1964 issues getting into park

L

longfastride

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Joined
Apr 15, 2023
Thunderbird Year
1964
Hello, All.

This is my first post here and I hope that there is not another section that I need to be posting in. Please guide me if so.

I just acquired a Wimbledon White 1964 Thunderbird yesterday. I have been looking for some time and found what I hope is a good deal. Unfortunately, after a long trek hauling a trailer I picked the car up in a massive Thunderstorm. I wish I would have had an opportunity to spend some more time looking the car over but it is what it is.

390 Car, runs and idles well. I went ahead and put a new battery in the car as it was very old. The car does not drive out. It idles all day but as soon as I give it some gas and try to drive it dies on me. Brakes seem to be in decent shape. The Steering column and shifter is an absolute nightmare. No turn signal function and finding park is a mess. Interior needs work but I feel like I have a pretty rust free car. That could always be wrong.

If I am honest I am feeling a bit overwhelmed at the moment and not 100% sure where to start. I assume that you guys are an amazing group of resources and I will gladly take any advice. I have built a couple motorcycles and can wrench on a bike okay but this already feels like a different animal. I am including some pictures and a short video of the car at idle.
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The good news your mechanically sound, You do need the Shop manual first. Get all the manuals that are for the 1964 bird.
Also try YOUTube videos.
 
As far as the engine is concerned, your accelerator pump is not working. A thorough cleaning/ rebuilding of the carburetor is needed.
If the car has been sitting a number of years you will need to go through the brake system as well. Replace all of the rubber parts. Including replacing or rebuilding the master cylinder and wheel cylinders. They may work now, but time kills these parts.
 
Yes do check on the accelerator pump.
Having a worn shifter mechanism seems to be a very common problem with that generation of T-Bird.
Never leave the engine running in Park without blocking the all wheels.
With a bad detent / shifter plate they tend to pop into reverse on their own and can cause serious damage & injury, or worse.

Fortunately those repair parts are available. Contact the Bird Nest in Linn Oregon, you should be able to easily google their website.
They specialize in new and used parts for '58 to '66 Thunderbirds.
You can also google Thunder Bird Ranch, Pittsville, Wisconsin. The owner can be helpful in your search for parts.
 
My '64 also has a dodgy shifter and will pop out of park if on an incline. You should be able to find lots of threads here and tech advice on how to refurbish the bushings and detente plate in the steering column.

In the meantime, when parking, always engage the swing-away feature on your steering column, which locks the transmission into Park. And carry wheel chocks for good measure.
 
All... Thank you very much for the comments and the color. As of right now, I have three initial steps that I would like to take.

1. Good bath and clean it up to see the starting point.
2. Play with timing and see if this is what is impacting the motor when under load. If not, It will be a carb rebuild kit.
3. I would like to try and order a steering column rebuild kit. Is Birds nest the best place for this? This project feels a little daunting but the steering column is a huge issue and i think it will require more than just the shifter. At least there are several videos and write ups on this rebuild.
 
Your timing should be at 6degrees, depending on mileage a timing chain may be in order. I. Can give you a short tutorial on how to check it if you need it.
 
Hey longfastride, I think your problem where the engine dies when you try to accelerate is related to fuel delivery, not timing. Could be the fuel pump going bad (check this with a pump test), a clogged inline fuel filter (not stock but many were installed in the fuel line close to the carb, easy to just replace it), a bad accelerator pump (check by looking down the carb throat with engine off and working the accelerator linkage, you should see strong squirting action. If not, the pump diaphragm and gasket can be replaced) and of course the carb itself may need a rebuild. The other more sinister possibility is crudded up fuel tank or lines, but I wouldn't worry about that until the easier fixes have been checked/eliminated.

If it does come to a carb rebuild, you might consider instead buying a new carb. I put a new Holley 670 cfm carb with vacuum secondaries on my '64 and it runs great.

Doug
 
Harley... I need all the tutorials I can get.

I was going to follow this one... https://itstillruns.com/time-ford-351-7439081.html

64 Z code this is a great list of checks. I really appreciate it. I will start with the simple checks and work my way through. Supposedly the car has a new fuel pump and gas tank but little that the seller has said has turned out to be true ;)
 
Longfastride, re: the turn signal issue, if the lever works however the blinkers are non-functional, then my guess is it's not because of sloppiness in the shifter, more likely an electrical issue that needs to be corrected.

You mentioned finding Park is problematic. How about drive and reverse? What else about the steering column and shifter seems to be problematic at this point?

Looks like a straight car and a great project, please post more pictures when you get a chance. This is my '64:

Doug

IMG_0640.jpg
 
Hey Doug,

I am uploading a picture of the steering column and the actions after moving the steering column to the center. It's messy.

Your car looks fantastic. I will work to get some good pictures taken and uploaded soon.

JT

PS if the file is too big I will post it on YouTube ... I will be interested to hear feedback.

 
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Wow, that steering column seems loose as a goose. It shouldn't move to the left (swing away position) until the shift lever is pressed up to the left of Park. I couldn't tell if the column was in the swing away position during the entire video?

Anyway, my guess is you need to rebuild the column and there is something wonky about the swing away mechanism as well. Suggest you search on this forum for videos on the rebuilding process and ask plenty of questions. The Vintage TBird site is another good resource:

https://www.fordthunderbirdforum.net/******/index.php

One of the TBird vendors, I can't remember which, had a good video on rebuild and you can search youtube as well, here's one:

 
The link you provided is good for checking the timing. Once you have done that let me know if you want to check the timing chain slack.
 
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