Ford Falcon 1996 Problems

WE REFERRED your problem to Mark Lynch at Carcool Airconditioning and his advice was: The fresh air/recirc duct has been a problem since the 1984 XF Falcon. The duct was revised by Ford about the 1993 ED by increasing the thickness of the actuating arm, but then the duct broke at the pivot shaft instead of the arm. The easiest way to solve the problem is with a 5cent self-tapping screw to lock the flap in permanent recirc because this stops the constant flow of cold air. If you want to persist with a fix use a modified early duct with a strengthened actuator arm in lieu of a new part.

OLDER Falcons had an unnerving habit of wandering at speeds approaching highway limits. It has more to do with the suspension set-up than with the wheel alignment. If it bothers you, consult a suspension specialist. Replacing some bushes in the front suspension, or lowering the car slightly, can help. Also try changing the wheel alignment settings.

FORD brake lights seem to fail more often than those of any other make, and have done so for years, though you see lots of other makes and models also without operating brake lights. With the increase in auto transmissions, we tend to use the brakes more, simply to hold the vehicle stationary at red lights and so on, so brake lights are operating under much tougher conditions than before. They are often in small housings with little or no air flow to cool them, which helps explain why globes fail, but why you should be going through brake-light switches so frequently is a mystery. Have an auto-electrician take a good look at the electrical system. Something else might be causing your problem.