Bill's Corner

Hi Bill -

I have been working on my 1970 Mark III and have almost removed the cover under the hood where the heater core is located. It leaks and I want to either repair or replace it. I thought I would check out the evaporator as well. The manual I have been using tells me that there are two studs on the inside of the fire wall and that when I take the nuts and washers off, the evaporator can be removed. I have removed the glove compartment container and all I can see are wires, connectors and vacuum hose. Can you give me some direction on where to look for these studs? Also, what manual would you recommend for this repair?--maybe my manual does not show or tell me enough.

Thanks,

Gregg in Temple City, CA

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Hey Gregg -

The heater core leaks are popular but the evaporators have proven to be durable. If you would like to remove yours there are indeed two studs located under the dash as explained in the FoMoCo manuals that we sell and recommend. For your convenience we are including an attached picture from the 69 Mark III manual that shows these studs. If you require any further information or any parts etc., please don't hesitate to contact us.

Sincerely,

Bill

Posted by Bill at 11:51 AM | Permalink
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I am considering purchasing a '72 Mark IV that I test drove today from a local dealer. It has an issue that I would like some information about, though. The "Sure-Track" light is on in the instrument cluster.....I understand that it is brake related, but what would cause the light to be on, the brakes seemed to work pretty well.

Thanks,

Tom C.

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Hi Tom,

That light usually illuminates because of a hydraulic pressure differential between the front and rear brakes and could indicate a leak or a bad master cylinder. To prove that this switch is in fact turning on the warning light because of a problem you can unplug the wiring at the switch and observe if the light remains on.

The switch and wires should be easily seen under the master cylinder in the brake line. If the light goes out, it may be indicative of a brake problem or that the switch is sticking after a previous repair. If the light remains on, you could be experiencing a problem with Sure Track module itself.

Brake procedures and warning light operations are outlined in the shop manual. If you need further information, parts or manuals please contact us at any time. Good luck.

Sincerely

Bill

Posted by Bill at 9:11 AM | Permalink
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We recently saw a Post on the LCOC (Lincoln Continental Owner's Club) from another satisfied customer here at Lincoln Land, it's always nice when someone stops and takes the time to acknowledge our efforts to keep all these classic Lincolns on the road - so we thought we'd share....

Bill

I know exactly where you're coming from, having had a lot of frustrations with power steering pumps myself. Don't want to go through all that right now, but I finally got smart (and shelled out some bucks) and had Lincoln Land rebuild my pump.

Regards, Dirk

Posted by Bill at 1:18 PM | Permalink
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Hello Bill,

I have a 63 Continental. The previous owner had installed a small pump that runs along the undercarriage of the car to deliver the fuel to the engine. He said that it was common for these cars not to get enough fuel through the factory fuel pump; he mentioned that the Thunderbird had the same issue.

The pump is activated by a switch inside the car, if I turn it off the car starts to shut down. Does this mean that this pump is the only way the car is getting fuel, and not through the regular fuel pump or sending unit? Your suggestions would be helpful. Should I live with it, after all it works. Or should I correct it to what it should be. Or what is the problem with the car not getting enough fuel on its own without the help from this pump?

Thanks you for your thoughts!

Robert

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Greetings Robert -

Yes it does sound as if your electric pump is the only source of fuel supply for the engine. The original fuel pump set up on that engine did indeed have some unique problems. These problems and any other concerns however are easy to overcome with proper upkeep of the vehicle. That is to say "address concerns as soon as they appear".

Assuming that your Lincoln has all of its original fuel system equipment I would restore it as the primary fuel supply and keep the electric pump as a back up. Many of our Lincoln friends do this and it works out very well. At Lincoln Land we normally stock the necessary parts and manuals for the fuel system restoration for your car.

Please contact us for further information regarding this matter and we will be pleased to supply you with any parts, information and help that you may require.

Sincerely,

Bill

Posted by Bill at 11:41 AM | Permalink
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Hi Bill,

I recently purchased a 1961 Lincoln Continental convertible for my business to use for wedding chauffeur service. It is a beautiful white convertible that has some real appeal for weddings. The car has a recently rebuilt 430 engine (<3000 miles) and most of the components on it have been rebuilt or replaced with new parts. When I bought the car it had a Holley electric fuel pump providing the fuel to the otherwise stock fuel system and carburetor. The fuel pump is located inside the engine bay on the driver-side fender near where the fuel lines enter the engine bay. The Holley was pushing the fuel through the original Carter 3 port fuel pump which was still on the engine, but the push rod had been removed. When I drove the car from Georgia (where I purchased it) to Dallas Texas, I noticed every time I would stop somewhere for a few minutes (10 to 30 minutes), when I would start the car back up, it would start just fine, but after a minute or two the car would sputter and die. Then it would be very hard to start, and acted and smelled like a flooded engine. I had to hold the pedal down and crank it over many times with the throttle opened wide before it would finally sputter and start. Once it was restarted it ran fine, but it would darn near deplete the battery each time I had to start it that way. Also the fuel pump would be quite noisy after retorting (possible cavitation). So it definitely seemed like a vapor lock or heat soak related issue as the car started perfectly every time when cold.

When I got the car back to Dallas I disabled the electric pump (by disconnecting the wire) and put in a new push rod for the mechanical pump. I also rebuilt the fuel pump with a kit I purchased from you guys. When I put the rebuilt pump back in the car along with the new pushrod, initially the car would not start. So I plugged in the electric pump to "prime" the mechanical pump. I then disconnected the electrical pump and the car started like a champ. I turned the car on and off several times in the garage and the mechanical pump seemed to work fine. A week or so later I drove the car to a friends place and after talking with him for 20 minutes I came out started the car and left. About 2 minutes down the road it sputters and dies. Same problem, but now with the mechanical pump. I also have noticed that the car smells strongly of gasoline when it is parked hot. Now my question to you is how to best remedy this problem.

Here are some other things I observed that may be relevant. When I rebuilt the fuel pump, I noticed in the shop manual that the original fuel pump is supposed to have a thermostatic valve installed behind the third (return port fitting) on the fuel pump. Mine did not have this thermostatic valve. I also noticed the rebuild kit did not have one. Is this valve needed? Also all my fuel lines are rubber from the fender to the pump to the carburetor. Should I use metal lines instead? Would using a phenolic spacer under the carburetor help? Also could the air filter box valve be sticking and causing these kinds of problems? I noticed the air cleaner box looks like it is pulling air from the exhaust manifold area when the car is cold. I have not managed to check it yet hot.

Any how, because of the nature of my business I need this Lincoln to be very reliable. Brides are not happy when their get away car dies on the road in front of all their wedding guests. Any help is appreciated.

Chris

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Greetings Chris -

Problems such as you describe are sure no fun but I can assure you that when these cars were new and plentiful they did not drive around with such fuel and vapor lock type of symptoms. Your Lincoln appears to maybe have at this time more than its share though. Because you have recently purchased this vehicle it is more difficult for you to diagnose with limited maintenance history available. We always recommend restoring the original fuel delivery and carburetor to the original set up and using the electric pump as a backup only. You seemed to have begun doing this already.

The first item that I would address is the strong fuel smell. Any fuel leaks are not allowed and as you probably know, they can accelerate with devastating results. A complete fuel system inspection is in order by a technician who is well versed in such problems. If the fuel smell is from the carburetor for instance it may indicate that a carburetor cleaning and overhaul is overdue or that the fuel pressures are too high.

On the other hand if you have a rotted, cracked or corroded fuel line or hose, the pumps can draw in some air with the fuel when operating and then leak fuel when the engine is turned off. If the complete system is examined and evaluated as suggested above I am sure that you will find some easy to repair faults.

To answer your specific questions, the thermostatic valves are recommended and always in place on any pumps or vehicles that we deal with. Proper coded rubber fuel lines are allowed because of the necessary flexibility that is needed between the body and the engine.......but for the most part steel lines are used on the engine from the pump to the carburetor because of durability and heat. The carburetor should have all of the original spacers and air intake systems.

After reading the above Chris please contact us for further specific information and I am sure that we can help get you back on the path of happier driving.

Sincerely,

Bill

Posted by Bill at 11:28 AM | Permalink
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Bill -

I don't know how you feel about modifying a stock Lincoln. Mine is black with a white top. I'd like to remove my vinyl top and just go with a painted roof. My white top is in good shape and I could just have it painted or dyed black but I'd prefer a vinyless top. I'm wondering what's under the top. Are the body seams filled or not. Will the window trim for a car with vinyl top mount flush with the roof with the vinyl removed?

Mike

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Greetings Mike -

Personally I wouldn't touch a factory vinyl top that is in "good shape". Generally though the seams are only roughly prepared for the vinyl top cars at the factory but of course there is always is the exception. The rear window mouldings are very likely different I am told but we would probably have the correct ones in stock for you if required. I would recommend that you also consult a local upholstery or body shop as well. Good luck with your project.

Sincerely,

Bill

Posted by Bill at 12:52 PM | Permalink
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HI Bill,

I have a 1979 Mark V Collector's Series, starts and runs great. A year ago after sitting a week it took 12 gas pedal pumps to start. This year, when it sits for a week, it takes up to 25 pumps and then starts and runs great. I can live with this, but it sounds like a problem in the making. What do you think?

Thanks,

John

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Hi John -

Yikes,... if they all started like that we would all have sore right ankles. Not knowing your car, it sounds like the basic tune up items should be examined first.

Without starting the engine, begin with a cold engine and the air cleaner top off and observe if the choke butterfly closes completely and with a definite action on the FIRST pump of the accelerator. Then look inside the carburetor while pumping the linkage and observe the underside of the choke for fuel spraying into the lower part of the carburetor. I trust that your fuel is fresh. If you have poor fuel delivery you must consider the condition of the fuel filter and fuel pump, etc. Repair any items that prove faulty during the above tests.

If all of the above is satisfactory then you may need to examine the spark plugs and wiring as well as possibly the complete ignition system. Because we at Lincoln Land don't know the condition of your engine or its history of repairs and maintenance, only the technician on scene with your car can determine the exact correct path to take. By the sound of your description though it does sound to me without being there that it is only a simple sticking choke problem. In this business however we have learned that - "It ain't over till it's over". Good Luck on a real speedy repair.

Sincerely,

Bill, Chris and all of the Guys and Gals at Lincoln Land

Posted by Bill at 1:35 PM | Permalink
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Bill -

I have a 1969 Mark III, the air conditioner works okay but when I attempt to change the temperature I get absolutely no heat or temperature change. The system works in defrost also but with no heat at all. The water valve to the heater core stays open when I call for heat. Any ideas?

R.J.

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Greetings R.J.,

Assuming that your car has the more popular Automatic Temperature Control option I can tell you that it is a great system but can be complicated to diagnose and repair without the proper Manuals.

The most likely cause of your problem is a failure that is located inside of the ATC box that has caused the system to drive to the full cooling mode and remain in this mode regardless of the position of your control. A less likely failure could be the sensor string (these are sensors that are in a series circuit with the driver's control that send temperature information to the ATC box so that it can react to deliver the correct air temperature, etc. to the car's interior as selected). A broken wire in this string will send the system into the full Heat but a shorted wire or sensor will send it into the full Cooling position.

Other easier to check possibilities are as follows....Heater core bypassed due to coolant leak at core, Heater core completely plugged, water valve plugged on the inside or water valve incorrect. The main control switches can also be at fault but their failure is rare. Another thought to consider if you do not have much history on the car is the possibility that a previous owner or his technician may have tried some unknown ill advised repair and has altered the system in an unknown manner. This can and does happen.

It may be of interest to know that when these systems were new it proved to be a challenge for the FoMoCo and the dealer technicians such as myself to learn the diagnostic and repair techniques. Proper diagnosis is half the battle. Now forty years later we are learning something new almost every day at Lincoln Land when it comes to repairing the earlier electronic systems such as this is.

The real good news is that we at Lincoln Land have all of the parts and supplies to repair your ATC as well as the ability to rebuild your ATC box and Servo. If you are doing your own repairs, we can supply you with the very necessary and highly recommended shop manuals for your Mark III. We wish you a quick and easy repair.

Sincerely,

Bill and the Lincoln Land staff

Posted by Bill at 9:42 AM | Permalink
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Hi Bill,

I have a 1970 Mark III with an inoperable fuel gauge. The needle always sits on empty no mater what quantity of fuel is in the tank. What do I need to do to diagnose and fix this problem?

Thanks,

Patrick

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Hello Patrick -

If the Temperature and Oil Pressure gauges are working, the best and easiest place to start is at the Fuel Tank gauge electrical plug.

With the key on probe the three female pins on the plug with a grounded test light. One pin will have continuous power, one will be flashing and one will have no power. Have someone watch the Instrument Panel Fuel Gauge as you momentarily ground the flashing pin to the car body. The gauge needle should rise quickly to full. DO NOT leave this pin grounded - if you do, you run the chance of burning out the gauge.

If the gauge does not rise or you do not have flashing power at one of the female pins, you will need to repair the fuel gauge circuit or the gauge itself as per the shop manual.

If the gauge at the dash does rise then you need to repair the Sending Unit in the tank or its ground wire (which is the female pin at the above plug) that has no power with the key on.

Most problems are in the tank Sending Unit or its float. Lincoln Land does offer repair service for these and the other components in this circuit. Good Luck and let us know how the repair goes.

Sincerely,

Bill

Posted by Bill at 1:58 PM | Permalink
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Greetings Bill,

I currently live in Seattle and drive my Lincoln at least once a day. The engine has 116K actual miles and runs like a champ. In the mornings, or when it is cold the engine fires with one turn of the ignition no problem, starts every time. Upon warming the vehicle up it smokes a slight bit. It isn't burning off coolant, so I don't think it's the head gasket and the smoke doesn't smell burnt either and typically burns off after a couple of minutes and then nothing.

Also after I drive the vehicle for awhile and the engine is up to temp if I start the engine it takes a while to turn over but only when it's hot not cold which doesn't make sense to me. You figure it would be the opposite.

I have a few questions:

1) What do you think is generating the smoke?
2) Why does my engine start better cold then warm?

As always thank you for your help.

Sincerely,

Justin

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Hi Justin -

Your engine condition and tune up situation should be evaluated by a competent technician. Some engines at 116,000 miles are like new, and others may have worn engine parts depending on their previous use and maintenance. Your problems may only be caused by simple maladjusted components or possibly worn engine parts (valve seals, rings etc.). Only a person on scene with your car can determine this. I would approach each problem separately and with the proper manuals at my side.

Good Luck....

Bill

Posted by Bill at 12:11 PM | Permalink
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