Back in 2013, Jason Shafer posted an outtake of a maroon 2 door Grand Marquis Box Panther. While vising a friend in the California High Desert, I spotted its twin in Yucca Valley, California.
This image shows the car I found on top, and the car Jason wrote up below it. Despite the fact that over six years have passed since his article posted, my more recent image shows a car with the same color combination but fewer nicks and dents. In Jason’s brief comments, he noted how few 2 door coupes were made in these years, so it’s surprising to find another model identical in appearance.
As you can see, the desert air has treated the body kindly, but I have to believe the owner keeps it in covered parking most of the time, since the paint and vinyl roof show no signs of distress from the unrelenting UV that burns through most paint jobs.
Speaking of desert sunlight, the angle of the sun washed out the passenger side shot, but the black hole created by the missing wheel cover stands out in stark relief. Black wheels may be in style today, but they do no favors here.
The sun also did no favors to my interior shot, but we can clearly see a horn pad on the steering wheel, which narrows the model years down to 1985, ’86 or ’87.
To close, here is a close up shot showing a bit of repetitive parking rash on the driver’s door, and one of the last vent windows mounted on a domestic sedan. Overall, a very clean presentation of a classic Curbside Classic!
Jason’s full post: Almost as Rare as a Spotted Panther
A second maroon box from Garry M: My $(2)400 Winter Beater
A 4 door box from Brendan Saur: The Southie Stalwart
It is not an 85 because this one sports the rear window brake light, which did not show up until the 86 models. That color combo was very popular on these.
It’s an ’87.
The color is called Medium Red Glow. My 1982 LTD Crown Victoria was finished in the same shade. It is rather pretty.
Looking at the hat on the seat, I’d say Smokey the Bear has a very comfortable ride in that big leather seat.
I’m suprrised the driver left their hat in the car. Surely out of the car is when you need it.
Maybe it’s Dave’s hat, he forgot it when he was taking the interior shot… 🙂
I may visit the desert from time to time, but I do NOT dress like some desert hermit!
Call it the CC effect, but my neighbor across the street (who I believe flips cars) had a black 2-door Crown Vic show up recently. No vinyl top, turbine alloys.
Sounds perfect! Great color and wheels for that car. Any chance of getting a picture?
Let’s see if this works
Nice!
Thanks for posting the pic, Dave.
1986 was the first year for the Ford Taurus (I guess I should say Mercury Sable for the most direct comparison).
It’s sort of hard to believe that the Marquis above is from the same company in the year.
I absolutely loved my blue on blue, dark blue Landau top 2 door I had so many years ago. The 5.0 ran so strong, even though it would use oil somehow. Sure, it had some rust, but the interior was perfect, the a/c blew Antarctic cold. I’ve seen one in Alabama once. Shoulda bought it. Trying to upload a picture of my old one.
I’m glad we’re chronicling all of the remaining maroon two-door Grand Marquis!
I bet that in 1987, this car had the heaviest door in the car market.
Well in 87 you could still get a RWD Cutlass Supreme coupe. That door had to be pretty stinkin’ heavy too.
The fuselage doors on period Thunderbird’s were very heavy too.
Yes they were heavy.
My father-in-law had a baby blue ’86 Crown Vic two-door. With the car having lived in Chicago for a long while, it had a big rusty spot on the driver’s door.
One day at the salvage yard I found a dark blue Crown Vic two-door. So I took the driver’s door off my my father-in-law’s Ford. A few bolts and a few clipped wires and I could carry it away.
Oh. My. Goodness.
Heavy is almost a descriptor for it. To make matters worse, I realized it was impossible to put it in the rear seat of my four-door Crown Vic. So in the trunk it went, tied down to everything, with the trunk lid open for the 50 minute, 70 mph, trip home.
But that door went on his CV and ultimately met it’s fate, along with the rest of the car, in a demolition derby in St. Louis. My father-in-law was duped by the buyer it seems.
Actually the ones I remember from that time period was the camaro/firebird doors. They were annoying to close.
More tempting car porn in the form of another 2-door Panther! Allow me to drool, please. I don’t even care that its condition is less than stellar–any 2-door Panther sighting is good enough to drive every other thought from my head.
Just so happens the Mercury Grand Marquis version is my favorite. The coupe was never built past 1988 so they didn’t get the freshened front end or rear panel. I wonder how hard it would be to retro-fit those to an earlier car? The slimmer bumpers would have to be swapped in as well to fit the look right.
Still, I like the gothic style of the front end on this Mercury. This was a styling cue that had been introduced the decade prior to the 80s, and Ford milked it for all it was worth to the bitter end. The last car from Ford to wear this type of face was the 1989 Lincoln Town Car, although the edges had been softened somewhat back in 1985.
“they didn’t get the freshened front end or rear panel. I wonder how hard it would be to retro-fit those to an earlier car?”
My online used parts locator shows the same fender from ’82 to ’92, so the newer cap would match up to the body lines, and PROBABLY bolts up with little or no modification.