Winter driving the MKVIII????

As most have said, yes these cars SUCK in the snow :p

All 3 Marks that I have owned have served pretty much as year round daily drivers. My '96 would get High Centered here in North Central NJ when I would pull over in front of my friends house. Snow wasn't that deep either but the lil bit of snow that was pushed over on that side by the plow was enough to make it a pain to get out of the spot.

As far as rust go's however my 2 first Mark's '96 and '98 were virtually rust free! NJ just loves salt on the roads and the '96 had 210k on it when I sold it. Body was solid and no holes along with second '98 that has spent life in NJ all the way to 140k.
2011-01-27_08-59-13_578.jpg

I just picked up a 2WD truck partly as a winter beater but also gets better MPG than the mark for my daily drive out of state to work now. Keeps from adding the 90 miles a day to my Mark.
 
So I bought a set of Winterforce tires form a friends co-worker Used only one season and one year old. $100. I'll be mounting them on my beater chromes and installing them. I really don't want to drive it in the snow, and I probably will limit how much I use the car in winter. At least I'll be prepared if I get stuck in a snow storm. Also added emergency road service to my insurance policy so if I ditch the thing, I get free towing.
 
It will be interesting to see how the '95 does if it snows here this year. Both my '96 and '97 Marks had traction control and I never had much trouble driving in the snow and/or ice. The '95 does not have T/C. So it will take a bit more concentration to get it going if the weather gets bad.
 
thaywood said:
It will be interesting to see how the '95 does if it snows here this year. Both my '96 and '97 Marks had traction control and I never had much trouble driving in the snow and/or ice. The '95 does not have T/C. So it will take a bit more concentration to get it going if the weather gets bad.
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I can't imagine driving in the snow with the traction control ON..
 
yeah i always turned trac control off pretty much ASAP. in all weather conditions.
 
I'm speechless watching you grab this Mark & drive it into it's death. It's like watching a captain sail his ship into a deadly storm. I'm convinced you see these cars quite differently than we do. We know these cars are good for 230,000+ miles & a lot of us have owned them with that mileage. You said a buddy of your gave you crap about buying it because the car's a pile of problems! Common misconception.
It's one hell of a great car. Owned 7 of them myself. Owned one CE with my father. Take care of her. Yes, they are cheap now but who knows what the future holds for these gems. Yes, you do have a gem in your hands. She drives like a dream, has technology way ahead of its time. It can easily be passed as a 2003-2005 vehicle when compared to any car of that year.

However, you already bought it so I doubt you will buy something else for the winter. Can I ask... How many miles on her? At least please tell me she's got a ton of mileage.

By the way, the black rectangular box between the exhaust? Evaporator tray. I have a replacement if you want it, just PM me. Here's a sample image I found from another forum.

Pan_After_zps85e7d5c1.jpg
 
I have to drive my 94. I put snow tires on a couple weeks ago, and so far, so good. I don't even know why Ford put "traction control" on these things. I have never driven one in which it actually worked. Anyways, they are no different from any other RWD car. As long as you use your head when driving, you'll be fine.
 
I say drive it in the snow just try to get it to a car wash once in a while to clean the undercarriage I drove mine in the snow the first 2 years I had it and then last year after I sold my truck I never had a problem and the tired were pretty crappy went I first got it that's with 4.10's and a super charger so you'll be alright drive it whenever u want the rocker panels rotting is inevitable
 
The only time tc has worked for me is the few time I was driving way too fast on the highway when it was posting out and saved my rear end from kicking out but probably would have cot it myself, but if u have it on trying to get up a hill with 6 inches of snow on it your never gonna get anywhere
 
UltimateSVT said:
I'm speechless watching you grab this Mark & drive it into it's death. It's like watching a captain sail his ship into a deadly storm. I'm convinced you see these cars quite differently than we do. We know these cars are good for 230,000+ miles & a lot of us have owned them with that mileage. You said a buddy of your gave you crap about buying it because the car's a pile of problems! Common misconception.
ar.

However, you already bought it so I doubt you will buy something else for the winter. Can I ask... How many miles on her? At least please tell me she's got a ton of mileage.

By the way, the black rectangular box between the exhaust? Evaporator tray. I have a replacement if you want it, just PM me. Here's a sample image I found from another forum.

Pan_After_zps85e7d5c1.jpg
Click to expand...

It already has rust. It's not like he's taking a mint 10,000 mile #1 CE and making it his winter beater.
 
As I said my '96 sucked in snow with these tires and no Traction Control
Badtire.jpg
Then when I had to obviously replace the tire I only had a set of Falcon Azenis tires to throw on the back.
0202091602a.jpg
Unbelievably they did rather well in the snow for some reason :confused:

Badtire.jpg


0202091602a.jpg
 
The Mark isn't the greatest driving in snow but -20's C here last nite , doors were frozen shut again . I've had to replace both door handles over time when they snap trying to open the doors . Picked up some wd40 for the handles/latches and silicone spray for the door seals , hopefully that will solve the issue . Prying on the upper door frame while lifting gently on the handle wouldn't even work today , the latch just wouldn't release until being liberally doused with wd40 .
 
sweetride said:
The Mark isn't the greatest driving in snow but -20's C here last nite , doors were frozen shut again . I've had to replace both door handles over time when they snap trying to open the doors . Picked up some wd40 for the handles/latches and silicone spray for the door seals , hopefully that will solve the issue . Prying on the upper door frame while lifting gently on the handle wouldn't even work today , the latch just wouldn't release until being liberally doused with wd40 .
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If you want something to stay lubricated stay away from WD40 as it drys it (to do do its job) creates a sticky film.
 
slowmkviii said:
If you want something to stay lubricated stay away from WD40 as it drys it (to do do its job) creates a sticky film.
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Yes , the WD40 drys the lock/latch removing the moisture that froze the mechanism when the temp dropped to well below freezing .

The car is oil spray undercoated , has snow tires , i use the traction control and start off in 2nd gear on snow or ice .
 
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Lownslowlsc said:
It already has rust. It's not like he's taking a mint 10,000 mile #1 CE and making it his winter beater.
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UltimateSVT- I have 153k on my car. It is nice, but it has been driven. There is a small amount of rust on the rocker and by the windsheild. These were there before I bought it. It has dings and a bigger dent on the rt quarter. (6" long crease). She's not a museum piece, but above average for a 1998 car. I won't be driving it daily, as I use a company car during the work week. If I had the room, I'd buy a crappy Explorer for a winter beater. If I have to visit my relatives up north, I'll need to take my personal car. That was the reason for a Lincoln in the first place. A comfortable highway car. I love my car, and I'll do my best to keep it clean. I would never subject a low miles, flawless CE to the harsh Wisconsin winter. I don't mean to offend any one on here. The board has always been helpful and it's not my intent to ruin my Mark. Yes, that evap tray is what is rusted on mine. Where are you located. I'd like to have a nice one for my car. The one on the car currently looks like it's one bump away from falling off.
 
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