Greetings Stangfix! Thanks to crustycurmudgeon and Del65 who let me know about this place while I was on another site looking for 67 Fastback S Code owners in the Bay Area.
I won a Fastback GT on eBay last week. She is rough around the edges for sure, and was dragged at some point - A drag sticker from NJ '78 is still on the rear window, and she has a hurst vertical gate shifter (I like it, actually). The 390 took a hike in the 70's, and was replaced by a 302 with 289 heads (hi-compression!). Lots of 70's bad boy touches: slotted mag wheels, road huggers, the rear end is raked up, and the exhaust is thrush side pipes.
The sheet metal is all original. The tinted glass is all original. The deluxe belts are stlll in it. And the car still has the original rear louvier still installed. I am new to classics, muscle cars, mustangs, even Fords, and will have a lot of learning to do. I have restored an airplane, and am fairly aware of what I may be getting into. I am shocked by how much parts inventory is available for these old mustangs. What a great hobby!
My first drive was...interesting. This car is belligerent. It's loud and rough and everything screams "sack up!". You don't do anything unless you really want to! Manual steering! The hurst shifter throws my knuckles into the radio! Within five minutes I am completely stoned on carbon monoxide! I can't see out of the cracked and gazed windshield! I can't hear anything because these side pipes are right beneath my ears! I can't stay straight because this is 1967 suspension!
I love it!
Some lessons learned: Everything looks better on eBay. Don't take your wife on the first drive, or she will witness all the struggling with steering, shifting, suspension, and demand that you get it sorted out before driving it to work. And for your second drive, make sure it actually can make it 6 miles, or you'll stall, and CHP will see you....without plates....or registration....or insurance. Yes, that happened. I told him the truth: I was headed to the DMV to get it registered. He told me he could nab me on 4 or more violations, but said " I really wanna see you get this car up and running, so I'm gonna give you a break". Sweet, sweet muscle cars.
I never made it to the DMV. The stalling continued, so I rolled (literally) into an auto repair shop here in town. I couldn't risk anymore driving without plates. They are tuning it up this weekend. I think the stall issue was timing/ignition, so I replaced the dual points with a pertronix. The shop is doing a tune up, and a new water pump. I also asked them to report everything they see that needs work in the longer term (that'll be quite a list). The idea here is that I get this thing street legal, then work on it as time permits.
Plans right now are: new front suspension, new steering wheel, new front tires (they rub!), replace the windshield, replace the RH rear quarter end cap with one actually made for a fastback and not a coupe(!!), and....that's it.
Longer term: adds any rust issues (trunk), put a 390 back into the car, and....leave it!
Looking forward to meeting some of you guys. I would appreciate someone coming to see the car in the spring to share some insights and tips. I learned restoring airplanes that knowing people who share the interest is critical, and makes the whole hobby much more rewarding!
Check it out: the video that the seller posted on eBay is still on YouTube. Do a search for 6767shelby.
I won a Fastback GT on eBay last week. She is rough around the edges for sure, and was dragged at some point - A drag sticker from NJ '78 is still on the rear window, and she has a hurst vertical gate shifter (I like it, actually). The 390 took a hike in the 70's, and was replaced by a 302 with 289 heads (hi-compression!). Lots of 70's bad boy touches: slotted mag wheels, road huggers, the rear end is raked up, and the exhaust is thrush side pipes.
The sheet metal is all original. The tinted glass is all original. The deluxe belts are stlll in it. And the car still has the original rear louvier still installed. I am new to classics, muscle cars, mustangs, even Fords, and will have a lot of learning to do. I have restored an airplane, and am fairly aware of what I may be getting into. I am shocked by how much parts inventory is available for these old mustangs. What a great hobby!
My first drive was...interesting. This car is belligerent. It's loud and rough and everything screams "sack up!". You don't do anything unless you really want to! Manual steering! The hurst shifter throws my knuckles into the radio! Within five minutes I am completely stoned on carbon monoxide! I can't see out of the cracked and gazed windshield! I can't hear anything because these side pipes are right beneath my ears! I can't stay straight because this is 1967 suspension!
I love it!
Some lessons learned: Everything looks better on eBay. Don't take your wife on the first drive, or she will witness all the struggling with steering, shifting, suspension, and demand that you get it sorted out before driving it to work. And for your second drive, make sure it actually can make it 6 miles, or you'll stall, and CHP will see you....without plates....or registration....or insurance. Yes, that happened. I told him the truth: I was headed to the DMV to get it registered. He told me he could nab me on 4 or more violations, but said " I really wanna see you get this car up and running, so I'm gonna give you a break". Sweet, sweet muscle cars.
I never made it to the DMV. The stalling continued, so I rolled (literally) into an auto repair shop here in town. I couldn't risk anymore driving without plates. They are tuning it up this weekend. I think the stall issue was timing/ignition, so I replaced the dual points with a pertronix. The shop is doing a tune up, and a new water pump. I also asked them to report everything they see that needs work in the longer term (that'll be quite a list). The idea here is that I get this thing street legal, then work on it as time permits.
Plans right now are: new front suspension, new steering wheel, new front tires (they rub!), replace the windshield, replace the RH rear quarter end cap with one actually made for a fastback and not a coupe(!!), and....that's it.
Longer term: adds any rust issues (trunk), put a 390 back into the car, and....leave it!
Looking forward to meeting some of you guys. I would appreciate someone coming to see the car in the spring to share some insights and tips. I learned restoring airplanes that knowing people who share the interest is critical, and makes the whole hobby much more rewarding!
Check it out: the video that the seller posted on eBay is still on YouTube. Do a search for 6767shelby.
bj :beer :yah
