New Owner/Early Impressions

[Matt Johnson]

I've had my '03 MM 300 A for about three weeks and have put around 800 miles on it. Just found this forum a few days ago. I love this car, so my "complaints" are more along the lines of figuring out what can be done to get a little more out of what I already love. I know I'm treading old threads, but I want to summarize my seat-of-the-pants impressions with what I've learned from this forum and have you guys "check my work."

Complaints in the first 1000 miles:

1. Car's slow to get off the line, needs an extra kick to wake it up at slower speeds.
2. Seems to shift too soon at lower speeds (0-40 mph land).
3. Hard to find Reverse some times.
4. Car really understeers - have to stay on top of it.
5. Car pulls to the right.
6. LM could have created a real steering wheel for the MM.
7. There's no place to put my left foot.
8. Headlight beams seem weak or poorly aimed (too low).
9. Wiper blades suck (I replaced them with Bosch blades second day I had the car)
10. Speaker are really crap (I'm replacing them with Pioneers this week) but the subwoofer fine.

What I've learned here is that you can do the following to address some of these issues:

1. Put an aftermarket chip, cooler plugs, new thermostat and 4.10 gears on it to get more out of the low to mid ends. If you're not driving at or near 117-120, you don't need a different drive shaft. If you're looking for just more performance, better shifting, possibly better gas mileage, and aren't going to be racing people or spending time on the track, this is the way to go. Some people have done mods through dealer to preserve warranty, some dealers won't mod the car. No one knows how the mods affect emmisions testing, especially in California.

2. Have dealer check if the throttle cable is too short to take care of finding reverse. Some people who have had problems finding reverse have also experienced sudden acceleration problems. (No jokes about those people who "can't find reverse"...)

3. Get a dead pedal installed so you can put your left foot somewhere.

4. Have not read any comments about understeer or pulling.

5. Have not read any complaints about the steering wheel. (Come on, it looks like LM took something off a Voyager and wrapped it with something from Pep Boys. Where's the sport steering wheel the MM deserves?)

6. Lots of people here have replaced their head lamp bulbs - Sylvannia Superstars seem to be the brand of choice.

7. At 37, I'm on the younger end of the "2 percenters."

Does that catch me up? Looking to get the best out of this awesome car. This site is great. I'm glad to be here.

MJ

[RCSignals]

Welcome. Yes you'll like it here.

What did you do with your original wipers?

[UncleLar]

Welcome to Mercury Marauder net,it sounds like you've really been doing your homework. There are some really good and helpful people here,I hope you'll enjoy it here as much as I do. Larry

[RF Overlord]

Well, Matt, sounds like you've pretty well summed things up...I guess the rest of us can go home now... :(

J/K... Welcome aboard :D First I've heard about understeer or pulling...I haven't noticed either of those happening, but I don't thrash my car, so maybe I just haven't encountered the understeer; you might have the dealer check your alignment, though...

[WolfeBros]

Welcome Matt. I agree with your comments on the steering wheel. As far as understeer I haven't noticed it. Have your dealer check out the pull for you. Glad you found us.....we were waiting for ya. :D

[TripleTransAm]

Originally posted by RF Overlord
you might have the dealer check your alignment, though...


I think that suggestion is right on the money. I was foolish to trust my 1998 Trans Am was properly aligned from the factory, since I was actually present at the factory the moment my car rolled off the assembly line and onto the computer-controlled alignment rack. The car didn't pull but was 'vague' in steering... almost over-assisted.

Turns out the camber was way positive on one side (versus slightly positive on the other) and one side had way more caster than the other. The effect was that both sides cancelled each other out as far as pulling, but the handling was muddy and ill-defined.

Go with maximum caster if you can (within reason... around +5 is nice on the street with power-steering-assisted cars) and dial in a smidgeon of negative camber (-0.5 is enough to be felt, yet minimize tire wear and front bearing abuse). I've always gone with 0 toe on my Trans Ams. Hopefully the same is applicable for a front engine-rear drive car like the MM... that's the setting I'll be going for when I get my MM, unless someone disagrees with my numbers.

[jgc61sr2002]

Welcome Matt - You seem to be enjoying this site. This is the best site pertaining to the MM. Thanks to Logan and LML. John :up:

[Leadfoot]

As for the pull, before taking it to the dealer, make sure the tire pressures are correct. A right tire may be low which will make it pull to the right.

The alignment equipment at the plants is more accurate overall than any alignment shops usually. The alignment shops do not always calibrate the machinery at the proper intervals. If you go back to the dealer to get it aligned, ask the following:

1. Where is it going to be aligned? The dealer may take it to the local mom and pop place.
2. What type of alignment equipment will they use? Hunter is the most popular alignment machine. I am not familiar with other brands and wouldn't trust them.
3. When was the last time the machine was calibrated and by whom? If it was longer than 3 months and/or if it was calibrated by someone other than Hunter or Hunter approved, take it somewhere else.

Cars are designed with understeer for the most part. It gives you better handling plus it is safer for the every day driver. Most drivers panic when they oversteer but only turn the steering wheel more when they understeer.

[SergntMac]

Good point Joe, when I first checked my factory tire pressure, I found a mix between 20 and 24 pounds. Not good, and when I brought the air up to where I wanted, true straight ahead, and firm adhesion, like glue. Like anything brand new, the first "fit" needs time and adjustments to settle in.

[Mike M]

I guess I'm the only guy who loves these wiper blades. They are designed to be flimsy to adhere better to the curve of the windshield. I think its a great idea and they work great for me. I sell all brands of wipers and would only put the factory ones back on.

[RCSignals]

Originally posted by Mike Mielnicki
I guess I'm the only guy who loves these wiper blades. They are designed to be flimsy to adhere better to the curve of the windshield. I think its a great idea and they work great for me.

Mike, so far I like them as well. I notice that the new Mercedes have similar wiper blades, and I suspect the current production Marauders have gone to a more "conventional" looking blade because they are cheaper for Ford.

[LincMercLover]

I really have no issues with the wipers either. Granted, when there isn't quite enoph water on the windshield, they make a little noise, but even that has seemed to cease over time. Don't really care anyhow, as I don't drive her much in the elements.

On the note of the tires, yah, been there. Rode around at 23lbs. for about 2 months before someone actually pointed it out to me. Guess I was enjoying the car so much I didn't really think to check the tires, as this SHOULD have been a prep thing at the dealer. Riding at 33lbs up front and 32lbs in the rear.

[vaderv]

Hi Matt My car runs straight and the car hasnt shown any tendancie to understeer imo it seem like what I call balanced..sorry cant think of the correct term. Mine doesnt push. It wont oversteer like a 911 either ; )

[MassMarauder]

Welcome Matt - I agree with ya on that steering wheel. I'd like to see a nice 4 spoke wheel.....with the heat and radio controls of course

[TripleTransAm]

Originally posted by LincMercLover
Riding at 33lbs up front and 32lbs in the rear.

Back in the 90s I tried running staggered pressures front/rear on my GTA (running Goodyear GSCs in stock size of 245/50ZR-16) and noticed the handling was weird. The suspension on that car is VERY stiff from factory, and I noticed that it handled weird unless front AND back were at the same pressures. I've since given up on staggering pressures, and keep it even all around on all my cars.

I also tried pumping up the tires to mid 30s and upper 30s in an attempt to maximize mileage and minimize tire wear. Truth is, this may be experimental anomalies, but on ALL my cars, they yielded their best mileage numbers on stock-ish pressures (30 psi for my GTA, 32 PSI for my WS6, 30 PSI for the Honda, don't ask about the '78 ! ;) )

[Effster]

try about 28 lbs COLD,,the tires will still bite,,handle,,and have traction in the rain/snow........gives it a decent footprint

[Matt Johnson]

Checked pressure - 30 psi up front, 32 in back. I brought the front to 32 - will see what that does, but I'm thinking I have an alignment issue that I'll have to address.

[LincMercLover]

Only reason I bumped the front up by one pound was to give the steering a little more edge and less resistance to push, which it has shown from it's origanal 23lbs. The rear I'll never go above 32, for traction purposes and will probably drop to 28-30lbs when I go to the track this spring.

[mdmarauder]

On the wiper issue I have to say those are the worst factory wipers I've ever had on any car. They are noisy and are not worth a damn with the snow. I just put on a set of Bosch 22" blades unbelievable difference. I doubt that the factory blades are more expensive seeing as I've only seen them on Crown Vics and Mercurys. The 2003 Town Car has a blade similiar to the Bosch blades.

[RCSignals]

mdmarauder
Didn't mean the Bosch are cheaper, just the current style being installed at the factory. They've gone back to a "traditional" look blade.

The Town Car blades I saw had a bright yellow layer in them

[TripleTransAm]

Originally posted by LincMercLover
Only reason I bumped the front up by one pound was to give the steering a little more edge and less resistance to push, which it has shown from it's origanal 23lbs.


23 lbs... wow. It just hit me, that's pretty low. I recall a situation in the early 90s with my GTA where I picked up a screw in one rear tire that resulted in a slow leak that I was unaware of. This was my first high-performance car and I was unused to stiff-sidewall tires (Z-rating) so I was expecting a low tire pressure to show visible deflation symptoms. One fine day, for kicks I checked all the pressures and WOW 18 psi! I have no idea how long I was driving like that, but it must have been around a month or so.

Not being an aggressive driver, I never noticed any adverse symptoms handling-wise, but did note that this tire forever upset my handling to the point where I had to chuck it 2 years later for a brand new pair that finally corrected my perceived alignment woes. Seems the sidewall was probably mangled in some way through operation with low pressure.

I'd keep an eye on that tire.

[LincMercLover]

TTT,

That was ALL FOUR tires that came that way from the dealership. Guess they were trying to soften the ride up for test drives?

[2003Marauder]

My wipers are also terrible.
Sometimes hard to find reverse but only from Drive or netural never from Park.
Tires were right on spec but I asked they be put that way as most dealers and savy car owners will always lower the tire pressure a few pounds when selling a car. Good dealer knows to bump up tire pressure before customer when customer takes delivery. I take guage with me when test driving.
Rain-X on the MM windshield. I have it on my 96Tbird and daughter loves it on her Taurus. Found this product also reduced wiper noise.
Will hit 10,000 miles sometime this week. Bought first MM in Memphis and car is wonderful. Still gets looks and comments almost every day.
Problem is WIFE is now driving the MM during the week as she totaled her car. Good news is that I get to keep my 350hp superchared Tbird. Wife had told me I could not have both--but that was before she totaled her car. Tried this site out for a few weeks back in July or Aug of last year and it was slow and dead. Came back last week and really impressed with info and members....ttyl...the MemphisMarauder

[Pantherman]

Matt, you mentioned that not only did your car pull to the right, but that your car "understeers - have to stay on top of it". Most of us have no pulls, and we love our precise and responsive steering. The combination you describe leads me to think you might have something damaged or loose. I would definitely have the dealer check things out. If you only had a right pull, I would first suspect low caster on the right front. Camber (and to some extent caster) on these cars is controlled by points that are precisely machined into the big aluminum front crossmember. Caster is mostly controlled by the lateral location of the
front lower control arm rear bushings. On the left side everything is very accurately pinned in place, and the bushing is locked in mid-range
by a simple washer/spacer. The right side rear bushing has to be adjusted to account for cross car tolerances. The bottom line is that the only things the assembly plant adjusts are clear vision (steering wheel position)/toe and right side caster. Left side caster can be field adjusted after discarding the spacer. Camber can be adjusted after removing the locating flags on the front lower control arm bolt, but any change here will also affect caster. Best leave all this alone unless there is an obvious problem. TripleTransAm hit the alignment specs pretty well on the head. Caster should be 5.8 +/-.75 degrees, Camber should be -.5 +/-.75 degrees, and toe should be -.12 +/-.25 degrees. These cars use toe out, which is a bit unusual for rear wheel drive.


then has to adjusted to account

[Matt Johnson]

I'm going into the dealer next week to have them check it out...