73 Mustang 351 Cleveland Rebuild – Removal Part 5

This is the last post related to prepping the 351 Cleveland in #ProjectSportRoof for removal.

Originally, I had planned to lift the engine out with the carb still attached.  However, after the first test fit to see how the Duralast leveler  (I’ve never used one before – last engine I pulled out we used straps on the 318) would be attached, it was clear that the carb had to come off.  I thought I’d just be able to attach the Duralast the front part of the engine but unless I added more chain it just wasn’t going to bolt up.

Moving the leveler back a bit to the center if the engine, allowed it to be pull it out with just enough clearance, keeping mind the space limitations between the car bumper and the concrete rise at the garage entrance.

Here’s where you might be a bit disappointed.

I had made arrangements with my neighbor Dan (Dan did the welding on the floor panels for me) for a Friday he had off to pull the engine.  I was going to “work” from home that day and we’d carry out the task in the morning – it’s pretty hot here in Southern Arizona this time of year.  Well, I had an issue at work and I had to run in for what I hoped would be only a few minutes – it took until noon.

By then, it was over 100 degrees and when I pulled into my driveway Dan was outside working on one of his projects.  After apologizing  I changed in to some grubby clothes real quick and we got to work.  By then it was about 106 degrees out and of course we are doing this outside.  We should have been done by  time we actually started and Dan’s adorable twins we hoping to make it the pool before their Dad had to head off to work for the evening.

I mention this all because I’m setting up you for the disappointment, (there is nothing more exciting than getting the engine out – well maybe putting a new one in, it’s a milestone worth capturing on video).  Given the above circumstances, I felt it very unfair to ask Dan and the twins to hang out while I stopped to talk you all and then perform a task and then record.  So I have no shots or video of pulling the engine out.

I can tell you that the torque converter gave us a bit of a problem and here’s one of the reason:

IMG_20160710_193507185

The nuts holding the torque convert on were pretty well-rounded. They been off before.

As soon we had the engine out and got the hoist over the concrete rise between the drive way and the garage floor, I thanked Dan and the twins (they were standing in the garage in full swimming attire – flippers include) for waiting for me.   Again a huge thanks to Dan the Neighbor!!!!  And yes the twins go to the pool!!!

Now I’ll start the tear down and see what’s going on with the 351C.

Thanks for reading.

Tim

projectsportsroof

Average Guy’s Car Restorations, Mods, and Racing

http://wp.me/p2YxYx-4V. Tagged: projectsportsroof … We are moving right along on #ProjectSportsRoof,with the 351 Cleveland rebuilt. Still getting it ready to be …
73 Mustang 351 Cleveland Rebuild – Removal Part 3

6 days ago We are moving right along on #ProjectSportsRoof,with the 351 Cleveland rebuilt. Still getting it ready to be pulled from the engine bay In this …
restorable classic cars | Tumblr

Welcome back to #ProjectSportsRoof. I’m getting ready to pull the 351C from between the fenders of the 1973 Mustang SportsRoof for a complete rebuild.

73 Mustang 351 Cleveland Rebuild – Removal Part 4

We are so close to pulling out this ’72 351 Cleveland out of #ProjectSportsRoof.

In this post I continue to prep for the removal and I needed to do a trial run  fitting the engine load balancing/leveling unit and if I had a enough room to maneuver.

Here’s why:

  1.  First there’s a lip I have to take into consideration.

    There is a 2" lip between the garage and the driveway/car.

    There is a 2″ lip between the garage and the driveway/car.

  2.   The distance between the 2″ lip and the car bumper is a concern.

Not much room

Not much room

Just about 45"

Just about 45″

It’s a tight squeeze.

This is the foot of the hoist.

This is the foot of the hoist.

It's 48" long.

It’s 48″ long.

So I have to fit all of this under the Mustang – BTW there’s jack stands hold up the car and the transmission.  When you lower the arm to reach out over the bumper (damn those safety bumpers) the hoist is pressing on the bumper.

Keep in mind that just past the front tires the drive slopes.  I had visions of the getting the engine out and having to roll the hoist out past the car and swing it around to lower it on to the engine stand and it getting it away and rolling done the driveway and dumping its self in to the street…I actually had a nightmare about it.

So a dry run was necessary just so I could sleep.

Here’s the video:

I’m going to finish up the prep in the next post.

Thanks reading.  We love comments!!! Drop us a note!!!

Tim

1973 Mustang SportsRoof

1973 Mustang SportsRoof

projectsportsroof

Average Guy’s Car Restorations, Mods, and Racing

We are moving right along on #ProjectSportsRoof,with the 351 Cleveland rebuilt. Still getting it ready to be pulled from the engine bay In this posting I’m still …
Great American Muscle Cars – muscle cars – Community – Google+

Welcome back to #ProjectSportsRoof. With the floor pans welding, sealing and coating finished the next step was to apply the heat and sound barrier. This is …

73 Mustang 351 Cleveland Rebuild – Removal Part 1

Welcome back to #ProjectSportsRoof.  I’m getting ready to pull the 351C from between the fenders of the 1973 Mustang SportsRoof for a complete rebuild.

Below is the beginning of the this long process.  I guess long might be an exaggeration, but any day I can’t drive the Mustang is a long day   (:^ 0)  !!

 

I don’t usually ‘star’ in my videos, (yes I spelled videos wrong in the subtitles) but you’ve got to love my stylish hat!!

More coming on 351C rebuild.

Thanks for reading.

Tim

20160315_072718

1973 Mustang – Project Sports Roof – Pertronix Ignitor Update

Well win some and you lose some.  If you’ve seen my other posts related the replacement of the points and condenser for the 351C you’ll notice that I gave conversion high marks.  This was all based on the years of use I got out of the conversion I did on …
1973 Mustang – Project SportsRoof – Compression Test Part I

I’ve done all the clean up and all the adjustments necessary to get a good reading on the health of the ’72 351C engine in my 1973 Mustang. The next step is to check the compression. First up was to warm the car a bit and then pull the plugs. Here’s what the …
1973 Mustang – Project SportsRoof – Compression Test Part II

This is the wrap up on the compression testing for the 1973 Mustang w/ a 1972 351 Cleveland power plant. You’ll might have notices that I referred to the remote tester, which is my code for remote starter…yeah…that’s it!!! All of these tests were dry test and I should have done a …
1973 Mustang – Project SportsRoof – Compression, Rods and Heads

Thanks for check in on #ProjectSportsRoof. If you remember a of couple months back, shortly after bringing the ’73 Mustang home, I conducted a compression test on all the cylinders.  The 351C was running rough (to put it mildly) and smoked like a pile of tires on fire (only the smoke …

 

Classic Mustangs – #ProjectSportsRoof’s Marti Report

Mustang lovers check this out.  There is place in El Mirage, AZ called  Marti Auto Works.  They own the rights to the Ford databases and records prior to 1974 (some models up to 1989).  These guys have everything..I mean everything.  Give them the VIN number and they’ll pile on the data (it’s not free but very reasonable).  They are authorized by Ford to reproduce window stickers and Protector Plates (identification plates that go on the inside door jamb) and more.

If you have a classic Mustang you’ve got to get this report.  I thought I’d share mine with the readers.  The link below is to the .pdf and here is an image.

73SportsRoofMarti

Whether you are just interested in the car history or doing an original restore this report comes in very handy.  It’s pretty cool to see when it was ordered and build and all the original options are there to match.

The Statistics section – so cool!!!  This section lets you know where your car ranks compare to those produce that year.  As you can see above #ProjectSportsRoof is o1 of 76 with that paint and trim coat.   If nothing else it bragging rights and in some small way this may add to the value of the car, but that’s tough to measure.

The list of items in the Door Data Plate Info, helps you determine how original your might be.  For example you can see that my 73 Mustang left the factory with 302 and if you’ve followed my posts on #ProjectSportsRoof you’ll know it now sports a 351C V2 date coded 1972 and a C4 transmission but now it has a date code 1972 C6.

Visit the Marti report site and see what they offer.

https://www.martiauto.com/reports2.cfm

To you have a Marti report for your Ford?  Share it!!!

Thanks for reading.

Tim

1973 Mustang SportsRoof

1973 Mustang SportsRoof

 

1973 Mustang SportsRoof – Carpet Laid

Thanks for picking backup with blogging of the work done on the 1973 Mustang Sports Roof (#ProjectSportsRoof).

The floors are done and the heat and sound barrier are completed and it’s time for the carpet.

I’ve seen some pretty awful quality carpet for cars and I’ve had friends that attempted to use the one piece kits with not great success.  I chose to go with ACC Carpet 2 piece set.  Because my car was ordered special ordered with the Mach I Interior I went with their “Original Style Molded Fastback Mach I for 1971-1973” (CJ’s Part Number MC9-V).  It is really well-formed and pre-cut for steering column and even dimmer switch.

The pieces come folded in a box and needs to be laid out flat for a while before installing. Luckily I live in Arizona and the sun makes quick work for that.

Carpet2

Here are the two pieces laid out on the hood of #ProjectSportsRoof.

Carpet1a

This image shows the pre-cuts and forming in the front piece.  ‘A’ is the cutout for the steering Column, ‘B’ is the quality built-in vinyl floor mat, ‘C’ is the cutout for the dimmer switch and  ‘D’ is the very well-formed door jamb and finally ‘E’ is the transmission tunnel formed part.

Here’s a pick of how it just lays there and conforms to the floor.

Carpet5

Now check out the full shot with the front sections in place and the shift bezel in place.  Looks pretty good, yes?

Carpet8a

At point ‘A’ you can see the contour of the floor mat portions of the carpet piece.  ‘B’ is the hole with the seat mounting stud protruding (you have to cut that) and both ‘C’ locations show just a simple X cut to allow the seat bolts to slip through.

This last still shot is with the rear pieces laid out.

Carpet16a

 

You can see the forming in the carpet where the rear mount of the front set lays.  The circle is where I had to cut to allow the bolt to slide in.

Here is  little video.

 

I’m very please with this carpet.  As of this blogging I haven’t finished trimming it. In real-time it’s been a few months.  I had to put the seats back in and get it to a charity car show.   Before I had a chance to get back to carpet, the Cleveland developed a bottom end knock and that’s were we are today.  I can finish up more interior work while the engine is out.

The 351C rebuild is coming up next for #ProjectSportsRoof.

Thanks for reading!!!

Tim

1973 Mustang SportsRoof

1973 Mustang SportsRoof

Average Guy’s Car Restorations, Mods, and Racing

Welcome back to #ProjectSportsRoof. With the floor pans welding, sealing and coating finished the next step was to apply the heat and sound barrier. This is …
Great American Muscle Cars – Community – Google+

Welcome back to #ProjectSportsRoof. With the floor pans welding, sealing and coating finished the next step was to apply the heat and sound barrier. This is …

 

1973 Mustang SportsRoof – Post Floor Pans – Heat Shield

Welcome back to #ProjectSportsRoof.  With the floor pans welding, sealing and coating finished the next step was to apply the heat and sound barrier.  This is really an easy project and the benefits are noticeable.

The tools are pretty simple:

Hard rubber Roller

Hard Rubber Roller

A pair of good scissors, marker, box cutter and a measuring implement

A pair of good scissors, marker, a utility knife and a measuring implement (used both a ruler and measuring tape)

You won’t see step by step in this post.  It maybe the most straight forward part of restoring the floor.  Some may say that adding heat and sound proofing isn’t really part of the restoration.  I’d have to disagree.  These cars had an underlayment that served as heat and sound barrier.  It wasn’t much and no where near the effectiveness as new aftermarket materials.   I actually purchase the aftermarket underlayment that mimicked the original and it was close to what I pulled out of the car when I removed the carpeting.  If you are going for factory correct/concours restoration it is what you should use but it’s was not going to last as long as the new material.  In fact, after fitting it to the floor and see how easily it tore,  I tossed it out – not great for the budget but I needed something a little more durable and effective – especially with the heat out here in Arizona.

The process is pretty simple, lay it out, measure, cut, peel off the back and stick it to the floor.  No loose dirt or rust, get that all removed before you start.  Once it’s down and in place roll it with a hard rubber roller. Keep the wrinkles to a minimum and make sure you get good contact with the surface.

20160216_153814

This is the lay out.

20160216_153810

You can still see the backing that will be pealed off.

I started off with Eastwood’s X-Mat, which is good material and should work just fine.  However, I didn’t order much and switched to Cool It Thermo Tec.  It came in larger rolls, less shipping cost, lower over call cost and I could get it quicker with Amazon.  Among guys I know that have used various products they recommended it.

IMG_20160625_205552949 IMG_20160625_205547825

Honestly, I did some measuring (mainly to see if the left over pieces would fit with overlap), but not much was required.  I laid out the strips, gave some over lap and trimmed most of it with a utility knife.  Here are some pics:

RolledDown-2

Rolled out.

RolledDown-1

Rolled out.

 

My son stopped by to help out for a few hours. Ryan removed brace/guides that keep the back of the rear seat from sliding left or right.  BTW – ensure you have old clothes on, the tar like substance on the underside is messy!! Thanks Ryan for the help!

I also covered these areas.

HS-2

There was no barrier between the seat and the trunk ares when I removed the rear seat but I’m sure there must have been at one time. This was not a fold down seat.

HS-3

Covered area B below the trunk pass through and A the wheel well.

HS-4

This area is where the rear class would roll down but they don’t in the SportsRoof.  So I put a layer of COOL IT behind the support and adhered it to the inside of quarter panel.

Here’s what that looked like when it was done.

IMG_20160217_160116457_HDR HS-behindSeat-2

Arrows mark the cut outs needed for the clips/tabs that hold the back and bottom of the seat and seat belt mounts. “A” (up in the right hand corner of the right picture) is the brace that keeps the back of the rear seat from sliding left and right. Ryan removed those (rather than cutting around them) and screwed them back down after putting the Cool It on.

Used the utility knife to do the same cut outs for seat and seat belt bolt to pass through and the groves for the seat belt warning wiring – yes they are getting hooked backup and the floor body plugs/drains.

Seatbeltwarningstrip

A is the channel for the seat belt warning light (a light on the dash would illuminate – driver’s side was a buzzer) you can see the wire laying here. B is the body/floor drain plug. This is before covering.

 

bothcutouts

Again A is the seat belt warning wire channel and B is the drain plug. It’s easy to just use the utility knife to make those cuts.

Thanks for view the progress on #ProjectSportsRoof.  Coming up next is a look at the carpet install.

Tim

STangATWork

 

 

 

 

 

 

restorable classic cars | Tumblr

Other duties happen outside of working on #ProjectSportsRoof…like yard work!!!! ! While attempting to tame the foliage in the backyard on Sunday, my electric …

1973 Mustang SportsRoof – Floor Pans Getting To It! – Part Four …

Apr 19, 2016 Finishing up the right side rear foot-well on #ProjectSportsRoof.

Average Guy’s Car Restorations, Mods, and Racing

As I work on getting more restoration work on #ProjectSportsRoof I thought I’d share a couple of Mustang things that popped up. There are a number of reasons I …

1973 Mustang – Project Sports Roof – Fender Fitment Part II

In these next two videos, you’ll see just how ‘off’ these fenders are in some areas and surprisingly how well they fit in other areas. If you have an experience or a hit for anyone taking on this part of a restoration – drop a comment here and we’ll share them. https://youtu.be/Ga9EHbDpSfg     https://youtu.be/FBKs7EG4kK0   Thanks …

Engine Mini-Series Ford’s Small Block V8s Part II – 260 CID

Welcome back.  I’m continuing on with the Engine Mini-Series – Ford’s Small Block V8s.  This post covers the 260 CID.

I did mention I’d touch on the 255 but that is really out of chronological order and was merely a muted 302 used on for 3 years.  It was dropped for poor performance.

So following the 221 engine (to see the post click here) was the 260 CID.  This came about after the poor performance of the 221 and even with the release of a tweaked version.   Enter Ford’s 260 CID.  It retained the same intake and exhaust ports as the 221, the valves were larger (intake was now 1.76 and exhaust was 1.45).  With it’s bore increased to 3.80 with no change to the stroke the engine put out 164 hp (about 20 more than the 221).  It had a plane jane hydraulic cam and a compression ratio of 8.7:1 and capped off with a two barrel cast iron intake and carb.

The 260 was the engine Carrol Shelby used in his original Cobra and it was selected by the British car maker for the Sunbeam Tiger.

Shelby's 1962 Cobra

Shelby’s 1962 Cobra

1962 Sunbeam Tiger with Ford 260

1962 Sunbeam Tiger with Ford 260

The 260 was in service from 1962 to 1964 and it powered the likes of the Fairlane, Meteor (at least as an option), Comet(at least as an option), Falcon and in 1964 even the Mustang 64 1/2 (F code cars).

Engine was an  overhead valve, Cast iron block with a bore and stroke 3.80 x 2.87 and Compression ratio 8.8:1 with 164 hp. It held 5 main bearings, hydraulic lifters and Autolite 2 bbl carb (Model C40F-9510-B) (Mustang configuration).  The 260 was  also called the Challenger 260 and could to be found topped with  a Holley 2bbl Carb vs. the Autolite.

1964 Ford 260 V8

1964 Ford 260 V8

Next up the Engine Mini-Series Part II the 289!!

Thanks for reading.

Tim

STangATWork

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Engine Mini Series – Chevy’s 283 Prt1

So far my writings are about engines have been ones I owned and the 283 was the engine in my very first car.  It was a 1966 Chevy Impala.  It was a gift to me for my 1976 high school graduation.  The car was restored by my father, who was …

Engine Mini Series – Chevy’s 283 Prt 2

Oh yes, believe it or not, the 283 put the Corvette at the cutting edge of performance in 1957, fitted with the RamJet FI (fuel injection) system (“fuelie” was the gearhead term for that).  In 1958 the 283 was the base engine for the Corvette, but the 283 that use …

Engine Mini Series – Chevy’s 283 Part 3

This is the part of the engine series where I list the uses for the power plant.  The 283, as I mentioned, carried Chevy engines to the next level, by being the first engine that car manufacturers were able to coax out the same horsepower as the displacement. From 1957 (its …

A Couple of Mustang Things – Line-Lock and Mustang Crossing

As I work on getting more restoration work on #ProjectSportsRoof I thought I’d share a couple of Mustang things that popped up.

There are a number of reasons I love Ford products, in particular Mustangs.  One of those is the fact that it didn’t need the bailout money a few years back, choosing to tough it out and some of the innovative/purposeful special purpose options.

I recently received my Ford Mustang ‘Go Further’ brochure.  I’m not including the 310 hp they are dragging out of the 2.3L EcoBoost (I’ve often said “I don’t want anything on my dash that says Eco!!!!”  but wow to the 320 lb-ft of torque. Don’t even think bout the 435 hp and 400 lbs-ft of torque from the 5.0L in the GT…come on!!!!  I can do with out the heated and cooled seat…meh…   However, the Track Apps, MagneRide and launch control are bomb.

The most #awesome purpose built is the Electronic Line-Lock!!!!  Come on…that’s what every weekend racing warrior (and spirited every day driving!!) wants a car manufacture to be thinking about!!!    The Electronic Line-Lock keeps the front brakes locked while you ‘warm up’ the Mustang’s rear tires….come on I don’t have that in my Corvette!!!  But maybe I can figure it out for my 1973 ‘Stang.

It looks something like this…exactly like this:

 

Here’s a great little destination (after you warmed up the tires).  Located at the corner of “No Where” (Hwy 90) and “U’r Lost” (Hwy 82) is this little place called Mustang Crossing.

Great place for a 1973 Mustang photo shoot!!!

Thanks for stopping by.  More coming up on #ProjectSportsRoof.

 

Thanks for reading.

Tim

#ProjectSportsRoof

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1973 Mustang Project SportsRoof – Exterior Walk-Around

Welcome back to #ProjectSportsRoof.  I run my car projects much like I run my IT projects.  You always have to know where to start and know the end game.   As with any project that isn’t being built from scratch, in other word, you have to work with what you’ve got, …

1973 Mustang SportsRoof – Floor Pans Getting To It! – Welding

Welcome back to #ProjectSportsRoof.  Floor pan are ready to be welded into place on the 1973 Mustang Sportsroof.

Now I’m not a welder and there was no way I was going to experiment on the Mustang.  So I enlisted the assistance of my neighbor Dan Thomas.  Dan is quite the artist with his welding and metal work and although this build didn’t require much fancy design work…just quality welds and Dan delivered.

The goal here is to tack the fitted metal patch panels in place.  The welds need to be strong and in the proper places.   Now you might say, “Hey did you say that the Mustang is a unit-body and that the floor needed to be strong since that’s what holds the car together – mostly?”  Yes that is true, however this Mustang will have frame connectors added to make this reasonable.

Just a note about the welding, you have to use gas with the mig…the metal for the patch panels are not that thick and the portions of the floor you are welding it to are old…so you need the added gas.

To start with I needed to strip the tack locations down to bare metal.  You can see some of that in this image.

PreWelding-1

Here a little video clip of the work.  Note: Don’t adjust your device’s volume….there is no sound on the first part of the video…well there was, but it was mostly me chewing gum…not very cool to listen too.

Here is some of Dan’s most excellent work.

LtWelded-1 RtWElded-1
RtWelded-2 RtWelded-3
Weldpic1 Weldpic2
WeldPic3 Thanks Dan!!!

Thanks for following along with the project.  Drop me any questions, comments and/or your thoughts!!!! Coming up next is the coating of the floor and the heat and sound barrier.

Tim

STangATWork

Stang at work!

 

1973 Mustang SportsRoof – Floor Pans Getting To It! – Part Four …

Apr 19, 2016 Finishing up the right side rear foot-well on #ProjectSportsRoof.

ford mustang mach | Tumblr

ProjectSportsRoofAuto RestorationAutoBlogClassic CarsFord MustangMach I Muscle CarsMustangVintage Cars. 2 notes. Loading…Show more notes. Reblog.

1973 Mustang – Project Sports Roof – Pertronix Ignitor Update

Well win some and you lose some.  If you’ve seen my other posts related the replacement of the points and condenser for the 351C you’ll notice that I gave conversion high marks.  This was all based on the years of use I got out of the conversion I did on …

Parking Lot Spotlight – 1969 Mercury Cougar – Awesome!

I haven’t done a Parking Lot Spotlight in a while and this is a great car to pick the series back up with.  Check this one out!!!!!

1969MCourgar-1

Wheels look great!!!!

1969MCourgar-2

Love the chrome work and the wrap around backup lights. That two tone paint is pretty good looking too!!!

I find these to be such a great looking vehicles and dare I say in some cases even better than some of their Mustang cousins.  The hidden headlights and the full (nearly full) length tail lights make these so distinct and much more difficult to restore then the Mustang – as far as getting NOS parts.

I’m not alone in thinking that the new for 1967 Cougar was unique and that first year through 1970 were the best years.  After that they became cross-bred with a Marauder and then by the mid 70’s virtually indistinguishable from the squared off T-bird not to mention it’s overtly plushiness.

In 1969 you could get the Cougar with a 302, 351W  in either a V2 or V4 configuration or Boss 302.  Previous years a 289 was available and in early 70’s  the 351C, 351 CJ, and  351 Boss were options.  Those are the best engine Ford had to offer at the time!!! (May be ever!!)

For 1969 you could get the Cougar in the Coupe, Convertible with a standard trim, Eliminator or XR-7  packages. Production numbers totaled just over 100k units broken down like this:

 

Coupe –  66,331 Convertible – 5,796
XR-7 Coupe – 23,918 XR-7 Convertible – 4,024

 

Got a Cougar?  Let’s see it!!!!

Thanks for reading.

Tim

1973 Mustang SportsRoof

1973 Mustang Sports Roof

 

Readers Cars 01/03/2010

I enjoy seeing readers’ cars.  Here is a 1982 Mercury Cougar Stationwagon…..YES!!!  That’s what I said…”They did what????” Submitted by Steve Sears. There were 19,254 Cougar wagons built, in GS and Villager trim, in 1982. The only other year there were Cougar wagons was 1977 when 9,700+ built. I’d be willing to bet that …