What did you do to your LS today?

Sorry guys I always forget about this thread.

BigRig-sounds like a nice setup. I hope to make this LS last, as it's such a good interior for sound from what I've played with so far. Really not much outside noise gets in, which is a big difference when it comes to speakers. I had these JBL speakers in my Explorer first, they sounded great but in the LS they really shine.

Deacon- honestly, not that much. I already had the speakers, but when new they were I think $90 for the pair (JBL GTO something or other 5x7's).

The stuff I ordered:
Dash kit
Wire harness
Steering wheel control adapter
Reverse cam
Parking brake bypass
Voltage regulator for the stock amp to prevent pop noise (RadioShack)
And pioneer 4800 radio

Was under $350 all together, or right around $350.

I like the "higher end" of the Pioneer AVH line because of the 7" display vs the smaller display that has larger buttons. Plus the 4800 got the NEX screen which is smoother and a bit more vivid vs the 4700 I replaced it with.
 
BrianDye said:
Sorry guys I always forget about this thread.

BigRig-sounds like a nice setup. I hope to make this LS last, as it's such a good interior for sound from what I've played with so far. Really not much outside noise gets in, which is a big difference when it comes to speakers. I had these JBL speakers in my Explorer first, they sounded great but in the LS they really shine.

Deacon- honestly, not that much. I already had the speakers, but when new they were I think $90 for the pair (JBL GTO something or other 5x7's).

The stuff I ordered:
Dash kit
Wire harness
Steering wheel control adapter
Reverse cam
Parking brake bypass
Voltage regulator for the stock amp to prevent pop noise (RadioShack)
And pioneer 4800 radio

Was under $350 all together, or right around $350.

I like the "higher end" of the Pioneer AVH line because of the 7" display vs the smaller display that has larger buttons. Plus the 4800 got the NEX screen which is smoother and a bit more vivid vs the 4700 I replaced it with.
Click to expand...

Is this something that you can order as a complete package from someone like Crutchfield or is it best to piece it all together?
 
No, its much better to piece together. The features I paid more for with my radio, you might not want and could get a lesser model for less money. Mine also has a remote, so some people might be happy with a remote vs. steering wheel controls, etc.

Heres what you'll need:

-$11 Dash Kit (This is how the aftermarket radio will fit in the LS) Metra 95-5000B or 5000S (B for black, S for silver)

-$12 Wire harness (This is how you easily hook the aftermarket radio up without cutting your stock wiring up) Metra 70-5701 (This may vary by year, but this was what worked for my 03 with the 12 speaker system)

-$48 Steering Wheel Control Adapter: Axxess ASWC-1 (Its a 4 wire connection. Power, ground, one wire from the LS harness and then one headphone jack style wire plugs into the radio)

-$180ish to over $1000 Double Din Radio (I really love and prefer the Pioneer AVH line, as they're very affordable and have all the latest features. **Most of these DO NOT have navigation built in, but you can mirror it from your phone**. Figure out the features you want like bluetooth, DVD playback, nav, Pandora, Spotify, HD Radio, SiriusXM, etc.

You don't need to go the double din route, you can go single din with bluetooth and save a bit of money, but single dins just aren't for me. They don't look right in the beautiful LS dash either IMO.
 
BrianDye said:
No, its much better to piece together. The features I paid more for with my radio, you might not want and could get a lesser model for less money. Mine also has a remote, so some people might be happy with a remote vs. steering wheel controls, etc.

Heres what you'll need:

-$11 Dash Kit (This is how the aftermarket radio will fit in the LS) Metra 95-5000B or 5000S (B for black, S for silver)

-$12 Wire harness (This is how you easily hook the aftermarket radio up without cutting your stock wiring up) Metra 70-5701 (This may vary by year, but this was what worked for my 03 with the 12 speaker system)

-$48 Steering Wheel Control Adapter: Axxess ASWC-1 (Its a 4 wire connection. Power, ground, one wire from the LS harness and then one headphone jack style wire plugs into the radio)

-$180ish to over $1000 Double Din Radio (I really love and prefer the Pioneer AVH line, as they're very affordable and have all the latest features. **Most of these DO NOT have navigation built in, but you can mirror it from your phone**. Figure out the features you want like bluetooth, DVD playback, nav, Pandora, Spotify, HD Radio, SiriusXM, etc.

You don't need to go the double din route, you can go single din with bluetooth and save a bit of money, but single dins just aren't for me. They don't look right in the beautiful LS dash either IMO.
Click to expand...

Mine is a '04 with the 12 speaker setup, so it should be very similar. Diffidently would go for the double DIN with the about 7" touch screen. Built in Nav make them very expensive, but if I can mirror it with my Android, then that could save some money. What about the backup camera?
 
Today's Mods

Smoked the tail lights, de-chromed the grille because sections of chrome were wrinkled, painted grille matte black, built a custom short ram air intake and made a much larger list of future mods. Anyone know how to take off the front bumper of a 2nd gen LS?
 
Deaconblue said:
Mine is a '04 with the 12 speaker setup, so it should be very similar. Diffidently would go for the double DIN with the about 7" touch screen. Built in Nav make them very expensive, but if I can mirror it with my Android, then that could save some money. What about the backup camera?
Click to expand...

Eh, this is my first go-around with backup cameras. I paid $17 for a very small, basic one and am happy with the quality. I will replace it very soon though with one that has "real" night vision (the lens has the little infrared LEDs around it). Hooking it up was simple enough, but with the LS using its "trigger" signal to detect blown bulbs, you either need a relay to trigger the radio for reverse or tap into the mirror reverse wire. (The mirror automatically dims from people behind you with bright headlights, but for safety reasons when you put it in reverse, it disables the dim, and that signal is what your radio needs to know the car is in reverse)
 
BrianDye said:
Eh, this is my first go-around with backup cameras. I paid $17 for a very small, basic one and am happy with the quality. I will replace it very soon though with one that has "real" night vision (the lens has the little infrared LEDs around it). Hooking it up was simple enough, but with the LS using its "trigger" signal to detect blown bulbs, you either need a relay to trigger the radio for reverse or tap into the mirror reverse wire. (The mirror automatically dims from people behind you with bright headlights, but for safety reasons when you put it in reverse, it disables the dim, and that signal is what your radio needs to know the car is in reverse)
Click to expand...

Why not grab the signal off the back-up lights?? That's what I did for my aftermarket back-up sensors on my 2000.
 
LS4me said:
Why not grab the signal off the back-up lights?? That's what I did for my aftermarket back-up sensors on my 2000.
Click to expand...

Because the backup lights have +12V on all the time (the car is a awake), and ground switched on and off to turn the lights on and off. You can't just connect the camera across the bulb, because the camera has a signal ground that is not isolated from the power ground. If you do, then the bulb will get ground through the video cable. The result is bulb and camera on all the time. Also, not all in-dash units with accept a "negative" trigger. My JVC would not. My pioneer would (I think), but since I had to add a relay for camera power any way, I just used the positive signal off the relay. (You want to switch power to the camera off when not using it, if you want it to last any amount of time.)

If you have an isolated device with no other ground connections, you may get away with wiring it across the bulb.
 
Yep, Joe pretty much summed it up, plus the system pulses signal to the bulbs, so my headunit will switch to the reverse cam thinking im in reverse, when im not, and then I have to manually go back to my media screen. Thats what the relay is for, Joe suggested running the relay trigger off the reverse lights because the pulse won't be enough to trigger the relay.

Plus, when doing some research on installing the reverse cam, people said wiring some of them to the reverse lights for power sucks because there is a delay. The screen will switch to the camera and then theres a few second delay of the camera powering up and being ready. (I would imagine this being more common in the cheaper models-mine included)
 
BrianDye said:
Plus, when doing some research on installing the reverse cam, people said wiring some of them to the reverse lights for power sucks because there is a delay. The screen will switch to the camera and then theres a few second delay of the camera powering up and being ready. (I would imagine this being more common in the cheaper models-mine included)
Click to expand...

the only way this is happening is if people are installing cheap sh!t cameras...

my (fairly cheap) metra camera (and even the audiovox I had before that) would power up and be on in a fraction of a second, so you may have about 1/4-1/2 of a second of black screen, unless you shift into reverse right after starting the car, the the camera is on long before the unit is booted up enough to switch over to the camera input.


its also weird that your Pioneer acted weirdly to being connected directly to the reverse lights... all of mine have behaved perfectly.
 
Got my new to me one piece intake tube from grell. thanks G! I had to purchase a piece of hose since on of the hoses didn't fit to the tube. Napa hose part #:9030. WOOHOO! It sounds amazing when jumping off the line. Sounds similar to a mustang rumble. Mmmmmm. Bet it will sound even more amazing when I delete the mufflers. image.jpg
Below is the hose I'm talking about circled in red (google image) and the upc of the hose. I had to cut the hose to size.
image.jpg
image.jpg

image.jpg


image.jpg


image.jpg
 
Swapped out the mclaren for the GEN 1 LSE grille, put on my GEN 2 LSE spoiler, debadged the tail lights and put on my new emblems. He is on the way to getting where I want him.
image.jpg
image.jpg
image.jpg

image.jpg


image.jpg


image.jpg
 
izzy said:
Got my new to me one piece intake tube from grell. thanks G! I had to purchase a piece of hose since on of the hoses didn't fit to the tube. Napa hose part #:9030. WOOHOO! It sounds amazing when jumping off the line. Sounds similar to a mustang rumble. Mmmmmm. Bet it will sound even more amazing when I delete the mufflers. View attachment 828476488
Below is the hose I'm talking about circled in red (google image) and the upc of the hose. I had to cut the hose to size.
View attachment 828476489
View attachment 828476490
Click to expand...

Looks GREAT!!! I loved the sound too!....... Ask Hite, but my muffler delete sounded amazing!!!! same sound "levels" as a flowmaster/magna (resinators keep db's down), but better tone all the way through until maybe 4.5 - 5k rpms... would sometimes get a bit raspy... but hey, a well placed cut would allow you to try, and re couple if you didn't like...

great idea for the hose... I think I cut notches into mine to get it to slide in... like this better
 
Cool, LS Christmas came early this year.

Arrived ... thanks G, good deal!

20160912_121411.jpg

That makes two McLaren grilles, much appreciated!

20160912_121411.jpg
 
Archangel said:
Just finished up putting new KYB front shocks on with new Moog upper control arms and stabilizer end links... Made a huge difference after I noticed that I blew out the drivers side original shock.
Click to expand...

What was the reason for replacing these items?

I have replaced stabilizer links, stabilizer bushings (mine is a 2000 with 196,000 miles), tie rod ends, front shocks (I bought the $12.00 ones from rockauto). All these trying to get rid of clunking in front end. Nothing has worked. When I had it aligned last week, tech showed me that the upper control arm bushings are worn, wheel can be moved a bit and there is bump/clicking noise from the ucas. So now I have moogs coming from rockauto. I hope this will fix my noise as I'm running out of things to replace and patience.
 
Waltzy said:
I see you're in Tampa, I'm in South Tampa. Nice looking LS!
Click to expand...

Yes I am! I am an admin on the Lincoln LS Obsessed page on FB, if you're not a member already. There are a couple groups over there. The other one is Lincoln LS Enthusiasts. Both are great groups. I am hoping to put a meet together sometime soon for FL. I have a couple things to confirm before I announce it though. You should join the FB groups if you haven't already.
 
I replaced the clock spring.

It is so nice to 1) not have the airbag light and the warning beeps. 2) radio controls at my finger tips and 3) Cruise Control!! I need this bad because this thing is so fun to drive! I get on one of the recently repaved expressways in metro Detroit and find myself doing 90+ mph, especially when some song (like Radar Love) comes on the radio, So I need Cruise set and my foot off the pedal.
paid $650, replaced the Battery, the interior door handle, and not the clock spring: So I now have $900 into it. Blend door actuator is next.

New to this Forum, New to Lincoln: I ditched my Buick and bought an LS because I work at Ford now. Also went to the SAE Vehicle Event last week which featured the new Continental. What a nice car! I got to sit in it. very nice.
 
ShadeTreeJack said:
... Blend door actuator is next....
Click to expand...

I don't know why this misconception keeps coming up. There is no air temperature blend door on the LS. If you are having temperature control problems, it is most likely your DCCV that is at fault.

There are doors that control where the air comes from (inside or outside) and where it goes (floor, dash, defrost), but none of those do any blending.
None of them control temperature. I assume that you have a 1st gen, since you had to replace the clockspring. The 1st gens do have a "cold-air-bypass door", but it does not actually control temperature.
 
Thanks, that is interesting since you can buy a blend door actuator and there are threads and videos showing where it is located and how to replace it..they must be the door that redirects the flow to the various vents.

Could you explain how controlling the flow to the heater core will get my AC to blow cold again? or at least bring ambient air temp to me? (nm; figured it out after posting)

2001 Lincoln LS Blend Door Actuators can be found here:

http://www.oreillyauto.com/site/c/s...ap?year=2001&make=Lincoln&model=LS&vi=1373903

http://www.autozone.com/cooling-heating-and-climate-control/a-c-heater-blend-door-actuator
 
Last edited:
There are many, many threads on this problem, but you don't have to believe me or them.

The DCCV controls coolant flow through the two heater cores. All air from the HVAC system flows through the AC evaporator first, and then through the heater cores (left side, left core, right side right core). If no coolant is flowing through a core (that valve of the DCCV closed), the the air is not heated. If the AC system is working, it is cooled. If some coolant is flowing, then the air is warmed. If the AC system is working, it could still be cooler than the outside air, but not as cool as it could be. If the valve is fully open, then there is full coolant flow, and the air is fully heated. Even if the AC system is working, the air coming out will still be very hot. I don't see how this could be confusing.

The most common failure of the DCCV is for one or both of the valves to either stick open, or for the solenoid coil that controls it to short out or corrode open. Either way, this leads to the valve being open, and thus you getting heating when you don't want it.
 
got it. I figured it out after I clicked post...

regarding the parts that are available, they must be the door that redirects the flow to the various vents. yes?

I did believe you. The best info is in these forums. That's why I come to these forums.

I wonder if the DCCV is a Jaguar thing, as the LS is a shared platform and most Fords use a Blend Door Actuator. I see a lot of complaints here about the DCCV, but since I have done three of my family vehicle's Blend Door Actuators (BDA) , I am not a fan there either: I currently have a pair of vise grips holding the door hinge pin on my daughter's Grand Cherokee because I cannot get the new BDA to work. AND in my wife's Bravada, I have the old BDA unplugged but holding the door stationary because the new one has the wrong spline and wrong connector pins. Dorman seems to have a mix up between the manual and Auto temp BDAs. Same thing happened to my Camaro's caliper bracket several years back.. I have a couple spares for the rear from when I needed a front.....
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Members online

Total: 130 (members: 1, guests: 129)
Back
Top