New to the SHO World...Questions!!!

[jasper96]

Hey folks,

I just picked up a 96 SHO wih 86k miles on it and had some questions/concerns...

First the important stuff...

Transmission...Should i get it flushed and filter change and all that at a dealership or try it myself?
It shifts fine and all, but want to do some preventive maintenence as I don not have the history of the car.

Engine...I have read a great deal about the engine, the cams concern me as it has 86k on it and i think it is a ticking time bomb! I live within 10 minutes of FPS OF ATLANTA!!!

Keyless entry pad...I think there is a short in it and it will light up if i press a certain spot on the pad...replacement? Any ideas?

CD Changer... Has one in the trunk, put cd's in...nothing! It is not a neccessity, but would like it fixed or replaced...i read about the explorer replacement...what year and model?!?

Dome light or cover behind the sunroof...It is missing...big hole where you can see the sunroof motor and stuff...any idea where to get a replacement or what the part number may be???

Evereything else seem perfect except the loud ass tires...working on that also!

Oh and finally a question on engine temp...Should it fluctuate as i am sitting and driving in city traffic??? I watched it go up a good bit...not past the midway mark, but the fans kick in and cool it back down pretty well, is this normal or do i need to flush the radiator???

Thanks for any help or input!!

 

[NebraskaSHO]

Welcome jasper96

Yes try to flush all the fluids in the car if you have no previous history of it. Transmission flush took me 4 hours, but i'm slow, and around 100 bucks for fluid and filter. I'm still yet to flush the PS fluid but that's going to get done here as soon as school is out

If your that close to FPS in Atlanta have them do it, they're one of the best I've heard.

I'm not sure about the keypad on the door, I have never used mine. Also the cd changer, maybe v8sho.com could point you in the right direction on those two.

The sunroof motor cover is sometimes on eBay.

Don't have mud tires on there do you?

Last note I don't have the temp. fluctuating ever. It always points to about the 24 mph mark I believe. Either in town or highway. Maybe your radiator has debris on it and needs to be washed out?

Again welcome to a group of very knowledgeable people, I've only been here since August and have learned a TON.

 

[SNOOT]

JFYI This guy on e-bay right now has a ton of used parts for a 96 SHO. I have bought parts from him in the past and he is great to work with..

http://motors.search.ebay.com/_W0QQsassZmidnightautoparts

 

[avocadoman1]

Transmission...Should i get it flushed and filter change and all that at a dealership or try it myself?
It shifts fine and all, but want to do some preventive maintenence as I don not have the history of the car.

Keyless entry pad...I think there is a short in it and it will light up if i press a certain spot on the pad...replacement? Any ideas?

CD Changer... Has one in the trunk, put cd's in...nothing! It is not a neccessity, but would like it fixed or replaced...i read about the explorer replacement...what year and model?!?

Dome light or cover behind the sunroof...It is missing...big hole where you can see the sunroof motor and stuff...any idea where to get a replacement or what the part number may be???

i'll speak to four of the points:
tranny: get a cooler!
keyless pad: junk yard
dome light cover: junk yard
cd changer: United Radio is the place to start. call them. you will send in yours minus the cartridge and they will send you a refurbished/wannanty'd one (plug & play) for about $125. i found it's the quickest, cheapest, and most reliable. only place in the country that i could find after much research.

 

[jasper96]

Thanks for the ebay link and the radio link...ebay has the keypad!!! Gonna try and snag it.


The tranny cooler, any suggestions on where to mount it and where to get one?

Gonna check the cams and see how they look, possible they are welded being I got the car around here...which is near fps...who knows...

Thanks for the help.

 

[dmjarosz]

Tranny cooler: crown vic. w/ law enforcement package (comes with a p/s cooler too)
As for CD changer: the one that came with my car was a piece of garbage. It skipped when the car hit even the smallest of bumps, it didnt play burned CD's, etc... My friend has a 2003 taurus and his has the same problem. From here I saw 2 options. 1) there are several companies that make controller boxes that enable you to hook up an aftermarked CD changer and still use the factory changer controlls. 2) I actually found it WAY cheaper to remove the changer all together and wire in my iPod mini through the tape deck connections...
Cooling temp: Id say flush coolant and replace the thermostat. FYI: my temp never fluctuates no matter what conditions are like.

 

[somedude_001]

on the tranny cooler note. don't bypass your radiator the fluid goes through the radiator to warm up to operating temp running it too cold can be a hastle. (dave) when installing your tranny cooler make sure the fluid goes through in this order.

exit tranny, aux cooler,,,, radiator,,,,,,,,, tranny return
....hot...........cold......operating temp...happy tranny

 

[jasper96]

good info guys...

thanks for the info on the cooler and the cd changer stuff...

the temp varies here and there...i noticed that when i had the a/c on it stayed perfectly fine...even in traffic. Now, with the windows were down and stuck in traffic, it started to fluctuate, so i took it out of gear and it started to cool off...

Seems like the tranny is putting off too much heat! I am getting a full drain and flush on the tranny and the radiator.

Man i hate buying a car that i am not sure about mechanically...i am scared about the cams!

The engine runs great, no miss or anything, but the way it sounds, it can just happen!

Tire suggestions???? I am on a bit of a budget, not looking for high speed performance, just a good decent rated tire for road rage, that does not sound like damn mud tires!

The current tires are stock size: Nitto nt450 up fornt and falken ziex502 in the rear...The nitto's have wear on the inside and sount like i am in a 4 wheel drive!!

The falken's are brand new and they are pretty noisy as well.

Like i said, just need some good all purpose tires with a decent performance rating.

Thanks for all the help!

 

[SHOZ123]

The radiator adds no heat to speak of to the tranny fluid as the radiator tranny cooler Hx is on the cold side of the radiator.

Gen 2 ATX coolers are the best and easiest for the Gen 3. But the biggest gain can be had by replacing the steel factory tranny cooler lines with 3/8" hose and the fittings coming out of the tranny with 1/4" mNPT x 3/8" brass hose barbs drilled out to 7/16".