My brother had a 49 "Cyclops "! I worked on it a lot. Flathead Ford V8, Marc heads, three dueces, 2 1/2" duel pipes ( Dad was actual Old School)! Thank you for doing it FORD, Great eng/trans choice!
Dean Benson - Thanks ! I get lots of positive feedback locally about the Ford powerplant. It didn't have an engine when I bought it, and the 302 fit easily, so why not ?!? It's got more than enough power and has been stone-reliable. Can't ask for anything more than that.
I suddenly fell in love with shoebox's, just recently, I have no explanation. Your car is beautiful. Doing it old style, mild custom, hot rod makes it more so. Makes me think of my older brother and how he used to Hot Rod. Keep shooting videos of your progress so we all can enjoy the deliciousness of that little FORD. I'm sure Henry would be proud.
shortcut 57 - When I was building the car, I was going to be making a route 66 trip with it, so I wanted any possible failure parts to be readily available at any parts store, so a fox body mustang seemed logical. They had a 302, so all the hoses fit right on as well. It works great !
Thanks for the comment . The fit and finish of the 49's was horrible , so it's been a struggle to try to get the gaps as nice as I would like. They look OK, but not really to my liking. Before it is painted, I will spend more time to try to correct them. I've been spending more time driving it than improving it, but that's not really a bad thing , lol . The PA winter is almost here, that will give plenty of time for working on the car .
My first car was a dead stock light green 50 Ford coupe with stack flathead V-8, would attempt to "peel rubber" and blow transmission. I like the look and stance of your Ford, does not have top heavy bulbous look of stock coupe but retains interior space.
My dad had one. It was dark blue. He washed and waxed it so much, it had the primer showing thru after about 8 years. It ran great, rode great, but, he hated one thing, the AM .RADIO. Don’t know hoe much he cussed that radio. It was a great courting car, you could lay across the front or back seat. Oh YEAH!!!
At least it's got a Ford engine under the hood. However I think this nice old Ford deserves a Flathead ! Nice sounding 302 but a 347 stroker would be nicer?
Ray Robinson - Thanks ! The belts are from Juliano's, a street rod supplier. I welded a plate and nut into the b-pillar for the shoulder mount, it's very solid.
Douglas Smlth - The 302 slides in there with the front suspension with no issues. You can buy mount kits from a few places (Opie's, Butch's, Jamco) . I'm running a normal double-hump oil pan, but lots of people use an old Bronco pan. Either way, it clears the cross member. Another trick is to use Fox Body Mustang factory headers - they clear the steering box like they're made for the car . Works like a charm ! I had to modify the trans tunnel to fit the C4, but that was no biggie. I hope that I gave you some inspiration , Cheers !
I've got a 49 that I'd like to put a 88 Mustang GO 302 and the 5 speed, but I can't find motor mount kit, I saw your answer about Opies,Butchs, Namco can you give me an web site address or phone# for any of those so I can get a hold of them? THANKS John in Maryland
John Mullican - a quick Google search will get you their websites, but one is called Butch's Cool Stuff (it's a street rod place) , and the other is called Jamco Suspension. My mounts are from Jamco, but they've since improved them. I went with Jamco because they bolt into the existing front mount holes, which I thought was good for a positive alignment vs. the "Opie's" mounts from Butch's, which you must drill holes in the crossmember. Don't get me wrong, I've used the Opie's mounts and they worked great - I just wanted to try them. I hope this helped - Cheers !
+kevykev38 -- Just checked out your video . It looks like a good start . Heck , even the interior looks darn nice .Mine was a bit of a mess when I started working on it - typical east coast car :-( . You'll have to shoot another video and show off that sucker . Keep kicking on it and it'll be a heck of a nice ride . Looks like you play the guitar pretty well . Keep practicing !
LOREN Reece - Hi Loren . Thanks for the comment, I welcome good and bad. While I agree that a Shoebox is cool in stock form, that's certainly not what I'm after with this car. It's a mild custom, so small things are changed to personalize it. I've been VERY diligent with keeping it "Ford" (i.e. the Ford drivetrain) , and I get a lot of positive local comments about it. Off the top of my head, I think the only Chevy part on the car is the rear bumper overrider/plate bracket, which seems a very odd thing to pick out and thumb down. You're the first one anywhere (local or internet) to point it out and comment negativity. Everyone has their thoughts, I guess that's why they make more than just vanilla ice cream . Cheers !
