Completed 69 Mustang Convertible
We've been given a really nicely presented '69 convertible by a customer, after he pulled it out of another shop in Sydney. We've been working with the owner of the car, who we're proud to say, is serving our great Country on overseas deployment as we write this. We wish him a speedy return and a safe one and thank him for his service.
This convertible has been used heavily by a previous owner, as a wedding car and obviously with very little maintenance along the way. Had some crazy things done to the engine to try keep it cool, which all stemmed from not having the fan set up in the right location (ie: no fan spacer at all), a weepy radiator and no fan shroud. They'd then tried thermo fans, overflow bottles, etc, all without success. Really simple rectification, but it's made a huge mess through the engine bay of the car. The engine is tired, oily and the transmission failing, so we've removed that for rebuild and the engine for a birthday. The car itself, drives really well. We're changing some aspects of the car for the owners personal taste, such as wheels, interior, convertible top and other cosmetics, so watch this space as we move through that job.
This convertible has been used heavily by a previous owner, as a wedding car and obviously with very little maintenance along the way. Had some crazy things done to the engine to try keep it cool, which all stemmed from not having the fan set up in the right location (ie: no fan spacer at all), a weepy radiator and no fan shroud. They'd then tried thermo fans, overflow bottles, etc, all without success. Really simple rectification, but it's made a huge mess through the engine bay of the car. The engine is tired, oily and the transmission failing, so we've removed that for rebuild and the engine for a birthday. The car itself, drives really well. We're changing some aspects of the car for the owners personal taste, such as wheels, interior, convertible top and other cosmetics, so watch this space as we move through that job.
Below, we've yanked the engine and trans out of the car. Pretty obvious why we wanted to. Oil and muck everywhere, to say the least. The rear main seal leaves a nice puddle of oil on our shop's nicely epoxy'd floor everyday, so that was reason enough to get to it..! You can see the drool of oil down the flex plate and inspection plate below. Judging by the lack of oil on the sides of the heads, it's almost as if they were recently serviced.
Note the lack of spacer inbetween the fan and water pump pulley - not a wise move if you like your car to run properly. The engine bay is really grubby and the wiring like a rats nest, so we'll sort that out while the engine is out, since it offers us front row seating to access it.
See the tail shaft down the bottom? Wow! That could be cause for concern. I think we best bog that up quickly..! Just kidding, we'll get that tube replaced and balanced properly.
So, over the coming weeks, this car will get a mechanical birthday and feel much better about itself.
Note the lack of spacer inbetween the fan and water pump pulley - not a wise move if you like your car to run properly. The engine bay is really grubby and the wiring like a rats nest, so we'll sort that out while the engine is out, since it offers us front row seating to access it.
See the tail shaft down the bottom? Wow! That could be cause for concern. I think we best bog that up quickly..! Just kidding, we'll get that tube replaced and balanced properly.
So, over the coming weeks, this car will get a mechanical birthday and feel much better about itself.