Best Years for the Town Car: The Whale ('98-'11)

Part 1 of a series, I will feature the "Aero" 1990-1997 Town Car in the next article.


  
Whale ('98-'11)



2004

 If you like the bodystyle known as the "Whale" that ran from '98-'11, then you really can't go wrong with a 2004.
It gets all the upgrades of the 2003 and doesn't have any particular model year quirks. Also it still had a ton of options available that they gradually took away starting in 2005.

Pluses:
In 2003 Lincoln re engineered the frame, brakes, steering, suspension, and the horsepower went up to 239, the most the TC would ever get. These upgrades carry over to 2004 and make for the best handling most dynamic Town Car of any generation. With a 3.27 axle ratio and the dual exhaust equipped 4.6L V8, these Town Cars feel light on their feet and always have plenty of power in reserve if you need it. The performance upgrades don't make the TC into a sports car, but you can drive it with gusto and not worry about approaching the limits of what it can do.
The 2004 was the last year of the throttle cable, which provided direct and progressive feel to the gas pedal, and it's simpler and easier to fix vs. the later models which had drive by wire.

With a good maintenance program these cars are capable of going 300K or higher.
With this in mind I would give cars with 150-200K a look, you can pick up these higher mile cars for cheap and they still have a lot of life left. Just try to find a privately owned, non limo Town Car if possible.
The '04s didn't have bad axles or timing chain issues that the '03s did.
A nice bonus with the '04 is that a lot of options and colors were available that Lincoln took away in the later years starting with the 2005.
Some of the cool options available include HID headlights, Navigation system, rain sensing wipers, Ultimate and Limited trim packages.

These cars have a large following, so there are technical forums such as Crownvic.net and grandmarq.net which will help if you want to do your own repairs or upgrades.

Negatives:
With the 2003 mechanical changes the Town Car gained a more confident, athletic feel on the road, but there was a price to be paid in ride quality. The ride is firmer than any older Town Car, you still glide down the road,  but you feel the bumps more, especially on bad roads.  However, it's not a jarring ride by any means, and much better than any unibody modern car.
The 2004 has a few problems that plague all the Whale cars, mostly electrical. The A/C blend door breaking is a common problem, it's fairly invasive to fix, involves pulling the dash.
The digital odometers can be glitchy, doesn't affect all cars but many flicker or go out all together.
The intake manifolds can crack around thermostat housing, not common but it happens. Before '03  the entire intake on the 4.6 liter engine was plastic and frequently cracked and leaked coolant. After '03 they fitted all 4.6 engines with a part aluminum manifold which drastically improved reliability of the manifold. However most of the manifold remained plastic so they can still crack and leak coolant. Fortunately this problem is not common on the '03-up Town Car, and there are aftermarket solutions if it does happen to you.
Water leaking onto the floor is a common problem, it comes from the cowling around the windshield.
This is really nitpicking but the whale cars used a lot of plastics much like their predecessor.The bumpers are plastic and crack easily, and the headlights are all plastic and tend to glaze/fog up.