NHTSA Complaint #718957 — 1991 LINCOLN CONTINENTAL

SHORTLY AFTER COMPLETE TRANSMISSION, MOTOR MOUNTS, AND POWER STEERING REPLACED,THE ENGINE HEAD GASKETS FAILED, ONCE AGAIN CONTRBUTING TO A POTENTIAL ACCIDENT. WHILE RTURNING HOME FROM BABTSITTING MY GRANDDAUGHTER I WAS ALARMED BY DRIVERS GOING THE OPPOSITE WAY BEEPING AT ME. ONE FINALLY ROLLED DOWN HIS WINDOW AND YELLED THAT I WAS SMOKING SO BADLY I WAS BLOCKING EVERYONES VIEW. I LOOKED BACK TO SEE A DENSE CLOUD OF STEAM COVERING BOTH LANES OF TRAFFIC BEHIND ME. CARS WERE AT A STANDSTILL UNTIL THE STEAM DISSIPATED. I PULLED OVER AND SHUT DOWN. WATER WAS POURING OUT OF ONE OF THE DUAL EXHAUST PIPES. A MOTORIST STOPPED AND OFFERED A LIFT BUT I WAS ONLY A FEW BLOCKS FROM HOME. HE WENT ON TO TELL ME HIS SISTER HAD THE SAME THING HAPPEN TO HER WINDSTAR MINIVAN ON A TRIP TO MAINE AND THE CAR WAS ONLY 45 THOUSAND MILES OLD. HE SAID IT WAS DEFINITELY MY HEAD GASKET, WHICH TURNED OUT TO BE CORRECT. HE ALSO SAID THAT THE FORD 3.8 LITER ENGINE IS A DEFECTIVE DISASTER ESPECIALLY WHEN USED WITH FRONT WHEEL DRIVE. WITH RESPECT TO THE UNDERDASH ELECTRICAL PROBLEM IT WAS A DISTRACTING WARNING CHIME AND OIL PRESSURE INDICATOR WHICH WOULD BEEP WITHOUT PROPER CAUSE ON AN INTERMITTANT BASIS. OIL PRESSURE WAS INDEED OKAY AND THE SENDING UNIT WAS REPLACED TO NO AVAIL. ONLY WHEN AN ENTIRE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER WAS REPLACED DID THIS LONGSTANDING DISTRACTION GO AWAY. MY SON-IN-LAW IN OCTOBER OF '99 TOOK OUT THE ORIGINAL CLUSTER WHICH HAD THE ODOMETER READING OF 64740 ORIGINAL MILES AND REPLACED IT WITH ONE FROM AN AUTO WRECKING YARD WHICH WAS POSSIBLY FROM AN EARLIER YEAR CAR. THE REPLACEMENT MODULE READ 131200 MILES. IN FEBRUARY OF 2000 I GAVE THE CAR TO MY DAUGTER AND SON-IN-LAW. THE TITLE HAS BEEN ANOTATED WITH THE NEW ODOMETER READING AS "NOT THE ACTUAL MILEAGE". THIS FAULTY CHIME / GAUGE IS ALSO A COMMON DEFECT IN THESE CARS I AM TOLD. IT CAN BE A DANGEROUS THING WHEN IT OCCURS WITHOUT WARNING (NO PUN INTENDED) .