- Joined
- Mar 10, 2011
- Messages
- 5,960
- Reaction score
- 112
- Location
- Oklahoma
- My Car
- 1971 Boss 351
1971 Mustang Sportsroof
1972 Q Code 4-speed conv.
Well these articles sometimes make mistakes. Which makes it tough for those that trust them explicitly.
While Mr. Jerry Heasley is a great auto journalist and true Mustang enthusiast - even he can get it wrong sometimes.
http://www.mustangandfords.com/featured-vehicles/1712-whos-the-boss-in-1972-that-would-be-r-code-351-h-o-mach-1/
This 1972 Mustang should not have a T-handle shifter. It should have the black shifter ball. Actually you cannot just take an original 1971 T-handle and move it to a 1972 or 1973 4 speed car. The threads are different. There are a few other differences between original 1971 T-handles and the other ones people are using in their 72 & 73 cars. I remember someone years ago trying to tell me their T-handle shifter on their 1973 Mach 1 came from an original 1971 Boss 351 car! Doubtful. No way unless they drilled out the original and re-tapped to the 72/73 threads.
"In 1972, Ford de-tuned the Boss 351 and called the result a 351 H.O. for High Output. The output was indeed high, but not as high as 1971. Horsepower dropped from 330 to 270 for 1972, with much of that decrease of 60 horsepower due to the industry’s rating change to “net,” which yields lower numbers. The 351 H.O. still had the performance features of a Boss, such as a solid lifter cam, a block with 4-bolt mains, an aluminum intake, dual-point distributor, rev limiter, Hurst T-handle shifter (all were four-speeds) {Ray Edit: NO Hurst T-handles were used for the 1972 and 1973 4-speeds!!!}, and a large four-barrel carburetor. The main concessions to 1971 were less compression ratio (from 11.1:1 to 8.8:1) for lower octane fuel with open-chamber heads and flat-top pistons, plus a slighter milder cam."
Here is a Boss 302 website article comparing 1970 and 1971 Shifters and T-Handles.
http://www.boss302.com/hurst.htm
One more thing - the license plate frame should NOT be black - not body color...
No - it should be slop grey!!!
Ray
While Mr. Jerry Heasley is a great auto journalist and true Mustang enthusiast - even he can get it wrong sometimes.
http://www.mustangandfords.com/featured-vehicles/1712-whos-the-boss-in-1972-that-would-be-r-code-351-h-o-mach-1/
This 1972 Mustang should not have a T-handle shifter. It should have the black shifter ball. Actually you cannot just take an original 1971 T-handle and move it to a 1972 or 1973 4 speed car. The threads are different. There are a few other differences between original 1971 T-handles and the other ones people are using in their 72 & 73 cars. I remember someone years ago trying to tell me their T-handle shifter on their 1973 Mach 1 came from an original 1971 Boss 351 car! Doubtful. No way unless they drilled out the original and re-tapped to the 72/73 threads.
"In 1972, Ford de-tuned the Boss 351 and called the result a 351 H.O. for High Output. The output was indeed high, but not as high as 1971. Horsepower dropped from 330 to 270 for 1972, with much of that decrease of 60 horsepower due to the industry’s rating change to “net,” which yields lower numbers. The 351 H.O. still had the performance features of a Boss, such as a solid lifter cam, a block with 4-bolt mains, an aluminum intake, dual-point distributor, rev limiter, Hurst T-handle shifter (all were four-speeds) {Ray Edit: NO Hurst T-handles were used for the 1972 and 1973 4-speeds!!!}, and a large four-barrel carburetor. The main concessions to 1971 were less compression ratio (from 11.1:1 to 8.8:1) for lower octane fuel with open-chamber heads and flat-top pistons, plus a slighter milder cam."
Here is a Boss 302 website article comparing 1970 and 1971 Shifters and T-Handles.
http://www.boss302.com/hurst.htm
One more thing - the license plate frame should NOT be black - not body color...
No - it should be slop grey!!!Ray
