My 1973 Mach 1 project thread

[Rolling_Thunder]

Hello All, About a month ago I posted that I finally had a project to do in my workshop! So here's where Im at with it!!

This is what I started with: 1973 Mustang Mach 1, 429 BBF, Built C6 ******, 9" rear w/3.90 Posi

I have replaced the entire front suspension including the Power Steering Box on the car. I also cleaned up, coated with a rust converter and undercoated both front wheel well areas. New front calipers and pads.

Cleaned up:

Rust proofed and undercoated:

Suspension completed on the Front End:

All the new Stuff I had to install!!

Removed the rear suspension, cleaned the rearend up and painted it. Replaced the axle bearings and seals, cleaned up the Wilwood calipers and rotors and installed new pads. Also disassembled the Wilwood parking brake calipers and got them to actually work.

Before:

After:

I was going to clean the rear section of the car and undercoat it. I was going to do the rest of the bottom of the car later on, then my son came over for father’s day and he talked me into removing the exhaust and doing the entire floor now while the rear was out and I could easily remove the exhaust. So the exhaust is off cleaned up and painted an aluminum color. The underneath is just about ready to use the conveter on and undercoat.

The car came with an Art Carr Winters shifter in it, I really didn’t care for the shifter and it needed a new $85 plastic casing for it to be mounted. So I decided to buy a new shifter, after some internet research I ended up buying a B&M Pro Ratchet Shifter, it seems like the right choice for both Street and Strip use. It definitely looks better in the car and works much better than the Winters did!

After the suspension is completed I'll be putting on the new fiberglass front bumper, also bought a new 3 Core aluminum radiator and need to replace the front main seal it has a small leak in it! After that it'll be heading to the body shop for repairs and painting.

“TOMMYK” from this forum told me about the 7173 mustangs.com forum and it’s a lot a lot like this forum lots of good people and a wealth of good info! BUTTTTT I do have one complaint about the forum. There are so many cools pic’s and idea’s from it that its costing me extra money I didn’t want to spend!! Like I was going to polish and put new tires on the wheels that came with the car but there was a thread where everyone was posting pic’s of their wheels and I saw a set I just had to have!!! So $1200 later I have a beautiful set of wheels and new tires to make my Mach 1 look even better!!

More to come!!!

 

[jabberwoki]

So glad you scrapping those hideous center lines. if you have to rebuild the motor those 514 stroker kits and really cheap.
Very nice car i`ve always liked them.
Your fellow mustang owner jabber.

 

[Rolling_Thunder]

The motor and ****** have less than 1k miles on them but the car evidently sat for a long time! So Valve cover gaskets and front main seal are leaking...

Yeah I really like the wheels I bought! got 17x8's with 235/45/17's on the front and 18x9.5 with 275/40/18's on the rear!

 

[Bull]

Great car and great thread. How many hours would you say you have into the parts of the project posted above? Seems like you've been kicking *** for just a month's time. Doing all that might take me three times that long! What did you use to clean the floors?

When I was a kid in the '80s, I was obsessed with muscle-era cars. I was particularly fond of Mustangs/Shelbys and used to stare at them endlessly in the car magazines and classifieds rags of the era. Somehow, I became a diehard Pontiac guy, but still appreciate the 'Stangs, especially those Mach and Boss versions.

 

[BigV]

That's my favorite Mustang. I had a 73 project car, sold it for $1250. It needed major work, and my heart just wasn't in it. The guy who got it had one in worse condition and decided to restore mine. That was enough for me to cut him a deal and sell him the car for what he could afford. I miss it.

I still have my 72 Charger, 70 Challenger, and 70 Superbee.

The $4 a gallon gas means my obsession with HD's has increased.

 

[Rolling_Thunder]

Great car and great thread. How many hours would you say you have into the parts of the project posted above? Seems like you've been kicking *** for just a month's time. Doing all that might take me three times that long! What did you use to clean the floors?

When I was a kid in the '80s, I was obsessed with muscle-era cars. I was particularly fond of Mustangs/Shelbys and used to stare at them endlessly in the car magazines and classifieds rags of the era. Somehow, I became a diehard Pontiac guy, but still appreciate the 'Stangs, especially those Mach and Boss versions.

Well I had a stroke last June and have been slowly recovering. Actually start back to work beginning of July. So When Im feeling good I go out and do some work on her for a while. Hours? Not really sure.

Ive been using an angle grinder with a dewalt Cup Wire Wheel(on my 2nd one) also have a 2" wire cup on a drill, a 1" wire cup on a drill and a gasket scraper. Between all of them I'm able to get into ever crack and crevace!!!

Nothing wrong with Pontiac's Always loved the older Firebird's and GTO's

 

[magova1104]

Very nice car! Congrats for your great taste. Thanks for sharing with us.

 

[Rolling_Thunder]

That's my favorite Mustang. I had a 73 project car, sold it for $1250. It needed major work, and my heart just wasn't in it. The guy who got it had one in worse condition and decided to restore mine. That was enough for me to cut him a deal and sell him the car for what he could afford. I miss it.

I still have my 72 Charger, 70 Challenger, and 70 Superbee.

The $4 a gallon gas means my obsession with HD's has increased.

Id take any of the Mopars you listed! All great cars! Before I bought my 1st Mach 1 when I was 18 I was supposed to buy a 69 GTX with a 440 and a 4spd took out a loan to buy the car and the guy decided not to sell it. Ended up buying a 70 Mach 1 and have been a ford guy ever since!!

With a wild *** 429 engine and a 3.90 rear Im sure this car wont be passing up manyh gas stations!!

 

[LutzTD]

keep us posted. love the muscle era mustangs

 

[RivennHewn]

Your car may be blue, but I'm F'n green with envy.

 

[theoldwizard1]

I pretty certain I saw zerks on the upper A arm bushings ! Only way to prevent squeaks on any Ford that had that style front suspension.

How is the gas tank ? Has it already been replaced ?

 

[Rolling_Thunder]

I pretty certain I saw zerks on the upper A arm bushings ! Only way to prevent squeaks on any Ford that had that style front suspension.

How is the gas tank ? Has it already been replaced ?

Yep definetly put zerks on the upper control arms! Know all about the squeaking issue!

The gas tank was replaced and looks brand new.

 

[BMcC]

Cool project!

 

[kingofrestriction]

Fantastic project!

 

[BigV]

Again: Awesome car. Keep us updated.

 

[RVDan]

That brings back memories, that was our first car, in the same color, and by first car I mean my Dad bought one new in 73, I was born in 74. I'm not sure when exactly my parents sold it, some time between Seat belts use becoming mandatory and my youngest brother being born in 1983 it was decided they needed a car that could seat six

 

[BigV]

Don't ever wreck it. The 73's used a ton of one year only parts. The grille, the fenders, tail light panel filler, all that was one year. I just remembered that.

With the right intake, the 3.08 rear gear, a small Edelbrock or Carter carb(or Motorcraft), you can get the 429 to about 11-13mpg. I know of a "Gator car"- a factory four speed 429 Galaxie like in White Lightning and Gator- that is setup that way it is a blast top end, and does okay on gas- like I said 11-13. The Mach 1 will be lighter, and you could get 13-15.

The 72 Charger with a 440 and TQ carb will get 11-15. With the old Holley I had, which was robbed from a Ford 460, I got maybe 7mpg. It was a setup similar to yours with 3.73 rear gears.

 

[bbmach]

Very nice - if you don't know the history of the engine or the build, it could very easily be a 460! I have a 460 in my '69 Mach and think you'll be quite pleased if it was built competently.

 

[TX63CONV]

I have a '69 mustang that I am working on and rebuilding the front suspension as we speak.

What did you use as a top coat for your wheel wells? Some type of bedliner or just black paint? I was planning on wire brushing mine but unsure of bedliner or just black paint? Body shop has already replaced both quarters, blacked out the engine bay and painted the underneath.

Enlighten me on the zerks and what that does to the squeaking.

 

[bbmach]

I have a '69 mustang that I am working on and rebuilding the front suspension as we speak.

Enlighten me on the zerks and what that does to the squeaking.

http://www.cal-mustang.com/UPPER-CONTROL-ARM-GREASE-FITTING-KIT-P5475C328.aspx

In the olden days, "mechanics" used to knock holes in back (and sometimes front ) of the shock towers and install grease fittings in the upper control arm ends. The upper arms were a common source of suspension noise.

The 90 degree zerk fittings allow for greasing without the shock tower holes. Buy the kit from someone, normal 90 degree fittings are too big and don't allow the grease gun to fit on when assembled.

 

[prowli]

Beautiful car man, and good work!
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[Rolling_Thunder]

Don't ever wreck it. The 73's used a ton of one year only parts. The grille, the fenders, tail light panel filler, all that was one year. I just remembered that.

With the right intake, the 3.08 rear gear, a small Edelbrock or Carter carb(or Motorcraft), you can get the 429 to about 11-13mpg. I know of a "Gator car"- a factory four speed 429 Galaxie like in White Lightning and Gator- that is setup that way it is a blast top end, and does okay on gas- like I said 11-13. The Mach 1 will be lighter, and you could get 13-15.

The 72 Charger with a 440 and TQ carb will get 11-15. With the old Holley I had, which was robbed from a Ford 460, I got maybe 7mpg. It was a setup similar to yours with 3.73 rear gears.

I have found that most parts are available for it from some of the mustang vendors. But No One is making the front bumper for them. I had to buy a Fiberglass one for a replacement hope its not too much work to install!!!

Not really concerneed with the MPG it'll just be a weekend cruiser car but I do plan on spending a lot of weekends at the local dragstrip with it so lookin for the HP!!

 

[Rolling_Thunder]

Very nice - if you don't know the history of the engine or the build, it could very easily be a 460! I have a 460 in my '69 Mach and think you'll be quite pleased if it was built competently.

Well he didnt have documentation on the engine but said it was a 429 Ford Racing Crate motor that the shop tore down before installing and had it balanced and blued and a complete roller cam setup installed. I can say I took it for a few short drives and it is wickedly Powerful! Im guessing begtwee 550-600 HP.

 

[Rolling_Thunder]

I have a '69 mustang that I am working on and rebuilding the front suspension as we speak.

What did you use as a top coat for your wheel wells? Some type of bedliner or just black paint? I was planning on wire brushing mine but unsure of bedliner or just black paint? Body shop has already replaced both quarters, blacked out the engine bay and painted the underneath.

Enlighten me on the zerks and what that does to the squeaking.

I cleaned the wells out real good. I used a Dewalt Braided Wire Cup Wheel on an angle grinder and a 2" cup on a drill and a 1"cup on a drill and a gasket scraper to get it clean in every area. then I Treated everything with a rust converter then just used Car Undercoating for the top coat. This car will always be garaged kept so I really could have just painted them black! I see you already got an explanation on the zerk fittingsa and sqeaks!

Sooooo where are the Pic's of your 69?

 

[Student of steel]

A great project and good luck with the rest of the build. Hope you have a great time cruising in it no matter the price of gasoline.

 

[TX63CONV]

My uncle bought it new in 70 when he got back from Vietnam. Sat in the garage for the last 15 years. The only bad spots were rust in the both quarters and outer wheel wells. Goal is to get drivetrain back in before the fall and off to the painter.

Off to the body shop.

Thanks for the info on the wheel wells and zerks. Upgrading to discs on the front and your wheel wells looked nice and clean.

 

[KermitFrog]

I had a buddy in school in the 80's that had one identical down to the wheels. Wow, memory lane!

 

[emeraldcoupe]

looking great, any updates?

 

[egnorant]

Can I join this club?

Pulled out of the barn after 28 years.

We got it running, stopping, rolling and turning properly.
Soon to be delivered to my nephew in Arkansas.
Then it is his project.

Bruce

 

[Kevin54]

Wow...I forgot about the squeak problem. I had a '69 'Stang and a few I ran around with drove Mustangs. I don't think there was one that didn't squeak. Hardly any rust under the frontends though. Oil, WD40, going to the carwash to spray the suspension, just to cruise on a Fri. & Sat. night without squeaking.

That's a good looking '73. For years I never cared about that body style, but now, the more I see them the more I like them

 

[NUTTSGT]

When I was a kid in the '80s, I was obsessed with muscle-era cars. I was particularly fond of Mustangs/Shelbys and used to stare at them endlessly in the car magazines and classifieds rags of the era. Somehow, I became a diehard Pontiac guy, but still appreciate the 'Stangs, especially those Mach and Boss versions.

It's okay Bull, Pontiac muscle is still cool.

 

[NUTTSGT]

looking great, any updates?

same same ?

 

[e-tek]

BUMP - what happened?!?!?

 

[Monkey Milk]

I want to play too, but my story ends different. I had a 71 mach1 with boss 351c engine in it. Striped it, sold all the parts except the motor and body, guess what went into my 70 mach1.
Man those 71-74 mustangs fastbacks are hard to drive, reversing I mean. Nice car where the update.

 

[Jay H 237]

Both my father and Aunt had 73 Grande's. My father traded his in in 1982, see my sig, my Aunt had hers stored at her house until 1993 or so. I was offered it around that time but as a 18 year old couldn't afford a second car (the Mustang wouldn't be driven during the winter) and the fact the car needed more work than I could do or afford. The car ran and drove fine but the cowl and firewall were rotted out bad, the hood hinge on one side wasn't attached to anything. Surprisingly most of the floor and rear quaters were solid! It was sold to a family friend who owned it for a year or so before it died an ugly death. It stopped running at one point and he was having it towed to a local shop, they were winching it up his steep driveway when the cable let go, it rolled back down, through the closed garage door, blew a hole through the rear wall and landed in the backyard. There wasn't one undamaged body panel on the car and even the vinyl roof was torn up. It was dragged out and junked.

 

[NHBandit]

Very cool ! I need to look into those Wilwood parking brake calipers. Are they cable operated ? I converted my 67 Camaro over to 4 wheel discs using Wilwood aluminum calipers and since the car is a 4 speed I really need to rig up some sort of parking brake.

 

[kbs2244]

I had one but gray and a 351C.
I used it as a DD while I collected the 429 and Merc interior.
I got T-boned on the way to work one morning and there went that project.

I sure was light in the tail, even with the 351.
I really wanted to see what it would do with a 429.

 

[rumpity_z28]

what a great project i think those are one of the all time best looking pony cars