1973 Mach 1 restoration

Hi! I'm new to this. I have a 1973 Mach 1. My father who passed away left it to me. He took it to have it restored a long time ago and basically got ripped off. The people who were doing it stripped it and took my father for over 10,000 dollars. It took us 2 years to get the car back. Now its basically just a shell. I want to fully restore it. I know my father would have wanted me to do it. I just don't know where to start. I cant afford to do it all at once so i was gonna try to do a little at a time. Any suggestions on where to start or where i could find parts at reasonable prices. I have found a gas tank for it. I need the fold down back seat, trap door to trunk and vinyl top. I have a list of parts my father had written down that are missing. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I can be reached via email. tech_gurl @ hotmail.com

I will post picture from before my father had it taken to garage for restoration and after pictures of when we finally got it back 2 years later.

List of parts I need:

Gas tank, vinyl top, rear view mirror, side emblems, side strips, radio, padded dash, hood, ram air, front grill with emblem, lights front and back, cowl vent, wipers, fan belt, alternator, battery, shifter handle, bolts for everything, all hoses missing, inner fender mud guards, exhaust complete hanger clamps, front seats, back fold down seat, windshield, carpet, gauges in dash, door handles, inner door panels, all rubber seals for trunk, windows, radiator, rear bumper, trap door for trunk, metal pieces on floor and under door to hold down carpet, mat for trunk, spare tire and air tank, headliner and insulation, 2 beauty rings for wheels, gas line and hose, line from pump to carburetor and pump to metal gas line, and driver front fender.

Wow. Sounds like quite a project you've got there. Next things to do: 1) post some pics so we can see what you've got there, and 2) let us know your intention for the car (concours restoration, trailer/show queen, daily driver, weekend street or strip, etc.). That way, we know where your headed and can give advice accordingly.

I will upload photos. I would love to take it shows. I def. will not be driving it daily. I dont even know if I will be able to drive it at all. I will have my bf or brother drive it to the shows. Its got such a long front end it will be hard for me to see.

Wow. Sounds like quite a project you've got there. Next things to do: 1) post some pics so we can see what you've got there, and 2) let us know your intention for the car (concours restoration, trailer/show queen, daily driver, weekend street or strip, etc.). That way, we know where your headed and can give advice accordingly.

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Also join a local Mustang club and you may find some helpful folks there that may be willing to give advice. Plenty of great info here too.

You'll get used to that long hood.

Get a Marti report for your car. It will help you know how your car was equipped when delivered to the dealership.

Then you can decide if you want to put it back that way or change it.

Ray

You obviously want it to look nice. Are you interested in competing at shows or just showing it off? Are you interested in doing a full concurs restoration or more interested it have a nice looking car with some personal touches? I ask because the cost for a full concurs restoration can be several times the cost of just getting it to a nice looking car with some aftermarket parts and everything not 'as it came off the assembly line'.

I can help you with the cowl vents, fold down seat and trap door. What color dash pad do you need?

What helped me in my first restoration of my Mustang, was separating all the parts into section (i.e. exterior body, exterior trim, interior, electrical [to include lighting], engine and engine compartment, so forth...). It helps in the spending aspect and gives you a goal with one section of the car and then when you meet the goal for one portion, you can move on. I ordered all my parts at once cuz I had the money at the time, then I moved from the outside in with the restoration process. It gave me sections to work on at a time and really helped with time management and stress of a restoration. Just my 2 cents!

sorry i didnt reply earlier I'm still learning about this forum stuff. I now know how to read the vin number. I think the interior was a ginger color. the outside was suppose to be the saddle bronze. I never did really like that color. i have found some pictures that had parts in it that looked maybe avocado. I know that was not the original color. I have to double check what all there is left. I will take some pictures when I go out saturday.


How do i do a marti report?

You'll get used to that long hood.

Get a Marti report for your car. It will help you know how your car was equipped when delivered to the dealership.

Then you can decide if you want to put it back that way or change it.

Ray

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I second the Marti Report, that way you can know what options the car was ordered with.. It's a nice document to have.

http://www.martiauto.com/reports2.cfm

What helped me in my first restoration of my Mustang, was separating all the parts into section (i.e. exterior body, exterior trim, interior, electrical [to include lighting], engine and engine compartment, so forth...). It helps in the spending aspect and gives you a goal with one section of the car and then when you meet the goal for one portion, you can move on. I ordered all my parts at once cuz I had the money at the time, then I moved from the outside in with the restoration process. It gave me sections to work on at a time and really helped with time management and stress of a restoration. Just my 2 cents!

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Very good idea! Make your plan on how to proceed before you turn a wrench.

This is the main reason I joined this forum because after surfing it I realized that the wealth of information and resources here is massive.

These guys really know their stuff.

A plan is a good thing. As is completing 1 part of the project at a time. Ask lots of questions on how to do things as there are some very practical people here that can save you a lot of pain.

I still have window stickers n i believe bill of sale. Sometimes its good to b a pack rat.

I still have window stickers n i believe bill of sale. Sometimes its good to b a pack rat.

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Too Good. See if you can post it up at some stage it would be cool to see

If it wasnt for bad luck, I'd have no luck at all. On my way home from work today a big deer hit the side of my car. My first brand new car and its damaged already. ugh! This may just put a kink in things for awhile.

If it wasnt for bad luck, I'd have no luck at all. On my way home from work today a big deer hit the side of my car. My first brand new car and its damaged already. ugh! This may just put a kink in things for awhile.

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Sorry to hear that, at least your OK. Hopefully insurance will cover the damage.

I got some current pictures. Just trying to figure out where we put the manual, window sticker and VIN Plate.

Here are some pics of the paper work.

Cool that it still has the paperwork, Oh and welcome to the forum. Now how about some pics of the car?