1978 Thunderbird Value? | Little Rock

[thor2k]

I am helping a friend find a good home for her Dad's '78 T-bird.

It is in amazing shape with a flawless interior, no rust exterior, and only 50,000 miles on the road.

However, it has sat a long time. We rebuilt the carb, put in a new fuel pump, but in the course of running it . . . 5 push rods were bent as well as one valve due to the gummed up gas. The push rods have been replaced.

The mechanic suggests a "refresh", with valve job, bearings, machine work for the 302, amounting to $2,200-$2,400 plus $230 for a new fuel tank.

I am reluctant to authorize this unless it will increase the value that much?

It runs fine, but smokes.

The car is in Bryant, Arkansas . . . near Little Rock.

What would the car sell for (a) as is, or (b) after the engine work?

Thanks,

Jay

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[Excaliburss]

Hi, I guess it is harder to find a client for it if there is an issue. All in mint condition give you the best price. I would say about 9k if the car presents flawless. Good luck

 

[64ZCODE]

Hello Jay. You can also use hagerty.com and nada.com valuation tools to bracket what the car may be worth.

Rebuilding the engine might be good for the mechanic's retirement plan, but there's no reason to do it if the engine is running OK now and the smoking issue can be cleared up. The smoking issue may be because piston rings are gummed up by the old gas and in any event is unrelated to the stuck valves. Try running an engine treatment product like Rislone or Seafoam and see if that clears it up. That'll also help prevent other valves from gumming up and bending their respective push rods.

Good luck with this!

Doug

 

[OneAmongOthers]

https://www.hagerty.com/apps/valuationtools/1978-Ford-Thunderbird-Landau
Here are the Hagerty values for a 1978 Thunderbird Landau. I am not sure what yours is, but it really doesn't change the value much. I would say your's without seeing anything ranges in the good to fair range. Judging by what you are saying about the engine. So you are looking anywhere between about $5000 to $2500 More or less. Sorry dude but Thunderbirds really drop off in value after 1966. Like a STEEP dive. All of us know if you are restoring one of these old birds it's because you love them. Don't really expect a high resale value. I am not trying to be rude or ignorant, just laying down the facts.

 

[cjbird]

I am helping a friend find a good home for her Dad's '78 T-bird.

It is in amazing shape with a flawless interior, no rust exterior, and only 50,000 miles on the road.

However, it has sat a long time. We rebuilt the carb, put in a new fuel pump, but in the course of running it . . . 5 push rods were bent as well as one valve due to the gummed up gas. The push rods have been replaced.

The mechanic suggests a "refresh", with valve job, bearings, machine work for the 302, amounting to $2,200-$2,400 plus $230 for a new fuel tank.

I am reluctant to authorize this unless it will increase the value that much?

It runs fine, but smokes.

The car is in Bryant, Arkansas . . . near Little Rock.

What would the car sell for (a) as is, or (b) after the engine work?

Thanks,

Jay

Bent pushrods are a bad sign, to me it means the valve hit the piston,,,, and on any race motor I had in my younger days, it bent the valve too! You need to do a compression test for each cylinder. It it possible that the valves where frozen and broke loose when engine cranked over? If valve is only very slightly bent engine may seem tp run fine,,, but,,, check the compression or at least tell buyer whole story.

 

[64ZCODE]

Actually, the push rods bend because the valves stick. The FE engine is not an interference engine so likely if the valves are unstuck and the push rods replaced, that should be it.

 

[cjbird]

Actually, the push rods bend because the valves stick. The FE engine is not an interference engine so likely if the valves are unstuck and the push rods replaced, that should be it.

I think your probably right about the valves, the 302 isn't an FE engine but not a high compression engine anyway. Still a compression test is easy and may give a baseline when looking for the smoking problem. maybe with some usage it will clean up the smoke!

 

[thor2k]

Got the word yesterday from the mechanic who completed the 302 rebuild, installed the new gas tank, etc.

He noted two problems - tires and fuel sending unit?

He said two units from local parts houses would not fit. Is there a preferred source for a correct sending unit?

The tires are dry rotted and one blew. Both Michelin and Sears are what the car currently wears. What would the seasoned pros here recommend to be modern and yet faithful to the vintage of the car?

Thanks in advance,

Jay

 

[OneAmongOthers]

Got the word yesterday from the mechanic who completed the 302 rebuild, installed the new gas tank, etc.

He noted two problems - tires and fuel sending unit?

He said two units from local parts houses would not fit. Is there a preferred source for a correct sending unit?

The tires are dry rotted and one blew. Both Michelin and Sears are what the car currently wears. What would the seasoned pros here recommend to be modern and yet faithful to the vintage of the car?

Thanks in advance,

Jay

Get whatever you want for tires. Walmart for cheap stuff it you don't want to spend. Skies the limit. Personally I went with a set of Mickey Thompson for my Tbird.