1967 Mustang Coupe - Project Rusty Nickel

[67TXStang]

I mentioned previously I removed the engine to get to the underside of the toe boards on my Mustang to finish some rust repair. While then engine was out, I thought I'd go ahead and put in a new cam. After checking out the engine and talking to a few friends, I dropped the motor off to have it inspected and then rebuilt.

The engine was in good condition but already bored .040 over. The machine shop was able to just hone the cylinders but the crank needed to be undercut by .010. While they were doing the machining, I purchased some new pistons and had them zero deck the block to help with my compression ratio.



I cleaned up the short block with mineral spirits and painted it after getting it home. I've been working on building the engine and installing it over the past few days. I'll have a few extra posts with some details on that work shortly.



The engine as of this point is going to consist of the following:
289 bored .040
Keith Black KB115 Pistons
Keith Black moly rings
Cloyes timing chain
Comp Cams XE256H (31-324-3) cam/lifter set
Edelbrock 5025 E-Street heads
Comp Cams High Energy roller rockers
Comp Cams Magnum 6.950 push rods

[csx4766]

Wow, you are really doing some nice work on your Mustang. I completely understand the budget aspect. My 67 Mustang Project is taking way longer than I had planned and the money on the motoe was certainly WAY more than I planned. Look forward to the updates.

Morgan

[sokoloka]

I love your attention to detail and "one step at a time" approach to building. In retrospect, I wish I took a similar approach with my current build - but it's too late now!

[rustomatic]

I could rant for hours about dipsticks who are supposedly "qualified" or "certified" to do alignments. Most of them do not know what camber looks like, let alone how to adjust it to your specs. Buy yourself some heavy, brightly colored string, some boards, and a level, and learn to do it yourself. It took me about 10-12 tries, but I got it just the way I want, can adjust my camber/toe whenever I feel like it (given shim availability), and never pay a dime to get really angry over a bad alignment.

[Dolmaner]

sweet car, love the colour

[MonzaRacer]

Unfortunately the strut rod getting a little chewed up can happen with less experienced and and conscientious techs as the rule of thumb in most shops is to get it in and get it out.
They will try to push the alignments as fast as they can, then the tech has to go faster which means less care on the appearance.
If it was me, get some 320 grit 1" wide emery cloth, clean up themarks as good as you can and look around for spray can paint or coating to make it look respectable.
I have seen shop destroy brand new tie rod adjuster sleeves. I saw a spray zinc coating, Ill have to research where it came from,,, maybe from Eastwood. I used something similar to recoat a carb body for a customer.

[67TXStang]

I've had a busy few weeks as I received my short block back from the machine shop and built the engine.

Here is the block once I placed it on the engine stand and gave it a coat of paint. This was about three weeks ago. I took two days off work and assembled the engine. After not being able to drive for 2 years, I really was not interested in waiting much longer.



I did not have pushrods as I needed to measure for them. I did that first and placed and order with Jegs. I didn't want to wait so I temporarily installed the instake so I could mount the lift plate to the carb flange and get the engine in the car.



Once the engine was back in, I could install all the accessories, transmission, driveshaft, etc, etc, etc. The pushrods (Comp Cams Magnum 6.950") arrived a few days later. I pulled the intake I temp installed (without a gasket) and set the lifter preload.



I worked on breaking in the cam but had a little trouble with my fuel mixture being off. It ran a little lean the first two attempts and started turning the headers a light orange color. After that was fixed, it was apparent the stock radiator was not going to do the job. I went ahead and purchased a new aluminum two core radiator with one inch tubes (nothing larger would fit). This did a much better job cooling the car.



I've driven the car around some (about 15 miles) and was able to get it inspected today. I still need to work on the idle mixture a little and it can use some work on the timing to get it running better. However, it is going well so I thought I get this post caught up.

[67TXStang]

I've put roughly 150 miles on the car in the past few weeks. I saved up a little cash to buy a AutoMeter A/F gauge. I installed it this past week and was able to try it out this weekend. Seems I'm really rich at idle and lean on slight acceleration. I'll take a little time over the next couple of weeks to see if I can get it dialed in.

I plan to go to the GoodGuys event in Dallas next weekend. I didn't register my car and don't know if I'll even drive it there at this point. I would only take it if I managed to get the A/F ratios in check by then.

[67TXStang]

I found a listing for a T5 transmission and bellhousing on Craigslist this week. I started exchanging emails with the owner and ended up buying it this evening. I purchased the transmission, bellhousing, and Energy Suspension mount for $300.



The transmission has the original tag showing the number 13-52-199. This indicates the transmission was original to a '91 5.0 Mustang. The transmission is rated at 300 ft/lbs and has the following gear ratios:
1 - 3.35
2 - 1.99
3 - 1.33
4 - 1.00
5 - 0.68



This is compared to the current ratios in my 3 speed toploader:
1 - 2.99
2 - 1.75
3 - 1.00

I started taking apart the transmission tonight to look at the gears. I don't see any problems with the gears. The fluid had already been drained. What was left in the bottom does seem to have some very small metal particles but they are so small they could be from normal wear.

[turboclevor]

believe me, it is definitely a muscle car with the 289 i have over 300 wheel horsepower with just bolt on mods which is plenty for what i use mine for

[blade]

Great build, I can appreciate the budget build. I want to start on a 65 mustang and will be doing it a bit at a time also, it is just not in as nice of shape as yours.

Keep up the great work.

[67TXStang]

I worked a little each night this past week to disassemble the transmission. I checked each of the gears as I disassembled the transmission. Only the reverse gear had much wear. However, there was a fair amount of fine metal particles stuck to the magnet in the bottom of the transmission case.

The main case, tailshaft, and top cover are empty and completely clean. I've not cleaned the gear clusters. I left the gear clusters assembled and wrapped in plastic bags. I'll clean the gears as I disassemble the clusters for the rebuild process. This will keep the arrangement of components fresh on my mind for reassembly.



I don't have enough money saved up to rebuild and install the transmission. My focus for now will be on rebuilding the transmission. While I don't have much money for the entire project, I don't want to try to get by with a cheap rebuild kit or by not replacing items which obviously need to be replaced.

This morning, I purchased a steel front bearing retainer (Ford Racing M-7050-A) and a rebuild kit (Ford Racing M-7000-A). I also purchased a new Tremec reverse gear (Tremec 1352-584-008). These should be all the items I need to complete the rebuild of the transmission and seal it off until I can afford the parts to mount it into the Mustang.



If all of the parts arrive this week, I'll start the rebuild of the transmission this weekend. There are numerous bearings which need to be pressed into place. I don't have a press so I'll either buy one or find a shop to do the job for me. This is the main task which might cause the rebuild to drag out beyond this one weekend.

I'll be using the T5 bellhousing to install the transmission. I'll need to save up for a block plate, new fulcrum, transmission crossmember, and a new driveshaft yoke. While I have the original shifter, I really want to purchase a new one with shift stops. I'm hoping to find one used which is in good condition so I'm not spending $150-$200 on a shifter.

[MichaelUser]

Looking fantastic. Keep up the good work.

[Rols574]

subscribed! I want to do my mustang as well. I'm close to getting my own place (with a garage) so hopefully I'll be having as much fun as you.

[67TXStang]

I finished the rebuild of the T5 transmission.

The rebuild was not very difficult. I rebuilt the 3 speed currently in the Mustang a few years back. This time I needed a press for the bearings but I already had all the other tools. I picked up a bearing press at Harbor Freight while it was on sale and will no doubt find other uses for it.

I took a picture at every step in disassembling the transmission. This way I was sure of the orientation of the gears, washers, and other parts during the rebuild. I also kept all the parts laid out in the proper order so I could use that as a reference as well.

Everything I needed for the rebuild of the output shaft was included in the M7000A kit except for one item. A needle bearing set was not included for under the first gear. There are three used and the kit came only with two of them. I checked several internet sites and could not find a picture of a kit including the part. The one I took out seemed to be in good condition so I decided I would reuse the part.










I switched to a six tooth speedometer gear (black one) on the tailshaft. This will allow me to properly set my speedometer when I change the rear gears to something larger than a 3.5:1.



I found an inexpensive used shifter on eBay and picked it up. This is it attached to the assembled transmission.

[67TXStang]

I need to pick up a block plate, transmission crossmember, and fulcrum mount in order to install the transmission.

I'm going to be using the bell housing which came with the transmission. I'll need to clean it up a bit first. It is out of a '92 Mustang.

I expect I'll need to shorten my driveshaft. I'm told it would be best to use a new yoke. Maybe I should just go with an aluminum driveshaft rather than do these things to the heavy stock driveshaft. Anyone know if an aluminum driveshaft makes much of a difference?

[Mach Par]

Less rotating mass is normally a good thing.

[Dave B]

Looks awesome! Nice job on the T5! Someday, I'll do mine.

[protasone]

Nice build! Looking back I should have gone with a T5. Cant wait to see the final product!

[wfo guy]

Nice job. Looks like you didn't make any mistakes. That's the mark of someone who knows something.