steering wheel put in!





    This Zephyr was ordered new without a radio, but it has one now! I got a 1986 vintage Realistic 4 channel AM/FM high power cassette player and installed it. I also added an auxiliary input that connects between the antenna and radio for phones or MP3 players! The speakers are Pioneer 6x8s in the package tray and Pioneer 3 1/2s in the dash. There was no speaker wire so I ran 16 gauge wire to the speakers!



    We also covered the package tray with premium headliner material!





    The big news is I found a drivetrain donor for the Zephyr!

    It's an '89 Mustang convertible 5.0 automatic that was hit in the right side and totalled!















    Matt
    1984 Thunderbird -- 1989 302 HO, GT40 heads w/ Trick Flow springs, E303 cam, Edelbrock Performer 289 intake, Edelbrock 600 4bbl, 85 Mustang dizzy, Jegs o/r h pipe, Dynomax mufflers, Mustang AOD & shifter, Mustang 8.8 w/ 3.73s, Mustang front & rear sway bars, KYB 87-88 TC struts & shocks, and Mustang 11" front brakes.

    1988 Mustang GT hatch -- Explorer intake, GT40 heads with Trick Flow spring kit, Crane 1.7 rrs, E303 cam, 70mm MAF, 70mm throttle body, o/r H pipe, Dynomax mufflers, Kirban Kwik shifter w/ Pro 5.0 Deluxe handle, clutch quadrant & firewall adjuster, and 3.27s
    (86 Mercury Cougar 5.0, 89 Lincoln Mark VII LSC 5 speed, 80 Mercury Zephyr 4 door) sold

  21. #21

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    Nice! I love it when people dare to be different. That is great that you saved this one. Can't wait to see the 5.0 conversion
    Liberty once lost is lost forever.

    John Adams
    July 7, 1775

  22. #22

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    Looking great! Keep the efi.
    Brad

    '79 Mercury Zephyr ES 5.0L GT40 EFI, T-5
    '17 Ford Focus ST
    '14 Ford Fusion SE Manual

  23. #23
    FEP Member pre89street's Avatar
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    nice sleeper you got!
    89 black gt
    80 chamois inline 3.3 project
    66 nightmist blue gt 4 speed

  24. #24

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    The first phase of the drivetrain swap is complete! The Zephyr now has a 8.8" axle, springs, and rear sway bar from the donor Mustang. We also converted to the Mustang rear brake line setup and added the pinion snubber. I'll get a pic of where the brake line is spliced, but basically the Mustang line is spliced into the Zephyr's under the back seat.







    Matt
    1984 Thunderbird -- 1989 302 HO, GT40 heads w/ Trick Flow springs, E303 cam, Edelbrock Performer 289 intake, Edelbrock 600 4bbl, 85 Mustang dizzy, Jegs o/r h pipe, Dynomax mufflers, Mustang AOD & shifter, Mustang 8.8 w/ 3.73s, Mustang front & rear sway bars, KYB 87-88 TC struts & shocks, and Mustang 11" front brakes.

    1988 Mustang GT hatch -- Explorer intake, GT40 heads with Trick Flow spring kit, Crane 1.7 rrs, E303 cam, 70mm MAF, 70mm throttle body, o/r H pipe, Dynomax mufflers, Kirban Kwik shifter w/ Pro 5.0 Deluxe handle, clutch quadrant & firewall adjuster, and 3.27s
    (86 Mercury Cougar 5.0, 89 Lincoln Mark VII LSC 5 speed, 80 Mercury Zephyr 4 door) sold

  25. #25
    FEP Super Member erratic50's Avatar
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    Congratulations on progress on your build.

    One thought that may help you- for what it is worth, Mustang V8 rear springs are very stiff. Watch out for snap steer.

    All personal preference, but I run my 86GT with 4 cyl LX springs in back (same rate as the 93 cobra) and NO rear sway bar. I still run the excessively strong 86GT sway bar in front (which is just slightly stronger than front sway plus rear sway on the 93 cobra) and found there's no benefit to any swaybar in the rear. It severely hurts rear traction to have the rear sway bar installed and handling wise it's just not needed.

    If my car had massively stronger front springs rather than stock GT springs - something like the CobraR -- then the stock GT rear springs would be about right and maybe in certain track duty there would be benefit to the sway bar, it's just not of value on a mostly street driven car. (And even then the factory front sway bar from a V8 Mustang is a bit much to use with the factory V8 rear)

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