How I met my Mustang

[Fredensborg]

How I met my Mustang...

   It was the fall of 2003. I was driving down highway 169 from working a weekend cash job in cabin country of Northern Minnesota. Cruising along at my typical 10-15 miles over the speed limit, I catch a shiny glimpse of beautiful blue muscle car on the frontage road just off the highway. I did what any red-blooded American boy would do, and hastily cut across a couple lanes of traffic and slip into the turn lane to go take a peek.

   As I pull up, it's almost a scene out of a movie...The hood scoops looking like the snout of some evil blue dragon taking a nap on the side of the road... the blackout hood, spoiler, all the right things to pique the interest of a 23 year old kid...the classic "4-sale" sign tossed on the dash with a local number to call

                                                                        "1973 Mustang

                                                                          8,500$ Steve"

All the information necessary...so of course after drooling over the car a bit, I get back in my '96 F-150 and fly home. That evening I call Steve and inquire about the car. Trying to remember to not sound too excited as I asked him a few standard questions, how many miles? Any accidents? Why are you selling? Blah blah blah, I was hardly listening to the responses...now on the important questions!! Yes it is still available, but boy has he had a lot of calls on it....but, yes he can show it to me tomorrow afternoon!!  All day long at work I was thinking of the car, visions of burnouts, hot chicks riding shotgun, and drag races dancing through my head. As soon as work is over I drive back to the sleepy little town along highway 169. 

   "Are you Jason" he asks, clearly a little disappointed in my age...I have always had a babyface and I can tell he thinks I'm barley old enough to drive let alone buy a car for myself...

"Yes sir, you must be Steve" Of course he is, we chat for awhile longer and the initial ice wears off and he asks if I would like to drive it....WOULD I??? Ive been waiting all day for this! He fires it up and lets me take the reigns for the first time...this not being my car and me not wanting to damage anything...I drive like a little old lady around the block a few times. "OK, pull over" he says, "I'll show you a couple things"...I'm pretty sure Steve has sold a car or two in his day to young bucks. As soon as we switch spots he heads to the edge of town at a pretty good clip, we come to a complete stop in the middle of a nice stretch of flat two-lane blacktop with no one in sight. He proceeds to do the most ass kicking break stand I have ever been a part of up to that point in my life...lets off the break a lays a nice patch of rubber along the road to commemorate my birth into the Mustang Family.

   At this point he probably could have added a thousand dollars to the price of the car, I was hooked...this car would be mine. We cruse back over to where my truck is parked and I try my best to work "The Art of the Deal"...the Don would have just shaken his head at me

 "Will you take 7500$???" 

"Oh no, this car is a paint job away from being a 30,000$ car!! I cant sell for less!" he says..

To which I naturally reply..."Sold!"

We head back to his place and write up a quick little contract. I give him a deposit, then head to the bank the next day to take out a loan for the rest...A few days later she's all mine!

   The first day I had the car I get pulled over for rolling through a stop sign, pretty sure the cop just wanted to check out my bad ass ride because he let me off with a warning anyway. Up till that point in my life I've never had a cop pull me over and be all smiles, asking questions about my car...

    I drove her around a decent amount those first couple years. To work and back when the weather was nice, friends houses, the occasional car show...After meeting my wife and using the Mustang as the get-away car in the wedding (sentimental value anti-sale insurance guarantee, do it guys!), the babies started arriving and the Mustang fell into disrepair a bit. She sat in my garage for the better part of ten years, the longest trip being an 18 mile journey from our old house to our new one when we moved in 2010...but my kids are bigger now, and I have finally decided to get the Mustang back out there. I should have her back next week, and I am VERY excited!!

These old Mustangs have an effect on people, and I swear I was meant to have this car...I know it sounds kinda corny and silly. But all the little things that had to line up just right for me to notice the car when I did, work up north that weekend, take that particular road home that day, be the first one to show up and see the car out of a handful of calls the Steve got (or maybe that was one of his expert salesmanship tactics??)  I think others of you know what I'm talking about and maybe have a similar (or vastly different) story, I'd love to hear the different circumstances that led to other people being owned by a Mustang!!

 

[Mister 4x4]

Great story, but:

:worthlesswithoutpics:

-----

So after my pal Jim bought a 1963 1/2 Galaxie 500 XL to have a cool hot rod to work on, I was jonesin’ pretty hard for a cool hot rod of my own. After pokin’ around on Craigslist for a few weeks, I’d decided to look at a 1971 Mach 1 being sold for way too much money… but it was locally in San Angelo. I originally saw the first pic (below, swiped from the CL ad, as a matter of fact) and was intrigued, but not “all-in” for $2800. I kept seeing it on CL for a few weeks with the price dropping a bit each time. It had gotten down to $2200 when I called the seller and asked about it. He said he’d had lots of interest (B.S.) and it wouldn’t last long (more B.S.). I waited a few more days and called to go see the car – meanwhile, my wife had found his ebay ad for the same car (more pictures) with pretty much the same description – for $2000. I printed that out and took it with me. My pal Jim was warning me off the whole time, but I had the Mach 1 Goggles on and I was going to have this car. The seller had said something about the $2200 CL ad price, and I showed him the ebay ad… to which he reluctantly agreed to honor that price. After crawling all over the car, noting the holes in the floor, the seized engine, seized master cylinder, the fact that he had no title or even a set of keys, along with Jim “Dude-ing” me the whole time, I walked away. We both came to the conclusion that it was WAY too rough for the money and that it was probably better to pass on this one (OK – he decided it was better to pass on it, but I wasn’t done considering all options yet).

After another week, I called the guy back and asked how things were going, and he once again came back with the ‘lots of interest’ and ‘won’t last long’ B.S., and I told him I’d like to check it out one more time. So, I met him on a Saturday morning with a trailer and looked it over one more time. He still wanted $2200, and I reminded him of the ebay ad I’d shown him last time. He sighed and agreed again. But then I threw him a healthy dose of reality. He kept claiming it was a rare and desirable car, and worth a lot more – he’d just seen one go for $40K on Barrett Jackson. To which, I threw up the B.S. Flag. During that week away, I’d joined 7173Mustangs.com and I think another Mach 1 forum as well, and done a ton of research. Turns out it was a Boss 351 that went for $40K (very much NOT a ratted-out H-Code Mach 1), and I explained everything in detail about the car (production numbers, DSO code, how insignificantly not-rare or collectible the car is, etc.) and told him with the seized engine, rust, no title or keys, and overall sad shape of the car that I would give him $1600 and not a penny more. He started to protest and I basically told him that I’ve been watching this car not selling for the past 2 months, and that he wasn’t going to find another sucker to give him even that much. He wanted to argue, but finally agreed after seeing the trailer outside… and a few minutes later my other friend Don and I winched the Mach 1 onto the trailer, I handed him 16 Benjamins and took his quickie Bill of Sale that he’d scribbled out. I later found out he’d only paid something like $1000 for it, and was trying to pull off a Gas Monkey kind of a deal.

It wasn’t until I got it over to the Auto Hobby Shop that I’d started being concerned about a few things… First, that I’d gone against Jim’s advice, Second that I’d paid too much, and Finally that there were no keys. I wasn’t even concerned with the lack of title, but that would sink in later and turn out to be no big deal as well, since it had ancient Texas plates, a military ID tag, and a Texas registration sticker from 1980 (it had fallen out of the system a long time ago). Jim was there just shaking his head, looking more like a disappointed father after I’d just wrecked the family car or something. He wasn’t pissed or anything, but he was definitely not initially very supportive. I’d even asked him, “OK, Jim. What should I start with?” Without missing a beat, he replied, “A tetanus shot.” Looking back on things, that was freaken hilarious… but at the time it just irritated me.

Don said he’d ease the car off the trailer with the winch, but after I hopped in, he hit the release and the Mustang and I rolled off the trailer and picked up speed before bouncing hard onto the pavement and coasting away. This was the first time ‘driving’ the Mustang, but I was really more of a passenger, since the steering wheel was locked (with no keys), and the brake pedal was solid from the seized master cylinder. After it came to a stop, the guys helped push the car to an outside stall, and the comments began to roll out. Everything from, “whatta pile,” to “I wouldn’t have bought that POS,” to “what possessed you to buy THAT,” to “you’ll never make that nice again,” came from just about everybody who laid eyes on it… which just made me more determined – whatever… it’s my car now, and I’m going to make everybody eat their words.

Here are some pics – a couple of Craigslist pics and a few from after getting the car to the shop.

And 4 years later, this:

 

[Fredensborg]

Great story, but:

:worthlesswithoutpics:

-----

So after my pal Jim bought a 1963 1/2 Galaxie 500 XL to have a cool hot rod to work on, I was jonesin’ pretty hard for a cool hot rod of my own.  After pokin’ around on Craigslist for a few weeks, I’d decided to look at a 1971 Mach 1 being sold for way too much money… but it was locally in San Angelo.  I originally saw the first pic (below, swiped from the CL ad, as a matter of fact) and was intrigued, but not “all-in” for $2800. I kept seeing it on CL for a few weeks with the price dropping a bit each time. It had gotten down to $2200 when I called the seller and asked about it. He said he’d had lots of interest (B.S.) and it wouldn’t last long (more B.S.). I waited a few more days and called to go see the car – meanwhile, my wife had found his ebay ad for the same car (more pictures) with pretty much the same description – for $2000. I printed that out and took it with me. My pal Jim was warning me off the whole time, but I had the Mach 1 Goggles on and I was going to have this car. The seller had said something about the $2200 CL ad price, and I showed him the ebay ad… to which he reluctantly agreed to honor that price. After crawling all over the car, noting the holes in the floor, the seized engine, seized master cylinder, the fact that he had no title or even a set of keys, along with Jim “Dude-ing” me the whole time, I walked away. We both came to the conclusion that it was WAY too rough for the money and that it was probably better to pass on this one (OK – he decided it was better to pass on it, but I wasn’t done considering all options yet). 

After another week, I called the guy back and asked how things were going, and he once again came back with the ‘lots of interest’ and ‘won’t last long’ B.S., and I told him I’d like to check it out one more time. So, I met him on a Saturday morning with a trailer and looked it over one more time. He still wanted $2200, and I reminded him of the ebay ad I’d shown him last time. He sighed and agreed again. But then I threw him a healthy dose of reality. He kept claiming it was a rare and desirable car, and worth a lot more – he’d just seen one go for $40K on Barrett Jackson. To which, I threw up the B.S. Flag. During that week away, I’d joined 7173Mustangs.com and I think this forum as well, and done a ton of research. Turns out it was a Boss 351 that went for $40K (very much NOT a ratted-out H-Code Mach 1), and I explained everything in detail about the car (production numbers, DSO code, how insignificantly not-rare or collectible the car is, etc.) and told him with the seized engine, rust, no title or keys, and overall sad shape of the car that I would give him $1600 and not a penny more. He started to protest and I basically told him that I’ve been watching this car not selling for the past 2 months, and that he wasn’t going to find another sucker to give him even that much. He wanted to argue, but finally agreed after seeing the trailer outside… and a few minutes later my other friend Don and I winched the Mach 1 onto the trailer, I handed him 16 Benjamins and took his quickie Bill of Sale that he’d scribbled out. I later found out he’d only paid something like $1000 for it, and was trying to pull off a Gas Monkey kind of a deal.

It wasn’t until I got it over to the Auto Hobby Shop that I’d started being concerned about a few things… First, that I’d gone against Jim’s advice, Second that I’d paid too much, and Finally that there were no keys. I wasn’t even concerned with the lack of title, but that would sink in later and turn out to be no big deal as well, since it had ancient Texas plates, a military ID tag, and a Texas registration sticker from 1980 (it had fallen out of the system a long time ago). Jim was there just shaking his head, looking more like a disappointed father after I’d just wrecked the family car or something.  He wasn’t pissed or anything, but he was definitely not initially very supportive. I’d even asked him, “OK, Jim. What should I start with?” Without missing a beat, he replied, “A tetanus shot.” Looking back on things, that was freaken hilarious… but at the time it just irritated me.

Don said he’d ease the car off the trailer with the winch, but after I hopped in, he hit the release and the Mustang and I rolled off the trailer and picked up speed before bouncing hard onto the pavement and coasting away.  This was the first time ‘driving’ the Mustang, but I was really more of a passenger, since the steering wheel was locked (with no keys), and the brake pedal was solid from the seized master cylinder.  After it came to a stop, the guys helped push the car to an outside stall, and the comments began to roll out.  Everything from, “whatta pile,” to “I wouldn’t have bought that POS,” to “what possessed you to buy THAT,” to “you’ll never make that nice again,” came from just about everybody who laid eyes on it… which just made me more determined – whatever… it’s my car now, and I’m going to make everybody eat their words.

Here are some pics – a couple of Craigslist pics and a few from after getting the car to the shop.

  

  

And 4 years later, this:

Great story man! I love the first bit of drive time was rolling off the trailer!! Haha, I’ll dig up some old pics of my car from the time I bought it and post in a bit.

 

[Fredensborg]

Here’s a pic of that 23 year old kid I used to be with his new toy, and a couple others of it in the driveway at the old house right after I brought it home.

 

[Fredensborg]

Bump.
 

I’d really like to read more stories of how folks found their mustangs…don’t be shy folks! Lets see those creative writing skills!! 

 

[Carolina_Mountain_Mustangs]

I went to the dealership sat down wrote all the options down and ordered it. Then in a few months it mysteriously showed up on a car hauler. Original one owner.

 

[Fredensborg]

That's an awesome story David! At least you know the entire history of your car that way!! Keep 'em comin guys, I find these stories of how people came to own their mustangs fascinating! Any other original owners? What was it like the day you ordered it? Did you ever come close to selling? How many others are like me and are the third or fourth owner of their cars? Please, lets hear those stories!

 

[droptop73]

I had been looking for a Mustang convertible for a while. I started out looking for a 67-68 or a 69-70 but all the cars I drove did not drive or handle very well and I felt like I was sitting on it rather than in it. I Then I started looking for a 71-73, a friend of mine had one back in the day and I like the styling. I almost didn't go look at mine because it was yellow and later I repainted it... YELLOW!!??. I met the owner 1/2 way between where we each lived. He was surprised when I pulled out a floor jack and coveralls and asked if I could look underneath. It looked pretty solid and it drove great and I sat IN the car. We made a deal on it. That was in 1998. I had it for almost a year and drove it all over the place. One day on the way home from work some chucklehead made a blind left turn from behind a travel trailer and tore the nose off my nice driver Mustang. I REALLY didn't want a project car... I was pissed and tore it completely apart. It sat on blocks and jackstands for the next 7 years. I'd tinker on it now and then, replaced and repaired the damaged metal (fortunately the pick-up that hit me went over top of the frame rails). After languishing in my garage a friend challenged me to get it back together and offered his help. I got it back on the road in August of 2006 for a big show and cruise in Grand Rapids. Since then it's been a "rolling restoration". I've swapped it to a 5 speed, changed to 18" wheels, rebuilt the engine, reupholstered the seats and replaced the wiring harness (still in progress, but hey it drives), next up is a big brake kit featuring Cobra brakes and Brembo 4 piston calipers on the front. Between the beginning and today I have put about 60,000 miles on her and have been all over the eastern US. I'm NOT saving this one for the next guy!! LOL!! My favorite cruise night is a 110 mile round trip. 

 

[Fredensborg]

I love reading these!! Thanks for sharing, great story! Must have felt great to get it back on the road after all those years!

How about any of you European members or Aussies? How did you guys meet your mustangs?? Don't be shy!

 

[Aus73Mach1]

My 73 came from a friend of mine who had the car for a number of years. It was completely dismantled about 10 years ago. After moving house a number of times and realising the cost of a full restoration and the time involved, he decided he would not be in a position to do it for many more years to come. He needed the single garage space in his new home, fully taken up by the car, panels,engine, trans, etc and boxes of all the other bits. Reluctantly he offered the car to me for next to nothing on the proviso I would not part it out being a Mach1, matching numbers car, Q code, 4V, etc and well optioned.

I decided on a full ground up resto. Sand blasted (except for flat panels), all rusted sections repaired or replaced. 99.9% of every nut, bolt, screw and rivet removed and replaced. I haven't worked on a Mustang before and with nothing bagged or tagged, and a complete re-wiring, assembly was like a giant jigsaw. The 7173 site has been a huge help.

Negatives - Cost is always more than first thought; Hundreds of hours of time. BUT

Positives – Looks great, sounds great, real fun to drive and a head-turner when I'm out enjoying it.

Would I do it again? BLOODY OATH MATE!

David

 

[Idaho Chris]

Well here is a partial repost/cut and paste/edit  from my new member introduction last year.  I figured this would be a better place for the car's history.  So, with apologies for those that have already read this last September, here's my Mustang story:

While I am not the original owner, I am pretty close.  I bought the car in 1975 used from the local Ford dealer.  It is a 1973 2V automatic Mach 1.  When I acquired it there was 8000 miles on the clock.  The woman who owned it originally traded it for a Mustang II.  [how I met her is a story for another time].

I was in college at the time in Southern California and this is the car that I learned to work on cars with.  I was a road racing fan at the time and my Mach saw many late night high-speed runs on the Angeles Crest highway back in those years.  During my college days I made a number of “improvements” on the car.  All of this work was done in the parking lot and under an apartment carport.

Hedman headers, Offenhauser Dual plane intake, Holley 650 double pumper, Ram air, 351 Boss valve covers, 1971 4V Ford HO Cam, Rear sway bar, radial tires, Mallory electronic ignition, 1971 rear valence and dual exhaust.  I am sure I am leaving out a number of things, but that is what I remember.  The car ran pretty well and I managed a high 14 second run in the quarter which is saying something given the 2.75 open diff.

In 1977 an idiot riding a bicycle between cars in a parking lot ran into my front fender.  I decided to repaint the whole car since I wanted to remove the white ½ vinyl top that came with the car and put on 1972 stripes.  I also changed out the tail lights to the earlier black surround style. This is also when I added the rear valence.

In about 1980 I moved in next door to a guy with a 1971 Mach 1 4V HO car.  He was going to trade his Mustang in on a BMW so I asked him if I could swap out some parts.  He said no problem and over the next week or so I ended up with his 4V heads (open chamber), carb and intake manifold and he traded in a slightly modified ’71…

Well come the early 80s and life got in the way.  New wife, job, small garage…like many it was time to part with my pride and joy. I had a great dad who when learning that I was going to sell the car offered to buy it from me and store it until I could buy it back someday.  He was sure I’d really like to have my “first love” back at some point in the future.  He like so many others always regretted selling his first car.

As I recall he gave me $3000 for it.  We never did any paperwork so legally I continued to own it.  I guess the transaction is better classified as a fully collateralized loan where there were no payments and he held the collateral.  He stored the car in his airplane hangar and drove it monthly around the airport taxiways (you could get away with that back then) to keep it fresh.

Fast forward to around 1990.  My life situation was changed and I was able to “buy” my Mach back for the same $3000 I gave him 10+ years earlier.

I decided the first order of business was to take the car back closer to stock and removed the headers, installing factory exhaust manifolds and factory dual exhaust.  The ignition went back to points, coil back to yellow top, steering wheel back to original along with a few other things.

She didn’t run nearly as strong anymore, but my days of racing up the Angeles Crest were behind me and I was happy to have my “first car” back.

Well, again life got in the way and my automotive interests changed and the old Mach ended up languishing in storage and un-driven for 25 years which brings us to today.

Now retired I have the time and flexibly to work on the car again.  I’m going to get her back running and do some things I have always wanted to do.  I have no illusions that the car will ever be particularly valuable to anyone other than me and I am not interested in showing or having the car judged.

Today I am most of the way through a Tremec T5 conversion and have substantially finished my refurbishment. Most of my progress has been posted in the "What did you do to your car today" thread.  In hind sight I probably should have started a build thread.  Maybe someday I'll recreate that thread for prosperity.

A few recent progress pics below (also reposts...sorry).

-Chris

 

[Stanglover]

Well, like many of us here, most of my story has been posted before, but I do have quite an interesting story that newer members might like to read. I'll keep it as brief as possible.

It all started for me back in 1972 when I lived in Birmingham, England. I was walking along the downtown main street with a friend, when there it was. It was a Grabber Lime (I didn't know the name of the colour at that time) Mach 1 with all the black goodies, interior, stripes, hood. Absolutely gorgeous and I fell in love........ with a car! I said to my friend, "one day I'll own one of those", to which he said, "yeah right!". At that time I did not know that I would move to Canada 8 months later. Fast forward to 1974, I bought my first Mustang. Not a Mach 1, but a 71 Fastback 302. I had that car until I got married and we had a child. In 1980, we split up and I bought a 72 Mach 1 Q code, 4 speed. I only drove that car in summer as I had picked up a second Mach 1 H code automatic as a parts car that turned out to be better than that, so I "fixed it up" and drove that as my winter beater for 4 years until I sold it. The Q code stayed with me until wifey #2 came along and I sold that car in 1991 for 2500 bucks, all I could get for it at that time. I SHOULD have kept it!!!

Fast forward again to 2008, I was in a position to look for another Mach 1. I started with local ads on Autotrader, Kijiji etc. then to the internet. I found a beautiful looking Mach 1 on the Hemmings website, but the price looked wrong. I sent an email to the owner asking for more information and to confirm the price. I got a reply next day, but he did not confirm the price (unfortunately as it turned out). Me, being the suspicious type, went back to the Hemmings site to get a copy of the ad, but it had gone. Not having that copy almost cost me the car when I imported it. ** Always print a copy of an ad when you first see it**. After a few phone call the owner who lived in the LA area, I decide it was time to go see this so called rust free car. I flew out to LA from Detroit to meet Tony and see the car first hand. This car was everything he said it was. Zero visible rust anywhere. It had been repainted in the original Light Pewter, but that was all. The motor and engine bay were totally original other than of course, service parts. The interior had new seat covers, but the rest was untouched. After lookin git over, it was time for a test drive. Now, some will remember a recent post of mine regarding a broken throttle cable. Just as we were about to pull out of the diveway, the cable snapped. A good start for sure. So we took Tony's car and headed to Ventura and NPD to buy a new cable. As I had already decided to buy the car, I picked up a few other items I knew I'd need to be shipped back with the car.

After a great weekend with Tony, we arrange to ship the car back to Detroit via Reliable Carriers. It arrived a week later and this is where the real fun started. A friend from work had access to a car trailer and offered to go with me to collect the car. I thought I had all the paperwork done and ready, but noooo! First, I got to the US customs office by the Ambassador Bridge, only to find my export papers had not been cleared despite giving them more than the require 3 days notice. After some haggling, they stamped the papers and we were on the way over the bridge. Arriving at the Canadian customs things got really interesting. I knew I had to pay the 5% Federal tax, so after pulling into the secondary inspection area, we were ordered out of the vehicle and separated. Three customs goons started questioning us and I won't go into all of that, but bottom line is, they did not believe what I declared I paid for the car. Fortunately I did not lie. After 2 1/2 hours of interrogation, they finally let me go with the car. Remember I did not have a copy of the ad, well if I had I would not have gone through hell at the border. I simply did not have proof showing a price close to what I paid. The car was valued at double what I paid by these "experts". 

I will add more later, time for the British F1 race. 

What a race!! Hammer Time!! 

Pic 1; being checked over before shipping. Pic 2: arriving home. Pic 3; Engine showing original decals. The only major item replaced on this was the carb and I have the Autolite original in a box.

 

[Mike King]

I found my car in January 2000 (summer time here). I had been looking at Mustangs for a while and most had fresh paint or were basket cases. This one was at least honest and RHD converted (Passing trucks on the open road in Australia when driving in the left seat is not much fun-You have to put a lot of car out there to have look.) . She had an older respray, visible small amounts of rust and evidence of having had more hits than Elvis. The front end was bad. The steering had a heap of play. She was shod with bald retreaded tyres. I actually  left the car yard and on the way home changed my mind and returned to put a deposit on her. I think I felt sorry for her. All I asked was that they transfer the registration to our state. The salesman told me that the car was for sale due to a divorce settlement.

One week later i picked her up and had my first drive. Bad was an understatement. I drove her down to my race sponsor's back shed where we rebuilt the front end and steering box. We put new shockers on (They are the same as some Australian Falcons). The Kelly Tire rep sold me 4 brand new tyres for $50aud each which was an absolute bargain. It probably helped that my race buggy was also shod with Kelly's through my sponsor We then wheel aligned her.

Two weeks later I took her for a proper drive. She was a different car. In the 20 years that I have owned her she has never let me down and she has been to a lot of places, including camping at off road race meetings up north.. A panel beater friend of mine cut the rust out and fabricated a patch panel for the filler panel between trunk and roof. That was the only paint that I have had done since I bought the car so the current photos look the same as the day I bought her.

I have started stripping her down for body and mechanical repairs. I have discovered that she is a numbers matching car. ********* often offer me money for her as apparently they will take it off my hands because "no-one" wants this style of Mustang I could never sell her as I consider her to be family.

 

[Fredensborg]

Awesome story! I always wonder about the RHD’s. Did Ford make them that way for exports, or do people in the Old Empire convert them? 

 

[Mike King]

Converted by an engineer to RHD in Australia.  Some 1965 Mustangs were imported over in RHD I believe.

 

[Fredensborg]

Bumping this in the hopes that this can be revived...I always enjoy reading how people came to own their cars.

 

[Bobby]

My story began when I was a kid in Houston in the early 1970s. I watched in awe as some of the high school kids were coming home with GTOs, Trans Ams, Mustang and Cameros. Very few MOPARs in the area. I was in awe of the Trans Ams and Mustangs. My older brother was bringing home Hot Rod magazines etc. and I periodically lifted them from his stash AFTER I perused his Playboy/Penthouse collection. To me the fastback 71-73 Stangs was it. The 1970-1973 T/As had a shark-like nose that was bad-ass! My brother bought ($300) a 69 GTO when he was 17 and my dad hit the roof! His deal was no V8 engines as they were not fuel efficient and an insurance nightmare. This GTO needed minor repairs to get it running but my dad hounded my brother relentlessly until he sold it. My brother ended up with a nasty looking early 1970s Datsun. By the time I was in high school i was enamored with the 1976 Mustang with the Cobra 2 package. I though it was a way cool looking car. When it came time, I found several for sale around town but they were in poor condition or they were laying around in parts. I ended up with a 1978 Mustang coupe......with a 4 cylinder and 4 speed stick....No A/C. That was a serious setback for Southeast Texas! The deal was the same. NO V8s! If I wanted a properly equipped Mustang with a V8, I had to buy it myself, insure it myself, repair it myself and park it in the street. That little Mustang was fun to drive but mechanically was a piece of ****. I wrecked it twice, repaired it myself, rebuilt the engine then replaced then engine......all before 50K miles! To this day 2.3L engines gives me nightmares!

Fast forward to 2018. My dad passed away in 2016 and he left some money.....not what I expected but better than nothing I guess. I invested the money and there was some GE stock that he also left. The GE stock dropped like a stone in pond and I had to sell quick and reinvest in some better performing stock. Then I get gigged by the IRS to pay tax on the sale of the GE stock. My tax guy said he could get around it but since there only days left before the deadline, he told me to pay the tax and he would work on mine again after the rush was over. I paid the tax but within 3 weeks, he managed to get all my money back and filed an amended return. I got the check in the mail 2 weeks after that! So what to do. Then the Ghost of my hot rod desires came back to haunt me and tempt me. I started looking around for an inexpensive 1972 Mustang.....something WITHOUT that cursed 2.3L engine. I checked ebay (like looking for a babe in a mail order bride catalog!). I found a 72 Mach 1 in Seward Nebraska. The pics never show anything but she looked great. She had been restored to near perfect condition. The seller had some receipts and pics of the restoration. I contacted the seller and after a few days negotiations, we settled on a price. I overnighted a cashiers check and he sent me the title. Getting a shipping company was problematic but after a week of waiting and upping the ante, I got my beautiful lady delivered. Driving around the block after it was unloaded from the transporter was a near death experience. The steering was very sloppy, the brakes were nearly non-existant and the power steering cut in and out. Awww ****! What did I get myself into?? The brake master cylinder was nearly empty and what was in there was rusty sludge. The power steering was empty and leaking like a sieve. I adjusted the power steering gearbox to no avail. To date I have: Replaced the mold riddled interior, replaced the steering system, the braking system, the A/C system, the electrical system, the exhaust system, wheels and tires, center console, dash pad, all the gauges, gas tank with new old stock OEM sender, steering column rebuilt to new, new repro Ram Air system and finally a 351C stroked to 393 with all the internal goodies mated to a rebuilt AOD Tranny. I adorned my girl with all the best clothes and jewelry! The funny thing I like to relate......My dad forbade me from having a V8 gas guzzling hot rod but in the end, he bought me one anyway. Thanks Dad! I always knew you'd change your mind even if you had to keel over to do it!!!

 

[Fredensborg]

The funny thing I like to relate......My dad forbade me from having a V8 gas guzzling hot rod but in the end, he bought me one anyway. Thanks Dad! I always knew you'd change your mind even if you had to keel over to do it!!!

That's awesome man!! Thanks for posting your story...sometimes I swear it is fate that puts us together with these Mustangs!

 

[73 Mach 1 4 me]

My story began when I was a kid in Houston in the early 1970s. I watched in awe as some of the high school kids were coming home with GTOs, Trans Ams, Mustang and Cameros. Very few MOPARs in the area. I was in awe of the Trans Ams and Mustangs. My older brother was bringing home Hot Rod magazines etc. and I periodically lifted them from his stash AFTER I perused his Playboy/Penthouse collection. To me the fastback 71-73 Stangs was it. The 1970-1973 T/As had a shark-like nose that was bad-ass! My brother bought ($300) a 69 GTO when he was 17 and my dad hit the roof! His deal was no V8 engines as they were not fuel efficient and an insurance nightmare. This GTO needed minor repairs to get it running but my dad hounded my brother relentlessly until he sold it. My brother ended up with a nasty looking early 1970s Datsun. By the time I was in high school i was enamored with the 1976 Mustang with the Cobra 2 package. I though it was a way cool looking car. When it came time, I found several for sale around town but they were in poor condition or they were laying around in parts. I ended up with a 1978 Mustang coupe......with a 4 cylinder and 4 speed stick....No A/C. That was a serious setback for Southeast Texas! The deal was the same. NO V8s! If I wanted a properly equipped Mustang with a V8, I had to buy it myself, insure it myself, repair it myself and park it in the street. That little Mustang was fun to drive but mechanically was a piece of ****. I wrecked it twice, repaired it myself, rebuilt the engine then replaced then engine......all before 50K miles! To this day 2.3L engines gives me nightmares!

Fast forward to 2018. My dad passed away in 2016 and he left some money.....not what I expected but better than nothing I guess. I invested the money and there was some GE stock that he also left. The GE stock dropped like a stone in pond and I had to sell quick and reinvest in some better performing stock. Then I get gigged by the IRS to pay tax on the sale of the GE stock. My tax guy said he could get around it but since there only days left before the deadline, he told me to pay the tax and he would work on mine again after the rush was over. I paid the tax but within 3 weeks, he managed to get all my money back and filed an amended return. I got the check in the mail 2 weeks after that! So what to do. Then the Ghost of my hot rod desires came back to haunt me and tempt me. I started looking around for an inexpensive 1972 Mustang.....something WITHOUT that cursed 2.3L engine. I checked ebay (like looking for a babe in a mail order bride catalog!). I found a 72 Mach 1 in Seward Nebraska. The pics never show anything but she looked great. She had been restored to near perfect condition. The seller had some receipts and pics of the restoration. I contacted the seller and after a few days negotiations, we settled on a price. I overnighted a cashiers check and he sent me the title. Getting a shipping company was problematic but after a week of waiting and upping the ante, I got my beautiful lady delivered. Driving around the block after it was unloaded from the transporter was a near death experience. The steering was very sloppy, the brakes were nearly non-existant and the power steering cut in and out. Awww ****! What did I get myself into?? The brake master cylinder was nearly empty and what was in there was rusty sludge. The power steering was empty and leaking like a sieve. I adjusted the power steering gearbox to no avail. To date I have: Replaced the mold riddled interior, replaced the steering system, the braking system, the A/C system, the electrical system, the exhaust system, wheels and tires, center console, dash pad, all the gauges, gas tank with new old stock OEM sender, steering column rebuilt to new, new repro Ram Air system and finally a 351C stroked to 393 with all the internal goodies mated to a rebuilt AOD Tranny. I adorned my girl with all the best clothes and jewelry! The funny thing I like to relate......My dad forbade me from having a V8 gas guzzling hot rod but in the end, he bought me one anyway. Thanks Dad! I always knew you'd change your mind even if you had to keel over to do it!!!

In my early 20s I had a 73 Mach 1 I loved that car. I had it about 6 years before I totaled it, I knew the rear would come around on you in a heartbeat. But one night I didn’t have the room to get it back after she started to come around. A tree got in the way and I’m lucky I’m here today., I believe the bucket seat saved me because the back of the seat was between me and the tree after everything stopped. I always wanted to replace that car but life happened and it was financially impossible. All my life I would look for a replacement finally at 62 years old I was in a position to get my replacement. One of the happiest days of my life when the transport truck pulled up. Three years later I’m still thrilled every time I look at, think of or drive it.

 

[Fredensborg]

I always wanted to replace that car but life happened and it was financially impossible. All my life I would look for a replacement finally at 62 years old I was in a position to get my replacement. One of the happiest days of my life when the transport truck pulled up. Three years later I’m still thrilled every time I look at, think of or drive it.

A lifelong desire, finally obtained! Glad you found yours…careful around those corners! Thank you for sharing your story!