Hello! I am new to this forum but have used forums extensively in the past for other projects cars. I just wanted to make a quick intro post before bombarding the forum with questions.
My journey into the world of the 1971 Mustang began when I was around 10 years old (27 years ago) when my dad purchased a ’71 convertible Mustang (302/C4) that he found in one of his client’s garage that hadn’t been touched in 15 or more years. He was able to get the engine to fire but none of the forward gears would engage so he drove it home through the backroads of suburbia in reverse. I have fond memories as a kid handing my dad tools and helping in whatever ways I could while he managed a pretty decent driveway restoration to include full engine rebuild and proper paint job. The car would never be a showroom vehicle but we would go to car shows and drive it in the 4th of July parade. This experience as a kid led me to becoming a professional mechanic as my first adult career. Unfortunately, my father lost interest in the car and it ended up sitting in the driveway in New Jersey untouched, uncovered, and never started for about 15 years while it rusted away into disrepair. He would eventually gift me the car but life circumstances prevented me from doing anything with it. I always dreamt of restoring this vehicle so I had it shipped to a friend’s house in Texas to hopefully curb the rusting in a more favorable environment.
I am finally in a position where I can start a project car and I went to see what condition the convertible is in with my dad. We both agreed it needed a lot of work and honestly more work and money then I am willing to put into it. As much as I want to restore this car for sentimental reasons, I have always dreamt of owning a ’71 Mach 1. If I was going to be motivated to put that much time and money into a project, I want it to be something that I would be super excited on. After my father agreed that he truly did not care what happened to the convertible, I started casually surfing the internet to see what’s out there. I soon happened upon a white 71 Mach 1 351C 4V with a C6 swap that “runs and drives” and is rust free in Los Angeles.
I went to check out the Mach 1 and although I had quite a few concerns, as far as I could tell it was the absolute cheapest running, rust free Mach 1 available at the moment. I agreed to purchase the 1971 white Mach 1 for $13,500. It is rust free and lived its whole life in LA but it definitely needs some help to become a daily driver. One big hurdle is that it is a salvage title from a rear end collision that I will need to retitle as rebuilt in Nevada. The vehicle has been repaired but it’s not perfect; the outside repairs of the quarter panel look to be pretty good but I am a little concerned about the frame and where the axle sits. To be investigated later. The most immediate issue is to get it running well enough to drive. It starts and drives but backfires and has no power with a pretty big hesitation when you get on it. I’ll be posting more about this in the engine section shortly. For now, I’m just excited to have a project and see what it becomes!
I'll take any and all advice!
My journey into the world of the 1971 Mustang began when I was around 10 years old (27 years ago) when my dad purchased a ’71 convertible Mustang (302/C4) that he found in one of his client’s garage that hadn’t been touched in 15 or more years. He was able to get the engine to fire but none of the forward gears would engage so he drove it home through the backroads of suburbia in reverse. I have fond memories as a kid handing my dad tools and helping in whatever ways I could while he managed a pretty decent driveway restoration to include full engine rebuild and proper paint job. The car would never be a showroom vehicle but we would go to car shows and drive it in the 4th of July parade. This experience as a kid led me to becoming a professional mechanic as my first adult career. Unfortunately, my father lost interest in the car and it ended up sitting in the driveway in New Jersey untouched, uncovered, and never started for about 15 years while it rusted away into disrepair. He would eventually gift me the car but life circumstances prevented me from doing anything with it. I always dreamt of restoring this vehicle so I had it shipped to a friend’s house in Texas to hopefully curb the rusting in a more favorable environment.
I am finally in a position where I can start a project car and I went to see what condition the convertible is in with my dad. We both agreed it needed a lot of work and honestly more work and money then I am willing to put into it. As much as I want to restore this car for sentimental reasons, I have always dreamt of owning a ’71 Mach 1. If I was going to be motivated to put that much time and money into a project, I want it to be something that I would be super excited on. After my father agreed that he truly did not care what happened to the convertible, I started casually surfing the internet to see what’s out there. I soon happened upon a white 71 Mach 1 351C 4V with a C6 swap that “runs and drives” and is rust free in Los Angeles.
I went to check out the Mach 1 and although I had quite a few concerns, as far as I could tell it was the absolute cheapest running, rust free Mach 1 available at the moment. I agreed to purchase the 1971 white Mach 1 for $13,500. It is rust free and lived its whole life in LA but it definitely needs some help to become a daily driver. One big hurdle is that it is a salvage title from a rear end collision that I will need to retitle as rebuilt in Nevada. The vehicle has been repaired but it’s not perfect; the outside repairs of the quarter panel look to be pretty good but I am a little concerned about the frame and where the axle sits. To be investigated later. The most immediate issue is to get it running well enough to drive. It starts and drives but backfires and has no power with a pretty big hesitation when you get on it. I’ll be posting more about this in the engine section shortly. For now, I’m just excited to have a project and see what it becomes!
I'll take any and all advice!
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