newb with a new toy (advise?)

[83GT289]

Hey hey,

My first post here, very nice forums. I recently picked up a 1983 GT. The car has mostly been raped. It's in decent shape mechanically but the interior is trashed. The 302 was yanked and replaced with a custom built 66 model 289. Pretty much nothing remains of the computer systems, no smog, no a/c. Pretty much nothing but a stout motor. I like the setup pretty well and it runs like a champ. The guy tells me he figured it at around 290HP and that feels about right. Not bad for a 289 i thought.

Anyway, i was wondering if you guys know of a good place to shop for interior parts for these older fox body 'stangs. I find loads of stuff for the 87-93 years but having a very hard time finding good stuff for the pre 87 year models. I'm also in the market for a good shifter but i don't have a lot to spend. I'm considering going used if i could be sure it's in decent shape. Of course i guess the options are the UPR blu thunder, b&m ripper, steeda tri-ax, or pro 50. I think i'd take just about any one i could find a really good price on. Money's tight lately. Anyone got leads on a good used shifter?

Thanks guys!

J.

 

[mustangsquared]

try 50restoration (they are on the webb but their cat has way more parts listed then the site)

 

[2000xp8]

I think you can replace the old interior with all 87+ newer parts other than the dash (major rewiring). Someone else here would know for sure though. Might as well update if you can, not like the car is ever going to be original again.

 

[deftsound]

www.50resto.com great place to get a lot of miscalaneus interior parts and stuff, also, i buy a lot of my things off of ebay, you can find ANYTHING off ebay, interior parts are no problem, good luck

 

[83GT289]

If i was going to shop around for heads for this 289 what would you guys recommend? The guy tells me these heads were ported & polished about 6000 miles ago, but the car has sat for a very long time and the valve seals are shot, smoking a bit. I am thinking if i'm going to have to have work done on the heads i may as well swap them out. The bottom end of the motor was redone and i'm sure he used good parts. Edlebrock intake and cam with a big a$$ holley carb, I have been trying to get in touch with him to find out exactly what cam, intake, and carb he used. Have shorty headers in the trunk but right now it's using the stock 289 manifolds, those have got to go. Exhaust is custom 2 1/2 with flowmasters and 3 1/2 tips. I'll post back hopefully tonight when i get the rest of the specs on the engine build. I have also been tossing around the idea of just doing a whole engine swap. Seems a shame though with the work that went into the 289. It is a smooth running engine.

J.

 

[Schlodes]

If the 289 heads were infact ported and gone through, then just put some new seals in..

You might surprise yourself. Toss an 8.8 in there with some 4.10 gears, bolt on some ET Drags, and go to the track.. you might just come home not wanting to touch a thing.

 

[2000xp8]

I'll agree with schlodes, slap a good rear in there, IMO 3.73's with a 5 speed, 4.10's with an auto. Then strap some sticky tires on there and see how it runs. Then worry about changing/rebuilding. If it runs low 13's high 12's you just may want to leave it alone and send the heads to the head shop. If it's slow, like 14's, i'd swap in a EFI 5.0.

 

[83GT289]

The guy i got it from had originally put in 4.10 gears when he built the 289 but it didn't work well together so he dropped in 3.73's. Still has the stock shifter but that will be one of the first things i change. I found a Blu Thunder for pretty cheap and i think i'll go with it for the slightly longer handle. I'm a short guy and a really short stick might not work to well for me. Thanks for the tips guys. I'll see how it feels after i drop the headers in .

J.

 

[donsbad68]

5.0resto.com but take out the period b/t the numbers, free catalog

 

[Legendary]

Get some times first so you can know what you're working with. If the car is making 290 like you was told it should put down some good numbers for you.

 

[83GT289]

Allright, so i drilled my buddy for some info tonight. He can't seem to remember what cam he used except it was "a couple steps up from the stock ford cam". The heads are from an early model 302 machined and fitted with bigger valves. Carb is a holley 600 (need bigger?). Three chamber flowmasters. Headers are ford make from a late model 302. Edlebrock performer intake, and forged pistons. The engine build was done over 3 years ago but very few miles put on the car since then. The car has 96,000 original miles probably 6,000 of them on the new build. It's going to be a bit before i get this thing 100% on the road or am able to get it to the track either. I'm trying to do some work on the interior before i start driving it. Going to be a slow go but i'm very excited about what i see as "the finished product". Don't guess it's ever really finished ay? . Thanks for the tips guys, i thought this was a really interesting project being a 289 based engine.

J.

 

[Schlodes]

Try and find out what compression pistons he used, because if he put the 302 heads on, chances are it lost some compression cause the chambers in the 289 are smaller if i remember correctly...

 

[super302]

50resto.com or ebay.com is your best bets

 

[83GT289]

Try and find out what compression pistons he used, because if he put the 302 heads on, chances are it lost some compression cause the chambers in the 289 are smaller if i remember correctly...

Interesting. I'll have to look into that. Also forgot to mention the bore is .030 over.


J.

 

[B0SS302]

ebay