Memory Lane

[UTCobra]

Okay guys and gals, I've been a member of stangnet for about 7 years now. Old name used to be cbII, but apparently it expired during my hiatus from the site. But what happened here?

Where is all the cool II discussion we used to have? Its really gone down hill from back in the day, so I'm starting this thread and hoping its a good one.

Me: I'm a 25 yo medical Student in Houston, from West Texas.

My II History: My first car was a beat up 1975 302 Hatchback. Moms old car, but I got it when I turned 16. My dad had always been into Mustangs (currently owns 2 '68s), but I never really was a car guy until I got one (actually very sad, because I missed many a learning experience, because my dad was always working on cars. I embraced the II and feel in love, then got the bug...bad.

My second car was/is a 1978 Cobra II. I bought it before I started college. It was $2000 and came with paint and a rebuilt engine (but poorly), but no interior. My father and I spent the next 2 years rebuilding the car before I even started driving it. I was poor and have to save to buy things. Truly an experience every son should have with their father (best memories of my life, and I learned so much from him.) Entered car shows, and drove it every day. A great experience taking compliments from people and being able to tell them you did the work yourself (especially at my age.)

Now I live in Houston, and the car needs minor work that I just can't keep up with because of school and lack of cash, so I bought a Mazda Protege, and I am forced to sell the Cobra. I'll miss her, but the time has come. The '75 still sits back at home at my parents, and I hope I will eventually have time and money to do her justice, but I have a long road to travel before I get there. I hope never to be without a Mustang in my life. I love these cars, and my passion and hobby is anything Mustang, all years.

My friends know me as a "car guy" and are always asking questions and advice. They even ask me to go talk to the mechanics when they need to get there cars fixed to make sure they don't get scammed. I love that feeling, and I owe it all to my Dad and the Mustang II.

Thats my story, sorry it was so long, but I would like to know everyone elses stories about their IIs and a love affair with cars. We need to get more "talk" in here to go along with all the "tech."

 

[dmoody]

Where is all the cool II discussion we used to have? Its really gone down hill from back in the day, so I'm starting this thread and hoping its a good one.

I'm not sure exactly what has happened myself. I know there aren't many Mustang II people to start with and a lot of Mustang forums have popped up everywhere thus eroding the numbers. Perhaps the most active II forum is at mustangii.net.

My II History: My first car was a beat up 1975 302 Hatchback. Moms old car, but I got it when I turned 16. My dad had always been into Mustangs (currently owns 2 '68s), but I never really was a car guy until I got one (actually very sad, because I missed many a learning experience, because my dad was always working on cars. I embraced the II and feel in love, then got the bug...bad.

My first car was a 1978 Cobra II. My Dad was a car dealer and picked it up cheap. When I grew up it seemed like he was always working on something because we didn't have much money. The car ran good but the exterior was really rough. In fact if I bought that same car today I would part it out. My II was originally from DC but I believe the 302 had leaked oil from the rear seal its entire life because there was virtually no rust underneath it. Anyhow we fixed it up together and painted it ourselves. Later I destroyed one side of the car in an accident and have since been intermittently working on it for years. Check out www.moodster.smugmug.com to see how I'm coming on the restoration.

My friends know me as a "car guy" and are always asking questions and advice. They even ask me to go talk to the mechanics when they need to get there cars fixed to make sure they don't get scammed. I love that feeling, and I owe it all to my Dad and the Mustang II.

That is exactly me. Lots of people have come in my office describing noises and symptoms of their car problems. I develop diagnostic systems for cars and trucks so I'm one of the few guys in my company that really understands things like solenoids, ignition timing, retarder, etc. It is a fun occupation albeit technologically segregated from the systems that actually turn the wheel.

david

 

[LILCBRA]

Ahh, memories!! Well, my story began when I was around 9 or 10. My mom and dad had just gotten divorced, so my dad was coming to pick us up for the weekend. It was sometime in the winter and his car had broken down, so he borrowed a friends II to come get us. It was a red Ghia with a white top. My dad was a Chevy guy, so the thought of thoroughly beating a Ford was fine by him. Anyways, he took us to a mall parking lot, hit a mountain of pushed snow, and took it on 2 wheels like in Dukes of Hazzard. I was in the front seat, plastered against the door. That was the day I wanted a II, even though I didn't know what it was at the time. Technically my first car was my dad's 55 Chevy (he left it to me in his will-he was killed in a drunk driving accident a couple years after the II incident), the first running car I owned was a 78 with a V6 auto at 16 and I haven't looked back.

 

[a351Must2]

God, I haven't been on this site much in the last 3 years. Funny thing is I've been married for 2 of those 3 years. Kinda like I haven't really updated my website since early 2001.

I started in 90 with a '74 Mustang II V6 as my first car that I actually had to pay for myself (Free '72 Courier's don't count). While in the Navy I replaced the V6 4spd with a 302 + auto from a '72 van. Modified that while going though school in California and basically ran it into the ground from overheating it a few times too many. Still made it up to Washington with oil blowing out the valve covers though. Had some time before going overseas so I borrowed some money from a friend and replaced the 302 with a newly built 351W. After returning from overseas followed by many upgrades and learning experiences, I had a TBI 351W that was reasonably reliable and pretty quick.

By this point I was out of the Navy and working at Microsoft. I was driving an ancient Honda Prelude for work since the 351W was hard to feed for a 70 mile/day commute. Got sick of the lack of power and bought a '77 Mach 1 with 302 and 4spd. Chucked the Honda as trade for a '78 Ghia V8 parts car and started driving the Mach 1 daily. At some point in this time frame the 351W blew up it's 3rd C4 and I pulled it out and chopped up the '74. I came across a dirt cheap, butt ugly 4-cyl '78 t-top...I also saw the video of Joe Morgan's Pinto running 10.80 with a 2.3L 4-cyl. I've been around turbo fours since the late '80s and it hadn't dawned on me until then to build one for a Mustang II. I started collecting turbo T-Bird parts and at the same time the Mach 1 got a 4bbl ... it developed a rod knock soon after that.

I slapped the '78 T-Top together with a bunch of spare parts and rattle can primer. The 2.3L turbo was in and running after a month of long nights after work. The 2nd day I drove the '78 to work, I got nailed in the side by a pickup. The '78 went off to the body shop for a few months while I continued to drive the Mach 1 in all it's rod knocking glory.

After the '78 came out of the body shop I was in for a year of growing pains with the 2.3L Turbo. Another long batch of learning experiences there. The '77 Mach 1 lost it's stock drivetrain in favor of a carbureted '88 5.0 and T-5 (more learning experiences).

Sometime after driving the 2.3L turbo around for a year it was blowing oil all over the place so I pulled the engine (only to find loose valve cover bolts). I ended up pulling the fenders and front facia off and repainting under the hood. By now I had a better paying job at Boeing so I got around to putting the 351W into the '78 T-Top with a new Tremec 5 spd and 9" rear behind it.

While at Boeing I also bought the '96 Eclipse for a daily driver ... suddenly the Mustangs were obsolete. Sometime within that year, I met the woman I married and haven't really done anything more with the Mach 1 and the T-Top cars. The '78 T-Top currently sits in the driveway and gets driven whenever I have a spare $40 I feel like blowing out the exhaust pipes. The Mach 1 has been sanded down and sprayed with POR-15 plus a coat of sealer, but is still sitting waiting for some more bodywork and to be sealed again. I think it needs a power steering line too.

The big project ('78 Coupe) is in the garage still. Bodywork is done, interior is partly done, suspension and brakes are done, and the 16X7.5 wheels are on and all the clearancing is done. The engine ran a few years ago and got it to the Mustang Roundup, but is going through some major changes. Instead of the original 300hp 2.3l goal, I've gone a bit more radical with a goal of 400hp at the wheels. The list of items is getting shorter, just need Wideband A/F, Megasquirt II kit, 72lb/hr injectors, 3.5" downpipe and 3" exhaust, tanks for the dual Audi core intercooler and intercooler piping. Not totally decided on the Megasquirt though ... I have the EEC-IV tuner and 90MM Mass-Air which "might" be more reliable, just less tuneable.

 

[Steel Steeds]

Another lengthy story

Cool thread. Good to hear from you Darryl, been a long time. Did you sell the '76 coupe? It's funny how time seems to zip by, and suddenly years have passed and the project you started hasn't been touched. Here's my story:

I grew up on a ranch in Montana. I worked on the ranch and saved my money for a car, but my Dad insisted I wait until after my first year of college. That sucked, I wanted a car so bad I could taste it. I had no brand loyalty yet, so I was looking at everything. My budget was limited, but I knew I wanted something fast. I looked at Camaros, Firebirds, Chevelles, Chargers, and Mustangs. Most of those were out of my budget. I seriously considered a 280Z, but passed, same with a couple of '72 Chargers. I was getting discouraged, when a friend called and told me about a Mustang. I didn't even know what a '77 Mustang looked like, but when I went to test drive it, it was the fastest thing I'd ever been in. The next day, July 3rd, 1987, it was mine. I didn't find out until almost a year later that it was a Cobra II. The louvers were gone, the interior had ponies on the door instead of the "Cobra II" emblem (common occurrence on '77s), and it had been repainted all black with no stripes. It had the 302, 351 heads, 4bbl carb, headers, rusted out glasspacks and a C-4 auto. After only 8 days of thoroughly enjoying myself (and some brand new mufflers after blowing one of the glass packs right off the car), I cut in front of a pick-up truck and wiped out most of the passenger side. Most shops told me it was totalled, but I wouldn't accept that. It took almost 3 months, and all of the money I made over that time, but right before college started up again, I got my car back.

At that point, I became so ridiculously over-protective of the car, everyone made fun of me. I was obsessive about it. I was a broke student, so I started doing my own wrenching. I also had a number of bad experiences with poor mechanics, so I didn't want anyone else to work on the car. I learned a lot of things the hard way, but I learned. I vowed to never part with my first car, no matter what. I bought/sold/traded other cars over the years, even owned another '77 Mustang II for a year or so that was almost identical in options, except it wasn't a Cobra and was Bright Aqua with the plaid aqua interior.

In 1993 I entered my '77 Cobra in a car show. While there I met a gentleman who was selling parts. After chatting with him a while, I learned he had a t-topped King Cobra for sale. After 2 weeks of negotiating and scraping together all the cash I could, I once again was a 2 Mustang man. The '78 is a major project, and I've never driven it that much the entire time I've owned it. It has received an entire new front suspension and steering system, and some upgrades to the 351W under the hood.

In 1995 I moved to Portland, Oregon where I've remained since. In 1998 I bought a small house with a garage to keep the '77 in, and a double carport for the '78 and my Bronco.

In 1999 I parked my '77 Cobra II, as a knock in the engine was getting progressively worse. Since then I've only moved the car twice, when I sold my house and had to put it in storage at a friend's, and again when my shop was built and I got to bring it home.

In 2001 I took the 4 speed out of my '78 King (which someone stole from my driveway), and prepped the car to receive a brand new NOS '93 Cobra T-5 transmission that I bought from an ad in a Mustang magazine. I've yet to put the tranny in, it's still sitting in a box next to the car in the garage.

I REALLY miss driving my Mustang IIs, but in 2000 I picked up a little something to ease the pain, a 1998 SVT Cobra, Atlantic Blue. From 2001-2004 I concentrated my time, attention and money on modding the '98. In 2004 I bought a new house together with my girlfriend of a year, and began building my dream shop. In 2005 the shop was finished, and I moved all four of my vehicles in, with visions of starting work on the IIs. About that time my '79 Bronco (which I bought in 1994 as my requisite Montana winter rig) developed massive leaks from the transmission, to match the existing major leaks from the wheezy, weak 400M engine. I decided I was going to have to move the Bronco to the front of the line, as I had more need of an occasional rig to haul people, gear, or tow something than I did for another Mustang. From August of '05 through February of '06 I built up a 429 big block, had the tranny completely overhauled (twice, but that's another story), and along the way had to put in a new fuel tank, rebuilt the steering column, added headers and a custom exhaust, and pretty much built it to where I'd always wanted it.

No joke, two nights ago I finally started wrenching on my '78 King Cobra again. I'm getting married on September 2nd, first marriage at the ripe old age of 38, and really wanted to have one of my IIs running before that. I probably won't make that goal, but I intend to make some progress. It has sat for so long now, that I decided to yank the 351 out and go through it. I've already found that the "antifreeze" was apparently mostly water, and I have some serious rust and corrosion going on. The water pump barely spins.

Anyway, I'm pretty excited to finally be starting something I've dreamt about for five years now. My '98 is paid off, I almost have the credit card bills for Bronco parts and an engagement ring paid off, so the time is ripe. I figure I have a limited window before life throws something else my way, so I'd better get to work. And I still vow that I will NEVER sell my first car.

 

[Dano78]

Yeah I'll be the 1st to admit i've been a bit absent from here. Whent he weather is great int eh Northwest, you don't fart around...lol I've just been as busy as a one-arm paper hanger. I did sell the '78 Ghia I had....but man... that's a whole 'nuther crazy story good for a cold six-pack.
Hey Lance, i remeber you. Posted a message or two back and forth on the .org site years back. I was fresh in the service (USAF) back then ('98) and had just missed out on a local II roundup of the Portland area guys. Been back in Vancouver since, 2001....
....and i suppose you can have your tranny back if you still want it... lol (no, I really don't have it)

My saga--
Actaully I hated IIs. I was victimized by my father and his 60's musclecars and had always thought of the mustang II as the unwanted step-child Ford wouldn't admit to. That was until a friend picked up a '76 4 banger coupe that was ugly as sin. Him and i spent the majority of that summer working on and re-painting that coupe aswell as teaching myself how to drive a stick (I was only 16 at the time) in that car. After boneyard crawls and lotsa research i found out about the Cobra models and that's when i fell for the II. Bought my 1st II when i was 18 for $450 in Portland. It was a V6 4 speed CobraII T-Top car, black on black. Drove that thing over the I-5 bridge on 4 of the 6 cylinders and an huge grin. It was a third car for me as i already had a '67 Ranchero that was already done up and a '69 Mustang project. I fixed that Cobra and took it to Albuqerque with me when i left for the USAF. I drove the wheels off of that thing and never even got it finished. Ended up selling it to a fella that I knew in the USAF that was getting out aswell and heading back to Syracuse area.
While I was in the AF, i had bought and sold a few more IIs including the Tunnel ram car I have now and the '76 V6 CBII. When i got out of the service, dad had been storing a few IIs i wired him money to buy at auctions while I was gone. So had a few stacked like cord-wood that eventually became parts cars (most of them).
I've had a fair share of IIs in the past few years, but for some reason i still really miss that 1st T-Top car. Even though it was a V6 and when it rained, it rained even harder inside the car, i still miss that one car.

My 1st car was actually a '63 Fairlane Sports Coupe, however I was dumb and nieve and couldn't dump it fast enough to get my hands on a '67 Ranchero i had been eyeing at All American Auto wrecking. A quick $250 later i drug it home (hey- it was 1995) and began restoration. For years of 100+ customer paper route work and local lawn mowing jobs (also piliging the old man's Fairlane stash) I had it all done. Three months after having it on the pavement, I was broadsided by an old lady in a '63 Belvedere. Didn't stop me, chaining the twisted up front clip to the huge steel basket ball hoop pole, I managed to pull it all back out and spend better of a week learning the fine arts of metalworking.....and plilging dad's stash again. In in the meantime I had bought another clapped-out 67 Ranchero for $500, just requiring an engine. After i got the Green Ranchero back on pavement, I had sold the white (clapped out) Ranchero for $1200 at a swap meet, about a year after buying it. To this day i still have that green Ranchero.... one of these days I'll get it completely back together.
While I was in the USAF I also got into the latter 60s F100s and such. I traded a friend a rebuilt Holley 600 for a '69 F100. It was no prize, but after a couple of years of hard labor , rust repairs and drivetrain swap It pulled me, my wife, my newborn son and 14,000 lbs of car crap back to Vancouver in 2001. I still have it with approx 230K on the '87 351W and it's really starting to show. The blow-by is soo bad it looks like a 4-alarm fire under the hood at a stoplight. Rather than fixing it, I go out and buy a '76 F100 shortwide that has a 460 and C6 trans in it for $1500. Talk about FUN. Still drive it today back and forth to work at about 9-10 mpg.
I could go on and on for hours about all the cars and experiences I've had (and still having) but that'll take forever. I've got a couple street rods now, my Ranchero, 2 Mustang IIs, 3 F100s, A plymouth Duster (a story all in its own) a '66 Mustang, and NOW a '72 Comet GT. (actaully 2, but 1 is a parts car) As you can see I have NO shortage of projects and some think I have some kind of mental disease....lol Pick any 1 of my cars and I've got at least 1 crazy story (if not more) for each one of them!

 

[Dano78]

Somehow got a doubble post...