The SHADOW'S 1998 LSC

J

JEFFSHADOW

Registered
I purchased my 1998 Mark VIII from Copart in Virginia for $350. Yes, it is now a salvage titled vehicle but I don't care. I did not want it to go to a junkyard. The area near the right C -pillar was slightly crushed and the moonroof was cracked. My brother drove it from Virginia to southern California in 2019. I had it repaired and painted by my dealership body shop only to discover that even though I told them the color was Charcoal Green, they repainted a portion of the car in some shade of "Green Charcoal"! So now I need to repaint the entire car and have it done right. It has only 67,000 miles and runs fine except for some squealing noise that decreases upon acceleration.
 
Welcome! :giggle:

I believe you have Color Code PZ, Medium Charcoal Green according to
https://www.lincolnsofdistinction.org/lincolntech/technical/colors.html

The squealing noise under deceleration could be a myriad of items, but I would suspect a belt driven accessory or pulley. If you can recreate the noise with the hood open by blipping the throttle, you may be able to ascertain the source. I would inspect the tensioner, tensioner pulley and/or idler pulley. Both the idler pulley and tensioner pulley should be the same and both are easy and economical to replace.

:ttiwwp:
 
Yes, I ascertained as much some weeks ago. The other problem with the LSC is a parasitic battery drain that kills the battery in three weeks. I installed a Motorcraft battery designed for this car two years ago and have to keep a battery tender on at all times to keep it charged. It is scheduled to go into a local shop this week or next, whenever the mechanic has space and time. The people at the last shop it went to said the under hood noise came from a cable from the leveling system that was scraped by the drive belt. The air lift system was removed before I got the car, and it has the aftermarket shocks on the rear. The "Air Ride System Off" and "Oil Change Due" lights continually trade on and off, even though an oil change was done five hundred miles ago. Perhaps the oil change sensor is based upon time and not just miles driven.
 
Welcome! Did you reset the oil change when you changed the oil? It does take time into account for the next oil change though. I wouldn't return the car to the mechanic that said "the cable from the leveling system that was scraped by the drive belt". I know of no such cable or drive belt on these cars. Around 40 mA current draw is normal for these cars when the main systems shut down after about an hour. I disconnect my battery when the car will be sitting for 3 weeks or more, it saves the battery.
 
Welcome, and congratulations on your new ride! You wouldn't be the first to find a nice Mark VIII on Copart.. :D I like that green, too. I had a '99 Town Car in the same color.

I'd second what Driller said for the squeal. If you have an automotive stethoscope, it should make tracking down that squeal pretty easy. I also would have my money on the idler(s) You'll have two. One bolts to the engine, the other is on the tensioner. If one is bad, I'd replace both. Low hanging fruit, and all that.

And definitely make with the photos. My car is sleeping soundly in the garage where it will remain for the foreseeable future.. We just got another 6" of snow yesterday. I have to live vicariously through those in nicer climates who can still drive these cars.
 
Welcome and do some searching and you'll find a lot of useful information on this site to keep your unique ride rolling for years to come and enjoy.
 
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