8/29/2019. From Facebook Page
https://www.facebook.com/Grassroots-Challenge-Cop-Car-104949444216532/?modal=admin_todo_tour
Al Bateman, Tom Doyle and Nick Nicaise. In two months, we will be heading to Gainesville Florida to enter the Grassroots Magazine $2000 Challenge. In this event you have to buy and modify a car to race and show for under $2000 total. The event includes a drag race, and autocross and a concours car show. We were at this event in 2003 and Al and his son David in 2004. This year we are heading back again in what was formally a 2004 Ford Crown Victoria Maryland State Police Cruiser purchased for $1000. It currently has 207K miles and needs a bit of spit and polish (though I think plenty of spit was included with the car). But that’s why they call it a Challenge. We’ll be posting to the site with updates and photos as the car becomes, if you’ll excuse the expression, race-worthy. Grassroots puts on a great event with fun being the main theme. Look for updates soon.
I've had three panther platform Fords, the first year LTD (79), a 93 and a 95 p71.
One of my favorite cars. The end of the production models like you have have the watts link rear end, rack and pinion steering, and the most horsepower that any of them got. It'll also have better brakes than the earlier ones. I'd love to have one with an eaton blower and a manual swap.
I won't be able to attend the challenge this year, but I'm looking forward to seeing more of this car here.
Welcome to the forum!
Fix the cigarette lighter...
OK! loving the panthers, I've had 1990, 2000, 2003 (Marauder), and a 2006.
Suggestions:
1.With 207K DEFINITELY no 5W-20 at the track, run 5W-30 Walmart synthetic or 15W-40 Rotella. With Motorcraft filter, no other type.
2.Tires are your biggest improvement here, either Nittos on all four corners, or find a set of Marauder 18" wheels.
3.Weight reduction? ha. The car weighs 4000 lbs. yank all the interior out you want if this is a track only beast...wont matter a whole lot. All the other seats, spare tire, floor covering that's about it....might be 200 lbs there... the door panels are light weight, as are the window motors, etc...so I'd quit there.
4.If you don't mind the possibility of walking home -get a 75 nitrous dry shot used, otherwise nothing much you can do to boost HP and stay within budget. For the drag strip portion only.
5.Paint -get some 2X rustoleum gloss black and activated clear from amazon, like 18 bucks a can for painting over the ugly olive green sections.
Good luck!
A vinyl cutter will get you to a cool John Player Special theme with little effort. "John Panther Special".
Nice car to start with! I think the 2004 is the first year of the improved transmission, and the last year with a cable throttle. Considered looking for one for rallycross at one point.
One vote for Smokey And The Bandit livery.
+ one million votes for "John Panther Special." Maschinenbau wins the Internet.
In reply to akamcfly :Ah, I knew there was something missing from my To Do list! Ha. Thanks for post.
8/16/19
Xxxxx delivered the car last night.
This morning my first look in the daylight. It’s kind of like Las Vegas in the early morning. You can’t believe it looked this good in the dark. So far I have found, in the trunk and back seat, a car battery, 3 gallons of coolant (not a good sign) and lift kit, (I’m assuming for 24” wheels) and loose change, a pack of unused condoms and flotsam of all shapes and sizes.
I stripped out the trunk insulation, the under hood insulation and some plastic trim (24 lbs.). On the good side, it starts right up, sounds good and drives around the block. There is a Wal-Mart oil change sticker that is new and shows Synthetic oil change. That’s a good sign.
8/17/19
It smells. I mean smells. It has 23 air fresheners in it. I’m not sure what is worse, the sweet sickening air freshener smell or what it might be masking. The decision to completely gut the interior became easier. For a while, I went back and forth or how much to do to it for the Challenge. I was considering making it resalable when I came home, assuming nothing blew up. But eventually, the smell was overpowering enough for a complete interior gut. Once I decided that, the project became fun.
8/19/19
Starting with shop vacuuming pounds and pounds of debris. On the bad side, I’ve found dozens of pencils, pens, plastic bottle caps, food wrappers, an additional car battery, 3 gallons of coolant and enough change to half fill a coffee can (I’m running them through the parts washer first).
8/21/19
Finally cleared away, enough debris to take out the front and rear seats. The bolts were covered in God knows what and I couldn’t get a socket on them. Found that the Passenger side air bag had been deployed and shoved back under the cover.
Get an ozone generator for the smell....79 bucks on amazon. Run it inside the car with the ac fan on full blast 1 hr...all stink will be gone.
In reply to Agent98 :
Thanks but we've just gutted the interior (see future post) and Im leaving all the windows down (dry Fall in Baltimore). Thanks for the post and tip.
8/29/19
Installed junkyard seats. They feel firm and don’t smell (always a plus in used upholstery). Started making small plates and riveted them to body covering holes from multiple cop antennas. I used the lower baking drawer from a discarded oven for the sheet metal. Removed 10 lbs. more of insulation under dash. Al found some scrap bar for harness bar support and we’ll be using part of the roll bar we used in the 2003 Challenge for the bar itself.
Latest update on our Cop Car. Cashed in the change found under the seat at Coinstar, $24.46. Not bad.
Then found a very clean set of 17” wheels and tires on Facebook Marketplace at a good price from a nice young guy in Towson.
Ordered a 20’ piece of .120 mild steel tubing for harness bar and supports.
Pulled several pounds of wire from aftermarket sound system.
And finally... replaced the child’s swing chain that supported the left exhaust system with a real exhaust hanger (in a box) I bought in the 1970s at Western Auto.
OjaiM5
Reader
9/9/19 7:15 p.m.
Has that Hertz gt350 / Smokey Yunick thing going for it for sure.
The trunk picture gives me anxiety however, this VIC has great potential!
It's got a cop motor, a 4.6 plant, it's got cop tires, cop suspensions, cop shocks. What do you say, is it the new $2000 Challenge or what?
