Crane's 1968 Mustang Restomod

Hey folks, I'm back at it. Have not been here in a looooong while. I have been working on a Baja racer and completely rebuild my Jeep (twice) since September. Don't ask.

Anyways, I pulled the i6 last night, and got a 302 in a bunch of pieces all over the shop. Had a couple questions:

Anyone recommend a good master rebuild kit for my mid 70's 302? I am all about extra power here and there. A decent cam is definitely in the recipe, as well as MSD. I would like to get at least 300hp, but 350 would be even better.

Also, I need motor mounts and a bell housing for a C4. Anyone know what models I can pull this off of in a junk yard? Not too many Mustangs in junkyards these days, any other models that would work like a truck or something?

Will try to get pics up ASAP.

Hi everyone! It has been a loooong time since my last post. Mostly this car has sat for the last 4 years, and I have not really done much to it. I did, however, work on it before getting too busy for it, so I thought I would get you caught up on the progress.

To answer the question: I do not know if it was a gold nugget special or not. I am looking at the title right now, and do not see anything that indicated it was. I am going to look in the door jam tomorrow to be sure. Here is some info I found online:

The DSO 74-1111 was a special order code for the Seattle Sales District to create a run of Sunlit Gold Mustangs. They would be built in Sunlit Gold denoted by the "Y" code on the door data plate. Each coupe built was packaged with BLACK VINYL TOP, BLACK HOOD PANELS, BLACK STRIPE, WHITEWALL TIRES AND SIMULATED WIRE STYLE WHEEL COVERS.

Click to expand...

Anyways, we will see. If it IS a GNS, I would have a hard time painting it a different color. If not, I will most likely go a new direction.

Just to catch you up since my last post....most of this happened years ago, but for continuities sake, here it is.

Here is what she looked like before teardown. This is at the Eagle Christian car show in Boise, ID in 2008. This is the best it has ever looked since I have owned it. This is after all the polishing/buffing/cleaning etc, but before I started tear-down. On my way to the show I actually backed into my boss's brand new Ford F250 (still had stickers in the window!) and crunched the rear a bit. Not bad, but the part will need to be replaced.





Now teardown starts. The first thing is to remove the vinyl top. It is a wash right now if I install it again. It kinda has grown on me, but we will see.

Installed the new diff and tires/rims along with the springs. The new stance is much better.





Then further tear-down:







This pretty much gets you caught up till about noon today. I will post soon about my plans.

Ok, that should pretty much get you caught up on what the history of the car is (with me) and what I have done so far. Now I just wanted to say a few words about my plans with it.

After seeing a '65 at a car shows with Heidts suspension I was hooked, and got that kick-in-the-pants motivation to get going on this project again. Plus my HOA is not liking the car in the driveway, so it is time to move it inside and giver her some love again.

Originally I was planning a 331 stroker, because I really wanted to do something different then what everyone else was running, and the concept seemed fun to me.

Then I found a local 351C that runs for $400, and I could not resist. I really want to run the 351C for various reasons. Most of it has to do with good memories working on one with my dad when I was a kid. He really liked the engine, and built a very powerful Cobra Jet. It was a power house, and as much as I wanted it (might have even killed for it) he wouldn't give it to me. Anyways, right or wrong, the idea of a 351 Cleveland has always been a muscle car staple, at least in my mind. Some people do not like them, and thats fine. I just see them as a very good breathing engine, with a strong lower end.

After looking into the different suspensions systems, I HAD settled on TCI since they seemed to have the most rounded and quality kit out there. Plus the way they install appeals to me...except there was a problem. Their IFS kit is NOT compatible with the 351. I actually found this out this morning when I called with my debit card # to order the parts. Back to square 1. After looking at different kits I found RC Motorsports has a kit made just for the 351C. They were in the running from the very beginning as far as IFS kits go, so it looks like I will be switching to them at the last minute. I have not called in to place the order yet, but it's looking imminent.

Here is a video that I found early on in my looking featuring the RC kit.

Episode 7 Season 2 Mustang II suspension in a '66-'69 Fairlane Autorestomod.flv - YouTube

I will need a custom oil pan, which they sell for $360. Total price will be $3200 give or take, but that is supposed to include everything except the power brake booster. This includes power rack too.

So.....thats the plan. Money is starting to be spent on this. I'm excited, and look forward to sharing my progress with you.

No little kid in the history of the world has been as excited as I am right now!

Santa came two months early in a big brown truck! Here are his gifts! My buddy who has a restoration business picked up the car today, and took it to the sandblasters. For $100 they made the engine bay very paint free. Going in tomorrow to work on it.

The fun continues!

Moving along now. I had the engine bay sand-blasted. This will make it easier to plasma-cut out all the old stuff, give us a clean surface to weld to, and make paint prep a lot easier for the engine bay.



Also found out some exciting news. At is turns out, this Mustang is a special edition. Thanks to the folks who suggested it might be. After a little digging, it turns out it is indeed a Gold Nugget Special. Anyways, that kinda changes a few things. The vinyl top will definitely go back on now (which I do not mind, now. It has grown on me.)

Anyways, here is the proof. Looks pretty conclusive.



It would be a shame to paint it another color and remove the top at this point. There were only 480 made, and all were sold in the Seattle/Oregon area.

More progress today! We got the shock towers out, and started to remove the little brackets and misc mounts that need to go. It didn't take too long with the plasma. While my buddy Richard worked on the frame, I cleaned the engine and started prepping it for paint. We should be ready to install the cross member by Thursday. Then comes painting the engine bay!

Alex

What a day it has been! We have been hard at work on it all day, and it has payed off.

Richard finished cleaning off the frame rails, and we got the crossmember tacked into place.





After verifying everything was correct, we welded it in. Richards welds look really good- although not as good as the R&C welds- those are phenomenal.







After the crossmemember was installed, we installed the covers to fill in the hole from the shock towers. My approach here is a bit different then the way some others have done it.

I cannot afford a concours restoration, and my Mustang is made to be driven. Also, the amount of money being sunk into the R&C kit is significant for my budget. It's also something that will be one of the cars highlights for me, and something I will likely want to show off to others when showing my car. Anyways, I do not mind folks being able to see where the shock towers were removed. Not that I want it to look hacked or sloppy, but welds showing is not an issue for me. Anyways, Richard has the sheet metal experience, and he welded it up nicely for me while I continued working on the engine.





Meanwhile I worked on spiffying up the 351C. I am not doing a full rebuild, but am giving it new paint, new outside seals, and overall a very good cleaning. I do not see the need to completely rebuild it now, as the guy who sold it to me told me it runs strong.

I cleaned up the intake manifold. A sand blaster restored it to glory.





Finished cleaning the engine



And paint. The valve covers and oil pan are being replaced, so they did not get painted.



Last order of business for the day was to primer the engine bay. As it turned out, our luck was rather bad. The weather was beautiful all day long, and from the time we pushed the car outside, mixed the paint, and started spraying, it turned nasty and poured rain. So we threw away the mix, pushed the car back inside, blew the water off, and what do you know? Sunny again.





Despite our bad luck with the weather, all in all it was very productive day.

Yes, the TCI kit does have a nicer cover plate. This one works, though.

Keeps on going. Here is today's progress:



Just for fun.... here is was before:



Oh, and if anyone knows what this is supposed to be, it would be appreciated. It was in the bottom of my Canton oil pan.



Also is there anywhere I can get a list of the bolt sizes for my intake manifold, water pump, etc? Half of the bolts that were on the engine were the wrong size with washers to fill the space, half painted blue....just crappy in general. I though it might be worth it just to replace them. Thoughts on where I can get a list?

Good news and bad news....

First the good! We got the A arms, spindles, and brakes set up today. It went together very smoothly without issue. I have to say I am very happy with the kit.



Now the bad news: When installing the new pickup tube for the oil pump, I needed to remove a main bolt to replace it with a main bolt with a stud, to secure the pickup tube in place. Since I had to take the main bolt out, I decided it would be just as easy to remove the entire cap and inspect the bearing.

Wish I would have done this sooner.

Here is what I found:



Too bad. Yesterday I just installed the entire top end! Ugh. Oh well. Time to tear it completely down. Actually, I am seeing this as opportunity: PERFORMANCE UPGRADE!

So now the task is to find out how to get a bit more juice out of the motor. Not sure what the plan is yet. I already have an Edelbrock intake and carb with my 2V heads, so I think I might stick with that. Perhaps a cam?

Tell me, what would you do if you wanted a good 2V 351C?

Alex

Brought it back home today! Looks great! Richard installed the sway bar, spindles, disc brakes, and calipers and put the wheels on. The alignment is visibly off, but that can wait. Next step is to get the engine ready. Unfortunately it looks like I need a full rebuild at this point.... Bummer. Still, this is an opportunity to add a few more ponies, freshen it up, and prolong the life of the engine. This way I know it is done right.

Here is the engine all pretty and painted, before I found out it needed a rebuild. Guess I should have checked sooner! This is what the engine looked like before I found out...



Here she is being loaded on the trailer:



And some more of the new suspension:





Stay tuned! It is about to get MORE interesting!