I Have Owned Fords And Mercs From 61 Comet
67 Park Lane To 90 Grand Marquis --
This 91 Mark Vii Is My First Lincoln And I
Have Had This Mark Vii For About 4 Months
Bought From A Little Old Ladys Estate
( Really -- No Bull ) Knew The Family -- But
The Car Has Been Sitting Outside
For Over 2 Years And The Suspension Is Wigging
The Compass / Oat Works When It Feels Like It
And Other Assorted Electronic Weirdness
( Interior Lights Dont Work With Light Dimmer
Or Drivers Door Switch ) But The Dash Lights Come On
When The Door Is Opened ---
Lincoln Dealer Laughed When I Tried To Buy Parts
Like The Compass Module - Suspension Module Etc Etc --
No Local Yards Have Any That Have Parts Left On Them
Does Anyone Know Of Any Source For Some Of These
Electronic Pieces Parts ---
Any Suggestions Or Repair Sources Are Greatly Appreciated
Walt

I Have Owned Fords And Mercs From 61 Comet
67 Park Lane To 90 Grand Marquis --
This 91 Mark Vii Is My First Lincoln And I
Have Had This Mark Vii For About 4 Months
Bought From A Little Old Ladys Estate
( Really -- No Bull ) Knew The Family -- But
The Car Has Been Sitting Outside
For Over 2 Years And The Suspension Is Wigging
The Compass / Oat Works When It Feels Like It
And Other Assorted Electronic Weirdness
( Interior Lights Dont Work With Light Dimmer
Or Drivers Door Switch ) But The Dash Lights Come On
When The Door Is Opened ---
Lincoln Dealer Laughed When I Tried To Buy Parts
Like The Compass Module - Suspension Module Etc Etc --
No Local Yards Have Any That Have Parts Left On Them
Does Anyone Know Of Any Source For Some Of These
Electronic Pieces Parts ---
Any Suggestions Or Repair Sources Are Greatly Appreciated
Walt

Walt, Congrats on buying the Mark, you'll love it, unfortunately I can't help you w/ anything, however, there are a few guys in here that are VERY knowledgeable , I'm sure Ray or Craig can answer any question you may have regarding your Mark VII. Good luck w/ it guy!!!!!

Cubby

Welcome

Walt, Congrats on buying the Mark, you'll love it, unfortunately I can't help you w/ anything, however, there are a few guys in here that are VERY knowledgeable , I'm sure Ray or Craig can answer any question you may have regarding your Mark VII. Good luck w/ it guy!!!!!

Cubby
CUBSTER
THANKS FOR THE INFO -- I CONSIDER MYSELF TO BE A FAIRLY COMPETENT MECHANIC WITH GOOD ELECTRICAL BACKGROUND
BUT THIS CAR IS DRIVING ME INSANE -- AND WAS BEGINNING
TO WONDER IF I MADE A BAD DECISION HERE --
AGAIN THANKS FOR YOUR HELP
WALT

Walt, not to be a dick, and I hate saying this, but it sucks to read a post in all caps. Can you stay off the caps lock next time?

Anyhow, lots of Mark VII parts show up on ebay and over on Ford vs Chevy. Also, take a look over at Lincolns OnLine and check out the Tech Articles. Some will definitely lead you in the right direction. I'd personally start checking fuses.

I Have Owned Fords And Mercs From 61 Comet
67 Park Lane To 90 Grand Marquis --
This 91 Mark Vii Is My First Lincoln And I
Have Had This Mark Vii For About 4 Months
Bought From A Little Old Ladys Estate
( Really -- No Bull ) Knew The Family -- But
The Car Has Been Sitting Outside
For Over 2 Years And The Suspension Is Wigging
The Compass / Oat Works When It Feels Like It
And Other Assorted Electronic Weirdness
( Interior Lights Dont Work With Light Dimmer
Or Drivers Door Switch ) But The Dash Lights Come On
When The Door Is Opened ---
Lincoln Dealer Laughed When I Tried To Buy Parts
Like The Compass Module - Suspension Module Etc Etc --
No Local Yards Have Any That Have Parts Left On Them
Does Anyone Know Of Any Source For Some Of These
Electronic Pieces Parts ---
Any Suggestions Or Repair Sources Are Greatly Appreciated
Walt

Walt,
Welcome. There are those among us who love and those who have come to hate our Lincolns. Still love my Mark VII and it still makes my butt smile --maybe more than my LS, when I use it which is just about every day. Though like you mentioned, I find its becoming harder to get parts. The other day I had to make a part to connect the cruise control to the throtle plate. LM dealer says the parts are obsolite! This is the falt of FORD. Other manufacturers maintain parts and service. Guess FORD has so little faith in its vehicles that feels that there are not enough left on the road to bother with. Shame on them. Spent too much money buying up other companies and have ended up starving the core business. Hope they will decide that customers need to be cared for. If not we will all end up driving rice burners.
Lincolnlov

Walt, welcome aboard. You seem to have multiple issues. It would help us help you to list them out individually, like this:

1. Compass does not work intermittently
2. Dimmer switch does not work
etc., etc.

Give specifics and we can most likely get you enough information to fix everything in a day.

From what I have gathered, I will try to provide some guidance. For the suspension, give more information. What does it do? What doesn't it do? The compass issue may be a bad ground. There is an orange wire bundled in the driver-side kick panel that you shouls splice to make a better ground. This may solve many of your issues. I would start here with your work. This may be the problem with your light dimmer. Another possibility is that the dimmer switch has bunrt out, which is a common issue.

As for parts, you will be best off finding a parts car. If you are in Fairfax VA then there is bound to be a large yard within an hour of you that has a Mark VII or two for you to pick through. Good luck!

...
This 91 Mark Vii Is My First Lincoln And I
Have Had This Mark Vii For About 4 Months
Bought From A Little Old Ladys Estate
( Really -- No Bull )
...

Walt.
Welcome. Read everything.
I too own an estate car. When you see it though, you'll cry.

You now own one of the BEST vehicles ever produced and all of the things that you mentioned are common to a 14 year old Luxury Sport Coupe and easy to repair/replace/adjust.

1) Replace the battery
2) Clean (wire brush) all starting terminals including the battery ground terminals, both ends
3) Perform all of the scheduled maintenance items listed here at: http://www.lscclub.org/tech/scheduledmaintenance.htm
4) By a parts car. Yes, I said buy a parts car. Any Mark VII from 1987 to 1992 has about 90% of the same parts. If you pay $300.00 for a parts car and then need a set of rear bags, an overhead console, a speedometer, a trip minder, a door window motor, an abs relay, and a cigarette lighter, the parts car has paid for itself and you have yet to remove ONE ITEM from the engine.

Post a message about each item that you do and you'll see over time how your ride will come back to being the most pleasurable driving experience in history.

Walt, Welcome to the world of the Mark VII great cars!!!

Listing to the Captain, Old School, Josh and others, they have very good advice.

They have helped me many times.

eBay has lots of Mark VII parts..

Many members also have parts from old cars they part out.

So good luck!!

I agree with JoshMcMadMac, give a little more detailed description as to the individual problems you are haveing and we can probably have you pointed in the right direction before the end of the day. Exactly what is the suspension doing? Is it down? Does the compressor run? Do you have a check air ride message? Ect. Ect. Give a few more specifics and I will glad to help as much as possible.

Thanks,
Strutmasters Team

Walt, not to be a dick, and I hate saying this, but it sucks to read a post in all caps. Can you stay off the caps lock next time?

Anyhow, lots of Mark VII parts show up on ebay and over on Ford vs Chevy. Also, take a look over at Lincolns OnLine and check out the Tech Articles. Some will definitely lead you in the right direction. I'd personally start checking fuses.


Not real up on all this I-M / E-Mail protocol but thanks for the observation--
Really -- What does it matter ??????????????
I am a mechanic not a typist / secretary and tagging the shift key
at the right moment is not a real strong point for me ( makes me think too much ) so I tag the caps lock for entrys that I make then forget about it -- will try to curb the impulse ( a friend told me that was yelling at
someone ) WHATEVER ----
Thanks for the tip to Lincolns Online --- they have some good
articles -- got all the factory manuals on this thing but it doesnt help in the parts dept -- Went through everything in the fuse panel and checked the Fuse Links -- Found a real good article on grounds and that seems like a real
potential that would explain the work / dont work scenerio ---
Found out the dash was removed for heater core replacement and that
might have disconnected something ---
E-BAY search didnt reveal anything i needed so its off to bagmasters
or someone else for suspension parts ( the prices for the few things that ford had available was a real eye opener ) And I have connections at the local dealer -- didnt help much ----
Again thanks for the heads up and advice
Walt

Walt, Welcome to the world of the Mark VII great cars!!!

Listing to the Captain, Old School, Josh and others, they have very good advice.

They have helped me many times.

eBay has lots of Mark VII parts..

Many members also have parts from old cars they part out.

So good luck!!

Thanks for the support and advice ---
I was hoping I wouldnt have to send this one to the
junk yard before I ( my wife ) got a chance to
enjoy the ride --
I had a bad deal from E-Bay one time so I get a
little nervous about buying pieces parts I cant
actually put my hands on --- but will be on the hunt
Thanks again
Walt

Walt,
Welcome. There are those among us who love and those who have come to hate our Lincolns. Still love my Mark VII and it still makes my butt smile --maybe more than my LS, when I use it which is just about every day. Though like you mentioned, I find its becoming harder to get parts. The other day I had to make a part to connect the cruise control to the throtle plate. LM dealer says the parts are obsolite! This is the falt of FORD. Other manufacturers maintain parts and service. Guess FORD has so little faith in its vehicles that feels that there are not enough left on the road to bother with. Shame on them. Spent too much money buying up other companies and have ended up starving the core business. Hope they will decide that customers need to be cared for. If not we will all end up driving rice burners.
Lincolnlov

No doubt -- I couldnt believe the dealer wouldnt support such a fine ride
I could see it if you had a PINTO or something but not this baby ---
NO rice burners in my driveway --- YET ---- I own 6 cars 3 Ford -- 3 GM
( daughter / sons ) all driving and all rear wheel drive --but its getting
harder to keep them running because of parts being unavilable --
Especially the MERKUR XR4TI -- but thats another bad dream story --
Thanks again for your reply
Walt

Walt, welcome aboard. You seem to have multiple issues. It would help us help you to list them out individually, like this:

1. Compass does not work intermittently
2. Dimmer switch does not work
etc., etc.

Give specifics and we can most likely get you enough information to fix everything in a day.

From what I have gathered, I will try to provide some guidance. For the suspension, give more information. What does it do? What doesn't it do? The compass issue may be a bad ground. There is an orange wire bundled in the driver-side kick panel that you shouls splice to make a better ground. This may solve many of your issues. I would start here with your work. This may be the problem with your light dimmer. Another possibility is that the dimmer switch has bunrt out, which is a common issue.

As for parts, you will be best off finding a parts car. If you are in Fairfax VA then there is bound to be a large yard within an hour of you that has a Mark VII or two for you to pick through. Good luck!


Thanks -- got carried away with the massive amount of problems this
baby has hit me with --
I live just outside of Pensacola Florida ( up in panhandle ) close to Mobile AL
some yards around but no one I called has the 91 -- newest I could find
in a u-pull yard was an 84 that was picked clean ---

I can live without the compass and deal with the DTE at zero and
beeping everytime the car is started b u t the
** 1st Biggie right now is the suspension -- front end is on the ground and the car is not driveable --- rear stays up ok --

It does what it wants to whenever it wants -- start --let pump up
drive to store --come out -- nose is on the ground -- let it build
next stop -- come out -- car is still at ride height ---
another time pump will run but not raise front -- then next time
it pumps up in a couple minutes ---
Fault light cycles normally on start and is not on during drive --
Could not get any codes to show grounding test lead near module
Replaced Module with one ordered through a local yard ( $120 )
still does the same thing -- Could not establish a failure pattern
checked lines at dryer --could not detect a leak --
replaced pwr relay -- bags do not appear to be cracked ---
Pumped back up ( last time had to use compressed air on
fill port to get front up while pump was running )
then disconnected the battery to see
what would happen ( tried turning off the service switch which
did not change the problem )
the right front dropped overnight / the rest of the
car stayed normal ---
At this I figure the right bag must be bad but
I dont want to order ( $180 @ FORD w/o solenoid )
if this is not the real problem -- dont see how one bag
could do all the things that are happening ---
almost afraid that the pump is getting weak from excessive
operation and I will wind up replacing it too
( $485 @ FORD ) if they can find one ---
Have You ever heard of this type of
wacky operation ????

** 2nd Biggie -- is everytime the brake is pressed --
the red brake light comes on followed 1-2 sec later by the
amber antilock light then 3-4 sec later both go out regardless
if you stay on the brake or release -- happens every time
pedal is depressed -- brake operation feels relativly normal
( not used to driving electric pumped brakes )
have not been brave enough to see if it would lock up
in a panic stop --- was told to replace the
master / pump / control assy but forgot to rob a bank
on the way home --
We do not have any vehicle inspections here
so there are not any garages with the
brake test drive on rack ---
I really appreciate your time and effort
maybe I can return the favor one day
Walt

Walt.
Welcome. Read everything.
I too own an estate car. When you see it though, you'll cry.

You now own one of the BEST vehicles ever produced and all of the things that you mentioned are common to a 14 year old Luxury Sport Coupe and easy to repair/replace/adjust.

1) Replace the battery
2) Clean (wire brush) all starting terminals including the battery ground terminals, both ends
3) Perform all of the scheduled maintenance items listed here at: http://www.lscclub.org/tech/scheduledmaintenance.htm
4) By a parts car. Yes, I said buy a parts car. Any Mark VII from 1987 to 1992 has about 90% of the same parts. If you pay $300.00 for a parts car and then need a set of rear bags, an overhead console, a speedometer, a trip minder, a door window motor, an abs relay, and a cigarette lighter, the parts car has paid for itself and you have yet to remove ONE ITEM from the engine.

Post a message about each item that you do and you'll see over time how your ride will come back to being the most pleasurable driving experience in history.

I would love to find a " Parts Car "-- know anybody that has one ??
I cannot even find one in a junkyard around here no less one
that has all its pieces parts -- I may have to turn this one into
a parts car for someone else -- Its really in beautiful shape
and the engine runs fine but I cant drive it yet -- havent done the
pict thing yet either -- but will get around to it ---
a friend mentioned that its possible that the battery was disconnected
for an " alternator test " ( evidence = old voltage regulator in trunk ) which was good for the 70's rides but we all know you cannot do on the new electronic monsters--- and possibly smoked
a lot of the modules -- anybody hear of that one ???
Walt

Hi. Walt.
I'm back.
You still have your Mark VII? I hope so, because we can help.