Getting the Mustang on the road:

03-26-2007: Before we began the restoration or were approached with the Highland Daytona Racing / Max-G Chassis Systems offer (read below), I had been working to try and get this thing on the road and actually be dependable.

First, I started to look at things thinking I was going to get it on the road for a while before the restoration. The man I bought the car from chased down the original wheels that I remember on the car and gave them to me. (Yes, they are ‘68 GT wheels, but it's a part of the car's history.) This allowed me to get rid of the deep dishes and install factory spring shackles lowering the car to a nicer stance.

I also needed to address the brakes. It has a single reservoir master cylinder, so I considered a disc brake setup. After a little research I temporarily decided to convert the thing to a '67 dual reservoir master cylinder and replaced the hard lines to the rear. I also installed new emergency brake cables since they were froze. I did a good inspection, then applied for the classic plate while turning to some of the other issues. I knew it took a while to get the plate, but was surprised when I received it in 3 days.

Next, we gave the interior a good cleaning and going over. I had to remove all interior panels and reconnect all the interior light and speaker wires. Everything was unhooked and shorting out. I also replaced every bulb since most were burned out and installed a new headlight switch since it had an intermittent problem with the dash lights. The rear seat was jammed since the release knob was broken off, which I have replaced. We found a leaking radiator core and upon removal found that the box was rotten. Eventually, we replaced every piece of the heating system, including plenum, heater core, ducting heater motor, and heater hoses. I have replaced the steering wheel and replaced the missing glove box insert. I also have new wing window latches to install.

Under the hood I found a few issues. The battery box was mounted diagonally, so we mounted it properly. Since it was an incorrect size battery, I've installed a new battery, hold-down, solenoid, and new battery cables. The Holley double pumper was leaking pretty badly so I freshened the carb with a good rebuild. I replaced the fuel line hoses and added a good inline filter while I was at it. Since the oil was old and washed down hard with gas, we changed oil and filter and added a Rislone additive to help clean out everything.

While working under the hood I wanted to replace the hoses and belt. I found out that the engine really is a '65 289 (Cast number C5AE on the block), but had a 302 damper which is different. This led me to believe that there may be 302 internals installed. The water pump inlet was on the left side and a 6 cylinder radiator was used to match up a lower hose and then squashed down to make work with two worm clamps. I remedied the situation by getting all new hoses and belts, installing a 289 water pump, a 3 core radiator correct for the car, thermostat, and water outlet.

This led to my next issue. The pulleys were different because of the 302 damper. Dave Lehr of ClassicJunkyard.com sold me some correct pulleys and alternator brackets for a 289 cheap. I couldn’t use the lower 289 pulley so I tried to use the 302 lower pulley, but it now hit the water pump pulley. I shopped around and found that an under-drive 302 pulley from Summit Racing was perfect. I had the same diameter as a 289 lower pulley and the right off set to hook up the belts correctly.

Now, I finally got to drive the car. Now came the couple issues that have stopped my work at getting it on the road and have pushed me to begin the restoration earlier.

First, the car loses oil pressure after driving approximately 10 miles, so I dropped the pan and checked out the bearings. The crank and bearings are scored pretty bad. The engine makes no noise, just loses pressure when it's warm. Also, they chopped up the Z bar pretty much to fit around the headers they used. Finally, the transmission hump has been chopped pretty badly to install the shifter they wanted to use.

So, the plan was to save up some cash and warehouse new parts, then have the body restored and brought back to pristine condition while I have Andy put together a good engine. What did I really end up doing? Read on!

The Max G Suspension development:

How did this car become the Highland Daytona / Max G Prototype suspension development car? On 10-25-2007, I recieved an email from Kevin Schappell, Dave Lehr's business partner at Classicjunkyard.com.

He stated, "Highland Daytona Racing in Allentown is looking for a '64 - '72 Mustang to prototype their Max G “Satchell Link” Rear Suspension Kit. They may possibly want to do the front kit too."

We decided that this would be a great opportunity to have a very cool, functional suspension system for carving turns and the occasional drag strip action. We could even build it to fit around a rear sump 347 engine an really be different. Keep in mind, Highland Daytona also built the "BlackBird" which was the "Smokey & the Bandit", 30th anniversary, '77 Trans Am for Year One, so we were excited.

On 11-08-2007 an employee from Highland showed up to pick up the car. He toured my garage and headed back to Allentown where fabrication started immediately the next day.

Over the next 10 months, Highland Daytona Racing / Max G suspension built an entire coil over tubular suspension suspension around the 2+2 Mustang and my rear sump engine. This car now has a custom front steer manual rack and pinion setup, 11" disc brakes, 17" wheels, and tilt steering column. I did have it out on the road and it’s handling is amazing. You definitely notice a difference from the factory suspension.

Now the car is again stripped to the shell while we are working on a sway bar and waiting for the final powder-coating for the front suspension. Once we get the body reconstructed, the chassis will be powder-coated and re-installed on the new unibody.

Want to read more? Check out the entire process with pics. Just click here for the discussion board thread.

The engine build and dyno:

The decision was made to do something really cool with the powerplant. Our goal was to put a modern and dependable engine in the car yet have it appear to be a '60s era race car engine. I really wanted to try out a set of vintage Weber carbs on this car. With the 347 stroker kit and roller valve train, this engine idles very smooth and should hold up to a lot of driving.

On the flip side, with the exception of the damper, we used all '65 externals like the timing cover and Holman/Moody valve covers to make it a "vintage" look. The heads are Brodix “stage 2” CNC ported for max flow and the engine puts out about 425 hp (with small tube headers) and 452 ft/lbs of torque. Jensen’s Engine Tech did the assembly, machining, and provided me with the Dyno time to tune it and measure the horsepower.

Want to read more? Check out the entire process with pics. Just click here for the discussion board thread.

Getting the Mustang's body restored.

Melissa and I really want the body to be as perfect as the rest of the car we have been building. We have acquired a club member, Mark Brown with a solid reputation for painting some spectacular rides. We were supposed to strat last November, but due to the cost of finishing our new barn, We have stepped into the number “two” position and are now waiting for Mike Potts’ Cuda to be painted while we save for the paint.

Currently we have decided to collect as much steel replacement parts as we can. The car has been disassembled and is now waiting for the prep work to start. So far we have used this break to organize parts and really plan the assembly. We already have the one piece floor pan that spans the entire car including trunk area. The entire engine compartment and chassis will be new. As a matter of fact, most every piece of the car may well be new. Just how much of it will be retained from the fastback we bought back in January of 2007? Stay tuned.

Want to read more? Check out the entire process with pics. Just click here for the discussion board thread.

Engine Build Discussion

Suspension Build Discussion