- Joined
- Sep 15, 2023
- Messages
- 31
- Reaction score
- 61
- Location
- Nevada
- My Car
- 1972 RamAir Conv, 351C 4v, 4-spd
2008 Calif Spl Conv
My first car was a 72 302 2v coupe, and it's where I cut my teeth. Made lots of dumb mistakes on it but learned from every single error (turns out you cant just put the wires on the distributor in any order...who knew). That was 1979.
Three years later, I found an M-code 351 in a wrecked Cougar Eliminator, and after the junk yard proved to me it ran, I bought it for $350...yup. Beat up on quite a few SS396's with my new setup!
In 1982, I get a job at a Mustang restoration shop. We did show cars and daily drivers. Tune ups, breaks, restorations ... you name it. We also watched for wrecked cars and bought them at auction so we'd have the clips/screws/etc you need to get a car fully restored. I kept my eye out for anything special for my car, and hoarded a lot (tilt wheel off a Cougar, power windows, etc). A fun job, and I got to drive some exotic stuff - 69 Boss 429, 70 Shelby Convertible (one of the last), and more.
In 2007, I went to restore my own car and it had too much rust. So, I bought a rolling chassis convertible, and that's been my project. It's now got a 4-speed, and a 9" rear, and I've put lots of the nice pieces in it. None of the numbers will match, and I don't care, but I want to keep it era-accurate, if that makes sense. Except for convenience things, like pointless ignition, I want to put as much 71-73 original stuff as I can on it. For instance, I swapped in the original gages instead of the idiot lights.
The last part is the body work, which is my project for the next several months and into 2024.
On a side note, I have a ton of research stuff I'll scan and post on here (full wiring diagrams, magazine ads from the early 70s, etc). Hope to meet you all as I get this car road ready.
Three years later, I found an M-code 351 in a wrecked Cougar Eliminator, and after the junk yard proved to me it ran, I bought it for $350...yup. Beat up on quite a few SS396's with my new setup!
In 1982, I get a job at a Mustang restoration shop. We did show cars and daily drivers. Tune ups, breaks, restorations ... you name it. We also watched for wrecked cars and bought them at auction so we'd have the clips/screws/etc you need to get a car fully restored. I kept my eye out for anything special for my car, and hoarded a lot (tilt wheel off a Cougar, power windows, etc). A fun job, and I got to drive some exotic stuff - 69 Boss 429, 70 Shelby Convertible (one of the last), and more.
In 2007, I went to restore my own car and it had too much rust. So, I bought a rolling chassis convertible, and that's been my project. It's now got a 4-speed, and a 9" rear, and I've put lots of the nice pieces in it. None of the numbers will match, and I don't care, but I want to keep it era-accurate, if that makes sense. Except for convenience things, like pointless ignition, I want to put as much 71-73 original stuff as I can on it. For instance, I swapped in the original gages instead of the idiot lights.
The last part is the body work, which is my project for the next several months and into 2024.
On a side note, I have a ton of research stuff I'll scan and post on here (full wiring diagrams, magazine ads from the early 70s, etc). Hope to meet you all as I get this car road ready.
