New member in PA

[Onetruepunk87]

I just picked up this 1973 Mustang Coupe yesterday. It's a 250 inline 6 cylinder. The car was owned by the same family since 1973. It was the seller's grandmothers car. According to him she only used it to drive to the grocery store and back, hence the low miles.

For a 49 year old car that spent it's entire life in Pennsylvania it's in pretty good shape rust wise. It seems to have some in the fender wells and trunk but not terribly bad. Floors and rockers seem solid though. Interior is in really good shape.

The owner has done some work on it since getting it from his grandmother about 5 years ago. He converted the front drums over to power assist disks, added an electronic choke and upgraded the ignition coils. On the inside he switched the front seat belts to a 3 point belt and put in a Bluetooth head unit.

Car runs and drives well. Once the winter weather is over and done with I plan on driving as is for a little while and then start fixing things as I go. First thing will probably be suspension. While I'm underneath I'll hopefully be able to what the extent of the rust in the fender wells is.

This is the first classic car I've owned but I'm no stranger to vintage vehicles. I've had four 70's era Honda motorcycle I've rebuilt and modded over the last 10 years. Looking forward to learning everything I can from this forum.

Long term I'd like to swap in a V8, get all of the rust straightened out, lose the vinyl roof and get it resprayed.

 

[71ProjectJunk]

Nice looking coupe, welcome from Texas!

 

[mjseakan]

Welcome from Central New York.
Have fun with her, she looks like she's in great shape
FWIW: I'd keep the vinyl roof. I like the way they look. My Grande came with one originally and a PO pulled it off. I wish they didn't
Mike

 

[computercarguy]

Nice Mustang! Welcome.

 

[cv_72mustang]

Welcome from NE, PA
Looks like a nice car.

 

[mrgmhale]

Nice, clean looking car. You may tempted to replace the I6 250 with a v-8 to get more performance. Before doing that look at the rear axle ration. If it 2.79:1, or even 3.0:1, then you may end up having to change the rear axle gears to a lower ratio. Otherwise, no matter what engine you are running with you'll be fighting the impact of having steep gears, and you off-the-line and around town performance will always feel sluggish.

That said, I would keep the 250 engine. They are very reliable, and can provide acceptable performance with excellent fuel economy, assuming the timing is set correctly and the vacuum advance diaphragm is not ruptured or leaking.

 

[Kilgon]

Welcome from Ohio. Very nice looking car. Sounds like most of the car is in good shape and just needs a few spot repairs. Thanks for the pics and keep us updated on any work you do.

 

[computercarguy]

I have a code 2 rear axle with a 2.75 Open differential in my H code 351c and it works fine. Mind you, I am only cruising with it. I agree that the straight six can be a great engine and I wouldn't be in a hurry to ditch it. It might be easier to add a turbo to?

 

[goodnigh]

Welcome from northern California.

mike

 

[Onetruepunk87]

Thanks for the welcome and input everyone. I'll be driving it as is for the foreseeable future, once spring comes. Driving it some should give me an idea of what needs to get addressed mechanically before I get to any cosmetics or engine mods.

 

[BUCKWHEAT]

my opinion only: Plan A is don't swap in a V8. Fix the low-mile 6 car & sell it. Buy the V8 car of your choice. Theory is sum of the V8 swap is greater than the whole of sell one/buy one. Time to completion will be faster than major engine project. V8 swap has lots more costs. Wiring is way different, etc. Plan B is swap in a 300-6. Aftermarket has performance options for I-6 if you want to go faster. Good luck. Have fun.

 

[timachone]

Welcome from Germany!

Would keep it as is, a really cool driver!

For your V8 dreams go for another car, like it has said before.

But more important: have fun !

 

[tpj71mach]

Nice coupe, welcome from Chicago!

 

[1973 Mach-1]

Hi, and Welcome to the group!
You're very lucky to have gotten that car in as great of shape as she is. The more I restore older cars, the more I appreciate them for what they were when they were made. That said, I side with the rest of the crowd who sez "Keep the straight 6 motor". There are also SO many little things to fix on an almost 50 year-old car. I'm originally from Lancaster PA, I'd love to see how your project turns out!

 

[RocketFoot]

Welcome! Where in PA are you located?

 

[droptop73]

Welcome from west Michigan!

 

[will e]

Howdy from Phoenix. That's a really good looking car!

 

[jpaz]

Hello and Welcome from Michigan!

 

[Bill Perkins]

Welcome from Opelika, Alabama

 

[ROCKET70]

Welcome from Southern Ontario! Nice coupe in great condition. ENJOY!