So after inspecting the head further, I noticed a few more reasons to have them reconditioned. Take a look:
Gonna Need some touching up.
As you can see there a lot of rust and old stuff plugging up some of the water passages.
The heads were sent out to a local machine shop run by an old hot rodder.
Here’s a quick video of the valves that were removed. You can see the build up as the oil (from the tappet hole) and the gas was continually ignited by the spark plug.
The good news the heads are back and installed. The bad news in my haste to get the car back together, I forget to get some shots of the completed heads. By the time I realized it was too late to go back.
The Cleveland is running strong, but needs a lot of work on the vacuum system and – I’m thinking of replacing the carb. Send me your on what to replace it with.
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.
Next up will be the install Pertronix system and cap and rotor, then plug and wires. Thanks for reading and drop me a note. Tim. #ProjectSportsRoof. projectsportsroof. 1973 Mustang Project SportsRoof – Interior Walk-Through.
Just before heading off on vacation, I sources a set of used gauges for the Mustang (#ProjectSportsRoof). These are out of a 1973 Mustang and fit in to the dash. If you recall there is a current set of gauges in the Mustang, however they are a newer connected set wedge into the slot where the original single gauges go.
Here is the current configuration.
Here is the current set of gauges. The individual units will look much better.
Drop me a note if you’ve had to clean out the hose for oil pressure gauges.
I get asked often how our restoration service at Average Guy’s Car Restorations works.
This is a great question so I thought I’d lay out the basic steps, keeping in mind that each car and each customer is different and we do our best to accommodate those differences.
From a full-blown frame off restoration – like we have going on with the rare 1975 Model 110 VW bug, to a customized ride, to a simple refresh to keep the family classic safe and reliable, we make it happen. Whether you are going to keep it, sell it at the next Barrett Jackson auction or hand it down, we’ll get it to the level of perfection you desire and it deserves.
To start we’ll sit down and discuss your goals. This is a critical step for us to understand your goal. As you know a key component of any restoration is budget, so we’ll have that discussion too, including your budget range, initial deposit and billing/payment arrangements. Based on this interview we lay out the next steps and you’ll know what to expect every step of the way.
After we completed the administrative tasks, we get to the exciting part. We’ll arrange to get you vehicle transported, safely and secure. Our rare Model 110 VW was brought to us all the way from the great state of Iowa. We select only reliable transportation contractors to move your car, so it won’t be jammed on the back of livestock truck, which just happens to be coming this way. Once we have the car in our possession it remains safe and secure at all times including when it’s with any of our subcontractors.
We begin with a complete inspection of the car, keeping in mind the customers goals, to decide the logical progression for the restore, refresh or customization. We call this the ‘Project Plan’ and we give you that step by step document. You can then compare that to your objective.
One of things we love to do is document the restoration process and you’ll be given updates, including pictures, on a regular basis and comprehensive documentation when the project is completed. Our Model 110 VW’s owner has visited from Chicago several times to personally inspect her “Buggy”. We love that interaction.
So that’s the framework of our restoration process and to just show you the quality, here are a couple of examples.
From this:
To this:
The 302
From this
To this:
Let me show you one more.
From this rusted out VW:
To this:
That’s the expected out come – not just our customers want but we demand.
Of course getting these types of results isn’t by chance, you have to start with skilled professionals and you have to manage each car like a complicated project with personal oversight. Not a bolt get’s replaces or polished or a dollar spent without my knowledge. With two double “Best In Class” trophy winners to my recent credit, you know the attention to detail will be there.
If you are interested in the process or have questions, feel free to contact us at AGCarRestoration@cox.net or call us at 520-405-5314.
As I march down the dark path that is the diagnostic process to find out the health of the 351 Cleveland, the first steps are to clean up a few leaks (mainly so it doesn’t bleed fluids all over the garage floor and driveway) and replace the points and condenser with a Petronix system.
If you are not familiar Petronix it’s a simple electronic ignition system (as compared with a MSD electronic ignition system) that keeps your car looking stock, as it all tucks under the distributor cap.
First I need to trouble a few leaks. If you wonder why I’m whispering in the any of the video it’s because to avoid the 100 plus temps I get started early.
Of course the power steering has nothing to do with the engine, but it is substantial and annoying. As a side note, when is a garage not a garage? When it’s the most used entry way into your home. Hence the desire to tackle these leaks before move the Mustang under cover. Of course I can put something on the floor but you know as well as I do, that doesn’t matter, because one of the unpublished laws of physics, that goes something like “Car fluids defy all published laws of physics and go where the hell they want.”
Here is the power steering cleaned up a bit.
We’ll see if it leaks again. On to the next leak!
Now we’ve got one more leak to take care of and that is the valve covers. Check it out:
I’ll get Part II post up here shortly. I’m breaking it up as too many videos tend to slow the loading on the page.
I get a lot of questions on just what I’m going to do with the Sports Roof. Some of those are posed as inquires of interest and others can be interpreted as “What the.
As I posted before, after a vigorous (not read ‘desperate’) I finally found my next personal project. The 1973 Mustang Sports Roof Fastback is what I settled on.
I get a lot of questions on just what I’m going to do with the Sports Roof. Some of those are posed as inquires of interest and others can be interpreted as “What the hell were you thinking when you bought that!!!”. Truth is I don’t have that all planned out yet and the direction can change base on the results of the discovery process.
It would be very difficult to produce something horrifying if you stick to the bare bones of the car. There may be some catastrophic cause such as the 351 Cleveland not being able to perform up to par. That would allow for a host of different directions, such as bringing it back to originality by installing a slightly beefed up 302 or dropping a monster crate engine in, maybe even a conversion to a manual 4 speed. There is always a ripple effect – carb changes, exhaust changes (it just isn’t loud enough now) and more. Having plan set in stone is not in the cards for this project at this point.
Here is what I can tell you. The car will be returned the factory color Bright Red. The interior will be redone most likely with kits from TMI kits and back to stock, with Dynamat as sound and heat barrier. A/C will be re-installed. There will be changes to the wheels for sure and everything else will be as stock as can be.
So number one priority is to shake down the Cleveland and go from there. That is where we start and the next few posts will cover getting the 351 to run a well as it can – removing the little things that can impact functionality. For example, removing the points and condenser and replacing with Pertronix system, new distributor cap, rotor, plugs and wires and tackle the vacuum system (NIGHMARE!!).
There is a quick walk-through of the 351C tucked between the fenders of the 1973 Mustang Sportsroof. (It took about 5 takes to get this video…a slight improvement.
#ProjectSportsRoof will be the way I want it, which I haven’t nailed down yet, so suggest way by dropping me a comment (got your crate motor idea swimming around in my head, Bill) and that will happen fast or slow and cost …
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, …
As I posted before, after a vigorous (not read ‘desperate’) I finally found my next personal project. The 1973 Mustang Sports Roof Fastback is what I settled on.
Welcome back to the #ProjectSportsRoof. As the discovery process continues we move to the interior. Now each area of the car (engine, body, interior, undercarriage) I’m conducting an inventory, gathering all items that need to be replaced or missing and the work that needs to be done.
Here is a quick run through the interior:
Just a note: I not a camera guy, these are filmed with my Android (sometimes my IPhone) so these are the greats shots. But they will be improving as I learn the art of digital editing.
From these videos I’ll end up with a list of everything – discovered (there will me more). From this list, I’ll be able to build the project plan and with tasked ordered in what is hopefully a logical approach, with the goal of keeping it on the road as much as possible.
Thanks for reading and please feel free to drop a comment or two.
I pulled this dash cluster from a 1973 Mustang Sportsroof that was in a junkyard in 1980. The car had the three center gauges in the mini cluster but had no Tach. Instead it had this clock with a brake warning light in the pod …
Related Finds. 1973 Mustang SportsRoof 1970 Ford Mustang Boss 302 Under Tarp 1970-mustang-boss-302 1970 Boss 302 · Get Email Updates! Instant Daily Weekly. Categories. Stories · Sightings · Our Projects · Events …
As I posted before, after a vigorous (not read ‘desperate’) I finally found my next personal project. The 1973 Mustang Sports Roof Fastback is what I settled on. Now we start the project that has been dubbed #ProjectSportsRoof (yes I find it necessary to use the ‘hash’).
1973 Mustang Color Code 2B.
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 and the key to that is knowing what you are starting with. As with any project that isn’t being built from scratch, in other word, you have to work with what you’ve got, the final goals may change based on what you start out with and/or find later. To help reduce the surprises, there will always be something that pops up unexpectedly, it’s a good idea to begin with an inventory of what we have and what is needed and a logical starting point. We (as in me and you the reader) are at the beginning of the project.
Coming up next are the a few videos (maybe on only three, never sure, since the camera guy and I are one in the same) will be my first inspection.
Please feel free to interject via a comment or an email, always welcome the discussions.
1973 Mustang SportsRoof. If Mach 1 Mustangs have gotten a little too pricey for you, may I suggest a less flashy fastback like this? The 351 under the hood isn’t as powerful as the top-of-the-line Cobra Jet, but it’s the same …
With the near completion of a customer’s project (1975 Model 110 VW) and the beginning of another customer’s Jensen Interceptor, I’ve finally completed my search for my next personal project.
Having recently completed and sold my 1984 Corvette and my 1970 Mustang, I’ve found my next project.
Introducing “Project SR”. It is a 1973 Mustang Sports Roof. The VIN breakdown looks like this:
Born: April 1973 in Dearborn, MI (Code F)
Body Series: 02 Sports Roof Code: 63D
Engine F Code – 302 2V V8
Color Code 2B – Bright Red
Trim Code GA – Black All Vinyl, Mach 1 Luxury
Axle Code: 8 – 3.00:1 gearing
Transmission Code: W – C4 Automatic
DSO – Originally delivered to dealership in Omaha, Ne. and then shipped to Arizona(??)
That’s how it left the factory, however, that is not how it’s sits today. Here’s a little back ground.
Project “SR” is a rescue project for the second time. The first ‘known’ attempt was by the immediate previous owner. Pulled from a junk yard by father/son combo for salvation. This team has spent some meaningful time on this project. As the factory codes show the car was powered by 302 2V as built. When the father/son team pulled it out of the desert sun, it had 351 cid engine that was seized. That is how is end up with the current 351 2v from a 1972 Mustang. Putting the power to the rear wheels as it drove off the assembly line was a C4 automatic transmission, after all these years it now has a C6 automatic. Front end was completed by the team and then a couple fateful fender benders (both front fender on different days) and a desire to build a rat-rod had led this ‘Stang to it’s new home – my drive way!
Why pick this particular car out of the thousands I’ve viewed online and 30 or so I’ve looked over? Well, I have a thing for Mustangs (and Corvettes) and this one is significant. It is the last year for the big Mustangs as the 1974 models were…..um…..different. What’s more the Code 63D Sports Roof/Fastback has a limited production for the 3 years is was offered. 1971 shows a production number of for the 63D 23,956 units, 1972 end with 15,622 Sports Roof examples and 1973 bottoms out the list with only 10,820 units – that is less than production of convertibles. So out of the total Mustang unit produced of just over 518,000 for 1971-1973 only 53,358 63D’s were produced. So you have last year production for the big bodied Mustangs and for the 63D and the lowest production.
So we are going to have some fun restoring this one and my followers on WordPress, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and a couple more will be able to keep up. Search on #ProjectSR.
Over the next few weeks I’ll do a project shake down that will uncover what it needs which will help me arrive and what I want to accomplish with this beauty. Follow along and I’d love to hear your thoughts, suggestions, hints and tips.
1973 Mustang SportsRoof. If Mach 1 Mustangs have gotten a little too pricey for you, may I suggest a less flashy fastback like this? The 351 under the hood isn’t as powerful as the top-of-the-line Cobra Jet, but it’s the same …
You no doubt know about Ford and Carroll Shelby’s Cobra winning the 1965 FIA World Manufacturer’s GT Championship – breaking Enzo Ferrari’s reign on the in that event. But this short video tells more about what Bob Bondurant endured during those races. He is a true racing icon.
I’ve had the thrill of running Bondurant course here in Phoenix, AZ., include the F1 event held at Phoenix International Raceway. All great experiences from a well run organization.
Check out the story of how the U.S. Team (with Bob and two English drivers) took home the win.
I love engines!!! Not just the big block, but some of the off beat, lower production/limited use, power plants. Of course that’s one of the great things about our hobby – there is a wide variety to choose from.
I haven’t writing a post in this series in some time, but just the other day, while on my hunt for a new project car, I ran across a Mercury project that had a 410 as the engine. I bet even if you are a die-hard Ford guy, you might not have run into this engine. This prompted me to do a little research which further prompted me to write what I found.
The 410 from a 1966 Mercury.
Most engines are derived from an engineered design that came before it. The 410 came in two different series. Produced from 1958 to 1968 it was part of the MEL series. MEL was Ford’s designation for Mercury, Edsel and Lincoln. From 1968 through 1976 it was in the FE series. The early MEL series 410 was used exclusively in the 1958 Edsel Corsair and Citation. It was also called the E-475 for it’s 475 foot-pounds of torque. It sported a 4.20 bore and a 3.70 stroke and a compression ratio of 10.5:1. Top that with 4 barrel Holly and it would produce, finish it off with dual exhaust you’ve got enough power to pull around those big Edsels.
The FE Series 410 was essentially Ford’s 390 (as was the 406) only given a bump in the stroke length (0.20″) to 3.98″ from the 390’s 3.78″. It used the same heads as the 390 (2.04 intake and 1.57 exhaust valves). Topped with a cast iron intake manifold and a Ford carb, it produced 330 horse power.
The MEL Series 410 was, as stated above, only installed in Edsel’s Cosair and Citation and that was only for 1958. That would make it an extremely limited use engine. It was a 4v Carb, produced about 345 horse power and 475 ft-lbs of torque with a compression ratio of 10.5:1.
The FE Series was also used in just two years, 1966 & 1967 and in just one sub-brand, Mercury. For those years the 410 carried a 4v carb produced 330 horse power and put done 444 ft-lbs of torque using 10.5:1 compression.
Production number for the 1958 Corsair was 9,987 units. For the Citation 9,299 units were produced. Together those tells you that there were about 20,286 for the 410 engines produced in the MEL version. I wasn’t able to find true production numbers for the FE series.
I haven’t check into the availability of parts for either 410 Series, but the MEL would seem unique and difficult source, however the FE shared most of the FE 390 engine. I do know that the MEL series engines had unique cylinder heads. The heads and block were milled at a 10 degree angle, giving them a wedge-shaped combustion chamber.
I did, in fact, pass on the project that prompted this post.
Thanks for reading. And if you have any additional information or want to share your project. Post here or on twitter (@AGCarRestore) or Facebook Average Guy’s Car Restoration, Mods and Racing.
I dont really want to pull the engine out of the car because i got an estimate on machine work, and the numbers are to high for my salary, Is there anything i can do to flush out the coolant ports(im not sure what the technical …
With the introduction of the FE and MEL engines in 1958, lessons had been learned in regards to exhaust valve placement and the new engines remedied this issue by either placing intake valves next to each other at the …
