Why I don't trust the average "restored" Mustang

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Joined
Jul 21, 2012
Messages
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Location
South Florida
My Car
'71 Mustang Mach 1 M-code "Soylent Green"
'68 Plymouth Satellite
http://miami.craigslist.org/mdc/cto/4242892198.html

Looks nice on first glance - though I'm sure more than half of us can put together a laundry list of red flags without seeing anything more than this ad - but the history of it isn't one to inspire confidence.

I've been following this car on Craigslist since late 2011.

It first showed up as a pretty rough project car: Half yellow, half in homespun primer, and the back end held in the air with cinderblocks under the rear jack stands. Real quality mechanic work. Along with it was a rusted-out, purple (yes, repainted deep purple) '73 being torn apart for parts. I think the pair was available for somewhere in the $4-5k range.

The car disappeared until showing up 6 or 7 months later in full primer - that primer included a coat directly over the marker lights. Yet, someone had gone through the trouble of painting a crude TuTone hood on it with black primer. Price was now $8k.

The price dropped and dropped until it sold to a new owner farther south. He held onto it for another couple of months until posting it back up on Craigslist, mostly unchanged.

From this seller, I learned that the cinderblock-oriented restoration experts had found the forward gas tank strap mount and trunk floor rotted. Their solution was to hit the rust with a hammer and fiberglass the bejabers out of what remained. Nothing else had changed. Price went from $8k to $5k over the coming months.

Now it returns as you see it above, in its Grabber Blue glory and hidden Bondo. I contacted the owner out of curiosity to see if the fiberglass fix was still there - no word yet.

Thankfully, its questionable history still remains quite evident:

  • No shock tower struts
  • Taillamps off the donor '73
  • Non-original hood pins - if you can call them pins...because I don't see the pins.
  • Black spraybombed base grill
  • Funky hood adjustment and wonky RH fender - old problems left over from primer days that still ain't fixed.
  • LH fender "MUSTANG" lettering riding high and centered on the fender
  • Incorrect "MUSTANG" placement on the trunk - courtesy the "interesting" bodywork done on the purple '73 donor
  • Plated out cowl vents rofl
  • Cheap front window tinting - possibly a replacement window?
  • The last ad it had claimed a 351W; same owner. Now that fire plug of an engine has become a Cleveland. Sorry, that won't wash.


Ah, yes - the ugly truth of most junk muscle car sales: The sellers rely solely on the idea that there is a rich sucker out there with too much money, too little knowledge, and enough testosterone to throw money at a classic car as a spur-of-the-moment toy.

All it does is spread a bad image over the community, the sellers, and the owners.

Would be nice if sellers of lesser restorations could be forthcoming about their vehicles, but they won't - lest they lose out on that rich sucker. :rolleyes:

-Kurt

 
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I like the color.

other than that, I noticed everything you pointed out with in the first few seconds.

and @ 375hp with no strut tower braces, I would like to see the stress cracks on the front end of that car, at the base of the towers.

 
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Mmmm definitely not a Cleveland, A Windsor for sure.. And a real worry why the cowl covers have been plated over.

 
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and @ 375hp with no strut tower braces, I would like to see the stress cracks on the front end of that car, at the base of the towers.
Wouldn't worry that much - the yellow 351W hasn't seen much use to my knowlege; it was put in there when it was on cinderblocks. How long it was run without struts PRIOR to this engine job would be an interesting study though.

And a real worry why the cowl covers have been plated over.
Not exactly a subtle hint.

-Kurt

 
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All that power and not power brakes. The heater hoses are disconnected and blocked. Yes, it's a 351 Windsor. The rear seat belt placement also is interesting. Guaranteed to result in internal injuries in the event of a collision. I wonder if the seat belt mounting area was so rusted they had to be moved. Oh my!! The alarms are deafening!!!!

 
All that power and not power brakes. The heater hoses are disconnected and blocked. Yes, it's a 351 Windsor. The rear seat belt placement also is interesting. Guaranteed to result in internal injuries in the event of a collision. I wonder if the seat belt mounting area was so rusted they had to be moved. Oh my!! The alarms are deafening!!!!
Hah - missed the vacuum booster entirely. Would be amusing if it has drums up front.

Look at the recovered lower seat panel - someone didn't stitch the slot for the inner belt buckles to slide through.

HOWEVER, your comment did remind me of one other very important fact that I had forgotten: The floorpan is/was rusted badly in that spot. It was fiberglassed over. rofl

-Kurt

 
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