Turning a 1966 Coupe into a daily driver

I wouldn't change the engine to gain gas mileage - on a recent 1800 mile trip my '68 with a 200 I6 engine, C4 trans and an unknown rear ratio (probably in the 2.50-2.80 range just guessing) got a low of 21mpg and an average of 23-24.x mpg calculating fill-up to fill up. Working properly and adjusted properly that I6 with a 1bbl is a thrifty engine.

If you were going to do a lot of 70mph freeway driving then I can see converting to a later model "5.0" engine with EFI and an overdrive trans just to gain the freeway horsepower - but I doubt you'll get much better mileage if at all.

That said - I'd convert to an electronic ignition for the reliability, make sure all the accessories and wiring is "up to snuff" and the suspension/steering components are in great shape, look into the Isuzu integrated power steering swaps (i.e. DIY or the Borgsen kit) - the difference in kits you're seeing is probably the mounting brackets for the power steering pump and nothing to do with the rack itself. If you haven't done so do a front power disc brake conversion - stopping is a whole lot more important than getting moving fast!

I would recommend a modern style 3 point seat belt system, LED rear tail lights and a disc brake conversion...power brakes are even better. Although, I don't know if having the stock I6 4 lug spindles and rear will give you any trouble with putting disc brakes on, you may want to upgrade the rear end and spindle to the 5 lug patterns. I also agree with switching to an electronic iginition, I did and its so much nicer than the old system.

Having it a daily driver, safety, an reliability should be a major concern of HP and Torque.

Redwolff64 said:

I am working on turning a 1966 coupe w/ a I6 into a daily driver, and am trying to figure out what things to change. I eventually want to change out the engine, possibly putting a newer mild V8 into it to help with gas mileage. One thing I want to do sooner is put in rack and pinion power steering in. The problem is all the ones I am finding are for either big block engines or small block engines. What is the difference between the two? If I end up putting the small block R&P in, how hard would it be to put in the new engine in without changing the R&P that's in there?

Also, what other upgrades would you suggest? To the best of my knowledge, all the other mechanical parts are stock.

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first, these days i dont recommend installing a rack and pinion steering system, unless you are changing to a front suspension designed with rack and pinion in mind. the big reason is that you lose steering radius, and unless you pay attention to the proper steering and suspension geometry, you can run into issues that you cant seem to solve. if you want lighter steering, then i suggest going with the borgeson power steering conversion. it bolts in, looks stock(comparatively), and the only issue i know of is it interferes with the "Z" bar if you are running a stick shift trans.

next since you want this to be a daily driver, i recommend keeping the six instead of swapping to a V8. you can get better mileage with the six, parts, including performance parts, are available for the six from www.classicinlines.com, and the six can make a decent amount of power.

some upgrade for the stock six i suggest are;

electronic ignition. get a duraspark distributor from a 75-83 maverick/granada/fairmont with the 3.3l six and wire in the orange ignition box from chrysler. pm me with your email address and i will email you the wiring diagram i used. add an MSD blaster 3 coil and you will have a system that will fire the engine even when the temps go below 20 degrees F(the lowest i ever tried starting my old 66 falcon with this combination).

the next upgrade would be either a direct mount, or an adaptor, for a two barrel carb conversion. a 32/36 weber carb is probably the best one to use. stovebolt engine co. has carbs(they usually recommend the carter/weber carb) and classicinlines has adaptors.

the next upgrade after that would be a good header and dual exhaust, again classicinlines has a good selection of headers.

as for more information, check out www.fordsix.com we have a lot of members over there dedicated to the small ford six, and they are quite willing to share what they know.

I'd use these suggestions from the above posts-

Falcon79 said:

3 point seat belt system
LED rear tail lights
disc brake conversion...power brakes are even better.
electronic iginition
Having it a daily driver, safety, an reliability should be a major concern of HP and Torque.

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I disagree with this one-

Falcon79 said:

Although, I don't know if having the stock I6 4 lug spindles and rear will give you any trouble with putting disc brakes on, you may want to upgrade the rear end and spindle to the 5 lug patterns.

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The 5-bolt setup will cost you a ton of trouble and money, and the change will include higher unsprung weight, (degrading ride quality) which is one of the reasons Ford used lighter stuff on the six.

Installing discs on the 64-66 six is easy, inexpensive, and you can even keep the stock 14" steel wheels if you want.

rbohm said:

first, these days i dont recommend installing a rack and pinion steering system, unless you are changing to a front suspension designed with rack and pinion in mind. the big reason is that you lose steering radius, and unless you pay attention to the proper steering and suspension geometry, you can run into issues that you cant seem to solve. if you want lighter steering, then i suggest going with the borgeson power steering conversion. it bolts in, looks stock(comparatively), and the only issue i know of is it interferes with the "Z" bar if you are running a stick shift trans.

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I agree, rack-and-pinion is an expensive indulgence. OEM or Boregeson will do nicely, and cost about the same. OEM is a lot less, if you buy it used and recondition it yourself.

Borgeson now makes a 64-66 equalizer for V8 models that is compatible with their gearbox. It would not be hard to fabricate a six version.

rbohm said:

next since you want this to be a daily driver, i recommend keeping the six instead of swapping to a V8. you can get better mileage with the six, parts, including performance parts, are available for the six from www.classicinlines.com, and the six can make a decent amount of power.

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True. A well-mannered six will give you 25 mpg highway, close to 30 with a manual, and even more with a T5 5-speed, which is a bolt-in upgrade for the six.

A dual header with stock GT 2" dual exhaust with an H-pipe-style crosstube will increase power and mileage.
Even a 14" 289HP style air cleaner will help with breathing.

Add TMI headrests to the front seats. Far more attractive than the original accessory, they will look factory to those who don't know.


Another subtle safety upgrade is to replace the hard plastic arm rests with 67 all-foam 67 arm rests. I knew a Ford engineer who designed the foam rests for Ford, after he was T-boned in a 63 Fairlane and the plastic arm rest was driven into his hip.

2+2GT said:

The 5-bolt setup will cost you a ton of trouble and money, and the change will include higher unsprung weight, (degrading ride quality) which is one of the reasons Ford used lighter stuff on the six.

Installing discs on the 64-66 six is easy, inexpensive, and you can even keep the stock 14" steel wheels if you want.

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for the most part i agree with you on the 5 lug conversion. however, the problem with the early six cylinder spindles is that they are somewhat suspect as far as strength goes. they have been known to span even with the stock set up, let alone a performance set up.

finding a pair of V8 spindles, and using the scarebird mechanical disc brake conversion means that you still get the stronger spindles, five lug conversion, and later model parts that are easier to get at the local parts store, and they are also lighter than the stock 65-66 disc brakes.

I have never seen a failure of the 6 cylinder spindle, structurally. And I'm in a good position to see it, having regularly worked in Mustang restoration and used parts. What I have seen, frequently, is failure of the outer bearing. These go from slight rumble to catastrophic failure very quickly, because they are so small. I've seen it with V8's, too, but they seem to be able to survive a longer period of bearing rumble, giving more warning.

Heck, when I was in college, I spun my 66 Sprint into a curb, hit the left front so hard the right wheels came off the ground, and wrecked the wheel.Replaced the wheel, didn't even need an alignment, drove it for years.

most people never have seen a failure of six cylinder spindles, i have, and it isnt pretty. some were because the spindles were used after a V8 swap, others were probably due to either a burned inner bearing or structural fatigue. part of the problem seems to be when you put larger tires and wheels on the car that the front spindles were not designed for. remember that the original tires and wheels were essentially pizza cutters, and if you put on a larger more modern tire and wheel combo, especially one that is much heavier, and the offset is off, you just may see a six cylinder spindle fail spectacularly.