Remember this pretty little...
Remember this pretty little thing from the May issue of Mustang Monthly? Its days of hanging around the shop on an engine stand are over as we slide our warmed-up 289 between the fenders of our hardtop.
Our destination on the long, hard road to completion is upon us. We've come so far since 1999 when we started with a $300 rusty shell to the nearly completed car on these pages. If it weren't for the continued support of our advertisers and readers, our '66 could have become just another unfinished magazine project car. But we prevailed and the little hardtop is done. Some of you saw the almost finished Project '66 at the
Silver Springs Mustang Roundup in January. Others saw the completed car at the Mustang 40th Anniversary Celebration in Nashville. And, of course, the finished car was featured in "How I Restored My Mustang" in the June issue.
For this article, we're backtracking a bit to show the process of installing the Mustang's drivetrain.
With our 289 dyno-tested and detailed, and our Dynamic Racing C4 sitting patiently in the shop along with our Motive Industries dealer-installed-style dual exhaust system, we only needed to pick up the phone to acquire a few more items to propel our hardtop under its own power. We had ordered much of what we needed for installation, such as motor mounts, starter, and so on from National Parts Depot last year, but we still needed a driveshaft, fluids, and a few other items. We obtained our engine, transmission, and power-steering fluids locally, but when it came to the driveshaft we called Mustangs Plus. We've used its aluminum driveshafts in several projects for their brute strength and perfect balance, so we wanted to use one here as well.
After getting the drivetrain bolted in and everything topped off or bled properly, the '66 made its maiden voyage to the alignment shop (see sidebar), then back to Mustang Monthly's shop for further tweaking. All that's left is to install some of our exterior trim (rocker moldings, pin lettering, and so on), refinish the console, and install the rest of the Classic Auto Air concours A/C system. Keep your eyes peeled for these last few stories.
 1 Before the undercarriage...  1 Before the undercarriage is full of the engine, transmission, exhaust, and so on, is the perfect time to install the fuel and brake lines. First we installed the stainless steel fuel and brake lines from CJ Pony Parts. The dual exhaust-specific brake-line bracket (obtained from National Parts Depot when detailing the rear axle) has not yet been welded to the floorpan. We'll get the brake hard line in place first, then position the brake line bracket and tack it to the floorpan. |  2 After the fuel line has...  2 After the fuel line has been routed, the long, front-to-rear brake line is positioned and tweaked as needed to fit the proper routing locations. Reusing the brake-line retaining clips can be iffy, so we went with the well-known Shafer's Classic Reproduction kit from NPD to secure both lines. |  3 Using the shop's engine...  3 Using the shop's engine hoist, our 289 is carefully prepped for installation with several old shirts and some carefully placed duct tape to prevent damage to our detailing efforts by the lift chains. The engine-block plate and flexplate were installed before the engine was lowered. Except for removing the cooling fan and air cleaner, we're able to easily drop the fully dressed 289 into place, with a couple of extra hands and eyeballs checking everything, without a scratch. |
 4 Before we can install our...  4 Before we can install our Dynamic Racing Transmission C4, the provided 10-inch "street and strip" torque converter from its sister company, Torque Converter Techniques (TCT), needs to be seated onto the input shaft. If you've never installed a torque converter, it can be hard to "feel" the different steps the converter must be aligned with and slid past. A gentle rocking and twisting motion while pushing the converter inward usually gets the job done. Make sure the converter is fully seated before trying to bolt up the transmission. See more on TCT converters in the sidebar. |  5 The Mustang Monthly tech...  5 The Mustang Monthly tech shop recently purchased a transmission jack, making our C4 installation a one-man job that took about 25 minutes. But even on a cold garage floor with a floor jack, it isn't the worst job in the world. Line up the flexplate mounting holes and torque-converter studs before slipping the C4 onto the engine's dowel pins. Have your crossmember and mounting bolts ready, and the transmission will be secured in no time; then you can install and adjust the shift linkage. |  6 The toughest part of the...  6 The toughest part of the installation is getting the torque-converter studs lined up and through the flexplate. Once the transmission is seated to the engine block, follow the included instructions for the transmission and torque converter package to ensure you have the proper endplay; then secure the converter to the flexplate with the provided locking nuts. To access the remaining studs, turn the engine with a breaker bar and socket on the crankshaft damper bolt. |