What did you do to your Tbird today? 2002-2005

[Pelagic]

Snow is gone! Took the cover off, battery tender off and found one flat tire. Luckily had compressor nearby, so filled up tire and started her up. Let her warm up to temp, and revved 'er a few times. 🙂 Sounds smooth as silk. Even successfully ejected the CD I left in last fall. Now - just waiting for a nice day............

This page contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated. As an eBay Partner, and Amazon Associate I may be compensated if you make a purchase at no cost to you.

 

[DrSarabi]

Finally had a chance to put on the new TBird door sills (had to remove the OEM plastic sills first).

Plan to put on my new chrome front grille next weekend. Just in time for the local car shows! I won't win anything, but it's fun to go

https://americancarcraft.com/products/thunderbird-doorsills-2pc-polished-2003-2005

They come in polished or brushed finish. My daughter bought me the polished
The instructions tell you to stick them on over the stock sills. There is no way in Hades that would work. The stock sills can be carefully pried off. There are 5 clips to free up to do so. We left the car out in the sun to warm up beforehand and were able to remove the original sills with no damage.

 

[PrettyInCashmere]

New chrome wheels & New Billet Grille - Too Shaded to show well - The approx. 10 forward edges of black vanes in grille are in actuality very shiny - chrome-like polished aluminum
Will try to get image with front better illumination in future

Really changes the look of and lines of the car

I appreciate that many wish to remain stock, but we have added a few items (burlwood selectively on console and vertically above it on dash + on door armrests), Borla exhaust, aftermarket chrome wheels .. the things we like to see on this model, or at least on ours

 

[Transporter]

Bought the items to bring the 2002 Tbird fully into the new Millennium. 2DIN Touch Screen DVD/MP3/Radio Unit with BlueTooth Hands Free and backup camera. $150 for Head Unit, Day/Night IR Color Camera, wireless link from camera to Head Unit, mounting brackets, and harness kit. Head Unit uses Tbird Steering Wheel Controls so it acts as the stock radio did but with all the modern features.
Better half got hooked on the Bluetooth Hands-Free (plus it's required by law now in Georgia, can't even handle your phone while driving) and backup camera on the free Leaf Lease she was driving. She almost smashed the rear end of the Tbird backing up last Thursday and I told her to drop the roof while backing up until I get the parts installed this weekend.
With iPhone Maps and Waze Apps on our iPhones, who needs Navigation especially when the voice comes through the BlueTooth to the car speakers. iPhone mounted so I don't have to touch it, just look at the route. Besides most Head Unit Navigation Systems are outdate 6 months after you purchase it and doesn't have a live traffic feed like the Maps and Waze Apps do on the iPhone.

When you have the head unit installed, post a picture for us. Good luck with it. What brand?

Will do. Have to give a Hat-tip out to PhilD for his post that saved me a ton of searching. I was looking to bring the Tbird truly into the next Millennium for the past few months because the better half got hooked on the back-up camera and BlueTooth in the Nissan Leaf (then almost bashed in the Tbirds truck backing up with the top up). So I started looking for aftermarket stuff like the standalone back-up cameras that replace the rearview mirror with a unit that has a 4 by 3 inch LCD built into them and one of those BlueTooth add-on things. None of that really appealed to me and some of the backup camera with mini monitors were up to $150. So I thought maybe somebody else with a Bird has already solved this and I found PhilD's post. Taking the baseline of what he did in his Tbird and the feedback from him doing a second vehicle, I kind of picked what would work best for me from what PhilD was having the most success with. If you buy the more expensive Head Unit with built-in Navigation, you get the camera for free, but I don't need Navigation as the Tbird is the better half's 4 miles to work daily driver and weekend fun with the top down car. We have two large dogs so the Expedition is the only vehicle that could really use InDash Navigation for trips since the dogs go everywhere we go, but I have a real GPS (private pilot), Panasonic Toughbook, and DeLorme Road Warrior software. Amazon beat everybody else by a few dollars on each item to a whole $20 on the Head Unit plus free two day shipping.

Head Unit: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00HZA6DYK/?tag=thunderbirdforum-20

Backup Camera: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01I6KCMWO/?tag=thunderbirdforum-20

Wireless Kit: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008Z9E4DW/?tag=thunderbirdforum-20

And mounting hardware and harnesses specific to 2002-2005 Thunderbirds so the factory Steering Wheel Controls work if anybody needs those part numbers. If it is sunny this weekend, I will install it and snap some jpegs.

 

[Transporter]

Took the TBird to get four new shoes today. There was a detail shop next door so the Tbird received new sneakers and had a Spa Day! Man it looks like the day it rolled off the assembly line. Now to get home before one of the scattered thunderstorms catches me out in the open. Looks like storms are coming in from the Northwest.

 

[02 bird]

Installed Borla exhaust system today.
Very easy to install, took about 2 hours, all parts fit well. Nice low rumble at idle and not to loud when cruising. Worth the money.

 

[DrSarabi]

and..........where is the best place to get a OEM chrome grill?

No OEM chrome grille, just the chromed plastic one - I've seen them on Ebay.

Finally had time to put in the mesh grille my daughter gave me for my birthday. There was a crack in my OEM grille when I bought the car, and it turns out that the original owner must have had a whoops moment - the grille had been pushed in and there was a repaired crack in the bumper below the grille. Whoever repaired it just glued the grille pieces back together and touched up the chrome - the shape was distorted though, and it had always bothered me.

Here is the mesh grille from Thunderbird Specialties:


I can give you advice on installation if you are interested. The 'instructions' that came with the grille were more like a series of vague suggestions LOL.

 

[Icewine]

Had my Merlot ‘04 in for a professional polish and paint finish at the local Ming Auto Beauty Centre. A string of owners that may have been less than careful with her over the years left a series of scratches and paint swirls that have now been largely removed. A great investment for only $299 (CDN). Made it home before the rain started, too

 

[Dave182]

Installed new caliper covers. Easy to do. Look great!

2002 2003 2004 2005 Ford Thunderbird Disc Brake Caliper Covers Front Rear MGP 10086STDBRD

2002-2003-2004-2005 Ford Thunderbird Red MGP Disc Brake Caliper Covers Front Rear 10086STDBRD Purchase on Ebay- Click Here Purchase on Amazon- Click Here If you want an entire Power Stop caliper and not just a cover, check these out- Purchase Front on EBay- Click Here Purchase Rear on Ebay-...

forums.fordthunderbirdforum.com

 

[Oldiger]

Just hit my 50,000 mile point. Took my 05 Limited addition in for an oil change and tire rotation. Had a new air cleaner installed. I feel very fortunate. Just took it on at 1600 mile round trip to North Dakota and back to Montana. She ran like a fine tuned clock. Not a hiccup. I see a lot of issues, ( electrical, mechanical, and all sorts of other things with the 02s,03s and 04s) but I don't see a lot of problems with the 05's. I am extremely pleased with mine.

 

[Mach5]

Went to change the cabin air filter and found this - and a whole lot of leaves. (So yeah, smells better now.)



Here's the before and after. I like this Fram filter (Amazon ~$14). Note it has a solid middle "rib" down the center that is front to back and very solid - unlike the FoMoCo one I took out that only has the rib on one side.
(Did I mention it smells better?)
ps: found more "housing" debris under the parking brake boot.

 

[tbird]

Here's the before and after. I like this Fram filter (Amazon ~$14)

Yes, cabin filter is a neglected item! I bought a used Mustang last year, didn't even bother checking to see if it was dirty and bought a new cabin filter and sure enough, it was nasty!

PS here is a link for the Ford Thunderbird cabin filter- https://amzn.to/2uNIFRi

 

[Nitpicker]

I replaced all exterior and interior lamps on my '04 Pacific Coast Roadster with LED bulbs. Purchased them on Ebay and Amazon. The led HEADlamps were a disappointment; will return them. Instead bought PIAA Extreme White Plus, 4000K, HB5 (9007) halogen lamps from Amazon. Amazing improvement in both light color (super white instead of usual yellow) and increased distance of light throw. Too, reviews indicate PIAA will last longer than Sylvania and GE.

 

[biddle]

I replaced all exterior and interior lamps on my '04 Pacific Coast Roadster with LED bulbs. Purchased them on Ebay and Amazon. The led HEADlamps were a disappointment

I've been told you are not supposed to use LED headlights in a halogen housing anyway, and its illegal in some places.

 

[cdbintex]

I've seen these threads on many other forums I'm apart of. Don't know if it would be as active here, but figured I would start the thread. If there is already one going, let me know.

So, what did you do to your Tbird today?

I'll start. Put the hardtop on it Sunday since we've got a week of mid 80's. Drove it to work yesterday and today. I must say, I enjoy this car so much. It's an awesome ride that gets tons of looks and is an awesome cruiser.

.

I finished a learning course in thermostats for cooling that lovely engine. Let me tell you about it. For the third time I had a cooling failure, this time the thermostat blew a 1/2 inch hole in the plastic thermostat covering. Wanting to stay standard ford, went to their parts place for replacement cover. Bought cover and took car 4 blocks to mechanic to let him replace as I was busy at work. Mechanic calls, says cover needs new thermostat. Ford dealer had none, Went to NAPA where they only sold thermostats installed in cover. Bought thermostat-cover assembly. Handed to mechanic, went back to work. Mechanic calls to say it is installed but now he needs an engine fill cap. Went to mechanic, pointed to cap on old cover which he removed and put onto new cover. Mechanic calls to say it is fixed, drive it a day and bring it back if it leaks. It leaked. Went to shop manual found one out of 5 drawings of this area show top is sealed with two O-rings. Called Ford, no one knew what I was talking about or had an O-ring part number. Went back to NAPA asked they too had nothing. Asked for O-ring assortment box feeling like I was my grandfather looking for parts to fix a model T.
Bought the right O-ring for $1.19 installed it onto the screw on cap of the thermostat cover assembly and Today I and happily driving a cool engine T bird but looking for a new mechanic. Here is what I learned. I spent more time shagging parts for my mechanic than it would have taken to read the "engine cooling " pages of the shop manual and do this one my self.

 

[CherokeeMarty]

I just put a pair of Lincoln LS Sport shocks on the front and a pair of Bilstein B-4 shocks on the rear. I already had a set of H&R springs all around on my '02. Man, this really firmed up the suspension and it feels great!

 

[Ike]

K. Here goes: Replaced Right & Left Control Arm Assembly, Replaced both sides rear Stabilizer Bar Control Link, Replaced both Rear Torque Tie Rod Ends, and of course aligned. Replaced the Differential Fluid. Synthetic Oil Change, Replaced the Cabin Air Filter. Don't think I missed anything but probably did

 

[vinnie]

I changed the oil for the first time yesterday. Now, I've been under a few cars in my day but I have never seen one as complicated as this one. There seems to be control arms, linkages, bushings, and pipes and hoses and everywhere!
Anyway, at least the oil filter and drain plug are easily accessible. Overall a pleasant 20 minutes on my back admiring the complexity of all that under-structure.

 

[SeanPwnery]

I did this .... and I cataloged it on video 😛

 

[DrSarabi]

Spent half a day cleaning the convertible top and car, then sealed the fabric. Time consuming, but worth it. I plan to visit my mom -their community is having a car show on the 10th, so the bird and I are going on a road trip.
Maybe I'll get another trophy! Cosmo won 1st place a couple of weeks ago. The only retrobird out of 157 cars entered.
Car guys are amazed that I do all the detailing.