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bxstang20000

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Hey everyone I just bought a 02 Lincoln LS so I'll be around for a while. This car needs a ton of work and I'm not even close to being done. I bought the car last week it has 99,120 miles and I bought it for $4800. I now think I got ripped off and have been trying to get a hold of the guy I bought the car from.
Originally it only needed a right rear brake light bulb, head lights had all condensation in them, and the key fob wasn’t working. So I thought it wasn’t a bad deal. I'm a mechanic so I don’t mind a few problems but this is ridiculous. It supposedly had no idiot lights or other known problems.

I test drove the car in the parking lot and it felt good. It was a little noisy because someone didn’t close the air box. Well on my way home from trailering it home (between VA and NY) the chrome piece on the front bumper went flying off somewhere and I noticed both the front and rear chrome pieces were held on with double-stick tape and all the tabs were broken off.

Now that I’ve taken all the plastic off the engine bay there are a lot of parts with junkyard numbers on them. For example the ABS booster, fan shroud, and some suspension parts all have numbers on them plus it has a new condenser. So I’m guessing it was in a bad front end collision and I was told no accidents. Plus looks like the whole car was repainted.

I was letting it run in the driveway for a while and the misfiring began. So I removed all coils and sure enough about an inch of oil in each hole. So I installed new plugs, coils, and valve cover gasket. I also did a complete tune up (oil+filter, air filter, cabin filter, fuel filter, thermostat, wipers). The Power Steering pump was whining so I also had to replace that – seems like the wrong fluid was in, it smelled and felt more like PS fluid instead of ATF.

I went to replace the fog light bulbs and chrome strip and the fogs are all cracked and glued together and the right side of the bumper was cracked and broken so its not bolted in at all on the right side. So I need to get a whole new bumper.

Now to the scary part... It was running in my drive way and all of a sudden the ABS, brake, and traction light went on. I brought home my scan tool from work and here is what I got. Could a weak battery or a bad battery connection have anything to do with this??

ABS
C1805 Mismatched PCM or ABS/TCS
U1262 SCP Data Fault for J1850 Bus
C1963 Stability Control Inhib Warning
SRS
B1869 Airbag warning indicator lamp circuit open
PATS
B1681 PATS transceiver mod signal not received
B2332 Column tilt feedback POT circuit fault
U1262 SCP Data Fault
Plus a couple battery codes but I was having battery issues. All these codes were in memory.

I’m guessing the B1681 is the reason my keyless entry isn’t working. I replaced the key fob battery but still not working. I was about to install a remote start system so do I need the factory keyless working. I don’t know if I should even install it or try and get the guy to take the car back. What do you guys think and info is appreciated.

Sorry about the long post just tried to get all the info down.
John
 
welcome to the site.

the batteries in these cars, if bad, will cause all sorts of electronic whoas. idiot lights, wierd acting lights...all sorts of crap.

an 02 for 4800 bucks isn't that bad since you can do your own work. its a rough go, but I think it will be worth it in the end, but I love my LS, others may think I'm nuts.

Just post up questions...there is a few really knowldegeable guys on here that seem to always have the answer on even the hardest questions. Quikls and joegr are two that come to mind.

just remember to try the search function first...alot of search nazi guys on here.

post up some pics, and let us know how it goes..and again, welcome to LVC
 
Welcome to the site. Sorry you got such a raw deal.
If you think the car got into an accident and the seller cut corners in the repairs, you should continue your inspections. I would replace the battery before troublshooting. You'll also want to take note of the codes then clear them. See which return.
 
Thanks guys... I load tested the battery and it's good, it ended up being a corroded positive cable and a loose negative cable.

The code that really concerns me are the C1805 and C1963 because I don’t know if my ABS and traction control are be working properly. Does the dealer need to VIN match all the computers? I have a Snap-On Modus but I don’t think I have that capability. I'll be needing a factory manual for this car.

One other thing I just found out the information center doesn’t display anything when i press any of the buttons. Is this a common problem?

Yeah I'm going to document everything I could and call up the seller to see if he will do anything for me. It’s just wrong that he outright lied to me.
 
bxstang20000; said:
One other thing I just found out the information center doesn’t display anything when i press any of the buttons. Is this a common problem?
Click to expand...

The buttons may be unpluged. Pull it out and check it out. The top vent is one piece. There are no screws, it will pop out. But be careful. They like to break.
 
Welcome!


Thats sucks, being lied to. How hard is it to just be honest. I say try and return it and and find your self a diff ls. Who knows how much damage that guy fised with "tape", just waiting to fall apart. All they have to do is get 10 min of alright running to sale the car and then the problems are yours. Thats not cool. It could be a good project car, but just saying, i;d me a little pissed at the guy for trying to pull a fast one.
 
This is what happened to me with my 5.0 Mustang, but I only paid $2800 for it and the problems aren't as significant as yours. It definitely sounds like you got taken for a ride, did you buy it from a private seller?
 
drag214 said:
The buttons may be unpluged. Pull it out and check it out. The top vent is one piece. There are no screws, it will pop out. But be careful. They like to break.
Click to expand...

I pulled it out and all the wires are in tact. Nothing nice and easy.

Welcome!


Thats sucks, being lied to. How hard is it to just be honest. I say try and return it and and find your self a diff ls. Who knows how much damage that guy fised with "tape", just waiting to fall apart. All they have to do is get 10 min of alright running to sale the car and then the problems are yours. Thats not cool. It could be a good project car, but just saying, i;d me a little pissed at the guy for trying to pull a fast one.
Click to expand...

I know for the 10 minutes it was running great. He had a small tool bag in the trunk and there was Elmer’s glue inside of it lol. Only found double stick tape and plastic epoxy so far lol. What will be next...

This is what happened to me with my 5.0 Mustang, but I only paid $2800 for it and the problems aren't as significant as yours. It definitely sounds like you got taken for a ride, did you buy it from a private seller?
Click to expand...

I was just thinking about this. It's an odd setup. He told me it was his car but his friend was driving it for a while. He works at a used car dealer and the title was in his partners (owners) name. So im thinking they sold it outside of the dealers name since they knew something was wrong with this car.

Hopefully I'll be able t talk to this guy today....
 
Does the car have a clean title? You really got a S@#!y deal. You should search your local laws and see if there's anything you can do. I don't know if the lemon laws only apply to dealerships or if there is something similar for private sellers.
 
Welcome to the site.
Put up some pics of your ride if you get a chance. And, good luck with car.
 
I know there's a fact that there's laws protecting you from buying a car from a dealership. Private parties aren't as easy to deal with.
 
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