Upper Plenum removal problem & Stickers question

[93LSPssp]

Hello guys,

Been here a while, quietly lurking and absorbing knowledge as I slowly finish the final engine detail on my 93 Louisiana State Police SSP. It's all coming together as I have almost all of the engine/front end/suspension components off and restored ready for reassembly.

I've Googled this question and searched it here with no real results, so I figured I would just exhibit my ignorance and ASK anyway! No doubt someone here has done this already.

I am a fairly good mechanic on the outside of an engine and I've done complete frame offs restos of a couple of cars but I got a bolt/nut problem here that is driving me bananas. I finally had to quit and walk away from it to keep my cool.:No no:

The LAST nut/stud that retains the upper plenum to the lower intake, rear, pass side against the firewall. Got the nut off the stud, but there is a "U" shaped bracket stabilizer for the PCV/pollution crossover tube there, and to save me I can't get enough give or slack to get the thing out of the way. It 's blocking final removal of the upper plenum. :headscratch:

I've taken several 5.0's apart in the yards on CV's and GM's, but I just don't recall this being a problem. A Mustang thing?

So I ask, is there a special trick to this? It wouldn't seem so. Do I have to release the tube from it's other mounting points on the sides of the block? I've tried prying on the thing with a pry bar but I'm amazed at how solid it is.

Any guidance here would be appreciated.

About the stickers: I am trying my best to maintain/retain/document all the original factory markings and stickers on my car as it is fairly well unmolested. Some are fouled by the usual engine contaminants or exposure or age. I'd like to know how anyone else has attacked this part of a resto.

Try to save them and re-apply? Ignore them? Replicate them? Does anyone replicate these markings that anyone is aware of? Thanks again!!

[GSPI]

Well D,

Welcome aboard! The decals are available aftermarket from a few suppliers of Mustang parts (NPD and FMR for example).

Document as you would have done your others with photos and then try to replicate the rest. Most of the paint markings have been replaced with serialized part numbers on most components if that's what you are talking about. Others can join in on this as I'm new to this stuff too.

Looking forward to seeing your car done!:thumbsup:

[MOstang]

Welcome and while I can't help further on the questions I'm sure others here will. Are you the one who recently posted on their LSP SSP progress over on CCDC? If so that's a nice looking car. :2thumbs:

[FHP813]

Hello guys,

Been here a while, quietly lurking and absorbing knowledge as I slowly finish the final engine detail on my 93 Louisiana State Police SSP. It's all coming together as I have almost all of the engine/front end/suspension components off and restored ready for reassembly.

I've Googled this question and searched it here with no real results, so I figured I would just exhibit my ignorance and ASK anyway! No doubt someone here has done this already.

I am a fairly good mechanic on the outside of an engine and I've done complete frame offs restos of a couple of cars but I got a bolt/nut problem here that is driving me bananas. I finally had to quit and walk away from it to keep my cool.:No no:

The LAST nut/stud that retains the upper plenum to the lower intake, rear, pass side against the firewall. Got the nut off the stud, but there is a "U" shaped bracket stabilizer for the PCV/pollution crossover tube there, and to save me I can't get enough give or slack to get the thing out of the way. It's blocking final removal of the upper plenum. :headscratch:


So I ask, is there a special trick to this? It wouldn't seem so. Do I have to release the tube from it's other mounting points on the sides of the block? I've tried prying on the thing with a pry bar but I'm amazed at how solid it is.
!

There is another stud on the drivers side LOWER manifold that you have to loosen to be able to get the bracket out of the way.

[texunter]

Will you post pics of your car?

Cool to see another LSP.

Ted

[93LSPssp]

1) Thanks! I'll look for that bolt.

2) Yep, that's me too over there on CCDC.

3) Hi Greg!

4) Sorry to be short, on my way out the door, but here is a post of the car as it appeared returning from the paint shop this past spring.

All the interior stuff has been restored & made ready and I have just about everything I need in the way of the police accessories. All exterior trim has been restored too.

Currently, the entire front suspension is out of it for restoration, as well as all the front engine drive accessories and their attendant brackets, hoses & hardware for same. I have ALL of the suspension stuff done, but will not be re-installing it until I finish my detail of the lower half (Wheel wells, underside of motor & Trans) of the car.

It's been a long hot summer and I have also been working on two other project cars simultaneously but this one is finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. Thanks for the support and I will post newer and more extensive pics on Monday.

Have a good weekend guys.

[MOstang]

Can't wait to see the final results on this one! :southpark:

[texunter]

Do you have any idea what brand antenna goes in the center of the decklid?
Ted

[93LSPssp]

Do you have any idea what brand antenna goes in the center of the decklid?
Ted

No I don't as of yet. I have some of the antennas this car calls for, but not all. One of them is "U" shaped at the base and I have to figure that one out for sure.

Meantime, I know I've been absent since my last post (I DID get that pesky bracket removed) but I finally got the engine bay torn down so all that is left is the block and the one big wire harness that comes from the dashboard through the firewall. I've been busying myself refurbishing each separate component to almost new condition.

And I mean each and every nut, bolt, wire, wire harness, vacuum lines, hoses, EVERYTHING. I'll include one before & after pic so you can see and judge for yourself.

I have removed the front fascia too. To aid in resto of all the components hung on both sides of the rad spt. It also gave me a clear shot at my buck tags to get clean pics. So attached will be pics of my buck tags and some other kind of crude, big assy line tag made out of the top of a quart can lid.

The other two is a before and after of one of the a-arm & spindle assembly's so you can get a hint of how I spend my evenings and weekends.

[93LSPssp]

Also, has anyone else ever removed a thermacter air pump which was perfectly free in movement and then have it freeze up on the shelf?

The one on my 78 LTD 460 PI did it but I assumed it was because it sat on a shelf (indoors) for almost ten years.

I removed this one to restore it barely 5-8 weeks ago and it has also frozen up.

Perplexing.

I mean, it sits on the car (Mustang) in the yard for almost seven years, going very long periods between starts of the engine and it never froze up under THOSE conditions. I take it, clean it and restore it & box it up on the shelf and it seems it is froze solid in less than two months. Go figure.

I suppose I will have to disassemble it now and free it up. That's what I had to do on the LTD.

[mac88chp]

Ha! Welcome to the "paint can lid hanger club!" :)

http://www.specialservicemustang.net/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=3544&d=1319136983

Still attached no less...found mine under the carpet.

[GSPI]

Nice Job D! Looking great!

[texunter]

That bucktag shows to have a Memphis DSO???
Louisiana should be DSO 26.

[ssp91ssp]

Good Point Ted.. and Interestng.
Here are the tags of my old 91 DSO 23 car.
My carfax showes it started life in West Memphis Arkansas.
I could not find much info other than Arkansas did have maybe 3 Mustangs at one time ??
http://i558.photobucket.com/albums/ss28/alvar4/1107091030.jpg
http://i558.photobucket.com/albums/ss28/alvar4/1107091032a.jpg

[texunter]

Can you post a picture of the door tag?

[93LSPssp]

Hi again, Greg.

I hope you are enjoying your visit from a most cherished member of my family.;)

I don't know which Ford dealer specifically had the state contract that year, but it may be possible it was a dealer from the eastern Florida Parishes and they might or may have been under that Memphis DSO. Sometime in the past I think the Mississippi river used to be a divider between DSO districts.

My 78 LTD was purchased from Robertson Ford of New Orleans in that year and I believe the DSO on it was Memphis too. It was built in Louisville, Ky.

I am under the belief that they build most of these cars for the specific agencies that order them, right? Or do they just build a bunch of white ones and if they order white this is what they get equipped...however. No I think it must be the former. One agency may specify something as simple as power windows or not, and then there they'd be.

As it happens I do not have a pic of the door VIN tag (strange I have photokilled myself on any and all tags, stickers and paint marks I could find) but I don't have that one.

I will remedy that this weekend and post that pic on Monday.

[texunter]

What causes you to believe that is a Louisiana state police car?

[ssp91ssp]

Carfax time..:headscratch: ??

[93LSPssp]

What causes you to believe that is a Louisiana state police car?

Are you asking me? I bought it straight from the state at the Property Control auction in 03 or 04. It came with all kinds of paperwork and backup materials showing it to be a state police unit when new. The LSP kept it working it through different units, Starting at Troop F in 93 and last being with Gaming Enforcement sometime around 2000. It appears to have been held at HQ in Baton Rouge for whatever reason from then until they decided to surplus it in 03/04. (I can't recall exactly which without my file)

Then I found that pic that is on the web of "F-16", (copy attached) I printed it out and took it home and started comparing it to the car itself. The car has never been wrecked or repainted, and everywhere there is an antennae across the trunk lid, I found the imprints of that antenna's base or mount in the paint of the lid. The one on the left side has a "V" shaped base and that exact marking was in the paint surface at that exact spot. What cinched it for me was that in the pic you can see a small rectangular 'fish-eye' aftermarket mirror that had been applied by the first trooper to the upper inner RH corner of the driver's side door mirror. The tape that held that little mirror on is STILL on that mirror today, though the actual part itself is gone.

Finally, I also spoke to Lt. Col. Mitchell back when he was still head of patrol in 08. He had sought me out over a LSP 78 LTD I had previously restored. He was able to check the VIN and confirm it had been assigned new to Troop F Monroe, and he even supplied me with the trooper's name. In disassembly of the interior I found some misc. items still in the car referencing various businesses in the Monroe area.

Also attached is the promised pic of the VIN Data door sticker. Please let me know what it spells out if anything interesting.

[93LSPssp]

Also, what does '0006' after the DSO number mean if anything?

And is there any way to determine where it was built at?

I WISH I could find a build sheet but so far no luck at all.

[ImEvil1]

Also, what does '0006' after the DSO number mean if anything?

And is there any way to determine where it was built at?

I WISH I could find a build sheet but so far no luck at all.


006 is the order number. All built at Dearborn. Good luck finding the buildsheet...they are pretty cool pieces of documentation to have.

[texunter]

Are you asking me? I bought it straight from the state at the Property Control auction in 03 or 04. It came with all kinds of paperwork and backup materials showing it to be a state police unit when new. The LSP kept it working it through different units, Starting at Troop F in 93 and last being with Gaming Enforcement sometime around 2000. It appears to have been held at HQ in Baton Rouge for whatever reason from then until they decided to surplus it in 03/04. (I can't recall exactly which without my file)

Then I found that pic that is on the web of "F-16", (copy attached) I printed it out and took it home and started comparing it to the car itself. The car has never been wrecked or repainted, and everywhere there is an antennae across the trunk lid, I found the imprints of that antenna's base or mount in the paint of the lid. The one on the left side has a "V" shaped base and that exact marking was in the paint surface at that exact spot. What cinched it for me was that in the pic you can see a small rectangular 'fish-eye' aftermarket mirror that had been applied by the first trooper to the upper inner RH corner of the driver's side door mirror. The tape that held that little mirror on is STILL on that mirror today, though the actual part itself is gone.

Finally, I also spoke to Lt. Col. Mitchell back when he was still head of patrol in 08. He had sought me out over a LSP 78 LTD I had previously restored. He was able to check the VIN and confirm it had been assigned new to Troop F Monroe, and he even supplied me with the trooper's name. In disassembly of the interior I found some misc. items still in the car referencing various businesses in the Monroe area.

Also attached is the promised pic of the VIN Data door sticker. Please let me know what it spells out if anything interesting.

That is quiet interesting! Memphis is nowhere near louisiana. Im beginning to question whether or not my car is an LSP. My car has a DSO 26 so im confused.
I wish i had the documentation that you have...

[MOstang]

Very cool info to read on your LSP SSP...this will be fun one to watch take shape. :southpark:

[GSPI]

Also, what does '0006' after the DSO number mean if anything?

And is there any way to determine where it was built at?

I WISH I could find a build sheet but so far no luck at all.

I'm digging for mine too. I'll have to see if it's behind the quarter inserts below the side quarter windows next to the rear seat by any chance. Many here have suggested pulling the seats out and checking under the carpet in that area too.

[93LSPssp]

I'm digging for mine too. I'll have to see if it's behind the quarter inserts below the side quarter windows next to the rear seat by any chance. Many here have suggested pulling the seats out and checking under the carpet in that area too.

The only places I have NOT looked are behind the dash and in those areas near the quarter windows you mentioned. I've bought lots of Ford police cars over the years and this one is the most desolate with terms of build sheets I have ever encountered. On others I found them EVERYWHERE, multiple copies on one car. On this one, not ONE so far. It's almost like they did it to irritate me 20 years later.

I've had the seats out, the carpets out, all the interior plastic (except the dash & quarter plastic) and all to nothing. Not even a deteriorated copy.

Well, the headliner. I haven't removed that either, it's still in good shape. Anyone ever find one up there?

[Wolfe1013]

That is quiet interesting! Memphis is nowhere near louisiana.

Though I've never made the trip, I'm told Memphis-->New Orleans = 5 hrs. I've lived here 40+ yrs and have never been to Louisiana. Every other state in the south, though, and many out west.

I found my '91 Police Crown Vic's build sheet under the driver's seat. My dad just inherited my great uncle's mint '89 Grand Marquis w/42k original miles. I helped him drive it home and found its build sheet under the seat, as well. If Mustangs were that easy...

Nice project, btw.

Greg

[93LSPssp]

Texunter:

I saw a similarity between my SSP and yours: The radio mounting holes.

The first is my pic of my dash, with one large radio hole just under the windshield panel. It is 2" in size.

The second is the pic of your dash, and it has TWO 2" size holes in it. These holes were for the two-way radio harnesses. In the 89 (yours) they were undergoing a change from the old low band 39.5/39.3 frequency that used a old Motorola Motrac radio (the old Adam 12 style radio heads) and were just beginning the switch to 900mhz high band, using a Motorola Spectra system. So I figure yours has a hole for each of the two basic radios, one high, one low. They installed both systems in state cars for some years after the switch to maintain contact with agencies still on the old low band.

Mine had both ALSO, but by 93 the old low band was low priority, and so no longer regularly used except for as a tac frequency to talk to those other agencies that still operated on the old low band system. Thus it was installed low on the equipment 'tree', it not being the primary working radio as the 900 Spectra (then by 93) was that now got the prominent up high location.

Thus, just ONE hole up high for the 900 Spectra head.

I really do think you have a La. SSP. The radio holes along with the spot holes and the center of the roof (like mine) antenna all seems to match LSP equipment location specs too.

The THIRD pic is of the interior of a dk blue (Roemer) LSP 91 Cevy Caprice, showing their basic standard equipment installation layout of the day. Notice the Spectra head is up high, while the Motrac head is down low, actually on the side of the tranny hump near the accelerator pedal. It bears out my thinking I believe.

DSO codes CAN change in La. The bids go to dealers across the state from year to year, and I think all dealers east of the Mississippi river (Baton Rouge, New Orleans, etc) are under the Memphis DSO.

[texunter]

Thats an awesome and helpful pic of the caprice.

That would be the setup i should have.
My car has 14 holes in the trans tunnel right where that equipment tree would go.

Any idea what tree that is?

I see four mic's in that car and my car shows evidence of three antennas on the trunk lid and 1 on the roof so that jives too.

This is great info! Thanks so much D !

Ted

[93LSPssp]

Thats an awesome and helpful pic of the caprice.

Any idea what tree that is?

I see four mic's in that car and my car shows evidence of three antennas on the trunk lid and 1 on the roof so that jives too.

Ted

I have no idea exactly what manufacturer that tree is by. This was in the day when airbags had only JUST been introduced into police cars (90 for Ford, 91 for Chevy) and in addition, LSP still clung to the bench or 50/50 bench seat, so they needed an equipment rack to hold everything AND clear the airbag deployment zones. I do know that while it LOOKED kinda cool with all that stuff stacked up there like a fighter cockpit, the reality was that they became loose, noisy and they rattled. You had to tighten them up occasionally.

When manufacturers started building police package cars with buckets only (the 95 Caprice being the first LSP encountered I think) they pitched those 'trees'. Everyone else must have too. For that short period of 91-95 or so they were EVERYWHERE, but then they disappeared overnight. They must almost have been universally hated because I have searched high and low for one with almost no success. They crop up on eBay now and then but always seem to go quick before I can get it. I'm resigned to fabricating one for my 91 LSP LTD Crown Vic, and the 93 Mustang.

As to mikes, this was my friend's unit and he was a resident trooper at the time in Beauregard Parish out of Troop D, Lake Charles. So in addition to the new high band Spectra, and old low band Motrac, he also had a separate Motorola parish sheriff's radio supplied by them, a CB for interstate work, and finally a PA mike on the siren. So he actually had about FIVE different mikes in the car. AND a mounted cell phone. My SSP had all but the sheriff's radio too.

Personal side note the interior shot was my friend Steve Gray's unit, D-34. That pic was taken in late 1993. In 1994 he got a new WHITE (the return of vintage colors and markings) Caprice, and he was also subsequently killed in that vehicle in a LOD death responding to an accident with injuries in SE Calcasieu Parish, in May 1995.

He was a great friend to me and just a good man. He was also an excellent state trooper and LEO.

[texunter]

Im very sorry to hear about your loss.

I too will scour ebay for a tree. Thanks for any and all help.
Ted

[texunter]

Does your car have aftermarket cruise control?

One more, do you know where the siren was?
Looks like it was controlled by a motorolla syntor?

[93LSPssp]

No cruise.

The sirens up to right now are all the self contained separate units. All I have ever seen in LSP units are self contained separate ones. Even now with the Syntors and the ability to use the in-head unit option for sirens they still use a separate Whelen 295SL or something similar.

In the 88-93 period it was the Whelen WS-295, or the F/S 300 black faceplate siren. It was mounted in the tree with everything else.

[texunter]

Hey Dwayne,
Are your quarter plastics out of the car?
Can you see if you have a number written inside on the lower section? Or anywhere else for that matter.
Ted

[93LSPssp]

Well, long time no see but I'M BACK!!!

I will not bore everyone with how far behind I am on my car, a simple glance at the last post dates should be enough to make anyone shake they're head in disgust at my :No no: sloth.

That said, I'll answer TexHunter's question first: No, I never did remove the rear quarter interior plastics of my car. It's the one thing (and the dash itself) that I have not done. I don't recall exactly why, but it seemed it was in there by some convoluted scheme that involved seat belt re-tractors or connectors I couldn't reach.

That said I need to ask a question of anyone who has done a 92-93 SSP, and I am looking to find out if ANYONE has a pic of their engine build sticker that lives on the side of the passenger side valve cover?!

I accidentally erased half the writing on mine when I was cleaning it, and now I want to replace it but I need accurate info. My car is an AOD car, not a stick. I found a site that sells most of the under the hood stickers, and they have one for my year car that specifically seems to state it is for an AOD car vs a 6speed one. It has some of the same markings or lettering that mine has.

Do you suppose there is only that sticker that denotes one or the other for these cars? And that there is no real differentiation between the street GT V-8 engine and the police one? I always thought there were some differences, albeit maybe minor, internally to the SSP engines but I know I could be wrong as it is not a new sensation for me.

Hope all has been well with you guys.

Oh, and TxHunter: I see you found documentation for your dk. blue 89 LSP SSp, I say a hearty CONGRATS! Those are rare as hen's teeth. I think they only bought either 6 or 12 of them, and a couple of them met with bad ends while still under LSP usage. My partner bought two wrecked ones to get the drive trains back in 89-91 or so. I see yours was sent off to St. Tammany Parish SO as well. I think my 91 CVPI dk. blue, which I know was a LSP one, was also sold to St. Tammany around 1994 or so. So we have kindred stories.

Thanks to anyone who could provide that pic of the valve cover sticker.