Weird T-Bird Part

Topic: Weird T-Bird Part (Read 3682 times) previous topic - next topic

Weird T-Bird Part

Reply #15 – July 25, 2006, 12:30:11 AM

Whats the other odd part?

Weird T-Bird Part

Reply #16 – July 25, 2006, 12:57:01 AM

As far as I know, the ONLY Fox car *excluding the Lincolns* to recieve a memory seat was the 1987 20th Anniversary Cougar.

Weird T-Bird Part

Reply #17 – July 25, 2006, 09:19:32 AM

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As far as I know, the ONLY Fox car *excluding the Lincolns* to recieve a memory seat was the 1987 20th Anniversary Cougar.

That's always been my assertion as well. Now, 20ths were all mid-year cars with production starting in Feb. 1987. They HAVE to have an E7 part number on that panel. That was a unique panel to the 20th so it warranted its own engineering. Plus, like I mentioned before, they all had power door locks. That panel I just bought cannot be for a 20th--wrong engineering year and wrong part for the car. It has to be for an '86 something. I don't know of any other Ford vehicle that used our door panel parts.

Weird T-Bird Part

Reply #18 – July 25, 2006, 10:06:11 AM

LTD? Stang'?

Weird T-Bird Part

Reply #19 – July 25, 2006, 04:04:49 PM

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They HAVE to have an E7 part number on that panel.

Even if engineering and tooling for it started in '86?

Weird T-Bird Part

Reply #20 – July 25, 2006, 04:11:12 PM

Quote from: Paul Flockhart

Even if engineering and tooling for it started in '86?

I have thought of that...it's possible...but again, all 20ths had power locks. The panel itself had an empty space for a switch built into the underside, since its debut in 1985 (which would technically give an E5 part number to the casting). This is a specific 1986 part from the engineering number. It was made specially for some reason. So filling that spot with the memory seat switch somewhere down the line, not a big deal. Finding the car that had this combination...that's proving to be more difficult.

Weird T-Bird Part

Reply #21 – July 25, 2006, 05:57:53 PM

Could it be a one off part from the factory?

Weird T-Bird Part

Reply #22 – July 25, 2006, 07:04:09 PM

Quote from: EricCoolCats

I have thought of that...it's possible...but again, all 20ths had power locks. The panel itself had an empty space for a switch built into the underside, since its debut in 1985 (which would technically give an E5 part number to the casting). This is a specific 1986 part from the engineering number. It was made specially for some reason. So filling that spot with the memory seat switch somewhere down the line, not a big deal. Finding the car that had this combination...that's proving to be more difficult.

There is the possibility that the part is an "engineering mule", although I don't know how it would end up all packaged up and in a parts department. When I worked at the Saturn dealership we were given an engineering mule, but it was a whole car. It was a 1997 Saturn SC1 (it was 1995 at the time). The car was basically a showroom ready pre-production vehicle except that it had been used for testing, so it was deemed not roadworthy. Normal companies would have sent it to the crusher, but Saturn distributed their mules to dealerships to create "cutaway" cars to show off the upcoming features. I got to cut the car up - a week of straight time labour during a normally slow period, and I got to destroy a car

The point I'm making, though, is that even though this car technicaly did not exist until 1997, every part on it was engineered and built in 1995 (or even earlier). Is it not possible that the part you have was manufactured in antition of Ford offering memory seats in all versions of the Bird and Coug and therefore made it with the lock delete (or, perhaps, a non-power-lock equipped 20th)? This wouldn't explain the part actually being offered for public sale, but it may have slipped through the cracks. If this is the case you might be in posession of one of the rarest parts for these cars in existence :D

Another possibility is that the part was intended for a different car line. I dunno if those panels were ever used in any other car, but I do know that even though the manual HVAC controller for 85-88 cars says "T-Bird/Cougar" right on it, you'll find the identical part in late 80's to early 90's Econoline vans, including the "T-Bird/Cougar" marking. It's not unimaginable that the panel could've been labelled as a T-Bird part but have been destined for, say, a Mark VII or Continental

Weird T-Bird Part

Reply #23 – July 25, 2006, 08:03:04 PM

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The point I'm making, though, is that even though this car technicaly did not exist until 1997, every part on it was engineered and built in 1995 (or even earlier). Is it not possible that the part you have was manufactured in antition of Ford offering memory seats in all versions of the Bird and Coug and therefore made it with the lock delete (or, perhaps, a non-power-lock equipped 20th)? This wouldn't explain the part actually being offered for public sale, but it may have slipped through the cracks. If this is the case you might be in posession of one of the rarest parts for these cars in existence

That is about my only conclusion. Except it's 1985 and 1987.

Ford assigns engineering numbers to parts to be manufactured well before the car actually is. Whether those parts actually make it to the final showroom-floor vehicles is another question altogether. In other words, you can have an official Ford part from a Ford vehicle, but that part may never have made it into the production car at all. This just may be one of those situations.

In any case...it's mine mine mine. Nyah. :flip:

Weird T-Bird Part

Reply #24 – July 25, 2006, 09:03:58 PM

Thats parts pretty cool but....whats it good for!? Its cool that its rare but it has absolutely no use to anybody really. I must ask how and where do you find something like that?

Weird T-Bird Part

Reply #25 – July 25, 2006, 09:25:33 PM

Actually, you never know if it could be usefull to someone.... just because no one is sure exactly what car it comes from, doesn't mean that eventually they won't find out.

Weird T-Bird Part

Reply #26 – July 25, 2006, 09:53:13 PM

...Or add the function to their own car :p Although I can't imagine adding the memory seat but not adding power locks...

Weird T-Bird Part

Reply #27 – July 26, 2006, 12:40:04 AM

who knows maybe a one off sliped off the line 20th no power options only the seat. would seem pretty dumb.

i have seen an optionless cougar? tan on tan. manual interior everything even the morrors. not even a tape deck just an am fm radio. which i grabed just bc it's so weird not seening a tape player.

and wasnt the tan interior a verry uncommon color mostly found only in the 20th their it was sitting in a junk yard . in a no options car lol. i love how these cars came optiond

Weird T-Bird Part

Reply #28 – July 26, 2006, 11:44:40 AM

-i don't know if this helps or no eric, but

#1. it wont even pull up on the current ford computer catalogs...

#2. thank goodness for microfische....

according to the final issue of ford microfische dated november '93,
e6sz-14b089-c was the lh door lock switch cover plate for 85 thru 89 thunderbirds/cougars with OUT power equipment, with memory seats. could have been any model (base, lx,ls,etc) as long as it was thusly equipped. we have an old paper pricing book from 1997 (which ford did away with in 2000) and the number you have was not in there, which meant that it had been obsolete from ford for at least 2 years then. the e6sz-a had a retail of $26 then, and the e6sz-b had a retail of $30 . the a being a blank one(no equip at all) b being w/power, no memory... hope this helps....
-stu:locked:

Weird T-Bird Part

Reply #29 – July 26, 2006, 12:56:20 PM

Oh that definitely helps, Stu...thanks! You sure it's listed for 1989? Because I don't think that panel was the same on the MN12 cars. Anyhow...looks to be a legitimate part. BTW, I have that microfiche set also, just no reader. :(

I'm going to call 'mystery solved' on this one. It exists, could be ordered for a brief period, but was never really used on the cars. Cool!

Y'all ready for the next one?