It has been two years since I last wrote of the 1967 Mustang pictured (“The One Dollar 1967 Mustang Convertible”)You may recall that my fiancé and I were traveling to Ohio to generate enthusiasm and excitement for our upcoming nuptials. I was a member of our local central office staff having a position focused on improving Other People’s Processes (You down with OPP?) while improving my own. I was also testing the waters with my sweetie on whether I should try to acquire one 1967 Ford Mustang that was a family heirloom.
the author with his future baby in 1995
Two years later? I’m entering my second year as principal of a 250 student elementary school (proficiency up J school grade the same L) defending those students from the forces of ignorance on a daily basis. Married one year and just as happy as we were when we met five years ago.
Meanwhile my parents had decided to move from the ranch style house they built in 1978 moving into “town” (as they called it) both of them closer to their places of work. My father expressed his fear that he wasn’t driving the Mustang enough to justify owning it (insurance, upkeep, etc.) and that with the move he might lose his storage space. The new house had a two car garage and a small shed as opposed to the two car garage PLUS one car garage sized outbuilding that was on the current property. The Mustang slumbered in the outbuilding during the winter.
This spring I informed my father of two things.
1. I could certainly use the Mustang and would take care of it.
2. If he were to “gift” it to me, I could afford to slowly restore it and make general improvements along the way. If I were to have to pay for the car, I could not afford to do what needed to be done.
Much to my surprise my father agreed, even though he had previously explored the option of selling the car, although what he thought it was worth, nobody else thought it was worth. I guess he could not deny his only son and eldest child a car that was a piece of family history. I will take this moment to state that while my father took care of the car he did not fix anything that “wasn’t broken.” The car had not had a documented tune up since 1976 (he drove it less than 3,000 miles per year) and although the radiator, water pump, heater core, and brakes had been replaced or rebuilt it was due to those things giving him issues, not as part of preventative maintenance.
I realize that I am a lucky man in that my wife’s reaction to this was simply; “I knew you would end up with an old car as a hobby. I’m simply glad that it is a car that you KNOW.” We planned a trip to Ohio in July by way of Memphis & Nashville, TN with a stop in Bowling Green, KY. We visited Elvis, relatives, and the Corvette Museum. This entire trip took place in my 2004 F150 Heritage just so I could trailer the Mustang back to New Mexico.
I considered doing a travelogue on our return trip but was not nearly ambitious enough. I will say that we saw a significant portion of this country and that we could have played a continuous loop of Jason Aldean’s “Flyover States.”
On the trip my wife christened our newly acquired convertible as “Sally” and I started to formulate a plan in my head for what needed to be fixed and the order of importance. (I’m listing these things out because I want all of you to remember even a vehicle that looks good on the outside you must be realistic about what your total investment may someday be. We all MM out our automotive fantasies but what is it like to “live the dream?”)
1. Mechanical soundness
a. Tune up
b. Set up carb for high altitude
c. Service transmission
d. Conversion to electronic ignition
e. Replace rotted dual exhaust system
2. 2. Convertible top
a. Tear in back window
b. Small “pinhole” over passenger seat
c. Weak hydraulics
3. 3. Structural soundness
a. Floor rot in rear floorboards
b. Asses extent of rust issues
4. 4. Everything else
a. Drivers side rear window does not stay up when vehicle in motion
b. Passenger side window regulator does not keep window from dropping approximately 1 inch during travel
c. Rip on seam of passenger vinyl seat
d. Intermittent functioning of gauge lights
After returning to New Mexico the car did not make it all the way back to Tohatchi where I am living now. It was taken directly off the Uhaul trailer to a local mechanics shop a place where they work on anything, have all the modern equipment but the objects of their lust have carburetors and no computers. The first order of business was to resolve the mechanical issues so that the car would be drivable and fairly reliable, the car is living 20+ miles from my trusted mechanic, therefore it had to be sound. I had mentally calculated this to be a $1500 job.
The eventual total for parts and labor was $2700. A complete MSD ignition system was installed to get rid of the nasty old points and purely mechanical ignition – the distributor is a billet race style unit and total overkill (right now) but think of the upgrade possibilities! The total for that portion of the work was around $1000. The replacement of leaky valve covers (new gaskets and chrome covers just because), chrome air cleaner for looks, total tune up and set timing, along with transmission service, and under hood painting (engine block and firewall/inner fenders) rang (parts and labor) at $1000.
The most trashed part of the car was the exhaust system (seen above). At some point during the 70s a true dual exhaust system was installed with glass-pack mufflers and tiny 1.25 in pipes. After 30+ years of use the system was completely rotted and all the exhaust gaskets were toast. My mechanic referred me to a local muffler shop that I was already familiar with after their installation of a cat back system on my F150.
Seven-hundred dollars later I had a new dual exhaust system with Flowmasters and 2.25 in pipes topped off by new chrome tips that echo the taillights in their rectangular nature.
What now? Well the other things on the list from #2 through #4. Time frame? When funds allow. I see myself as the car’s custodian but my job is not to try to restore it to perfection or turn it into a show queen. I want to reach the point where it can be reliably driven across the country if need be but I’m not terrified to park it in a parking lot for fear the paint might get scratched. My car, my way – an extension of my personality and I am ultimately the one I am trying to make happy.
Congrats on getting your dad’s Mustang. I think you have a very good “restore it while you drive it” plan. I think the MSD system is totally overkill for your car when a Pertronix or similar would have worked fine, and I’m saying that as someone who has spent a ton of money on engine upgrades, but sometimes you want something “just because”.
I would also encourage you to get a factory service manual (not generic Chiltons etc), join a Mustang chat board, and try to tackle as much of the work as possible yourself. Not only will you learn a lot and have the pride of saying you fixed something yourself, but you’ll save a bunch of money.
I’m a new Sacramento Mustang customer and picked up the factory manual for both the car in general and the convertible top supplement. I am generally mechanically inclined (changing oil in cars, doing maintenance on a John Deere 112 when I was a kid and more recently on a 2008 Roketa scooter) the Mustang’s arrival just happened to coincide with the start of my contract for the year and there were a few issues beyond my ability.
Awesome story, Dan. Congratulations!
Good job on both the story and the car. Those are good common sense goals and pretty much what I followed when resurrecting my wagon. I envy the fuel economy you will get. Would still be driving mine but 13mpg was pretty average for the wagons with 283 small blocks.
Update please, when you can.
I’ve been tracking fuel economy since the tune up and electronic ignition install and travelling 60 to 65 mph on the highway the 289V8, 3 speed auto, two barrel carb, and god knows what gearing I’m getting 20 mpg. Those who have read the original post will know that the rear axle was replaced in the 70s after being destroyed in a drag racing incident. The car went from a Ford 8 in with likely mild gears to a Ford 9 in (acquired from a wrecked Mach 1) with gears steep enough to give the speedometer a +20 mph error.
Great to see that you now have custody of the family Mustang. What a great car to start with.
This reminds me of my 68 hardtop from years ago. You will certainly find some rust issues on that Ohio car. However, in its new climate, the corrosion will slow way, way down.
I know that I will look forward to another installment in awhile, once you have gotten better acquainted with Sally’s personality. FWIW, I love the color combo. And of course, I love ragtops. BTW, I believe that these Mustangs originally had a 2 piece glass window with a rubber strip bonded to the glass where it folded. So, the hole in the plastic back window is not catastrophic, as it is clearly a budget replacement.
I’ve been confused by that myself. All the reference materials talk about a 2-piece glass window but when Dad got the car in 1978 the plastic window was already there and no one in the family can seem to remember it ever being glass. I’ve tried searching online for plastic replacements (just to see what they cost) and no one makes one to just zip out and zip back in…
Can’t make heads or tails of it. How did a 67 end up with a plastic window?
The folding back glass was an available option. The standard convertible top came with a plastic window. If you keep UV rays from fogging the plastic, it provides perfectly good service.
“When funds allow. I see myself as the car’s custodian but my job is not to try to restore it to perfection or turn it into a show queen.”
Amen Brother on that. There is something totally wrong about restoring a car from the ground up(including all mechanical parts) and then trailering it to every place instead of driving it(I could see if you are taking it to a car show 300 miles away in at a time the temp is 180 degrees and the car has no AC or it is a Dusenburg SSJ or another rare car) A car is meant to be driven. Thats what I love about CC and Paul’s posts about the cars of Eugene because it shows 40, 50, 60 year old cars still being driven daily.
Now back to the Mustang, I am starting to like the 64 1/2-1968 Mustangs(the 69 to 73 were to bloated looking) I am a big fan of the 79-93 Fox Stang
My brother got a 1966 Mustang in good shape(not poor total restoration candidate nor restored garage queen) drivable but needed a few things and he slowly made the repairs(he is in the Navy and they keep sending him on 3 week tour of duties) The only real work that was needed was a hole in the floor patched, a new carb, new speakers and radios (the crappy aftermarket radio was replaced with vintage AM radio from a 65 Falcon(the 65 and 66 Mustang used the same radio) which I restored(my hobby is radio and clock restoration), some repro Mustang radio knobs. There is also a modern JVC radio hidden in the glove box(to allow for the vintageness to be kept while providing a way to listen to an iPod) )
Next on the list are replacing the ugly wheels for Mustang steel rims and hubcaps
It got a new exhaust and some new chrome parts and thats it. It has the CID 200 I6(which makes my Volvo 240 seem fast)
I have been pushing him to search for a decent working 289 engine ether on CL or the local junk yards and that i would help him tear it down for a total rebuild. As it lives in the garage with plenty of room and runs, a 289 could live on an engine stand while being rebuilt and the mustang could be driven until the new engine is ready.
Nice car please keep up the updates on it
Here is a pic of my brother’s 1966
You will swapping more than the engine if you want a safe, properly operating factory appearing, conversion. In fact, about the only thing you won’t change will be the body. You will need complete front suspension, springs, spindles, brakes,
steering linkage, trans, rear axle, rear springs, radiator, drive shaft, you name it.
Ford cheaped out with the six and put in flimsy, light duty, 4-lug-nut running gear.
You will want to stick some Granada discs on the front while you are at it.
Personally in that situation I’d be thinking about the “hot 6” options but then you’d likely end up spending the same amount of money and still upgrading everything. In fact I could see the smart consumer in the 60s ordering the V8 just to get the upgrades to suspension and brakes. http://www.fordsix.com/
I have heard about the Hot 6 but this engine is on its last legs(has a bit of blowby) if it has to come out and I have to rebuild it then I rather focus attention on replacing the power plant with a 289 but we will see
In ’66, there was actually a shortage of 289 engines and salespeople were instructed to try and steer buyers to the six, believe it or not.
Yea I know that it is not just about switching engines and driving off. I just did not want to burden this fine post about a Mustang convertible by writing a bigger book then I already had.
You are right those front drum brakes gotta go. my thoughts also is to pull the trans out with the engine and rebuild it too. I have rebuilt transmissions in the past and this one is straight forward and should only take a day or so to R&R once it is out all parts are in hand. we may then do something about the rear but that is in the future
Good luck. 289s are getting harder to find (not impossible, just harder) and then of course the 302 being easier to find but not period correct having made its debut in 1968 as the base V8. 🙂
If it’s not really going to be an original V8 anyway, who’d know the difference?
True Paul, and many of the items that fit a 289 fit a 302 externally speaking. My engine dress up kit was a 289/302 piece according to the box it came in. Most people won’t know if you don’t tell them. If you want the look you can even order 289 decals for the air cleaner and slap them on there.
You’ll need a V8 trans anyway.
FWIW here’s a re-post of something I said on the previous thread on the modded Falcon wagon and teardrop trailer. It should clarify where I stand on this issue.
Chalk me up as another hater of these engines. We had a 200 in my moms ’66 Mustang.
“A nice little gas saving runabout” my dad likely thought. It replaced a ’62 Corvair that spooked my parents after Nader’s book came out.
I remember there was a V8 version in the showroom next to it, with spiffy wire wheel covers and more options. Even as a 5 year old, I knew that one was better and pleaded with my parents to get that one. Undoubtedly cost more.
My older brother abused that 200 relentlessly, to the point of needing a rebuild at 26,000 miles. We sold it in ’87 with about 80,000 on the car.
One thing I remember, when it was new it could actually lay a small patch if you punched it.
I hated the clattery crummy sound it made as it aged, especially after the exhaust manifold cracked (another common problem). Of course, it was fixed, but still…..
These sixes were a false economy, having only about a 3 MPG advantage over a 289.
And with the six, you got a flimsy chassis, with weak wheel bearings, little brakes,
spindly little 4 lug wheels and a fragile integral carrier rear, instead of the much stronger 8 inch, or 9 inch with the 289 HiPo.
Although ours had the C4 auto, the 3-speed manual trans that came with the six before ’67 was a non-syncro 1st breakage prone POS.
Converting these to a V8 properly requires changing everything but the body.
Entire front suspension, real axle, springs, radiator, trans, driveshaft, you name it, it all has to go, in favor of the stronger 5 lug components.
Because of the 4-lug config, you couldn’t even get disc brakes. Many of these in the hotter climes had AC, which resulted in a choice of standing still and staying cool, or turning it off if if you actually needed any forward motion.
Sorry, when it comes to Ford compacts, I’m solidly in the Windsor V8 camp.
My lament for the over 20 years we had the car, why oh why couldn’t have been a 289?
I have done this conversion in my 65 coupe, and as the others have said, you need to change a lot in a Mustang to go from a 6 to an 8, but everything is available aftermarket these days. I would suggest not bothering to find a 289 unless you are planning to rebuild it and set it up to run on today’s low octane unleaded fuel. You can run an old 289 on unleaded for a while, but if you drive it hard, eventually you will be rebuilding the heads due to exhaust valve recession.
A good engine to get is 5.0 (302) from a wrecked late model Explorer. It already has better breathing GT40P heads on it, roller lifter cam, and you’ve got a better chance of finding one still running in a junkyard. You can bolt a carb intake manifold on that and nobody will every know it’s not a 289.
Terrific story! It is so easy to spend a lot on getting your baby road worthy again. However, with a car like yours that has been in the family for a very long time, there is that sentimental value plus, as your wife said, you know the car. Both of those trump cost in many ways.
Have fun with it and don’t let it sit! Pop the top and cruise into the sunset. And, at 20 mpg, you are doing pretty darn good!
Great story and car,much more interesting than a cheque book restoration trailer queen and I love the colour
Vintage Burgundy which was a Ford factory color in the 60s. One day I was returning from Gallup in it and decided to stop by the post office here in Tohatchi. Post Master asked; “That’s not the original color is it?” He couldn’t believe that it was – I’m definitely a big fan of color on cars.
Another fan of Vintage Burgundy, here. My two Fords of the 1967-68 era were that metallic light green (Lime Gold Metallic) – which I absolutely hated then. I have softened to the light green in later years, but your burgundy would have been near the top of my list.
Did Ford and Mercury have different names for the same colour like Mopar with Moulin Rouge/Panther Pink? It looks a lot like Black Cherry as seen on the 67/68 Cougars a long time favourite colour and car.
Yes: I was disappointed to find out that our blue ’67 Mustang was Lime Gold inside and out originally. It was by far the most popular color for the ’67 Mustang and it’s one green I do not like.
Ours is a rust-bucket anyway & will donate its interior & misc. bits to the “other” ’67 Mustang I bought off CL. It’s “Springtime Yellow”, another color I cannot stand.
Vintage Burgundy is a beautiful color & I was thinking about changing the yellow car to that…but then I saw Dark Moss Green! This is what I want ours to look like:
Dan, I was wondering how long it would take for your dad to gift you the Mustang. Congratulations!
At least you seem to be doing this right. Much the same I did with my avatar so many, many years ago – and would do so again if I had the chance.
Wifey’s 1970 Mustang had that two-piece plastic window, which wasn’t bad, but the little hinge was the first thing to go on those. Hers had the floor-rot issue as well. Fix that ASAP!
I hope you really enjoy your new “toy”! Perhaps someday I’ll be able to do something similar.
Well this window is just a sheet of flexible plastic like the windows in an old CJ soft top. Rear floors are soft, right now I’m just keeping people out of the back seat. My mechanic commented that he feels the car is a “solid little project car” and his father (who owns the shop) said; “Now that I’m not looking for projects anymore all these great cars keep coming through my shop.”
BTW this father & son team is 70 and 50 years old. Their shop would be worthy of a CC of its own with cars from all eras from the 50s to the present sitting around there.
re the rear side window:
Try popping off the crank ( Don’t know either an allen screw or the clip type)
and relocate it so that the crank is pointing straight to 6 o’clock when the window is all the way up-trick I learned from a veteran trimmer.
IIRC, these Fords used an allen screw covered by a little thin aluminum disk that stuck on using grease or some kind of rubber cement.
Good job on the story, and the car, Dan. I think your whole approach to the restoration,is the way to go. So you might of been a little over budget,with the tune up and the exhaust,and all. It had to be done to get the car roadworthy.
From what I can see the Mustang looks great. Your Dad did the right thing keeping it out of Ohio winters. Now its living in New Mexico, so no need to park it for 5 months. just keep working away at it, as your budget and time permits..
Above all just enjoy it.
+1!
Looks great, congratulations on getting your Dads Stang Take care of the bodywork and the cosmetics they are Mustang only. Fortunately the mechanicals are under thousands of Falcons and are available anywhere.
You mean the mechanicals for the Falcon are available everywhere since they are used in the Mustang too. A whole lot more of the Mustangs survived than Falcons did in the US and in many years the Mustang outsold the Falcon. As far as the body and cosmetics they are available everywhere. If you want you can build a brand new Mustang as virtually every part other than the engine block, and trans case is available new. If you want a fastback you can actually pickup a complete 100% new body just apply the serial number plate from the “donor”. A Falcon on the other hand good luck finding body, trim and interior parts for.
Yes the Mustang and the Camaro are two American classics that you can simply order every single part for and construct a new car from scratch if you had to. The car reveals its “Falcon-ness” in its small size and lightweight. The car looks lost in modern parking spaces (the pic next to a Colorado crew cab is a good example) and the only reason it is easy to handle even with manual steering and manual drum brakes is its less than 3000 lb curb weight. Heck the engine on its own is around 500 lbs which is pretty light weight.
A modern Mustang is a true Clydesdale next to this old timer.
Nice story Dan, I remember this car from the last time you wrote about it, looking forward to periodic updates! And bonus points for the “Naughty by Nature” reference, not something I ever thought I’d be saying on the Curbside Classic site…
I wondered if anybody would catch it… 🙂
Great story Dan! I knew it would just be a matter of time before you would acquire this car. Enjoy it!
Now, I wonder how long before we hear of you tooling around in a nice GM barge on the days the Mustang is taking a break…
Congratulations, Dan, great looking car, and I sincerely hope your Mustang ownership experience is happier than mine was.
Circa 1980 I briefly owned a badly rusted ’68 convertible, 289 auto, Navy with a black top and maroon interior. Like my ’71 Cougar convertible (which was in the boneyard by ’77), it was from the Rusty Ford Years. The body wasn’t actually all that bad, but the rot had eaten right through not just the floors but the frame itself.
Over the summer I sanded, painted, and plated it. But within two months of getting it on the road again, it was totaled. I was doing about 45 mph on a slightly wet two-lane when a teenager in a mid-70s Olds stupidly pulled out in front of me. In the few seconds before I would T-bone him, I wrenched the wheel to the right and slammed on the anti-anti-lock brakes. I slid sideways for a bit, and my rear end almost cleared his. Almost, but not quite: our rear-quarters connected before I spun to a stop. Although the impact did not feel too rough to me (even in a car with no seatbelts!), it was enough to twist the weakened chassis to where the car was pronounced unsaveable.
To add insult to injury, I had not had the Mustang appraised and insured for its new value, but just insured as a regular car of its age. So, when my insurance company wrote it off, to them it was just “Ford before 1970: $350.” I recall I managed to bargain them up to $500, but it was still obviously a big loss of money — as well as loss of a fine machine.
Congrats Dan! Put me in the camp of liking that color also.
That engine compartment is looking good. Yes, you did go overboard on the ignition, but that won’t hurt performance for now, and will support a lot of horsepower later. Aluminum heads and intake manifold is a great way to make a lot of power from these little small blocks when budget allows
As a classic Mustang guy, I can tell you that rust hides everywhere in these cars. So here’s hoping that it’s only in the floorboards. My “rust free” 65 coupe only needed a rear section of the floor plan replaced – so I thought. Then I found more in the rear torque box, then under the upper A arms on the front frame rails, then a little under the battery tray, then a little in the cowl, then a little at the bottom of both front shock towers. I’m mentioning this to give you an idea where to look. Also check where the rear spring shackles bolt to the rear frame rails, and front frame rails. The good news is that if you find rust in any of those areas, you can buy replacement sections or patch sections of just about anything from Mustangs unlimited online.
I also agree with the little at a time approach for a driver. Pick one project, and finish it.
Yes I’ve always thought that my father was overwhelmed looking at things as a whole not things one piece at a time. I’ve always been a patient man in that regard.
In some ways the upgrades he did were almost “accidental” and a good example would be the Magnum 500 wheels that it is wearing now. It had Cragar SS mags for many years but my father started to think that maybe the rough ride and cowl shake were being caused by the ancient bias ply tires. So he switched to some “universal” mag wheels and Cooper Cobra tires a neighbor was selling. They helped a little but not as much as he had hoped. The Cobras were on the car for about 5 years before my mother’s cousin – true motor head with his baby being a 68 Olds 442 – informed my father that he new a guy with a set of 4 Magnum 500 wheels with Mustang center caps. This cousin then helped my Dad find 4 Goodyear GT tires in the rare 14 rim size to match the wheels.
The upshot? Minus the cousin the car would still be wearing some generic rims and some nearly worn out (simply based on age) tires. I plan on being much more methodical than he was. 😉
Reading, in the background.
I was going to launch a critical post, about why in Gawd’s Green Earth you’d move a tinworm patient, ANY tinworm sufferer…from Ohoho to the Dry Southwest.
And then I thought about it. Opportunity is part of the game. And knowing the item another, very-big piece of the puzzle.
As long as the whole thing hasn’t broken apart…you’re probably ahead. It won’t have the Eternal Life that Southwestern cars have; but it’s there; it’s NOW; and it’ll hold together at least as long as your interest.
Go with the gods; enjoy the open roads.
It’s a little bit like tuberculosis. Dry climate slows down the progression of the disease, perhaps enough for a good doctor to get ahead of it.
(God I’ve been watching too many westerns…)
It’s nice to see you getting the car, keeping it in the family. It’s my favorite year Mustang and being a convertible & 289 car makes it even nicer. I’ll admit I miss the loss of “blue” under the hood but the open element does probably sound better when your foot’s in it.
I’ve still got the air cleaner with its “289” sticker on it and I’ll be sending it along to my Dad with one of the two Ohio “Historical Vehicle” plates that were on the vehicle.
I’ve not only got an NM registration now I had to put “Mr. Horsepower” on the front because as a cigar aficionado he’s kind of become a personal mascot of mine.
Sweet, very very sweet.
Great to hear you got the Mustang Dan, looks like you’re off to a good start. Mom had a ’68 hardtop in Diamond Blue that she loved, but the Midwestern winters Swiss cheesed the floors and she sold it to a guy who saw the ad in the paper. She got Dad’s ’74 Capri V6 as a replacement.
Above all, enjoy!