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1968 Mustang AWD Convertible Build.........here you go!

A

Anonymous

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So I've been talking about this for a while and collecting thoughts on how to make this work. A few on here has known about it for a while and now I figure it's time to let the whole group in on it. BTW, I wanted to make sure my ideas were plausible before chopping up a very nice 68 Convertible and getting too far along to reverse all the damage that is done with the plasma cutter. I guess you can say I passed the point of no return a few weeks ago. There is a lot of "guess" work going into this car so if any of you guys see something that may cause a potential problem please bring it to my attention. Otherwise, sit back and enjoy the build. I figure the completion date will be early next year.
 

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Trying to figure out where everything will go and what can I rob for parts that will work................Liincoln Mark VIII Teskid block 32 valve 4.6 mated up with a tough 4R70W tranny should do for the drive train. Weight is a biggie on this build and I'm gonna try to keep this ride under 2800lbs. The Teskid block with all the dressings (no A/C) weighed in at 412lbs. Not sure how much antifreeze the block holds but I would guess no more than a couple gallons (16lb or so). The 4R70W is a bruit of a tranny but I want it to hold up to some brutal launches. The front is off a Ford Focus. I started with the basics and quickly learned that one of the weak points of it's suspension is the front bearings. After researching a bit I learned that our friends across the pond use a Mazda 3 setup on their rally cars in order to keep bearings alive. So it ended up being based on a Mazda 3. The bearings are about twice the size as the Focus. Also the half shaft is larger.
 

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Did I miss it? How are you going to transfer power back up to the half-shafts with the 4r70w? Aren't Mazda 3's engines mounted transversely to the trains and halfshafts? I'm definitely interested in what you've got cooking.

Bill
 
"Fst Blk" said:
So what's the plan...?

Bill

The plan.....(if it works)

1: 0-60 in the 3 second range.
2: Something different with a little challenge.
3: To be able to drive on the beach or in snow.
4: And most important to dust these little ricer awds that think they are so fast.
 
"Fst Blk" said:
Did I miss it? How are you going to transfer power back up to the half-shafts with the 4r70w? Aren't Mazda 3's engines mounted transversely to the trains and halfshafts? I'm definitely interested in what you've got cooking.

Bill

I'm getting there, don't want to get too far ahead.
 
Actually before I started buying up engines and trannys I kinda had a plan in my head and pulled out the tape measure to make sure everything would fit in place and work. I also mocked up the suspension and drive line to make sure I was not off track. The diff is borrowed from a Chebby Astro Van and is a 3.42 open. I plan to use a 8" 3.50 locking diff and adjust the size of the tires so that the rotation is equal on both the front and rear diff.
 

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Now to get power to the front diff I will be using a Borg Warner 4472 transfer case. It's used in the GMC Typhoon and Syclone awd's and these things are fast as hell. I hope to have a couple hundred more horsepower and weigh in about a thousand pounds less than these trucks. Going fast quick is simple physics, something the younger generation never thinks about. The 4472 uses a viscous type clutch to power the front axles and has a 65/35 power split. This is why I need to keep the rotation of the front and rear diff as close as I can. If it's off too much the viscous clutch unit will overheat and fail. The first of two BIG issues is where to mount the transfer case. Most are attached to the engine that are used in suv's and trucks but in a small Vintage Mustang this is not possible due to taking up the front floor board. So my thought was to divorce it and mount it toward the rear. Why not? It will only intrude into the left rear foot well a little and it's hardly noticeable when the front seat is all the way back. The right side it does not interfere with at all. The second BIG issue was how to get a drive shaft into the transfer case. It seems I could find adaptors for everything but the BW 4472 so I decided to have a custom one made. I was referred to a forum called "Practical Machinist" where I found a retired machinist that said he would make it. He done a great job and he was very reasonable for his work. It is setup to accept a 1310 standard U-joint. I will have to have custom drive lines made, but that's something I can get local.
 

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Now with the game plan in place it's time to start whittling on the car. The first thing (I guess) is to build the suspension. Since I was going to base it on a Mazda 3 I called a friend up and ask her if I could measure her......car. She agreed and brought it by. It's funny but the Mazda 3 was built on the same assembly line as the Ford ugh.........Taurus (I think) and the knuckles I removed off the Mazda had Ford stamped into them and had a Ford part number. I was very careful to measure the load points, pivot points and angles of the Mazda. Actually I bought a digital angle finder that was handier than a third hand just to do this. It had a lock feature so if you can't see the numbers you simple mash the button and it will lock the number on the screen. It's funny but almost everything on the whole suspension came up 3*. Camber measured 1* but the caster was 3. My thoughts is the Mazda should weigh about the same exact weight as the Mustang AWD and things should operate about the same. Here are some photos of building a Mazda 3 front suspension on a 68 Mustang.
 

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Test fitting of the front diff and rack location.
 

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No build ever goes smooth and as you would know there was something in the way of the front half shafts called a frame rail. The half shafts or CV shafts as you would know set at 3*. So not seeing anyway to go around the rails I decided to go through them. I found a piece of 4" triple wall pipe and sectioned it the same width as the rails and wacked out the semi circles with the plasma and welded in the pipe. I also added some square .125 wall tube to the rails for the control arm to mount to. I was able to keep the half shafts at the 3* angle that also matches the 3* angle the control arms mount at. Once everything is mounted I plan to box the entire extension in with .125 sheet steel and run at least two cross braces to tie them together.
 

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While looking through my build photos I ran across this. I use a soft ear plug to clean my mig welder wire just before it goes through the feed rollers. It cleans off all the small crap and the rollers will work flawlessly without jamming and causing your wire to jump.
 

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"Fst Blk" said:
How's the track width? It looks like the front wheels are out there.

Bill

Yep, there going to be out about 2 more inche than what would be considered normal. The fender lips will be flaired both on the front and the rear about equal amounts. This will allow me to make use of wider tires on the front and rear. Hopefully not to the point where they look gaudy.
 
Here's some photos of the wheel and tire using the Mazda 3 knuckle and such. This also should be about the same ride height it will sit when finished. I really think I will be cutting a coil or so due to being quiet a bit lighter than the donor car. Course there's quiet a bit more work and weight to be added before it's done.
 

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Working on the strut tower. I was not sure on how to go about building these so I started cutting metal. The first thing was to get an accurate location of where the top of the strut mounted (the bottom is fixed at this point). So with some fine measuring and a little guessing I found a location. Having a fixed top means there's no adjustment for camber and caster so it has to be spot on. Before completely finishing up on the towers I plan to add several gussets. One to the top pinch weld, one to the bottom torque box, one to the front rail and a couple to the bottom rail. I hope with that many braces it will stay put.
 

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