That would be one thing to check out for sure.

I believe the 4.6 Liter engine had some issues with the plastic intake manifold cracking or the gaskets failing allowing coolant to seep into the intake, then combustion chamber which has similar results to a head gasket failure.

This is a very expensive fix if you can't do it yourself, not too bad if you can do it with a little help from a friend or two. Although in '94 Ford started using Fel-Pro gaskets on the 3.8, the likely hood is diminished over earlier models, but is still there.

For both 3.8 Liter engines, there is a very real likelyhood of head gasket failure.

Option #4: (Super Coupe) Supercharged 3.8 Liter V6 with manual 5-speed transmission Option #3: (Super Coupe) Supercharged 3.8 Liter V6 with electronically controlled auto Option #2: (LX) 4.6 Liter V8, SOHC (Single Over Head Cam), n/a with an electronically controlled auto Option #1: (LX) 3.8 Liter V6, n/a (naturally aspirated) with an electronically controlled automatic transmission In '94 there were basically 3 different options for engine and 2 for transmission.

You should have no concerns about getting and driving the car. Any advice? Also, if I do buy the car, is there any preventative maintenance I should do right away? I'm willing to learn, but I was thinking just as you don't start learning math with differential equations maybe I shouldn't start learning to wrench on a 94 Thunderbird? This car would be my daily driver. How reliable are these cars? Any clue as to the frequency with which these problems occur? I can change my own oil but overall am not too great with a wrench. I hear a lot about transmission woes and heater coil troubles, both of which can be big fixes required either a lot of time or a lot of cash or both. After reading this forums and other places I am a bit concerned. She is a little old lady who only drove it to church on Sunday and the car has only 17,000 miles!!!!! Plus she only wants $800 fo it!!! Granted, I haven't seen what condition it is in yet.ĭespite the low milage and inherent coolness of the car I am concerned about reliability. What I do know is this: My father's friend's mother cannot drive anymore and wants to sell her car. I don't know the specifics of the engine/tranny combo of the one I am going to look at. I am considering purchasing a 1994 Ford Thunderbird tomorrow.

Thunderbird 94 v8