Progress Thread 1963 Falcor GT?

I have been working on it all along. Most every day since a year and a half ago. When I had shoulder surgery it did slow me down allot but at least tried to do 1 thing/day. Not every mind ya but the better part of it for sure.



I started pretty much with the brakes, cuz even if it did run it had to stop. All the while trying to figure out it's main running issue. So back and forth from one item to another based on parts and logical order. At least, my own personal logic, which is well defined by the slogan, "method to the Madness"!




I had to make my own exhaust for it. If I was gonna keep the sidepipes it ALL had to be re-done. And specifically tucked in under the rockers so I don't or my wife, burn our legs on hot pipes again! As it is I got a big hot pipe bite on my arm now!




I need to sort my pics better and if you would tell me how are the pics preferred? In a gallery and linked in the text or with the pics inserted to the page? Are they too big? Take too long to load? I can squish'em if needed without them loosing too much quality. Please let me know how it works for you and I'll make adjustments

Thanks
"Mad Man" Mike

I spent allot of time working on the trunk. Cut out the rot and bad patches from PO. Welded in new metal fixed some dents. If I had to put in a new gas tank the trunk had to be done.


Patch to be weld in. PO had like a 1/8" piece of steel caulked over it and tek screwed onto the floor. Functional but.... I decided the patch here was the better way to go. Though I have a nice piece of steel for elsewhere.



Lots of grinding dents and filler



This section is toast! Shotgunned with rust. I welded the best I could. It's solid now, matter of fact I hung the fuel pump from it. But in the future it will be replaced proper.



All metal! And a little filler.



All pretty in primer.



New gas tank.



Painted with Rustoleum Satin Black.



Now with new parts and old parts cleaned it's time to go the other way and install everything.

Check out this Stainless Steel Ford Gas Pickup I came across. I read or seen it somewhere, if I remembered from where I would give the proper credit, but....

So it is from a '68 Mustang (if I remember right) and comes with 2 ports, an inlet and a outlet. Why? I don't know but it does and that's great for me or anyone else with a fuel injected engine and a ford gas tank, of which I believe there are quite a few different models with which not only have the same tank, but even more use the same pickup! So there are many this will work good for. Plus the one I found was stainless steel! So I have a feed, AND return line without cutting the tank somehow or improperly using the vent for a return. Not only did it fit well and work for my situation BUT, it resolved the GAS SMELL issue by allowing me to connect properly.















In this pic you can see the backside of the pickup and the little rubber ... uh valve? reed? nozzle? I don't know what to call it but it only lets the fuel come in not out. Though they call it a return line on the box I am not sure if that rubber piece will hold up with a constant flow from an electric fuel pump. Gotta say I've held some pretty chincy feeling pickups b4 and this does not feel that way. Has good weight and feel to it.

If and when, I remember or come across the article I learned about this pickup in I will add it to this post.

Now with the lil' HO running fairly good I can do other jobs on the car without fear I may be making a dead car ...deader? Deader er? Either way it's good to be over that hump. Have finished up a bit more wiring, just have a few to go plus the speakers, seats, windows and the gauge cluster needs blinker indicators wired up. Beyond small things I plan to slow up on it a little, at least the size and scope of the jobs I do on it. Then winter will bring some bigger jobs and lots of welding! Like things that make it structurally sound, floors and sub-frames are necessary though a 6 point rollcage would be nice. I wouldn't be putting it in for safety as much as I think the car would benefit from the rigidity it would provide. At least I would feel better knowing I could feed er the beans without breakin er in half!

As of this point I am going back and re-reading up on the A9L computer and what makes it tick. As good as the car runs I think something is ... off. Sometimes it will pop through the intake while cold. I have gone by the list so looking for a issue maybe with a list item itself. Even with spout removed and timing at 10. At first startup I used 12. It popped a little also at idle. Why I went to 10. When in closed loop I don't think it does. (see I been readin!) Won't start up and directly idle. Have to feather the gas a little then it will try and sometimes idle sometimes not. After it is warm it sits and idles nicely. I thought I had gotten rid of the gas smell in the exhaust but it is very rich when cold. Another thing to point out is the temp never goes above 140f. And it has a hard time gettin there. At least it takes a long time sittin to get hot. BIG aluminum radiator too. But thats a non issue. When it does get too 140 well over 140 towards 150 then you can see on the gauge it opens and drops to 140. What I read in the manual is it needs to be around 180.

I am curious if the car needs a 180 thermostat to get things heated up proper to burn out the exhaust gas better causing less smell. I would put it back at 12 degrees but I think if it won't run right at 10 it wont run right .. where ever. I also am curious if there is a non stock cam hiding in there! May explain alot! Anyway I will read and keep pluggin onward till I have it ALL the way I expect it should be.

OK so am gonna cut this off here then. I know readin and lookin at pictures is two different things so...here's a bunch of pictures!

Here's the bracket I made to lower the fuel pump more in line with the bottom of the tank. I used large U bolts to secure the pump and filter. I measured the fuel pump bolts to include rubber hose to help quiet the pump. As compared to before when the pump was hard clamped to the underside of the trunk floor with punchstrap, it is MUCH improved sound wise!













Here you can see how the pipes are connected. Before they were a 4 into 1 chrome collector pipe with 3 dummy holes and 1 useable 2". I did not like how the dummy tubes lookes from inside the front wheelwell so I came up with a way that would work and I could do myself. I used a flex coupling on both sides because the sidepipes are hard mounted to the rockers and would crack open in short time.


We acquired a new shop dog. She needed a secure home and some love and has improved greatly from the mess she was. Seems she has some man issues too.



The computer is in the box. It was a ugly box. A broken box. So I pimped it out and made it cool! In the future I will be stripping the wiring harness and moving the A9L inside the car

I got a model for this pic! Thats Duke. The Duke. Duke Von Wolfenstein is his full name. His Dad was Jake. Big Jake. Von Wolfenstein. His Mom was Meg. Von Wolfenstein. Her married name of course. They are both gone now.


I took apart the steering wheel and painted it. Now it's TOO fancy! Was really rough. Don't match the car but it looks good!



Heres my other car.

I got a 180 as Mr Kelley and the article on eek I read referred to as the best all round temperature. Haven't done a cold start yet beyond running to get the air out and annie freeze topped off again.

I have noticed the electric fans come on at around 140. I am not sure if this is a good temp for that. The sensor is in the rad fins near the water inlet so when hot water is let loose by the thermostat. I think it will be ok, but any thoughts on that's would be appreciated.

I did notice this : the car always ran at 140 before swapping thermos, so now it runs 130 !!!! The old thermostat has two sets of numbers in double digits and a plain 190. The new thermostat has no other numbers besides specifically, 180 degrees. With that little o by 180 however you make that. So it is clearly maked 180 degrees, and the old has just 190 stamped on it, so by the powers of brilliant deduction I declare it is 190 degrees AND the gauge . . . sux!

So . . .what does this mean thinking it had a 140, and raising it to 180 to bring it UP to proper temperature, but instead LOWERING the temp! I am not sure but, the computer is waiting to see 180 then it switches from open loop, to closed loop. Won't it GET to closed faster then? Thinking being that the water is circulating sooner, warming the engine compleater sooner (peed off spellchek with that one!) , than having to take the time to get to 190.

Anyway, it's raining here today. It don't look like clear skys till tuesday. So I will report how cold start goes asap.

So on the subject of cooling, I am wondering what the effect is when you block the throttle body spacer coolant from getting to it. Will it start harder cold? Or does it lower the incoming air temp compressing the fuel a little more =ing more horsepuppys? Or is it a negligible amount, keep the cold start warmth, specially because I live in Michigan.

I know I dump allot when I do it, but I promise I WILL give up some more pics! haha thanks

I installed the 180 thermostat and ran it for a while on tues. It starts up good but wont keep running it needs to have the pedal featherd for about a minute then it will surge a bit as it warms and when it goes to closed loop it idles just fine. Much better than previous times. I t doesnt warm any faster, it does seem like it takes a while to even get warmed up. Of course standin there staring at it perhaps makes it seem to take a long time.

The temps got up to 120 then the thermostat opened and the electric fans shortly afterwards. Yep, thats 120. I tried to verify the heat with a laser thermometer but it was all wonky itself, good reason to go to HF I guess. I have an old mechanical type temp gauge, with the sensor and gauge all connected together, will take out the dolphin gauge in the cluster and use that. Looks like it will go in the old sensor place on the front drivers side manifold replacing the digital one. The wire for the old gauge comes out of the engine harness so I expect its the same spot a stock mustang uses. What I dont know is if the disconnected wire will cause an issue for the computer. I dont think its required but if someone knows different please say so. I will look more into it before I remove it.

Beyond that things seem to be headed the right direction. I need to buy some 3 inch elbows to bring the incoming air in from under the fender well. I will build a box where the battery used to be and bring in air from the wheel well. I am pretty sure that solidifying the air inlet it will idle even better. Right now I have a cone filter taped to a piece of dryer vent taped to the mass. I was surprised at how just the slightest movement in my temporary air tube made the engine speed change. There are no mechanical fans but even the air coming out the alternator can change the idle.

I also think the fuel pump could be weak. I have never messed with one and when run without an outlet line it only pushed out a half to maybe 1 inch stream. I know psi and gph are two different things but it really seemed like there shoulda been more. I have a oil filled fuel pressure gauge at the schrader on the rail and it fluctuates with surge. I am aware these cheap gauges dont work well, I dont count on the psi number to be accurate but it does show the pressure change. I am wondering, if when the car is idling in open loop, it relies on the idle screw, fuel pump and regulator to manage a smooth idle, if a weak regulator or pump could cause the remaining surge in open loop idle and needing to feather the pedal at cold start. Any thoughts here would be appreaciated.

So whats next? I have been cleaning the inside of the car, scraping old sound deadner, washing out remaining goo with mineral spirits in order to paint the inner roof and panels. I have started to make door cards have the front kick panels and door cards done. Small amount of wiring left to go. These are the remaining tasks before winter sets and I move toward the bigger jobs, like floors and subframe connectors.

I owe you some pics so they will be next.

Yeah thats there. But I have seen where some remove that tube and change out the thermostat housing. What do they do with that sensor then?

Yeah I wasn't gonna remove it just curious what they do with that sensor. Would have to move it somewhere i imagine bcuz the computer NEEDS it. I've seen where they remove the tube and add those big ugly rubber hoses for the heater. No Thanks....BUT..someone bent the very end of mine so it could make the turn to the heater beings the engine is a wee bit tight at the firewall. So I have my eye out for a better one. No biggie either way. More important parts to fix.

and......HERE'S SOME PICS!!



Box of clips for interior parts. These are a Chrysler item and ford used them in some older cars too.






1/4" hole seems just right. I even went to H/F and bought the CORRECT tool for removing interior panels instead of ripping the off with screw drivers and pry bars like in the ol' days!






Am in the process now of cleaning the rear interior, tar, sound deadner and whatnot then can make the rear cards. Then squirrel them away till either the floors are done or I get some upholstery to go on them.