From my Mustang to an AC Cobra, a build thread.

[Shlbyntro]

Well I may be getting shut in this weekend. But that doesn't mean I can't be shut in in the garage.

Suspension this weekend!

 

[monkeyswrench]

Well I may be getting shut in this weekend. But that doesn't mean I can't be shut in in the garage.

Suspension this weekend!
View attachment 972308

I have the same shop heat setup. A little loud, but have a louder stereo. It's nice to have feeling in your hands while working, and loud music is a good motivator for me anyway.

 

[Wedgy]

Love yer show. Dig the little Red Ranger. Be careful with that heater in an enclosed space. CO can ruin yer whole day. And Momma will be mad if you end up,

 

[Shlbyntro]

And thats a wrap for the day! First as I went to install the rear end, I realized that half of my hardware is missing. Not "it got lost" straight up "I never had it" and I didn't realize it because I was missing some of the more critical items like ALL OF THE CONTROL ARMS that the hardware is for.


And the question comes, do I shoot out an email and wait another week for Factory Five to send them, or do I hop in my truck,, drive across the icy bridge,, and just go buy them at the hardware store? It pained me to do so because the hardware was paid for within my kit. But I did. 8x grade 8.8 m12 bolts and associated fasteners. $70 dollars down the toilet.

I get back to the house and all is well, I start hanging the rear end, everything's going smooth and then I get to the upper control arms for the 4link. They are just fighting the piss out of me. So I unbolt them from the car and try mounting to the rear end first, still don't want to go on. It turns out they're a bit narrow for the bushings. Ok no problem, I widen them a tiny bit and file the steel insert of the bushing a tiny bit. Great were sliding on now, but wait theres more!!!!!! After fighting with it for probably an hour and a half and trying 10 different ways of skinning this cat, I finally realized why they won't go on. The reliefs in the brand new Factory Five upper control arms are not deep enough to accept the upper stub outs in the brand new Factory Five provided Moser rear end!

So my dilemma is do I grind down the stub outs on my brand new rear end and void the warranty, or do I do the back and forth thing with Factory Five for God knows how long it will take to get them to redesign and make me new upper control arms that fit my rear end. Anyway, it's 530 and about to start sleeting again so I need to wrap it up (with almost nothing done) and pull the motorcycle and golf cart back in the garage. Front end attempt tomorrow. Beer me!

 

[monkeyswrench]

Nothing torques me as much as "kits" from a supplier not fitting together! I've run into deals where one company has their name on the kit, but different parts com from different places. New jig, or old jig with different guy doing weld-up, etc, etc. It sucks balls!

As for hardware, yep, waiting sucks. I keep a bunch of grade nothing, Tractor Supply stuff here for fitting stuff. Figure out how it fits, and what I need to buy, then make my list of Grade 8 or stainless stuff for reassembly.

Got screwed last week. Customer brought in a disc brake kit. Nice kit, had almost all the hardware...was missing the banjo bolts

 

[Shlbyntro]

Nothing torques me as much as "kits" from a supplier not fitting together! I've run into deals where one company has their name on the kit, but different parts com from different places. New jig, or old jig with different guy doing weld-up, etc, etc. It sucks balls!

As for hardware, yep, waiting sucks. I keep a bunch of grade nothing, Tractor Supply stuff here for fitting stuff. Figure out how it fits, and what I need to buy, then make my list of Grade 8 or stainless stuff for reassembly.

Got screwed last week. Customer brought in a disc brake kit. Nice kit, had almost all the hardware...was missing the banjo bolts

&#^÷^^"<' lol

I'm pretty sure I know what happened. I hand selected my kit to be able to build it the exact way I wanted it and I spec'd a rear end/ suspension setup that they never do. They were actually kind of baffled by my choice, so I'm probably the first one to ever have encountered this.

They wanted me to purchase the "complete kit" once they saw my order because I was something like 3/4 of the way there price wise. Sure any normal guy would've done that but im far from normal. I told them no I don't want the complete kit, I want this one as I built it.

One of the things that came in the complete kit were digital Smiths gauges. (I think you know how I feel about digital things in a car thats supposed to be replicating something from the 60's, lol)

The other major thing was the suspension. The complete kit came with a Moser 3link rear end, but I was dead set on a 4link. I don't know why, but the lack of symmetry in a 3link really bothers me which is really odd on a car with only a drivers side roll bar and I hate the way the symmetrical double roll bars look. ironic right?!

So I ordered the beefed up Moser rear end in a 4link, then I ordered their top of the line koni coil overs and shock, and then I ordered all the best hardware: forged aluminum lower control arms, and heavy duty fabricated steel upper control arms. Ill bet you that had I used my wore out rear from the Mustang it would all fit together. Or even better, if I used this brand new rear end with all the old control components from the Mustang ill bet you it would've fit too. But I messed them up by ordering a top of the line 4link rear end and suspension system instead of letting them sell me a 3link or just going with a basic suspension.

Its all good though. I finally accepted that this thing isnt gonna get done quickly, especially If I want it done right. Thats why I bought the Fairlane, which is already turning into a project all its own. So much for it being a driver, but thats another thread!

 

[Wedgy]

So. Grind? Or not to grind, that is the question. I say, grind away!

I feel you pain about missing pieces. Doing high end Tile, we were always getting shorted on decorative inserts, liners, in our bath and kitchen instalations.

Production demanded forward motion to proceed anyway so we would insert wood strips of the same size in place of the liners, and keep on going up the wall.
Oftentimes, this would alarm the Homeowners, who would question how did we know that the decorative pieces would fit. "Well, how to you know that they will fit?"

"Easy. Because I've got a Tile saw..."

 

[Shlbyntro]

A mostly successful day! I have to admit I started opening boxes and realized that my upper control arm adapters were raw metal and I don't have any paint at home. I started my truck and gave it 20 minutes to warm up before I went outside and scraped the ice off the windshield and tried to make my way down the road to the store to try to buy some paint. Well I made it about 1/4 mile and started sliding all over the place and thought it best to turn around and head home without the paint.

I almost said screw it and was about to put everything up. But I managed to bring myself to get as much done as I could without the control arm adapters and I'm glad I did although the left lower control arm was fighting me going into place and for a moment I was getting deja vu from yesterday. After about 20 minutes I was able to muscle it in with the help of a rubber mallet and then everything else went smoothly for the rest of the day including assembling the front coilover konis. It was a good day!

Maybe tomorrow since I realized I will be stuck at home again, I might try and put some of the steering system together

 

[poncho]

You better get that thing done, looking at your weather i cant help but think there are a lot of unwinterized boats going to be needing a lot of attention this spring.

 

[Shlbyntro]

I was just talking with the shop owner this morning and he already has 2x 6.2L and 2x 5.7L Merc longblocks on order as of this morning.

Not much I can do on the car right now. My driveway is iced over with more sleet/ice on the way and i can't pull stuff out.

FFR did get back to me regarding the upper control arms. Engineering is supposedly drawing up some new control arms for me right now. Crossing my fingers.

 

[poncho]

I was just talking with the shop owner this morning and he already has 2x 6.2L and 2x 5.7L Merc longblocks on order as of this morning.

Not much I can do on the car right now. My driveway is iced over with more sleet/ice on the way and i can't pull stuff out.

FFR did get back to me regarding the upper control arms. Engineering is supposedly drawing up some new control arms for me right now. Crossing my fingers. View attachment 973323 View attachment 973322

Like i said those guy's are local to me and we have some mutual friends and they all say its a very stand up business.

 

[76sanger]

hope you pulled the back straps out of it! Glad you Ok!

 

[Shlbyntro]

Not a whole lot to be done today. Still waiting on the rectification of the rear upper control arms.

The upper ball joints are installed up front, and the steering rack is installed. Im back to the waiting game.I'll be jumping back to the Fairlane whose parts should be here Wednesday.

 

[Shlbyntro]

The new upper control arms arrived today. They dont fit just like the first set. Now I'm getting upset. FFR has literally wasted my entire off-season with backordered parts and now 2 weeks on this debacle. My off-season is over and I've barely been able to touch the car at all

 

[JUSTWANNARACE]

Well I may be getting shut in this weekend. But that doesn't mean I can't be shut in in the garage.

Suspension this weekend!
View attachment 972308

I have the same shop heat setup. A little loud, but have a louder stereo. It's nice to have feeling in your hands while working, and loud music is a good motivator for me anyway.

The gas, diesel and kerosene ones always gave me a headache in my shop. Went to the propane jet heater(same style) and never had another headache. And they dont emit as much moisture either!

 

[monkeyswrench]

The gas, diesel and kerosene ones always gave me a headache in my shop. Went to the propane jet heater(same style) and never had another headache. And they dont emit as much moisture either!

The diesel doesn't bother me much. I think I've killed enough brain cells to pass that point now The moisture is actually helpful to me. It tends to be dry here, and rolling on the creeper charges your fingertips like a damn HEI...brush against the chassis or the trim, ZAP! The moisture lessens that quite a bit.

 

[4Waters]

The diesel doesn't bother me much. I think I've killed enough brain cells to pass that point now The moisture is actually helpful to me. It tends to be dry here, and rolling on the creeper charges your fingertips like a damn HEI...brush against the chassis or the trim, ZAP! The moisture lessens that quite a bit.

When I know I have a good charge I always enjoy touching the wife's ass, makes for a good laugh

 

[Shlbyntro]

Good progress today. 3rd attempt at an oil pan was a success! (Oil pump punched a hole through the first one, second one was on eternal backorder) the new oil pan is a "stock" appearing rear sump oil pan but it is baffled and has a crank scraper.

I was not happy with the spark plug wire fitment so I'm going to have to try a different set. The 9mm Ford Racing wires will have to be saved for later I guess.

Also, my 4th set of upper control arms for the rear end arrived today. they fucked up AGAIN!!!! but at least these ones fit. They just put the grease zircs in the absolute worst position, pointing straight forward at the chassis where no grease gun would ever be able to reach no matter what zirc/attachment you used. I told them this on the last set and to make sure it was corrected as well as the fitment issue. Now I'm going to have to plug their zirc hole and drill my own, not to mention press my bushings out of another set of control arms and then into these ones because they didn't feel like it this time around......

 

[Wedgy]

That motor is a work of art. Nice!
Stay with it. Adversity makes us stronger.
Love that Comet? Love yer show!!

 

[Shlbyntro]

That motor is a work of art. Nice!
Stay with it. Adversity makes us stronger.
Love that Comet? Love yer show!!

62 Fairlane

Ive gone and done something incredibly stupid.

Purchased this as a driver for the interim while I build the Cobra. Fuck me. Single owner 1962 Ford Fairlane. Upholstery has already been done, brand new floor boards, has a foxbody injected 5.0 in it with a big Lunati cam. C4 trans with floor shift conversion. I got it cheap too. I drove it...

www.riverdavesplace.com

 

[Shlbyntro]

So a small tangent here but very related to this thread. Ive been making a strong effort into downsizing my boating fleet this year to just 1 or maybe 2 (from 5 or 6)

Well a very tantalizing and very serious offer was thrown my way. A guy wants to trade me what appears to be a very clean, lightly modded 89GT for my Formula, straight across. Hes already seen the Formula in all its Glory, im supposed to go see and drive the Mustang next weekend.

Am I crazy for trading a fleet of boats for a fleet of cars?? Ok don't answer that!

 

[coolchange]

Is the Ford legal? Probably easier sell than the formula. Is he off loading his problem.

 

[Shlbyntro]

Appears to be. Title for title swap. Mustang is over 30yrs old and doesn't require smog in TX, basic safety inspection only.. Selling this behemoth has been a challenge, no body wants an older carbureted cruiser these days and slips are at a premium on Travis.

Top 2 questions I get are does the trailer/slip come with it. They probably want to tow it with their f150

 

[n2otoofast4u]

Boats get bitches. 5L Mustangs...... not so much.

 

[Shlbyntro]

Boats get bitches. 5L Mustangs...... not so much.

Well not including the Formula, I still have 3

 

[coolchange]

Boats get bitches. 5L Mustangs...... not so much.

But when you’ve got a rep Cobra....

 

[HubbaHubbaLife]

So a small tangent here but very related to this thread. Ive been making a strong effort into downsizing my boating fleet this year to just 1 or maybe 2 (from 5 or 6)

Well a very tantalizing and very serious offer was thrown my way. A guy wants to trade me what appears to be a very clean, lightly modded 89GT for my Formula, straight across. Hes already seen the Formula in all its Glory, im supposed to go see and drive the Mustang next weekend.

Am I crazy for trading a fleet of boats for a fleet of cars?? Ok don't answer that!

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I say do it..... I hate to see all that brain tech power go under utilized. Cheers!

 

[Shlbyntro]

Well finally..... success! The rear end is officially hanging from the car in all its glory. It still fought me a shit ton. Of all the touted "state of the art cad drawings" and jigs with an assembly team that are "the best in the business" there are some serious variances all over this car. Its nothing that will keep the car short of being amazing when I'm finished, but it is enough to piss you off! Lol. I even had enough time to mount the rear brakes which I was not planning on getting to today, and all this after Casper and I went to the store to get some groceries and also lunch. Put today down as a successful one!

On a side bar, I'm going to be spending a lot less time here on RDP in an effort to be spending more time in the garage with the cars but Im still here should anybody have any boat related questions or need help with anything. Just reach out to me in a text

714 three9eight 610seven
-Breck

Oh also, it was great meeting and hanging out with a bunch of you at Desert Storm! I may have to make it a regular pilgrimage

 

[H20 Toie]

It was great to meet you at DS, keep it up, looking forward to the finished product,

 

[spectras only]

Is the door held by duct tape to mock up the body? Or, fiberglass panel fitment is still questionable with these? My buddy [ collision shop owner ] built two of these in the past and spent a lot of time make the doors, hood and trunk lid to fit properly.
Great project though and am sure you'll have a blast with it when it's all done.

 

[Shlbyntro]

Is the door held by duct tape to mock up the body? Or, fiberglass panel fitment is still questionable with these? My buddy [ collision shop owner ] built two of these in the past and spent a lot of time make the doors, hood and trunk lid to fit properly.
Great project though and am sure you'll have a blast with it when it's all done.

They're still taped from shipping. I wanted to get it sitting on the ground to allow the chassis/body to settle before I started gapping panels. There is going to be some gapping to do on it though. My plan is to get it to a roller state, gap the body, then remove it to send off for paint. And while the body is off ill install the engine, trans, plumbing, and electrical

 

[Shlbyntro]

Well I was just planning on pulling the steering knuckle bolts to throw in the Cobra tonight but got talked into doing this too. I'm not upset about it

 

[Shlbyntro]

2 hours, half a gallon of degreaser, and a Hotsy later. As it turns out, what I believed to be the original transmission in my Mustang all these years happened to not be, I found a date stamping underneath all the grease: April, 1993. The Mustang was an 88. As far as I'm concerned, its still part of my original car. Just something new I learned about my car that I thought I knew everything about already after all these years.

 

[Yoshiro]

That 1993 trans might be a really good thing. Ford put a beefed up world class T5 trans in the '93 cobra. It was the best of the best as far as their T5 transmissions were up until then. They sold these transmissions also through the Ford Motorsport catalog. You might have one of these good transmissions. They had a better 2.95 first gear ratio among other things. One of the exterior differences is where the throwout bearing rides (input shaft housing) it will be steel, not aluminum.

 

[PlanB]

I have a Tremec 3550 in my Superformance and it's always in the back of my mind that I am pushing 600 hp/tq through it. If I ever blow it up I will probably go with a TKO 600. Being a light car I think helps the transmission a lot though.

 

[Shlbyntro]

That 1993 trans might be a really good thing. Ford put a beefed up world class T5 trans in the '93 cobra. It was the best of the best as far as their T5 transmissions were up until then. They sold these transmissions also through the Ford Motorsport catalog. You might have one of these good transmissions. They had a better 2.95 first gear ratio among other things. One of the exterior differences is where the throwout bearing rides (input shaft housing) it will be steel, not aluminum.

1352-208

 

[Yoshiro]

Found some info on the cobra trans I was thinking about:

In 93, Ford also had one other variation of the T5 that was limited to the SVT Cobra Mustang. This “Cobra Spec” option was the first of its kind to have the tapered input shaft bearing and improved front bearing retainer. They also included a new reverse gear braking system and synchro whereas previous models lacked these functions. Torque rating was bumped up to 310 lb/ft and internal gearing remained the same.

 

[Shlbyntro]

I went with flat black.

 

[Shlbyntro]

With the weather, today started out as a "let me just go in the garage and see what I can get done" only expecting to maybe finally finish the front suspension. Well.... front and rear suspension is officially 100% finished and I also got a bunch done on the engine! It is finally time to mount some rubbers on my wheels and get this bitch sitting on the ground

Some great progress today!!!

 

[steamin rice]

Looking great!

 

[PlanB]

Coming along great!

 

[t&y]

This whole thread is awesome.

 

[riverroyal]

This whole thread is awesome.

Agreed

 

[ford 4x429]

A true Phoenix rising

 

[Shlbyntro]

Thanks all! It's exciting that I'm finally making some progress. I pretty much have all the parts minus the gas cap so I can start blowing and going.

I think I have a name for her too, "Bliss." Gloria will live on through her.

 

[ChumpChange]

So did you make the Formula/89GT trade?

 

[Shlbyntro]

No...... guy backed out of the deal

 

[Shlbyntro]

Tires are on order and I'm cleaning up the motormounts tonight. With any luck the car will be sitting on the ground for the very first time this weekend. Shit is about to start moving really fast.

Also, guy with the Mustang called me back up out of the blue yesterday, the deal may be back on

 

[HubbaHubbaLife]

Keep it coming.... I wanna see you flying around the hood with just chassis & motor.... did that with a friends before the body came back from paint, fun.

 

[Husqy510]

Great job. I've enjoyed following your progress