1972 Mustang Coupe 302

[Paul Schmidt]

12/9 update

I've discovered in this process that there are days when you add a little something to another part of the car and ultimately it starts to show you just how great these beasts will look when done. I've been starting to get her stripped down now for the new hood and for painting coming up now that the body work is mostly done...but just for the hell of it, decided to throw on the refurbished lower valance I redid, as well as the new front spoiler to see how it looks with the new grill. One of the things that always attracted me to this particular year was that front spoiler...just because of how badass it makes that front end look. The new front bumper will be here on Saturday, but I'm already stoked about the way this front end looks.

So this coming weekend will be a slew of new parts arriving. Ordered new marker bezels for both front and back, new bumper for the front, new parking light bezels for the valance and new taillights. Once those arrive I'm going to set all these parts aside and start building the plastic "room" in the garage to paint...most likely over the holiday break.

That's the latest update.

In terms of the running, I do have her running stable now...there is still some slight issues...but I did do a compression test this weekend and found no issues. Then reverse troubleshooted back to the carb and did some further adjustments. Also changed the plugs just to be safe. Once I did that, I did manage to balance her out quite a bit and she is running more solid. Not quite where she should be yet, but I'm still playing around with the fuel/air adjustments to smooth her out. I still think I'm going to take her in to the shop for a full eval...just so I know what the overall situation is...and determine what I can / can't tackle within my skill set. But she's running and driving...so that's the main point.

More to come. Enjoy your week gang.

- PBR

 

[Bill Perkins]

12/9 update

I've discovered in this process that there are days when you add a little something to another part of the car and ultimately it starts to show you just how great these beasts will look when done. I've been starting to get her stripped down now for the new hood and for painting coming up now that the body work is mostly done...but just for the hell of it, decided to throw on the refurbished lower valance I redid, as well as the new front spoiler to see how it looks with the new grill. One of the things that always attracted me to this particular year was that front spoiler...just because of how badass it makes that front end look. The new front bumper will be here on Saturday, but I'm already stoked about the way this front end looks.

So this coming weekend will be a slew of new parts arriving. Ordered new marker bezels for both front and back, new bumper for the front, new parking light bezels for the valance and new taillights. Once those arrive I'm going to set all these parts aside and start building the plastic "room" in the garage to paint...most likely over the holiday break.

That's the latest update.

In terms of the running, I do have her running stable now...there is still some slight issues...but I did do a compression test this weekend and found no issues. Then reverse troubleshooted back to the carb and did some further adjustments. Also changed the plugs just to be safe. Once I did that, I did manage to balance her out quite a bit and she is running more solid. Not quite where she should be yet, but I'm still playing around with the fuel/air adjustments to smooth her out. I still think I'm going to take her in to the shop for a full eval...just so I know what the overall situation is...and determine what I can / can't tackle within my skill set. But she's running and driving...so that's the main point.

More to come. Enjoy your week gang.

- PBRView attachment 95842

Keep up the Great Work, it is worth it

 

[Paul Schmidt]

Small update for today. Installed the new bumper.

 

[Spaceman]

Shiny!

 

[Paul Schmidt]

So outside of working and getting this T-shirt thing going for all of us today...I managed to take a couple hours and clean up the tail end of the car. Refinised and painted the rear lower valance cleaned up the taillights and did some touch up. For those of you still tuned in, you will see that I am completely procrastinating on addressing that rear window. Literally working around it to avoid confrontation lol. It's kinda like hiding your peas under your mash potatoes...sooner or later I'm going to have to eat them. But in the meantime, however, I can be happy with the way the rear end looks.

 

[Spaceman]

You planning on a honeycomb or flat rear panel? Gonna get some shiny surround on the right taillight or black out the left to match the right? Mine are opposite, one has black with bright trim and one is sans any black.

 

[Paul Schmidt]

You planning on a honeycomb or flat rear panel? Gonna get some shiny surround on the right taillight or black out the left to match the right? Mine are opposite, one has black with bright trim and one is sans any black.

My current flat panel that I refurbished will go back on. The honeycomb is nice to have on there, but mine is in almost perfect condition so why spend the extra cash. I just need new molding stips for the top and bottom.

And in regards to the taillights, I'm ordering new ones...as these (and any I saw for sale used) are all pretty rough. I figured I'd save myself some time on that. The only reason they are different is I tried blacking one out and it turned out ******. It looks good from far away and I do like the black out...but up close its pretty crappy and its a pain in the tail to paint those decently. So I'm just going to go with the new shiny and leave it at that. plus I needed all new weather stripping on the outside.

Also have to order some new bumper brackets bolts...one of the old ones was rusted and snapped during reinstall, so the right side of the bumper is not flush to the car as it is on the left. Always something little to end the day with.

 

[Paul Schmidt]

Sunday morning irritation.

Took her out this am for a spin up to the auto parts store. Started fine. Ran ok...no major issues. Went inside, got my stuff, came back out...dead. No lights, no clicking, no cranking. They swapped the battery out for free. Still nothing. Checked all the connections, etc,. Nada. Battery is new. Starter is 20 days old. Ignition? Fuse? Wiring? At this point she's going into the shop for a complete top to bottom tomorrow as it's beyond frustrating to wonder if I am going to make it home every time I take her out.

More to come later this week when I hear the good news or the bad. Hopefully whatever issues remain can be resolved so that at the very least, she runs consistently and reliable...so that I can start addressing all the other work on the list. But I have exhausted my knowledge parameters of troubleshooting at this point.

Happy Sunday.

 

[tpj71mach]

Sunday morning irritation.

Took her out this am for a spin up to the auto parts store. Started fine. Ran ok...no major issues. Went inside, got my stuff, came back out...dead. No lights, no clicking, no cranking. They swapped the battery out for free. Still nothing. Checked all the connections, etc,. Nada. Battery is new. Starter is 20 days old. Ignition? Fuse? Wiring? At this point she's going into the shop for a complete top to bottom tomorrow as it's beyond frustrating to wonder if I am going to make it home every time I take her out.

More to come later this week when I hear the good news or the bad. Hopefully whatever issues remain can be resolved so that at the very least, she runs consistently and reliable...so that I can start addressing all the other work on the list. But I have exhausted my knowledge parameters of troubleshooting at this point.

Happy Sunday.

Sorry to hear you got stranded after you have made so much progress to this point.
After your shop goes through it and makes it reliable you will have more confidence in it can start enjoying it more. It may be as simple as adjusting the neutral safety switch, I had that problem at first.
When I first got mine done, I drove it quite a few different times and had a couple hundred miles on it with no problems. My son took it over to his girlfriend's and it wouldn't restart for him. I went over there and found that when he placed the car in park the neutral safety switch didn't line up. I realized (having been described as a "bull in a china shop" since I was a kid), When I slam it into park it lined up, but when a normal person placed it in park it didn't. A slight adjustment and it has been fine, even when a normal person doesn't slam it into park like I do, haha.

 

[Paul Schmidt]

Sorry to hear you got stranded after you have made so much progress to this point.
After your shop goes through it and makes it reliable you will have more confidence in it can start enjoying it more. It may be as simple as adjusting the neutral safety switch, I had that problem at first.
When I first got mine done, I drove it quite a few different times and had a couple hundred miles on it with no problems. My son took it over to his girlfriend's and it wouldn't restart for him. I went over there and found that when he placed the car in park the neutral safety switch didn't line up. I realized (having been described as a "bull in a china shop" since I was a kid), When I slam it into park it lined up, but when a normal person placed it in park it didn't. A slight adjustment and it has been fine, even when a normal person doesn't slam it into park like I do, haha.

There may be something to this...as this description also adds up to some other similar bugs as well. Either way, it will get sorted out in the next few days hopefully. Will keep you posted.

 

[Sheriff41]

Sorry to hear you got stranded after you have made so much progress to this point.
After your shop goes through it and makes it reliable you will have more confidence in it can start enjoying it more. It may be as simple as adjusting the neutral safety switch, I had that problem at first.
When I first got mine done, I drove it quite a few different times and had a couple hundred miles on it with no problems. My son took it over to his girlfriend's and it wouldn't restart for him. I went over there and found that when he placed the car in park the neutral safety switch didn't line up. I realized (having been described as a "bull in a china shop" since I was a kid), When I slam it into park it lined up, but when a normal person placed it in park it didn't. A slight adjustment and it has been fine, even when a normal person doesn't slam it into park like I do, haha.

Lol! I used that, "Dad, the car wouldn't start" routine when I was a teenager!

 

[Paul Schmidt]

12/19 - Success at last all. The coupe is now running great and even better, the engine...outside of some wiring issues, a plug that apparently got closed upon install, a bad voltage regulator to the alternator and some more detailed carb adjustment...is in great shape. So that's a load off and since I was prepared to hear the worst, only to have it cost me a couple hundred to get her set up and running like she should be. I even had them put new tires on as well. So killed two birds with one stone. Ended up staying with 14's, as the rims on it now are 14's, and the tires were shot to the point I wasn't going to be able to drive her home. That and not being in a position budget wise to do both rims and wheels together, I settled for Cooper Cobra Radial GT's 215/70/14's and will add new Magnum 500 14x7's next month. I can live with 14's...it will still have a good stance and I kinda like the idea of keeping it original to the original size.

Now the big question of the hour for you all.

It was no shock to me when I bought her that she is going to need to be rewired. A lot of half-ass fixes and splices were done by the PO....shotty wiring in a lot of places, some wires are just plain degraded and dissolved, etc. Considering I am planning on putting in new ac, radio, lights, etc, not to mention fixing turn signal switch, tailights, etc....I had them take a look and give me an estimate.

The shop I have her in specializes in classic cars. Good shop, good guys. I won't name the shop, as I don't really want to seem like I'm throwing them under the bus here, but definitely want your input. Obviously rewiring the entire car is a tedious job...I get that. A lot of labor and removal of a lot of stuff. And I know from shopping around for harnesses that complete kits average about 1200 - 1500 just for the setup. The estimate I got from these guys however,(who by the way weren't pushy about it at all) was $6200. That seems extraordinarily high to me. I was anticipating about 3000-3500. Certainly wasn't expecting it to be a grand more than I paid for the car. Am I just out of my wheelhouse on my expectations? I'm not a wiring guy, so by no means is this something I would tackle...but that seemed hella high. Or maybe it's about right?

Anyway, that may have to wait a bit, as I at least want to get the remaining bodywork done, finish my work on the suspension and the brakes, etc., before I dive into those waters. And I'm now enjoying the fact that the engine issue was solved without finding a major issue. She sounds mean again. Stoked about that.

I'll post a new video this weekend to show you all the progress of where I'm at.

- PBR

 

[Spaceman]

Once again our cars mirroring each other. Glad you were able to avoid a full rebuild like me though.

Have you also looked into midlife restoring your harness? I've been bouncing back and forth between diving into a universal harness install and sending it out to midlife, leaning more towards the midlife route. Both due to cost, keeping the original material, and the raving reviews he's had over the years.

 

[Paul Schmidt]

Once again our cars mirroring each other. Glad you were able to avoid a full rebuild like me though.

Have you also looked into midlife restoring your harness? I've been bouncing back and forth between diving into a universal harness install and sending it out to midlife, leaning more towards the midlife route. Both due to cost, keeping the original material, and the raving reviews he's had over the years.

Not familiar with Midlife, so I'll have to do some digging. To be honest, it's not necessarily the price of getting the new system, its the additional cost of the labor, which I knew would be high, but not necessarily that high. I'll have to kick some options around. I certainly don't have the experience or the knowledge to take it on...although I suppose I could learn and research, but wiring is a special kind of beast. I'd rather not jump into a rabbit hole and find myself screwed halfway through.

 

[Sheriff41]

Not familiar with Midlife, so I'll have to do some digging. To be honest, it's not necessarily the price of getting the new system, its the additional cost of the labor, which I knew would be high, but not necessarily that high. I'll have to kick some options around. I certainly don't have the experience or the knowledge to take it on...although I suppose I could learn and research, but wiring is a special kind of beast. I'd rather not jump into a rabbit hole and find myself screwed halfway through.

You can find @midlife here in the forums - he's a member.

 

[Spaceman]

http://midlifeharness.com/ is his site. You can remove and send him your existing under dash harness, or I believe for an extra cost buy a returned one from him. But if you send him your original it's coming back with all wiring for your cars original options (convenience group, tach, optional gauges, clock, seatbelt warning, or any combo of things that weren't the same with all cars).

There are a lot of videos on YouTube and some people on here who have done a new harness. Most common comment seems to be that it's not impossibly hard or really too technical, but is much less "painless" then they'd have you believe. If that $6200 is the cost including harness that is looking like they are estimating 40 hours labor @ $125/hr. Probably high for a shop that does these all the time and on the money for a competent shop that can figure it out but doesn't do this often if ever. I was figuring if I did it myself I'd plan for 60 hrs and not be mad at myself if it took 80. I fear electricity and would be super meticulous.


Electricity is always my biggest anxiety in car or home work so the thought of unplugging existing and replugging it in later seems like a better option than trusting myself to complete a full rewire and diagnose it if I mess up.

 

[Paul Schmidt]

Thanks gents. I'm going to do some research and see where I net out. I've never removed a harness or wiring from a car, so even if I watch some videos (believe me, I'm tempted to send @midlilfe my stuff so at least it gets repaired) getting it out and then putting it back in is something I am completely in the dark about. However, part of this process is the learning, so I'm not opposed to it. I think I'll give Midlife a call and see if he can give me any thoughts or direction on the best way to do this. I just checked out his site. Obviously knows his ****.

 

[midlife]

Once again our cars mirroring each other. Glad you were able to avoid a full rebuild like me though.

Have you also looked into midlife restoring your harness? I've been bouncing back and forth between diving into a universal harness install and sending it out to midlife, leaning more towards the midlife route. Both due to cost, keeping the original material, and the raving reviews he's had over the years.

I'll have you know that I am known to be raving regarding many things: young women, whiskey, nincompoops, etc., but reviews? Hmmm...

 

[Paul Schmidt]

@midlife I'm going to give you a call later today and pick your brain on this 72 Coupe I have. As mentioned above, while I can navigate my way around engine work, wiring is not anywhere in my technical vocabulary. (By the way, I was the one who emailed you about tracking down those parking light components). Either way, feels like you may be able to give me some solid direction on which way to go forward.

- PBR

 

[351mach1]

The estimate I got from these guys however,(who by the way weren't pushy about it at all) was $6200.

Shop time is a lot now adays. A normal run of the mill shop is usually charging 150-175 an hour and I wouldn't be surprised to see a specialty shop charging 200-250 an hour. If you factor in the harness and bits and bobs costing say 1500 (common for shops to charge 10% on parts) so actually $1650 for parts; at 200 an hour that's 22 hours of labor or 18 hours at 250 an hour. Maybe that's a bit on the high side, maybe not if they do stellar work and have it done in a week. I'd reckon a full harness job would come in somewhere between 15-20 hours if you are familiar with the car and all the circuits.

You could definitely find someone cheaper but then you start thinking about the cost, quality, time triangle (you only get to pick 2)