PoFoMoCo's 1971 Shelby Europa build October 2022

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I removed the chrome front bumper and the standard grille assembly today so I could get the Mach 1 grille and Cibie 35 lights mocked up on the car. At this point the grille is being held in place with a couple of screws on each side. I tagged and bagged all of the extra screws and bolts for the trim rings, headlight rings and head lamps. I will mock up the hood latch and grille support assembly tomorrow. Hopefully, I will get my custom sport lamp switch & wiring harness into the car this weekend and get these lights functional asap. I feel like the car is really starting to come together now.

Here's a shot of Dr. Harvima's original Europa grille...

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You've nailed the look! I think your silver is going to pull off the styling even better than the original car. What type driving lights did the original Europa use? Looks like they may be similar to the ones used on the early Fox Mustangs except in bright metal.
 
You've nailed the look! I think your silver is going to pull off the styling even better than the original car. What type driving lights did the original Europa use? Looks like they may be similar to the ones used on the early Fox Mustangs except in bright metal.
Chuck - Thanks very much, I appreciate that.

I was fortunate to locate the exact same era and manufacturer of driving lamps, these are original (clear lensed) single-wire Cibie 35 driving lamps. The original Europa convertibles were upfitted with these same Cibie 35 clear lensed 12V halogens. The 1971 Europa's shared many similar options as the 1969-1970 Shelby Mustangs. But, their specialty parts were sourced in Europe. Yes, the Cibie lights are very similar to Lucas/Marchal square bodied driving lamps. They are wired as a dedicated switch on auxiliary fog lamp, used for extra lighting in conjunction with headlamps and marker lights. Even the brackets are purpose built since the square body light will not direct install into the grille as the original FoMoCo driving lamp. I fabricated the brackets, they are close but not original.

Yes, very similar to the Fox body fog lamps. I had a 5-speed Black/Red 1984 GT Turbo that had Marchal fog lights with the black metal body and black lens covers, just like these. Another one that got away when were started having kids in the late '80s. But, I would need a 5000ft warehouse if I had managed to keep all of them.... LOL

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Shelby mustang collector Dennis Collins has a unique opinion about non-original Shelby mustangs that are clones, tributes, resto-mod etc. He says there is another level of restoration and modification, allot higher and more difficult to achieve. He prefers to use the term "replica" for those cars. A replica requires all of the Shelby parts and modifications to be original, correct, and functioning to replicate the original. A much more difficult build than just stripes and decals. That is my goal, to replicate the original, with the same correct Shelby/Europa parts and accessories as the original convertibles. The gas cap is an outlier, it just had to be fabricated as there is no other source for it.
 
I finished the grille installation, it went really well. The Mach 1 grille bolted up just like it always belonged on the car. Seriously, every single hole lined up, I was shocked! I also installed the the hood twist-lock brackets, hood latch assembly, front license plate bracket and I got the front bumper re-installed.

I also fabricated two small foam wedge isolators to protect the A/C lines as they pass thru the radiator support and under the drivers side twist-lock bracket. I didn't want them rubbing against other metal parts, etc. Not OEM but it will keep the hoses safe.
 

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Beautiful! What color is Dr. Harvima's car? I would think it would be Medium Brown Metallic but it looks nicer than the factory color IMO. I see yours is Light Pewter Metallic. It looks like you got the color dead on!

Kevin.
Thanks Kevin!

Dr. Harvima's car is medium brown metallic and is the correct color for this convertible. According to Wolfgang's research, the car originally went from Belgium to Norway sometime in the 1980's. In Norway, the car was enjoyed by several owners before Dr. Harvima purchased it. So, 20(+) years in Norway before it was moved to Finland. As I understand it, the second Norwegian owner replaced the floorpans in 2001. Also, Wolfgang's research shows Dr. Harvima's convertible was re-painted with the original medium brown metallic color in 1989.

Yes, my current paint is in beautiful condition. I know the car was re-sprayed sometime in 2007-2008, but I can't confirm the exact details. I have pictures of the car being restored and it appears all the original metal was intact. So, with the paint at near flawless condition, I am at a crossroads as I am hoping to only need to paint the hood. But, I don't know if we can accurately match the metallic & color... but, I remain hopeful! LOL :ROFLMAO:
 
All the kids and grandkids came over today so we could start enjoying a beautiful Easter weekend and I drafted them into service. We mocked up the NACA hood, just to get a quick sneak peek photo-op. It's just sitting on the car, not bolted up, so the pre-paint alignments have not been dialed in yet.

 

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This afternoon I took advantage of some free time to finish the RBD wheel pad. Even though my car is no longer as delivered, it did have a rim-blow wheel from the factory. The pad was in fair shape and I'd previously cleaned and degreased it. So, it was ready for a couple passes with SEM 15243 satin black paint.

All three aluminum trim pieces were in great shape as well as the three plastic inserts. Yes, I have much more time invested in this wheel restoration than it deserves, it was a bit of a dog. But, it's in my face 100% of my drive time so I wanted it as nice as possible. Not perfect, but I will enjoy it.

The wheel is coming along too, hopefully I will have photos of the wheel and pad together by the weekend.

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While waiting for the black basecoat(s) on the RBD wheel to dry we installed my NPD repro flat wire hood springs so we can pre-set the hood for paint. It took less than 5 minutes, I used my multi-talented special installer (son) and he made quick work of it! :ROFLMAO:

He did use my homemade nylon pull but I think he could have just pulled them on. Oh... to be young again!
 

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While waiting for the black basecoat(s) on the RBD wheel to dry we installed my NPD repro flat wire hood springs so we can pre-set the hood for paint. It took less than 5 minutes, I used my multi-talented special installer (son) and he made quick work of it! :ROFLMAO:

He did use my homemade nylon pull but I think he could have just pulled them on. Oh... to be young again!
That's funny, one of my sons is a body builder also. I use him for all my heavy lifting as well. :LOL:
 

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Lord Humungus?...Is that you?
 
I have finished the black/brown walnut base color(s) for the RBD wheel. Tomorrow I'll rework the woodgrain on the walnut side of the rim. Hopefully I will have a chance to set the aluminum band on the edge of the wheel. The last step will be multiple, very generous layers of gloss clearcoat.

I mocked up the pad with the wheel, no switch and no aluminum band yet, but I think it looks pretty good for as dogged out as it was

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