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December 30, 2019 1:17 pm  #1


-68 LTD Country Squire partial rebuild and 4.6 engine swap

Decided to do a short writeup of this "boat". Some text, some pics and links to picture galleries. Might divide into two posts.

Ever since I sold the -68 XL Fastback early last year, I had been looking for a wagon. "Naturally" -68 with hideaway headlights was the only choice. Finally in the summer of 2018 found one located in California. Seemed a bit rough from sitting since -85 but on the other hand it wasn't that expensive and decided to go for it. 390 2V, C6, manual drums, power steering, factory AC, white interior, 2.75 rear end.

Here is the Craigslist ad:

All of the pics from the seller are here.

After deal was done the only thing left was to wait for it to arrive to Finland. Took a basic 2.5 months in total and after that it was ready for pickin up. Got it running in the terminal from a can and drove it onto the trailer. Needed a bit over 2qt of transmission oil. Brakes were a bit stuck, which was good because unsurprisingly master cylinder was junk. Hauled it back with the F350.



First I installed new brakes. Only old parts left were hardlines, rear hose and front drums. New engine oil and filter, spark plugs, etc. Installed (almost) all new suspension bushings, shocks, etc. Added a brake booster with an aftermarket bracket. Used a Volvo 960 booster because I have those around. Unfortunately engine made pressure to the cooling system and at this point I decided not to even open the but sell it with the transmission if someone buys. And got it sold pretty easily.

I rebuilt the engine in the Fastback and spending that money and time again did not interest at all. The choice was to use -06 Crown Vic 4.6l 2V and 07-> Mustang GT TR-3650 which I had used in two Volvos earlier. Now it found itself a suitable home. Made exhaust manifolds and all new 3" exhaust with big mufflers following the original route.

But before I got close to fitting the engine, the body needed a lot of work. And it still needs but that is something I'll do when it starts bothering enough. Cowl area was the worst. Leaves, dirt and rain do not fit well.








All front end parts, frame and bottom of the car were sandblasted and I painted them with epoxy. Also installed new heater core and hoses before assembly, cleaned and coated the insides of the tank, etc.




All of the bodywork can be found here.

Fitting the engine required some basic stuff. Welded brackets to the front crossmember and made a reccess to it too. Decided to use stock motor mounts and those needed small mods. Also had to flip the oil pan. Might have been easier to use another pan because some boltholes go outside the edge of the pan when flipped. Having a turbo in mind I made front facing exhaust manifolds but that didn't happen. Might have gotten a bit sick of the car after the bodywork and wanted to just drive it 

Fitting of the engine and other stuff made in 2018 can be found here.



Got it road legal earlier this year and drove it some in the winter with studded tires. At first it looked like this with cut stock front springs and sagging rears.



Since then it got new front springs(stiffer than any stock option) and rear shocks with helper springs. Was better to drive but still pretty sloppy. Drove it some 1500 miles or so between late winter and summer. A stock 2V 4.6 was so much better than the 390 in the Fastback even though the wagon has much lower rear gears. I can use 2nd gear from standstill up to 74mph(rev limiter) 390 had a good valve job, better cam, 4V intake and Edelbrock carb, etc. But it's not really a fair comparison.

More to come.


LTD Country Squire -68 4.6 2V, F350 CrewCab DRW 7.3 -99

Previous: Galaxie XL Fastback -68, F150 Ranger XLT -81
 

December 30, 2019 1:47 pm  #2


Re: -68 LTD Country Squire partial rebuild and 4.6 engine swap

And here is more.

Car had been standing in the yard since the summer and I finally decided it's time for a turbo install. Megasquirt 2 has followed this engine since I first installed it into a Volvo 242. I've used different versions of Megasquirt in almost all of my builds.

Choice of turbo is a good old HX40 with #23 exhaust so it won't give too much low end torque. And it was cheap from a friend. Basic 600x300x76mm intercooler with modded 2,5" in/out. Remade exhaust piping inside the engine bay. Some V-bands, HD flex joints and making stands for turbo and wastegate later it was running and driving. All it needed was about 3 days worth of work just before Christmas.

Had to move all electrics to the left side and I still have to do a couple of wires. Some of them because I have to relocate washer bottle. I cut the vacuum tank in half so that I could fit the battery next to it. Turbo takes the original place of the battery and wastegate is under it in the wheelwell. What a nice difference does even a little boost make, but that's nothing new. My goal is to tune it to around 0.5bar/7-8psi, more if dyno numbers are not "high" enough. Will have a bit over half the hp than what my Volvo 240 got but much more wider rpm range and low end torque Got to visit a dyno anyway because making the turbo road legal needs an inspection with a dynosheet.




In the mean time installed new shocks front and rear. Some C1500 Kyb Monomax to the front and Monroe airshocks(MA711) to the rear. They are just the good amount shorter than stock. Now you can really drive it compared to the old shocks. Doesn't anymore move around when changing gears. Needs good front seats in place of the bench. I've now driven a bit over 200 miles and been enjoying it much more than before and not the least because of the shocks.

Also installed new high beams. Headlights I changed early this year to H4's which I had laying on the shelf. Old stock ones were basically junk. Before installing new high beams the lights were pretty dim because all of the current going through old stock wiring and having two bulbs per wire at the same time. Now it has all "clear glass" lights. H4 is a generic aftermarket with Philips Xtreme bulbs and high beams are Cibie Mini Oscar LED. I was pleasantly surprised of the LED lights even though the numbers say that they aren't that good. And they were over three times cheaper than the next retails them.



As I said earlier, the body still has work left but it's still manageable and does not effect the use. The rear window needs plastic guides because it doesn't move too well and tilts to other side, doors need seals, etc.

That's it for now. Will be adding more info as time goes by and I get some dyno sheets. And maybe video at some point.


Oh yeah, there was a buch of period correct stuff in the trunk. And original paperwork when the car was bought new.

The rest.

Last edited by palikka (December 30, 2019 2:55 pm)


LTD Country Squire -68 4.6 2V, F350 CrewCab DRW 7.3 -99

Previous: Galaxie XL Fastback -68, F150 Ranger XLT -81
     Thread Starter
 

January 5, 2020 3:34 pm  #3


Re: -68 LTD Country Squire partial rebuild and 4.6 engine swap

Outstanding work.  I wish I had your fabrication skills.  Nice to see you keeping the Galaxie on the road.

 

January 6, 2020 3:34 pm  #4


Re: -68 LTD Country Squire partial rebuild and 4.6 engine swap

That is very cool! Excellent work, and well done keeping the old station wagon alive.

 

January 10, 2020 2:16 pm  #5


Re: -68 LTD Country Squire partial rebuild and 4.6 engine swap

I've tried to do a somewhat decent work  Got two cars which I'm making/keeping more detailed.
No use in shipping a car from the States all the way here and throw in the towel or half -oh no I used a word I shouldn't have- it. It think it took around 250 hours for the whole deal last winter.

Only thing that vexes me a bit is the fact that same week the car was shipped from LA, a much better looking -68 Country Squire popped up on Craigslist. Running and driving, 289, manual transmission, much nicer body and ok interior, $100 cheaper and closer to the terminal  Would've been way better subject, would've even bought it if I had enough money for the shipping and other costs. Wasn't for sale for long.

Last edited by palikka (January 10, 2020 2:19 pm)


LTD Country Squire -68 4.6 2V, F350 CrewCab DRW 7.3 -99

Previous: Galaxie XL Fastback -68, F150 Ranger XLT -81
     Thread Starter
 

January 23, 2020 3:31 pm  #6


Re: -68 LTD Country Squire partial rebuild and 4.6 engine swap

It always seems that a better deal will surface after you buy something, no matter how long and hard you look. Just think about how much more fun you had playing with all that metal work on the car you bought. You would have missed all that if you found a better car to start. You won in the end.

 

January 25, 2020 2:48 pm  #7


Re: -68 LTD Country Squire partial rebuild and 4.6 engine swap

Yep, sometimes goes like that.
Wouldn't say it was too much fun doing that much bodywork, I prefer having the car on the road faster than what it took. Having done a couple of cars with some major rust issues I've already promised myself around 10 years ago to stop buying ones which (look like they would) have a lot of bodywork. But that obviously hasn't worked if the car itself is interesting enough 


LTD Country Squire -68 4.6 2V, F350 CrewCab DRW 7.3 -99

Previous: Galaxie XL Fastback -68, F150 Ranger XLT -81
     Thread Starter
 

January 30, 2020 12:55 pm  #8


Re: -68 LTD Country Squire partial rebuild and 4.6 engine swap

Did a 200mile trip for a dyno visit and the results were pretty much as expected. Turbo is perfect size for this engine and it shows. Exhaust manifolds get pretty red but they are thin walled regular exhaust pipe.

0.5bar 398hp and 667Nm/492lb-ft. 0.6bar 421hp and 720Nm/531lb-ft. Didn't dare to go for more, should be enough for a stock 2V Limiter is 6000rpm, dyno ratio is a bit off.


Sort of a video. Dyno fan was very loud, should've filmed from the inside.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rjz1m2n_zPA

Last edited by palikka (January 30, 2020 1:13 pm)


LTD Country Squire -68 4.6 2V, F350 CrewCab DRW 7.3 -99

Previous: Galaxie XL Fastback -68, F150 Ranger XLT -81
     Thread Starter
 

February 3, 2020 3:34 pm  #9


Re: -68 LTD Country Squire partial rebuild and 4.6 engine swap

By the way, where can I find parts for the tailgate window mechanism? Plastic rollers/sliders have given up and the mechanism doesn't work smoothly.


LTD Country Squire -68 4.6 2V, F350 CrewCab DRW 7.3 -99

Previous: Galaxie XL Fastback -68, F150 Ranger XLT -81
     Thread Starter
 

February 8, 2020 8:07 am  #10


Re: -68 LTD Country Squire partial rebuild and 4.6 engine swap

Was any programming/tuning required to ECM to accommodate the turbo add on? Thx
Very impressive work

 

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