2001 Ford Crown Victoria

LX Sedan 4.6L V8

I purchased this 2001 Ford Crown Victoria 05/30/2015 for under $3k. Its history is documented extensively by the (one) prior owner. The car has 172,856 miles, but has been kept very clean.

Fun Facts:

Plans are for this to be a secondary (emergency) family-car if the Honda Odyssey is ever in the shop, but generally just to serve me on my daily 4-mile round-trip commute.


Helpful Pages/Forums


Fuel Economy

The original Ford window-sticker estimates 18city/25highway. Since the majority of my driving will be city (very short commute) I expect to net much less.

Fuelly

Maintenance

DateMileageMileage Since
Last Maintenance
Work/Cost/Notes
05/27/2024210,1224,462/14 monthsOil filter changed with WIX 51372
Oil change with Quaker State 5w20 Synthetic Blend
Rotated Tires (Back-to-Front, Front-Crossed-To-Back)
new front panel header (repair from hitting deer 2.5 years ago), new grill.
Engine code P0301 cylinder 1 misfire: replaced with Motorcraft SP493X
03/08/2023205,6305,111/16 monthsOil filter changed with WIX 51372
03/08/2023205,6305,111/16 monthsOil change with Quaker State 5w20 Synthetic Blend
03/08/2023205,6305,111/16 monthsRotated Tires (Back-to-Front, Front-Cross-to-Back)
11/17/2021200,5197,358/24 monthsOil filter change with WIX 51372
11/17/2021200,5197,358/24 monthsOil change with Quaker State 5w20 Synthetic Blend
11/17/2021200,5197,358/24 monthsRotated Tires (Back-to-Front, Front-Cross-to-Back)
10/20/2021200,000 Hit 200,000 miles.
10/01/2021  Replaced bad coil/ignition pack. Cleared error.
09/29/2021  Re-checked cylinder 2 spark plug after getting P0302 code again. Spark plug looked good still. Swapped the coil pack to the next cylinder to see if the misfire "follows" the coil pack.
Added 2 bottles (24oz each) of Lucas Transmission Fix to see if it helps with the shudder felt right around 45/50 which I am presuming from torque-converter lock-up.
09/19/2021199,407N/AReplaced cylinder 2 spark plug after receiving P0302 OBDII code. Motorcraft SP-493/AGSF-32P-M
09/15/2021199,012N/AReplaced windshield wiper blades with 22" Rain-X Weatherbeater wiper blades.
08/17/2021?Not sure, but headlight removed was stamped 2005; so it had been replaced at some point.Replaced headlights and side markers with Akkon kit from Amazon.com & Fahren LED headlights. After hitting a small deer recently, my passenger headlight was broken. Both headlights and side markers had long been cloudy, so I took this opportunity to replace them all.
07/15/2021197,7883,133 miles/8 monthsAdded AMSOil 10w30 (3 quarts).
03/11/2021195,345N/AInstalled airbags: AirLift 1000s due to sagging rear end/rake that has been noticed over the years. While I could replace the soft/"LX" rear springs, with how frequently I use my hitch-shelf or trailer they'd probably be sagging again. Also, airbags are cheaper.
11/09/2020194,6551,494 miles/12 monthsAdded AMSOil 10w30 (about 1 quart) & about 1/2 gallon of O'Reilly 50/50 coolant to overflow.
08/04/2020194,417AFAIK neverReplaced AC Compressor Relay ($9.99) & Did refrigerant addition using AC Pro kit ($45). AC probably had not been used since last summer since I rarely drove during day and then through fall/winter/spring used heat or just opened windows - so did not realize system was having any trouble until a week or two ago when I drove on a hot day and tried my AC.
11/17/2019193,16120,236 miles/53 monthsCoolant drain & replace with CarQuest 50/50 Conventional Green Prediluted Antifreeze/Coolant
11/17/2019193,16111,552Oil filter change with Mobil 1 Extended Performance M1-210A
11/17/2019193,16111,552Replaced Air Filter: Fram Extra Guard CA5056
11/17/2019193,1614,424Oil change with Quaker State High Mileage Synthetic Blend 5w-20
11/17/2019193,1614,424Rotated Tires (Back-to-Front, Front-Cross-to-Back)
03/27/2019189,xxxN/AInstalled Curt 13707 Class 3 2" trailer Hitch
12/29/2018189,089At least 16,233/43 monthsReplaced with Evertstart MAXX MAXX-65N
11/02/2018188,737?Replaced idler arm. Old one's bearings were toast.
10/28/2018188,7377,158Rotated Tires (Back-to-Front, Front-Crossed-to-Back)
10/28/2018188,7377,158Oil change with Quaker State High Mileage Synthetic Blend 5w-20
07/09/2017181,6094,861Rotated Tires (Back-to-Front, Front-Crossed-to-Back)
10/24/2017183,xxx?Replaced rear-passengerside window regulator. Cable/plastic wheel in old (factory?) one was dead and window would grind instead of raise/lower.
10/15/2017183,xxx?Replaced heater core. I had bypased it due to leaking back in February - it just now is beginning to get cold again. Replaced with MotorCraft HC-31
09/23/2017183,3291,720Added 1 quart Mobil 1 5w30 (what I had open/spare)
07/09/2017181,609?Replace Oil Pressure Switch (Gauge was "hopping around") with Ford/Motorcraft SW6357 Oil Pressure Switch
07/09/2017181,6094,861Oil change with Ford/MotorCraft 5w20 Synthetic
07/09/2017181,6094,861Oil filter change with WIX 51372 oil filter
07/09/2017181,6094,861Replaced Air Filter: FRAM CA5056
07/09/2017181,6094,861Rotated Tires (Back-to-Front, Front-Crossed-to-Back)
02/26/2017?N/ABy-passed heater-core. Heater-core had a slight leak (no wetness in-car, but white-smoke from front-passenger-side of engine bay and white smoke through defroster vents). No time to replacement it currently so bypassed until I can take a weekend to do this.
07/11/2016176,7483,823Oil change with Ford/MotorCraft 5w20 Synthetic
07/11/2016176,7483,823Oil filter change with WIX 51372 oil filter
07/11/2016176,7483,823Replaced Air Filter: FRAM CA5056
07/11/2016176,748?Rotated Tires (Back-to-Front, Front-Crossed-to-Back)
02/12/2016175,200?Added 1/2 quart AMSOil 10w30
01/09/2016174,741?Replaced front brake pads with Wagner MX748 ThermoQuiet pads ($27.79)
01/09/2016174,741?Replaced upper balljoints with MAS B8678 balljoints ($8.03/ea)
01/09/2016174,741?Replaced lower balljoints with MAS B8685 balljoints ($5.90/ea)
08/26/2015173,365?Replaced cylinder 7 spark plug after P0307/P0207 code $7.61
06/13/2015172,925?Oil change with Ford/MotorCraft 5w20 Synthetic $25.99
06/13/2015172,925?Oil filter change with Mobil M1-210 $12.99
06/13/2015172,925?Flushed coolant system with Advance Auto Parts Extended Life 50/50 $22.18
06/13/2015172,925?Replaced Intake Manifold: Dorman 615-175 $145.43
Old looked to be OEM - very common for these to crack at less than ~60k miles due to the plastic. This one cracked right at the thermostat housing - pictures from just post-sale show no crack so it developed recently. New part has aluminum near that point.
06/08/2015172,892?Replaced Air Filter: FRAM CA5056 $6.79
05/30/2015172,856N/APurchased.

Below this point are notes from prior owner

11/23/14170,590?Balance Tire
11/12/14170,390?Oil Change
11/12/14170,3901733Tire rotation
08/12/14168,657?Tire rotation
07/05/14?Coolant flushed
07/05/14?New Wipers