"Mess to Modern" A 67 Cougar Project

[jstanard]

Patching the time capsule - with actual metal.

[jstanard]

The driver side door had been replaced from a donor. It wasn't in much better shape.




It looks a little better now.

[jstanard]

I wanted to run power brakes and hydraulic clutch but the car originally had manual brakes and an automatic so my existing pedals were all wrong. I looked at some expensive pedal assemblies that would require a good bit of fabrication to install. I also considered switching my pedals to a stock clutch and power brake setup but that option was nearly as much as a Wilwood assembly. Just as I was about to pull the trigger on a three pedal setup, I remembered I had an old manual brake pedal from the 69 mustang. I played around with it a little bit and realized I could make it work.

Here, the 69 brake pedal is hanging from the stock bracket, mounted the same way an original clutch would be. Only the footpad needs to be trimmed. There is plenty of clearance between the pedals for the steering column. Once I was committed to that configuration, I bought a fox body gas pedal from eBay.

[jstanard]

I needed a fairly compact power brake booster so I would have room to mount the clutch master cylinder. I found an old website that described fitting a 93 Mustang brake booster and CNC clutch master cylinder. The only modification required to mount the '93 booster is to drill a few new holes and fill a couple old ones.




It is tight but there is enough room to mount a 3/4" Wilwood clutch master cylinder.

[jstanard]

Here's a better view of the pedal assembly.
I reinforced the firewall at the clutch master cylinder mount to eliminate flex.

The pushrod on the clutch MC is too short so I'm using a socket as a spacer for the photo. It's not a permanent addition.




I made a new pushrod from a grade 8 bolt. I just chucked it in my wood lathe and shaped the head with a metal file.

[jstanard]

I went through my spare parts pile to find an old brake master cylinder push rod. I cut the loop end off it and welded that to a threaded coupler. Combined with the bolt that I just turned, I now have an adjustable pushrod for the clutch MC.




I'll find (or make) some smaller pedal pads eventually.

[jstanard]

I used a brake master cylinder from a V8 94 Mustang.
Here, I've just started bending the brake lines.

[jstanard]

Cleaned up the bracket and mounted some smaller footpads.

[Twentyover]

[QUOTE=jstanard;1265927]Suspension can be assembled now. Everything bolts to the crossmember.


Attachment 152311


Might want to drop a bracket from the frame too pick up the back end of that lower control arm mount. They have been known to crack the weldment to the crossmember, causing interesting handling

[jstanard]

Here?

[andrewb70]

Here?

Yes, and also maybe a short piece diagonally to the cross member.

Andrew

[jstanard]

I'll put that on the list to complete when I pull the engine before paint. It would be awful hard to get to right now.

[jstanard]

What do these things have in common?

1967 Mercury Cougar
1997 Mercury Mountaineer
2017 Major back surgery

[jstanard]

If you answered "3.73 Trac-Loc Ford 8.8", you would be correct! If you're pulling one of these things at a junk yard where you can't use jacks, I recommend that you bring a friend or two. Just sayin'.

[Rolling_Thunder]

Sorry about your back brother! My disc is completely gone there - i have 7 other herniations to boot - glad I carry around about 80lbs of gear daily at work

[jstanard]

Ugh. I can't imagine. Well, actually i CAN, i just don't want to. This was my second. Both left permanent nerve damage in my legs, BUT, the surgery eliminated 100% of the pain both times and after 6 months, i'm getting around just fine so I'm not complaining.

[jstanard]

While at the salvage yard looking for the explorer rear end, I found these power leather seats in a 2001 Volvo S60. I'm still not sure on my interior color but if I go with something in tan, the seats are good to go. With the headrests removed, the seat height looks just right. They will need custom mounting brackets, of course.

Here's the best part...I paid a TOTAL of $55 for BOTH seats.

[jstanard]

8.8 with rebuilt explorer brakes ready to go under the car.

[jstanard]

On another junkyard run, I picked up an inertia switch from an Explorer, a parking brake lever from a BMW, and power mirrors from a Miata. I'm not certain I'll use the mirrors yet. It's hard to get an idea of what they will look like when I don't even have doors installed.

[jstanard]

I'm relocating the battery to the trunk so I cut out the rusty battery tray and welded in a patch.




I also filled in some holes in the engine bay.