Eh, an update for the fun of it
People over at FEOA have had the patience of a saint with me, and been uber helpful
Got the wheels balanced at Costco ($23 for a rotate, balance, and Nitrogen conversion isn't a bad deal)
It got it's poly steering bushings and OEM outer tie rod ends to tighten it up
New sway bar links to kill the clunking
Serviced the Clinton era Transmission fluid, only snapped two pan bolts in the process
Put the pump valve kit in it, now it's shifting right
New thermostat and radiator cap kept it not overheating (gotta do the cooling fan relay mod)
By some miracle I didn't snap the 3 bolts that hold the thermostat housing onto the cylinder head (CVH owners know what I'm talking about)
The more I drove it, the better it got, couple of tanks with a couple of bottles of B12 Chemtool cleaned it out, and I cleaned the TB and MAF
Solved the unintended acceleration with a NOS Motorcraft IAC and TPS (It craves those luscious OEM parts)
Still needs an alignment, and probably shocks/struts, and it's got a bent rim (still balanced out though)
It was returned to it's owners, who tool around town with it, and are quite pleased
It needs to come back for a check up, but soon we can get to the fun projects we originally planned for this car
Power locks/keyless/remote start
Maybe Plastidipping it flat black
Who knows...
It will forever be known as Project Escort