If you're seriously considering a '67-'73 Mustang, contact Kevin Marti of Marti Auto Works (12007 W. Peoria, El Mirage, AZ 85335; 623/935-2558), and spend approximately $50 for Kevin's production report on the Mustang. His vast Ford database will yield all factory information about the vehicle you are considering, including color, interior, options, original delivery location, and more. Kevin's research will tell you if it was originally a Mach 1, GT, or Grabber, for example. It will also tell you if it was a Drag Pak car or a freeway cruiser, if it had air conditioning, and whether it was rolling on Magnum 500s or on steel wheels with dog-dish hubcaps.
Build It!
If you've never built a Mustang before, don't be intimidated by the experience; this is going to be fun. It will also be a source of great frustration, so be prepared. Our advice is to take the good with the bad, and make the most of it.
All car-building experiences must begin with a plan, without which you can count on excess spending and wasted time. With your new purchase parked in the driveway or garage, evaluate the car as it sits. Then decide what you want the car to be. Do you want the car factory stock or tastefully modified? Are you going to drive it, or will it be the weekend trailer car? The car's use determines how it should be built.
A Mustang driven occasionally can tolerate less engine, driveline, suspension, and brakes than one driven all the time. By this, we mean you can forego the heavy expense of a roller camshaft and hardened exhaust valve seats if you're building an occasional driver or trailered car. You can opt for stock springs, shocks, and brakes if you're building a trailered car, because handling won't matter.
With this in mind, we suggest if you're building a Mustang to be trailered or occasionally weekend driven, go the extra mile and do the things that make it a more reliable, fun to drive automobile, because you never know when the urge to drive is going to hit. For example, what happens when your Mustang buddies invite you to drive with them to Nashville to celebrate the Mustang's 40th anniversary next April? If you restore your Mustang on the cheap, will it be up for the drive? Build a Mustang as though you were going to drive it daily, even if you aren't.
As segments of your Mustang are disassembled, you'll start to understandhow it was assembled. Once you learn how, the process becomes easier.Compared to today's new cars, vintage Mustangs are simple.
When a restoration is well organized, you can compartmentalize yourefforts. While the body is away at a body shop, tackle the engine,transmission, and rear axle.
There are so many phases of a restoration. Aside from engine anddriveline, you have the electrical system, interior, door and windowmechanicals, and more. Here, the fuel-tank sending unit is installed ina new tank.
One stealthy mod is the installation of a T5 five-speed or automaticoverdrive. Modifications like these are easy, and they improve fueleconomy. No one knows they're there but you.