Frankenstein Mach 1 in Vegas

[California 72]

As part of the safety inspection to get the title changed from salvage to rebuilt I have to make sure all the basic safety equipment works.

Hope your DMV is more title friendly than here in Virginia. Had an opportunity to get a '65 Fastback in decent condition, just a flood salvage. Anyhow, it was to be part of a settlement we won in a small claims court suit we filed against the restoration shop we sent our '66 F100 to because of work I couldn't do without a garage.
Anyhow, we were advised by a lawyer friend at the time it would take an act of God and enough money to bribe the devil into closing down his shop to get it changed.
Needless to say, it was a good enough reason and why I'm not posting on another forum. LOL

Understand the troubles but one thing that puts an edge above on a good number of us here, it's a 4spd. Mach 1. Have fun!

 

[California 72]

I think you might find the combination of your T5's 3.3ish 1st gear and your 3.5:1 rear end make your first gear pretty short. Like coming from a stop sign, you're shifting into 2nd gear before your back tires even cross over the white line. Thats pretty close to how my 1969 mustang is setup.

Its a tad silly. But at the same time, its impossible to drive that car without getting a big grin across your face.

If you want to make it a little bit more like a street car, they do sell rebuild kits that let you use the gear ratios from like the 83-84 T5 transmissions, but in a world class T5 like yours. They can handle up to like 450HP and not be quite so silly with 1st gear being that short. Those sets of gears give you almost the same ratios you can get in the new TKX transmissions, which make more sense for rear end radios like yours.

I'd stick with the "Granny Gear". Since it's also only 1st that winds it up quickly (as in clock and not air movement), I'm for keeping the rear-end what it is.
Either way it's work and with the rear, smelly. It's nicknamed "a pig" for a good reason.
Anyhow, think of the hole shots on a Friday night cruise and grabbing a car length off the start to shut the "other than Mustang owners" down quickly.

Edit: If you do change it out, I'll swap ya my 2. center section for yours. Only trouble is packing and shipping to or from the right coast might be almost as costly as a new gear and the setup time.

 

[351mach1]

Hope your DMV is more title friendly than here in Virginia. Had an opportunity to get a '65 Fastback in decent condition, just a flood salvage. Anyhow, it was to be part of a settlement we won in a small claims court suit we filed against the restoration shop we sent our '66 F100 to because of work I couldn't do without a garage.

They gave me the registration and said I'm good to go. The title doesn't come in for a month or so, so fingers crossed California doesn't put up a stink! A somewhat comical, not funny mistake they made; when I picked up the registration it said "Chevy Mustang". Didn't know they made those. I am supposed to get a corrected registration today. Maybe I should have left it a unicorn...

Edit: If you do change it out, I'll swap ya my 2. center section for yours. Only trouble is packing and shipping to or from the right coast might be almost as costly as a new gear and the setup time.

I'll keep ya in mind. I think I am going to swap the trans in (when the budget allows) and drive it a bit to see how I like it. Then I will decide if the rear end needs to be changed. Thanks for the offer!

 

[California 72]

They gave me the registration and said I'm good to go. The title doesn't come in for a month or so, so fingers crossed California doesn't put up a stink! A somewhat comical, not funny mistake they made; when I picked up the registration it said "Chevy Mustang". Didn't know they made those. I am supposed to get a corrected registration today. Maybe I should have left it a unicorn...

That's amazingly good fortune. I've seen some salvage title nightmares with a couple friends. We are NOT a GM family so, that is funny but also horrific at the same time. Although, I've always liked the looks of the old Firebirds with a hard stop at '73.

 

[351mach1]

I felt pretty defeated the other day. After getting it on the road, I thought I would install a few extra parts I have been acquiring. First up was rubber valve cover gaskets and ARP bolts. Well wouldn't you know the P/O had completely warped the valve covers by over torquing. I should have just left them be as I basically had to use a half tube of gasket maker to get them to seal and that was after spewing oil all over my exhaust manifolds.

I then decide to look into the slight leak from the passenger rear tire. I was expecting to see the wheel cylinder leaking but turned out to be the outer axle seal. I am also leaking from the power steering, engine oil pan, and auto trans. It just started to feel overwhelming.

I was hoping to recurve the dizzy and get it reinstalled so I could at least start the car up but when I pulled the new distributor apart I realized I had the wrong size reluctor plate and I don't own a welder. I had to accept defeat for the night but not before begging a friend across town to weld up my plate at 8pm and then running to the auto part store for the axle seal.

Reset and dig back in the next day. I finished recurving the dizzy and installing. I replaced the axle seal which wasn't nearly as smooth as they make it look on youtube. I desperately need new gear oil in the rear end. It took a little bit to get her to start (I was way too advanced) but once I got it running and dialed in the timing, she ran great! I mostly tuned out the stumble I've been fighting with in my engine thread. I refurbished the PCV system which had that added bonus of stopping the oil pan leak. I got the car in a position that I felt comfortable taking a longer journey. I ended up driving down to the strip and joy riding a bit. All in all about 35 miles of traffic, highway, and suburban driving. No hiccups, minimal leaks, started every time, and feeling fairly reliable.

I have a terrible gasoline smell inside the car that I need to figure out. It's to the point where I almost can't drive the car without feeling sick. I am going to assume a major exhaust leak. The P/O didn't even have exhaust manifold gaskets on the engine. I did install new exhaust gaskets but that didn't help much. I think I am going to pay a shop to clean, drain, and fill the rear end, align and wheel balance, and fix the exhaust leaks. Minus well knock it all out in one shot.

I am at the point now of fixing all the little things to make it a reliable daily driver:
-New rear leaf springs (old ones are real bad)
-Clean, drain, fill, seals on rear end
-Alignment, wheel balance, ball joints
-exhaust leaks
-finish tuning carb/timing
-oil pan and gasket
-Transmission service/fix leaks
-Power steering leak
-rear brake adjust/new shoes possibly/fix ebrake
-Fuel gauge (probably need a new tank judging by what came out of the fuel filter)

It sounds like a lot writing it all out but its just a bunch of little things and I will have a shop bang out the alignment, rear end, and exhaust for me. I am getting close!!

 

[Sheriff41]

We can all relate to this.

 

[MOTORCITYBADBOY]

Hope your DMV is more title friendly than here in Virginia. Had an opportunity to get a '65 Fastback in decent condition, just a flood salvage. Anyhow, it was to be part of a settlement we won in a small claims court suit we filed against the restoration shop we sent our '66 F100 to because of work I couldn't do without a garage.
Anyhow, we were advised by a lawyer friend at the time it would take an act of God and enough money to bribe the devil into closing down his shop to get it changed.

Blood shoots out of my eyes at the mere mention of Virginia DMV.. I have nearly 40 years experience... Virginia DMV is the worst of the worst! It's not usually the individual service people, it's the giant bureaucracy, greed for tax money, and immovable policies that refuse to consider individual circumstances..
Last year I bought a 2008 Bullitt Mustang from the original owner. I beeegggggged DMV to let me keep the original title for historical documentation on the car.. The local office manager even called the main office in Richmond on my behalf... When asked what they do with it after I get the new Va title, they said it gets shredded because if they let me keep it I might commit some kind of fraud.. what?? That doesn't even make sense because once they issue me a new title in my name (and get gouged for the taxes) I'm the legal owner of the car, and the original title is no longer valid!!!! I left the DMV and went to Kinkos to get a couple full color copies of the original before I let them shred it- aaarrrggghhh!

 

[tpj71mach]

I felt pretty defeated the other day. After getting it on the road, I thought I would install a few extra parts I have been acquiring. First up was rubber valve cover gaskets and ARP bolts. Well wouldn't you know the P/O had completely warped the valve covers by over torquing. I should have just left them be as I basically had to use a half tube of gasket maker to get them to seal and that was after spewing oil all over my exhaust manifolds.

I then decide to look into the slight leak from the passenger rear tire. I was expecting to see the wheel cylinder leaking but turned out to be the outer axle seal. I am also leaking from the power steering, engine oil pan, and auto trans. It just started to feel overwhelming.

I was hoping to recurve the dizzy and get it reinstalled so I could at least start the car up but when I pulled the new distributor apart I realized I had the wrong size reluctor plate and I don't own a welder. I had to accept defeat for the night but not before begging a friend across town to weld up my plate at 8pm and then running to the auto part store for the axle seal.

Reset and dig back in the next day. I finished recurving the dizzy and installing. I replaced the axle seal which wasn't nearly as smooth as they make it look on youtube. I desperately need new gear oil in the rear end. It took a little bit to get her to start (I was way too advanced) but once I got it running and dialed in the timing, she ran great! I mostly tuned out the stumble I've been fighting with in my engine thread. I refurbished the PCV system which had that added bonus of stopping the oil pan leak. I got the car in a position that I felt comfortable taking a longer journey. I ended up driving down to the strip and joy riding a bit. All in all about 35 miles of traffic, highway, and suburban driving. No hiccups, minimal leaks, started every time, and feeling fairly reliable.

I have a terrible gasoline smell inside the car that I need to figure out. It's to the point where I almost can't drive the car without feeling sick. I am going to assume a major exhaust leak. The P/O didn't even have exhaust manifold gaskets on the engine. I did install new exhaust gaskets but that didn't help much. I think I am going to pay a shop to clean, drain, and fill the rear end, align and wheel balance, and fix the exhaust leaks. Minus well knock it all out in one shot.

I am at the point now of fixing all the little things to make it a reliable daily driver:
-New rear leaf springs (old ones are real bad)
-Clean, drain, fill, seals on rear end
-Alignment, wheel balance, ball joints
-exhaust leaks
-finish tuning carb/timing
-oil pan and gasket
-Transmission service/fix leaks
-Power steering leak
-rear brake adjust/new shoes possibly/fix ebrake
-Fuel gauge (probably need a new tank judging by what came out of the fuel filter)

It sounds like a lot writing it all out but its just a bunch of little things and I will have a shop bang out the alignment, rear end, and exhaust for me. I am getting close!!

View attachment 96175View attachment 96176View attachment 96177

We've all been there, I like to write to-do's on a list and cross them off as I complete them it gives me a personal sense of accomplishment, haha.

 

[351mach1]

We've all been there, I like to write to-do's on a list and cross them off as I complete them it gives me a personal sense of accomplishment, haha.

I am definitely a "to-do" list kinda guy and that's partly what these forums are for me

 

[California 72]

Well wouldn't you know the P/O had completely warped the valve covers by over torquing. I should have just left them be as I basically had to use a half tube of gasket maker to get them to seal and that was after spewing oil all over my exhaust manifolds.

While I consider myself lucky to be just the third owner, it really is the P/O's that can leave you really P'dO.
It's the phantom wires, missing parts, etc., etc., and with the motor, the fact someone did a 0.030 rebuild but still selling it as "two owners, 71,000 original miles" that hit me hard.
Along the lines of your valve covers, mine too! Just before I painted them, I did a once over with a rubber mallet and brass dowel to clean them up. After all, 52 years will leave a couple dings, especially with the motor being yanked somewhere along the line.
While cleaning the dings, thought I might have a look-see with the bolt holes, because of leaks (not the good kind you eat), and sure enough, they were all rounded toward the head, but that mallet and brass dowel made quick work of the bows and it's all flat and flush.
For what it's worth, my Cleveland suffered from the same number of leaks as Tommy Lee Jones's SR-71 in Space Cowboy's and we all wish we could get our 'Stang's to launch like that. Although one leak in particular really gets me still, it's the one where they creased the oil pan with a floor jack.
That's just unforgiveable with there being a clear difference between the oil pan and cross member.
Have faith, soon you'll be stressing out like so many of us wondering if it will ever get there and then be reassured by some great posters here that it will get there. Even in my 60's and not my first rodeo with our pony's, everyone sweats the state of disarray during disassembly.