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  1. #1

    Default 1984 Thunderbird

    This is my new project a 1984 Thunderbird. It's a base with a v6, but it will be getting the entire drivetrain that's currently in my Zephyr, which came from a wrecked 89 Mustang 5.0 convertible.



















    Yesterday we started with swapping axles and got the 7.5" axle out. Next we'll be dropping the 8.8 out of the Zephyr and swapping axle shafts.





    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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    The first car I ever bought back in 88 was an 84 with CFI 5.0. Loved that car, and miss it still. Chocolate brown with tan interior with the Lear Seigler seats.
    84 Capri RS Turbo
    Vinemont, AL (formerly El Mirage, AZ)
    USAF 1986-2007 (Ret)

  3. #3

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    What are you doing with the Zephyr?
    1978 Mercury Zephyr boxtop 5.0 EFI T5Z 8.8
    1999 Ford Contour 2.5 V6 5 speed
    2016 Ford Focus ST 2.0 Ecoboost 6 speed

  4. #4

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    Quote Originally Posted by ukravit View Post
    What are you doing with the Zephyr?
    I haven't decided yet I may do another project with it down the road.
    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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    Wow, that's in amaziing shape! I'd say keep the Zephyr in tact and find something unique to swap into the T-Bird...but then again I'm weird. Haha, whatever you do with it I'm sure will be awesome!

  6. #6
    FEP Power Member mcb82gt's Avatar
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    Default

    Very nice looking start there! Enjoy.
    Mike

    Now stang-less.

    88 Cougar 5.0

  7. #7

    Default

    More progress today! Got the 8.8" axle out of the Zephyr and swapped the Thunderbird axle shafts into the 8.8"











    Here are the axle shafts side by side. The left one is the Thunderbird that measures 30" and the right one is the Mustang that measures 29 1/4"








    The axles side by side. They both measure roughly 54" from the outside of each backing plate.





    Here is the 8.8" axle with Thunderbird axle shafts.





    Next is hanging the axles under the car, making the brakes work, and installing the rear sway bar.
    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

  8. #8

    Default

    I’m a fan of the birds. Will be following along. I have an 87 Tbird long term project. Lol
    Are you going 5 speed or keeping an AOD

  9. #9

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    I'm using the Mustang AOD. Later on I might swap a 5 speed into it.
    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

  10. #10

    Default

    Today we resealed the diff covers, hung the 8.8" axle in the Thunderbird and installed the rear sway bar.











    Next up is getting the brake line hooked up and getting some KYB rear shocks for a Thunderbird because the Mustang shocks are too short.
    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

  11. #11

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    Someone is making adapters to run the shorter shocks. He has a link on CoolCats website. Chuck W no longer makes them ( very nice units).
    Also are you using the Tbird rear coil springs or are those something else?

  12. #12

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    Quote Originally Posted by ISTLCRUZ View Post
    Someone is making adapters to run the shorter shocks. He has a link on CoolCats website. Chuck W no longer makes them ( very nice units).
    Also are you using the Tbird rear coil springs or are those something else?
    Yea, the brackets are out of stock at tbirdcougarparts.com, but I can get KYB shocks for the Thunderbird cheap at work. They're the Thunderbird springs.
    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

  13. #13

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    More progress today! The new shocks are on. We mounted the brake hose bracket to the body and ran a piece of brake line from the passenger side up to the rear hose bracket. Also hung the 7.5 axle in the zephyr so we can roll it around.


























    Also where is the resistor wire for the fuel pump? I unwrapped the wiring from the trunk to the fuel tank, but I didn't see it or I missed it. Is it in the trunk?








    Next is putting the brakes back together and bleeding them. Then we start pulling motors!
    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

  14. #14

    Default

    Little more progress today. We got the brake shoes back together and bled, and I did some more searching for the fuel pump resistor wire. I unwrapped the fuel pump wires in the trunk and didn't see anything like a resistor wire. So I grabbed a voltmeter to check and see the voltage going to the fuel pump. I checked it in the trunk and under the car, and I had 13 volts on both not running, but with a battery charger hooked up so I'm thinking this car has no resistor wire for the fuel pump.








    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

    Default

    Nearly got the motor pulled yesterday!








    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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    Love those Tbirds. Love the F/Z too!! Great pics!

  17. #17
    FEP Power Member gmatt's Avatar
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    I always wanted a fox Tbird. The power steering pump pulley on the 3.8 is a larger diameter and can be used as an underdrive on the 5.0. Are you keeping the A/C? Interested in how that's done; brackets, plumbing, etc. Great work!

  18. #18

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    Quote Originally Posted by gmatt View Post
    I always wanted a fox Tbird. The power steering pump pulley on the 3.8 is a larger diameter and can be used as an underdrive on the 5.0. Are you keeping the A/C? Interested in how that's done; brackets, plumbing, etc. Great work!
    That's interesting about the pulley. I do plan on keeping the a/c. I'm planning on using Mustang hoses to plumb it.

    Finished getting the motor pulled today














    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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    Did some work today getting the Tbird ready before we drop the V8 in. I removed all of the column shift linkage, tube, rods, and deleted the gear indicator from the gauge cluster. I still need to deal with the hole in the top column cover either with a floor shift column cover or some way to cover the hole. While I did that Dad removed the front sway bar and the power steering hoses from the rack since we'll be replacing them with Mustang parts.























    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
    FEP Senior Member OX1's Avatar
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    Default

    Do you guys think you have to modify K-member at all?

    Also, any chance this cougar instrument cluster fits.
    Would be cool to have factory tach and guages, without
    turbo coupe boost guage, that came in birds........

    https://www.coolcats.net/modifying/clusterswap.html

    XR7 might fit better. Has boost lights, but no guage at least.
    Only gives tach though......

    https://www.coolcats.net/modelyear/images/84xr7dash.jpg
    Last edited by OX1; 12-08-2019 at 02:50 AM.
    86 Capri, 5.0, 5Spd, A9L QH/BE, 47 lb Inj PMAS 3" MAF, Single T44 Turbo, Front Mount IC, TW170,
    Stock Cam, Explr Intake/TB, 1.7 Rockers, CF dual friction clutch, 3" DP, 2.5" full Exh, 3.27, 11.932 @ 115.78
    84 LTD, 331-10:1, TW170/Exprl Intake, 47 lbs inj/80 mm LMAF, Full Duals, Quarterhorse, Vortech 7PSI, Lentech AOD, 5 lug Mk VII brakes/rear, Eibach Sway bars, Cobra HB (dads ride, but I fix it )

  21. #21
    FEP Power Member mcb82gt's Avatar
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    The dash changed in 85. I'm unsure if it is a bolt in deal in a 84 or not. Sorry. Just depends how much they changed the mounting points.
    Mike

    Now stang-less.

    88 Cougar 5.0

  22. #22

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by OX1 View Post
    Do you guys think you have to modify K-member at all?

    Also, any chance this cougar instrument cluster fits.
    Would be cool to have factory tach and guages, without
    turbo coupe boost guage, that came in birds........

    https://www.coolcats.net/modifying/clusterswap.html

    XR7 might fit better. Has boost lights, but no guage at least.
    Only gives tach though......

    https://www.coolcats.net/modelyear/images/84xr7dash.jpg
    83-84 Tbirds use the same k member as the Mustangs so it shouldn't require any modification. At some point in 1985 the Tbird k member changed because of the hydraulic motor mounts.

    The gauge clusters in 83-84s and 85+ Tbirds are not interchangeable. The wiring and the mounts are all different. The Cougar XR7 cluster would fit since it's from an 84.

    I'm just gonna be using aftermarket add on gauges. I have a tachometer, voltmeter, oil pressure, and temp gauges that I'll be putting into the Thunderbird.
    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

  23. #23

    Default

    Removed the fuel pump from the frame rail and replaced it with a 12" section of metal line and held it in with new fuel line clips
    After that we pushed the Tbird out of the car port and brought the Zephyr in so we can start pulling the motor out of it.

















    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

  24. #24

    Default

    You can make the XR7 cluster work. I remember an article in Super Ford years ago (late 80's) that made a turbo cluster work for a V8 by soldering a resistor to the tach to correct it. They had swapped an 87 LX 5.0 powertrain into an 83 TC. Engine, trans, and rearend. I still have the issue. Somewhere.
    84 Capri RS Turbo
    Vinemont, AL (formerly El Mirage, AZ)
    USAF 1986-2007 (Ret)

  25. #25

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    It was almost 70 here today so we took advantage of it and got the 302 pulled out of the Zephyr. This is what is going in the Thunderbird. It's a 89 Mustang 302 HO with an Edelbrock Performer 289 intake, Edelbrock 600 cfm carb, and a 1985 Mustang 302 4 bbl distributor. The trans is an AOD also from the Mustang.





























    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

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