New to forum (and Mustangs!)

[Fabrice]

[i'm not a gearhead at all. I'm a computer programmer by trade, but a "problem solver" by practice.

So I am very willing to admit I might very well be in waaaay over my head. Which is why I both terrified and excited. Seems to be a good mix of the two.]

I'm into programming too, @Vinnie as well and probably more.

Its really not that complex. See it as a new syntax. You'd do some unit testing, add some break points here and there with a volt meter or ohm meter instead of using an editor.

The main difference with a computer program is in the return.

function fixThatThing() : ItemDone will not return you anything unless you actually execute it yourself

You also have a good doc : this forum has it all, down to the smallest bolt found on these cars!

 

[Carolina_Mountain_Mustangs]

A very close welcome from the Albuquerque area. Just a friendly FYI. There is no such thing as a Mach 1 convertible, but there should have been. Looks to be in very nice condition already. What are your plans?  Good Luck.   Ed Raver

Hi Ed!

Thanks for the welcome. I'm confused (mostly because I'm a total newbie)... it's a '72 convertible and says Mach 1 on the side, so what do you mean when you said there's no such thing as a Mach 1 convertible?

As for what my plans are... probably a total rebuild. Mostly because me and my family are excited for the journey of the rebuild. The car is actually in decent running condition (definitely some electrical issues and a bad rattling on high RPMs, though), however the interior is pretty worn out.

I'll document it with lots of pics as I go. It'll be a massive learning experience for us all, but hopefully will end up being a ton of fun... or as my wife said: Crazy Fun!

We'll see how it goes. :-D

Some info on the Mach 1 option. It was only available on the sportsroof body style, never on a vert or coupe. In 72 & 73 you could get the hockey stick style body stripes on a vert but it would also have the Decor Group, black out or argent lower. The Mach 1 package was what I call a smoke and mirrors thing. Had very little to do with performance. The only items on a Mach 1 that could not be ordered on a regular mustang were the vinyl insert in the front carpet, the honey comb tail light panel, the words Mach 1 in the stripe and the Mach 1 sports interior option.

There are some really nice verts in the group and yes some came with the side stripe but never having the Mach 1 verbiage.

As far as manuals since your a computer guy just go ahead and get the Ford manual on the DVD and that way you can print out pages you might need in the garage. You can find on Ebay or Amazon. Even the Ford manuals do not get very detailed. A car is just a bunch of pieces welded and bolted together not a rocket ship for sure. Great that your family wants to get involved.

Be careful these cars tend to turn into a snowball you take something off to replace and find something else wrong. No car is ever perfect enjoy what you can and do the work in small enough steps so family and you do not get frustrated and just quit.

Cheers,

David

 

[jpaz]

Hello and Welcome from Michigan, nice looking vert.

 

[BeerDontCount]

Howdy and welcome from Seattle. I think you will find that these cars are not so much rocket science, but very basic automotive mechanics that anyone with some research skills and perseverance can manage. This forum is invaluable when you have a question or get stuck. If I were you I might start with the "bad rattling sound on high RPMs" as that might be a safety issue, or maybe not. As far as the Mach 1 convertible part, there are many verts like yours that borrow from the Mach 1 only options to add to a car it never would have appeared on from the factory. I have the honeycomb rear panel and the flip down gas cap on my vert just cause I like em. If you're after a faithful restoration you have plenty of people to advise you here as well. One of the spirited discussions we have on the forum is whether to customize or not, and it basically comes down to each their own. Its your car.

Scott

 

[crzyfun]

A very close welcome from the Albuquerque area. Just a friendly FYI. There is no such thing as a Mach 1 convertible, but there should have been. Looks to be in very nice condition already. What are your plans?  Good Luck.   Ed Raver

Hi Ed!

Thanks for the welcome. I'm confused (mostly because I'm a total newbie)... it's a '72 convertible and says Mach 1 on the side, so what do you mean when you said there's no such thing as a Mach 1 convertible?

As for what my plans are... probably a total rebuild. Mostly because me and my family are excited for the journey of the rebuild. The car is actually in decent running condition (definitely some electrical issues and a bad rattling on high RPMs, though), however the interior is pretty worn out.

I'll document it with lots of pics as I go. It'll be a massive learning experience for us all, but hopefully will end up being a ton of fun... or as my wife said: Crazy Fun!

We'll see how it goes. :-D

Some info on the Mach 1 option. It was only available on the sportsroof body style, never on a vert or coupe. In 72 & 73 you could get the hockey stick style body stripes on a vert but it would also have the Decor Group, black out or argent lower. The Mach 1 package was what I call a smoke and mirrors thing. Had very little to do with performance. The only items on a Mach 1 that could not be ordered on a regular mustang were the vinyl insert in the front carpet, the honey comb tail light panel, the words Mach 1 in the stripe and the Mach 1 sports interior option.

There are some really nice verts in the group and yes some came with the side stripe but never having the Mach 1 verbiage.

As far as manuals since your a computer guy just go ahead and get the Ford manual on the DVD and that way you can print out pages you might need in the garage. You can find on Ebay or Amazon. Even the Ford manuals do not get very detailed. A car is just a bunch of pieces welded and bolted together not a rocket ship for sure. Great that your family wants to get involved.

Be careful these cars tend to turn into a snowball you take something off to replace and find something else wrong. No car is ever perfect enjoy what you can and do the work in small enough steps so family and you do not get frustrated and just quit.

Cheers,

David

David,

Thanks for explaining. That makes sense.

I strongly suspect that a previous owner did some work on this car and that would explain the presence of the Mach 1 stickers. My other suspicion is because the driver's door side panel that should have the VIN sticker is just all white. :-(  So I think someone painted over it.

I'm thinking of doing the Marti VIN history package to find out it's full history including what it was originally. It may not have even been white/black. For example, the VIN I have on the title lists it as type 'H', which I believe is the 2 barrel carb, but the carb on the car looks 4 barrel to me and it has an Edelbrock branded air filter on top... so I'm _guessing_ that a previous owner did some work on it.

It's all part of the crazy, fun journey to figure out what I've got and what I want to do with it.

I'm ready for the snowball, though. In this case, it truly is the journey I'm after. Restoring a car with my wife & kids is the exciting part... and learning along the way.

Cheers!

-Dan

 

[crzyfun]

Howdy and welcome from Seattle.  I think you will find that these cars are not so much rocket science, but very basic automotive mechanics that anyone with some research skills and perseverance can manage.  This forum is invaluable when you have a question or get stuck.  If I were you I might start with the "bad rattling sound on high RPMs" as that might be a safety issue, or maybe not.  As far as the Mach 1 convertible part, there are many verts like yours that borrow from the Mach 1 only options to add to a car it never would have appeared on from the factory.  I have the honeycomb rear panel and the flip down gas cap on my vert just cause I like em.  If you're after a faithful restoration you have plenty of people to advise you here as well.  One of the spirited discussions we have on the forum is whether to customize or not, and it basically comes down to each their own.  Its your car.

Scott

Hi Scott!

Yeah, I'm not worried about which is "right" (restore to original or restore to my preference). We'll figure out what we want to do and have fun doing it. I'm pretty sure (not being an expert, obviously) that it's already not original... it looks like someone rebuilt the carb, and from what you described, added the Mach 1 features. I'll post pictures soon (in fact I'll probably start a restoration thread here somewhere, I guess).

It's crazy. It's fun.

CrazyFun. Whee!

-Dan

 

[Carolina_Mountain_Mustangs]

Hi Ed!

Thanks for the welcome. I'm confused (mostly because I'm a total newbie)... it's a '72 convertible and says Mach 1 on the side, so what do you mean when you said there's no such thing as a Mach 1 convertible?

As for what my plans are... probably a total rebuild. Mostly because me and my family are excited for the journey of the rebuild. The car is actually in decent running condition (definitely some electrical issues and a bad rattling on high RPMs, though), however the interior is pretty worn out.

I'll document it with lots of pics as I go. It'll be a massive learning experience for us all, but hopefully will end up being a ton of fun... or as my wife said: Crazy Fun!

We'll see how it goes. :-D

Some info on the Mach 1 option. It was only available on the sportsroof body style, never on a vert or coupe. In 72 & 73 you could get the hockey stick style body stripes on a vert but it would also have the Decor Group, black out or argent lower. The Mach 1 package was what I call a smoke and mirrors thing. Had very little to do with performance. The only items on a Mach 1 that could not be ordered on a regular mustang were the vinyl insert in the front carpet, the honey comb tail light panel, the words Mach 1 in the stripe and the Mach 1 sports interior option.

There are some really nice verts in the group and yes some came with the side stripe but never having the Mach 1 verbiage.

As far as manuals since your a computer guy just go ahead and get the Ford manual on the DVD and that way you can print out pages you might need in the garage. You can find on Ebay or Amazon. Even the Ford manuals do not get very detailed. A car is just a bunch of pieces welded and bolted together not a rocket ship for sure. Great that your family wants to get involved.

Be careful these cars tend to turn into a snowball you take something off to replace and find something else wrong. No car is ever perfect enjoy what you can and do the work in small enough steps so family and you do not get frustrated and just quit.

Cheers,

David

David,

Thanks for explaining. That makes sense.

I strongly suspect that a previous owner did some work on this car and that would explain the presence of the Mach 1 stickers. My other suspicion is because the driver's door side panel that should have the VIN sticker is just all white. :-(  So I think someone painted over it.

I'm thinking of doing the Marti VIN history package to find out it's full history including what it was originally. It may not have even been white/black. For example, the VIN I have on the title lists it as type 'H', which I believe is the 2 barrel carb, but the carb on the car looks 4 barrel to me and it has an Edelbrock branded air filter on top... so I'm _guessing_ that a previous owner did some work on it.

It's all part of the crazy, fun journey to figure out what I've got and what I want to do with it.

I'm ready for the snowball, though. In this case, it truly is the journey I'm after. Restoring a car with my wife & kids is the exciting part... and learning along the way.

Cheers!

-Dan

When you do the Marti there are options to get a new door sticker at the same time and save some money. Depends on which Marti you get. Yes H code was 2 barrel carb. You probably have a Edelbrock performer intake made to fit the 2-V heads and use the 4-V carb. That is a common change. You can tell if heads are 2 barrel or 4 barrel without removing. There will be a 2 or 4 cast on the top front and rear corners of the heads outside of the valve cover, see pic. These are the Closed Chamber 4-V see the 4 and the dot in the bottom of the pics.

David

 

[crzyfun]

When you do the Marti there are options to get a new door sticker at the same time and save some money. Depends on which Marti you get. Yes H code was 2 barrel carb. You probably have a Edelbrock performer intake made to fit the 2-V heads and use the 4-V carb. That is a common change. You can tell if heads are 2 barrel or 4 barrel without removing. There will be a 2 or 4 cast on the top front and rear corners of the heads outside of the valve cover, see pic. These are the Closed Chamber 4-V see the 4 and the dot in the bottom of the pics.

David

David,

Thank you! That helps a lot. I was able to find the markings... it's a 2. So that confirms what the VIN shows, that it's a 2 barrel carb. Good to know.

I was hoping it was the 4 barrel carb (more HP) but that doesn't really matter. If I am just about HP, it'll never have enough, right? :-D

-Dan ::thumb::

 

[luxstang]

Welcome from Luxembourg, Europe!