Progress Thread 1978 Mustang II Rallye Overhaul (302, C4, T-Tops)

balaseca29 · Dec 12, 2024

Hey everyone!

I'm new around here. Looking for Mustang II info, as I'm looking to pick up at least one (maybe two) Mustang IIs in the next week or so. The forum has already been an absolute treasure trove of info, and I look forward to picking peoples brains, and sharing what happens with the car(s).

Car info (Possible)
76 Cobra II with V6 and 4spd
78 T-Tops, 302 and auto trans (I think C4)

LILCBRA · Dec 12, 2024

Welcome to !

Join us in the II section and post up - and pics are ALWAYS a good thing!

General karthief · Dec 12, 2024

Well, I realize there is no cure for the ll affliction, so we have a special place for ll enthusiasts here;

1974 - 1978 Mustang II Talk & Tech

Discussion on the Mustang II, built by Ford from 1974 to 1978.

stangnet.com

Join at your own risk,

LILCBRA · Dec 12, 2024

General karthief said:
Well, I realize there is no cure for the ll affliction, so we have a special place for ll enthusiasts here;

1974 - 1978 Mustang II Talk & Tech

Discussion on the Mustang II, built by Ford from 1974 to 1978.

stangnet.com

Join at your own risk,

You've gotta imagine this in Christopher Walken's voice....

I've got a fever, and the only cure is more stang IIs!

balaseca29 · Dec 12, 2024

Once I pick them up, I'll be posting lots. Both are projects to be sure, but soon to be retired military, and so I'll have the time.

Noobz347 · Dec 12, 2024

balaseca29 said:
soon to be retired military, and so I'll have the time.

Yeah. Lots of us thought that too. Best wishes with that plan.

balaseca29 · Dec 12, 2024

Noobz347 said:
Yeah. Lots of us thought that too. Best wishes with that plan.

Im certain I'll be working as well, but no more 5am PT and work stops at 4 (have the job lined up already)

LILCBRA · Dec 12, 2024

I guess it depends on his rank and what kind of preparation he's done to lead up to it. My brother retired after a little over 20 years as an E9 (I believe?), but spent a lot of time and money buying up properties to supplement his income. His wife works part time, but from what I understand she doesn't bring much home. As far as I know, he has no plans to re-enter the workforce - but he's only 51, so time will tell....

balaseca29 · Dec 13, 2024

LILCBRA said:
I guess it depends on his rank and what kind of preparation he's done to lead up to it. My brother retired after a little over 20 years as an E9 (I believe?), but spent a lot of time and money buying up properties to supplement his income. His wife works part time, but from what I understand she doesn't bring much home. As far as I know, he has no plans to re-enter the workforce - but he's only 51, so time will tell....

Your brother didn't retire out of Fort Stewart, did he? Sounds like a friend of mine...

My career field is pretty specialized, so the contract jobs pay well

stormsedge · Dec 13, 2024

Welcome Aboard!

LILCBRA · Dec 13, 2024

balaseca29 said:
Your brother didn't retire out of Fort Stewart, did he? Sounds like a friend of mine...

My career field is pretty specialized, so the contract jobs pay well

No, he was an admin clerk of some sort attached to a reserve unit in Iowa.

balaseca29 · Dec 14, 2024

Out of curiosity, is there anything specific I should be on the lookout for on either of these cars? Neither runs (not an issue) and the V6 has no belts and sadly no radiator (I have a feeling that's gonna sting the wallet from what I've seen). Both are definitely projects but just want to know if there are any Mustang II specific gotchas that I should keep an eye out for.

balaseca29 · Dec 14, 2024

General karthief · Dec 14, 2024

Looks like the 'gotchas' already 'gotcha'.........twice

LILCBRA · Dec 14, 2024

I can't think of anything II specific off the top of my head, just the normal stuff you'd look for when looking at a 40+ year old project car. You'll just have to be aware of what's available and what's not, and since these are the original red-headed step child of the Mustang line, some parts are made from unobtainium.

balaseca29 · Dec 15, 2024

LILCBRA said:
I can't think of anything II specific off the top of my head, just the normal stuff you'd look for when looking at a 40+ year old project car. You'll just have to be aware of what's available and what's not, and since these are the original red-headed step child of the Mustang line, some parts are made from unobtainium.

I've noticed some of that.

Both cars are in fairly decent shape. Only real gotcha so far is a drivers side door card. Its either a pair of repros or rolling the dice. Probably will go with the repros and just replace both. Theres a few rust holes to patch, but nothing thats out of my scope of knowledge, or at least my willingness to try. The little 2.8 is going to be a chore. Someone left the plugs out for a bit, so she's locked up. However, if I cant get her free enough to send off to the machine shop for a refresh, I've found a 302 parts car (notchback sadly) that I'll just rob the motor and mounts from.

balaseca29 · Dec 15, 2024

General karthief said:
Looks like the 'gotchas' already 'gotcha'.........twice

You're not wrong, but I bought them to have something to work on that's not my daily. The white one with the 302 isn't too far from running already with some basic maintenance like a trans fluid and filter change and some basics for the motor.

LILCBRA · Dec 15, 2024

balaseca29 said:
I've noticed some of that.

Both cars are in fairly decent shape. Only real gotcha so far is a drivers side door card. Its either a pair of repros or rolling the dice. Probably will go with the repros and just replace both. Theres a few rust holes to patch, but nothing thats out of my scope of knowledge, or at least my willingness to try. The little 2.8 is going to be a chore. Someone left the plugs out for a bit, so she's locked up. However, if I cant get her free enough to send off to the machine shop for a refresh, I've found a 302 parts car (notchback sadly) that I'll just rob the motor and mounts from.

I dunno if I'd say "sadly" about the coupe....

The first 2 I owned were a Ghia and a coupe. I had plans for the coupe but my first wife wrapped it around a tree a week after we were married. Yeah - we didn't last long. But here are a couple of my favorites.

LILCBRA said:
No one's shared anything here for a while, but here's a car at a classic dealer in Pennsylvania - asking $20k. (Not gonna lie, I really like it!)

https://www.classicautomall.com/vehicles/6178/1976-ford-mustang-ii-coupe

mikeferl said:
Here is a recent pic of my '78...

I wouldn't mind having another, but it's not in the cards for a long while if I ever get one....

I'd suggest just picking the coupe up too if you've got the space to store it. You never know if there's something on that car that you may want to snag for the other. One thing I can think of would be the tach adapter if you're looking to keep the stock gauges.

Noobz347 · Dec 15, 2024

This one here, I would light sand an clear coat.

General karthief · Dec 15, 2024

Noobz347 said:
This one here, I would light sand an clear coat.

Hell, that'll buff out! You kidding me?

Progress Thread 1978 Mustang II Rallye Overhaul (302, C4, T-Tops)

Active Member

I wish I didn't have all of these balls in the air

wonder how much it would cost to ship you a pair

I wish I didn't have all of these balls in the air

Active Member

Stangnet Facilities Maint Tech... Er... Janitor

Active Member

I wish I didn't have all of these balls in the air

Active Member

I wish I didn't have all of these balls in the air

Active Member

Active Member

wonder how much it would cost to ship you a pair

I wish I didn't have all of these balls in the air

Active Member

Active Member

I wish I didn't have all of these balls in the air

Stangnet Facilities Maint Tech... Er... Janitor

wonder how much it would cost to ship you a pair

Similar threads

Privacy & Transparency

Privacy & Transparency