bkelley
11-04-2010, 12:03 PM
Figured I'd show you guys what's been taking up my time and money lately.
My dad and I have a '73 Mach 1 that has been sitting for some years now. He bought it back in the late 70s and drove it up until the mid 90s when he had to park it. It's been sitting under a cover in the back yard for some time now. Tried to keep it running but time eventually took over and it just sat. A few years back we pulled it out and got it running again but we didn't have the time or money to do the full override. Now that I'm able to put money into it myself, and can actually drive it, we are gonna pull it out again and hopefully return it to it's former glory. I've been looking for a fun car to drive for a while now but made the decision to focus my time and money on the Mach 1. It going to take some time to get it finished, but it'll definitely be worth it.
To find out the original specs, I ran the vin number and data codes through mustangdecoder.com and got these results.
http://imgur.com/nyGu9.png
Picture of the door tag.
http://imgur.com/WU4O6.jpg
What I found out is that this is a pretty rare option car. I've been told that only 1% of the '71 Machs came with manual transmissions and it's expected a manual '73 is just as rare, if not more so. My dad built the motor up by camming it, adding 10:1 pistons, Edelbrock manifold, Holley 750 double pumper carb, Hooker longtube headers and dual glass packs. I guess back when he was driving it the throw out bearings went bad and ate up the clutch. At the time he didn't have the money to fix it, so he swapped out the 4 speed for a C6 he got from a friend (he regrets it to this day). The clutch assembly is still there, so going back to a manual will be easy enough. He also replaced the 750 double pumper with a 650 single since something happened with the 750. Once we get it going, I plan on putting both a T-5 and a 750 in it.
The car has been sitting for a while, so it does need some work to just get it running again. Luckily I live in the desert so there isn't much rust on the car. Undercarriage does have some, but I'm hoping most of it will come off with the power washer. Here are a couple pictures of how it sits right now.
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs988.snc4/76192_449003488030_582683030_5462164_5109133_n.jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs897.snc4/73039_449003543030_582683030_5462166_7959182_n.jpg
It's a complete engine compartment so there isn't much to do to get it running. I just put fresh oil in and after I clean out the gas tank it should be ready to start. Once I know it'll start up, I'm gonna pull the engine out and do a complete overhaul on it. Replace all the seals, gaskets, lines, et cetera. Also going to paint the block and clean/polish the manifold and other parts.
Here is my project list so far, not necessarily in any order.
• Clean motor, replace dry-rotted lines, gaskets, et cetera, tune-up
• Clean entire underside and replace bushings
• Gut inside for cleaning
• New door hinges
• Roof is sunk in on one side, need to see what has to be done
• Replace exhaust with new Hooker longtubes and Flowmaster super 40s
• Clean and polish wheels
• 245/60R14 BFG Radial T/As all around
• Minor body work/sand down entire body/prep for paint
• Paint job
• ProMotion T5 tranny
• New carb
I am going to go with the stock paint scheme, gold glow metallic with black decals and hood stripes. I'm also going to paint the engine block Ford blue and get black engine accessories.
So, yeah, there you have it. This isn't something that is going to happen overnight, so don't expect results in a month. I will update when necessary. Thanks for reading.
My dad and I have a '73 Mach 1 that has been sitting for some years now. He bought it back in the late 70s and drove it up until the mid 90s when he had to park it. It's been sitting under a cover in the back yard for some time now. Tried to keep it running but time eventually took over and it just sat. A few years back we pulled it out and got it running again but we didn't have the time or money to do the full override. Now that I'm able to put money into it myself, and can actually drive it, we are gonna pull it out again and hopefully return it to it's former glory. I've been looking for a fun car to drive for a while now but made the decision to focus my time and money on the Mach 1. It going to take some time to get it finished, but it'll definitely be worth it.
To find out the original specs, I ran the vin number and data codes through mustangdecoder.com and got these results.
http://imgur.com/nyGu9.png
Picture of the door tag.
http://imgur.com/WU4O6.jpg
What I found out is that this is a pretty rare option car. I've been told that only 1% of the '71 Machs came with manual transmissions and it's expected a manual '73 is just as rare, if not more so. My dad built the motor up by camming it, adding 10:1 pistons, Edelbrock manifold, Holley 750 double pumper carb, Hooker longtube headers and dual glass packs. I guess back when he was driving it the throw out bearings went bad and ate up the clutch. At the time he didn't have the money to fix it, so he swapped out the 4 speed for a C6 he got from a friend (he regrets it to this day). The clutch assembly is still there, so going back to a manual will be easy enough. He also replaced the 750 double pumper with a 650 single since something happened with the 750. Once we get it going, I plan on putting both a T-5 and a 750 in it.
The car has been sitting for a while, so it does need some work to just get it running again. Luckily I live in the desert so there isn't much rust on the car. Undercarriage does have some, but I'm hoping most of it will come off with the power washer. Here are a couple pictures of how it sits right now.
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs988.snc4/76192_449003488030_582683030_5462164_5109133_n.jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs897.snc4/73039_449003543030_582683030_5462166_7959182_n.jpg
It's a complete engine compartment so there isn't much to do to get it running. I just put fresh oil in and after I clean out the gas tank it should be ready to start. Once I know it'll start up, I'm gonna pull the engine out and do a complete overhaul on it. Replace all the seals, gaskets, lines, et cetera. Also going to paint the block and clean/polish the manifold and other parts.
Here is my project list so far, not necessarily in any order.
• Clean motor, replace dry-rotted lines, gaskets, et cetera, tune-up
• Clean entire underside and replace bushings
• Gut inside for cleaning
• New door hinges
• Roof is sunk in on one side, need to see what has to be done
• Replace exhaust with new Hooker longtubes and Flowmaster super 40s
• Clean and polish wheels
• 245/60R14 BFG Radial T/As all around
• Minor body work/sand down entire body/prep for paint
• Paint job
• ProMotion T5 tranny
• New carb
I am going to go with the stock paint scheme, gold glow metallic with black decals and hood stripes. I'm also going to paint the engine block Ford blue and get black engine accessories.
So, yeah, there you have it. This isn't something that is going to happen overnight, so don't expect results in a month. I will update when necessary. Thanks for reading.