Baaaad BossI own a Boss 429, KK 1466-an old, race-ravaged Mustang. The floors are missing, it has been tubbed and rollcaged, the inner fenders have been cut up, there are braces through the original shock towers, the firewall was replaced for weight, the torque boxes cut, and drum brakes replaced the original discs. The fenders and hood are now fiberglass. I bought another '69 shell for parts. My question is, should I remove the original shock towers, the door with the correct tag, the upper and lower A-arms, and rebody the car, or should I remove the parts from the new shell and restore the original body?
This car is really torn up, and it will take thousands of dollars and many years to make it what it was. If it is rebodied, how much will the value suffer? I am interested in your suggestions.John R. BarnesBeaumont, TX
Restoring an ex-racecar back to concours condition can be time-consuming and costly. Often, the body repairs are major, but even more costly are the missing rare and unique Boss 429 detail parts, such as the thermactor system and the air cleaner assemblies, to mention only a few items.
The biggest, positive aspect may be the rust-free condition of the body, due to few road miles and/or lack of exposure to the elements.
If concours events are your intentions, this particular Boss 429 may not be a good candidate to restore from a financial standpoint. The cost to restore the car will probably surpass its finished value. If a clean, rust-free restomod is your preference, your car is an excellent candidate.
The value of your Boss 429 will be diminished if it is rebodied; however, the valve will be affected less on a nonconcours restoration.
Because of the many unique body features on the Boss 429 Mustang, it would be a major undertaking to rebody. The entire front clip from the firewall forward is unique to the Boss 429. The rear framerails and quarter-panels also have modifications.
I suggest you use the original body and use original sheetmetal from another '69 Mustang to make repairs to the sheetmetal that has been cut during its racing days. Using the donor sheetmetal from the parts car instead of reproduction sheetmetal will make a superior repair.
Biased To TiresI have a '66 Mustang convertible that is an original survivor. The car has 42,000 original miles and most of its original exterior black paint. I've tried to keep the car as authentic as possible; however, I do have a few reproduction pieces under the hood, such as the battery and the battery cables.
I currently have radial tires on the car, which I would like to change to the old-style bias-ply to create that '60s look to match the rest of the car. I'm not sure what size and brand of tire I should purchase. I have seen Firestone, Goodyear, and BFGoodrich in reproduction.
What was the most popular brand originally used on '66 Mustangs? What brand do you recommend?Johnny CrossMemphis
All '66 Mustangs came with 6.95x14 tires. During the '66 model year, Firestone, Goodyear, BFGoodrich, U.S. Royal, and General brand tires were used.
The only manufacturer of the dual-redline tire was U.S. Royal. If you decide to use redline tires, make sure you use the U.S. Royal brand. Firestone, Goodyear, BFGoodrich, and General offered white sidewall and black sidewall tires.
During the '66 model year, Firestone and Goodyear were probably the most popular brand names used.
All 289 K-code Mustangs came with U.S. Royal redlines as standard equipment. The dual redlines were also optional on non-K-code Mustangs at extra cost.
I like the Goodyear reproduction 6.95x14 for most applications. On 289 K-codes, the only correct redline is the U.S. Royal reproduction. Dual redlines look great on a black convertible.