2015 Project Thread!

i firmly believe that if the local parts stores would sell the hose in 3ft lengths thy would sell a lot more hose. the has to be a reason for stupidity.
imagine a parts hub like SCRAPPA for instance, has a 50 ft roll of hose sitting on the shelf for years, with no sales, why don't we package the stuff up in shorter lengths like fuel, power steering, vacuum etc so we can sell some? That Takes thinking and computers do what they are told to do, no brains involved.
Hell; even a small company like Jegs sells short lengths of hose that are coolant ready.
I brought the FANG home this weekend, but I don’t want to be too eager, as we are in monsoon season, my best umbrella was destroyed by wind and hail on Wednesday, the hail like it was stinging when it hit you. My work-mate looked like he had been pelted on his legs, I like driving in the rain, but some freaks in big jacked-up trucks don’t know how to drive, and I don’t want to get hit.
I hope to put some miles on this weekend, so we’ll see.

You mean like this?

That's what I bought the other day that I've decided not to use for heater hose. Prestone brand. Prestone makes freakin' ANTIFREEZE, not fuel! It was a dirty trick, if you ask me. If it HAD been the right kind of hose though, you're right, it would have been just the thing. Too bad they decided to be sneaky bastards.

How far did you have to walk in the hail?! That doesn't sound fun at all! It hailed here the other day after the kids had gone to bed. Scared the hell out of my son.

Wait a minute now, I don't think we've ever clarified this. Is the Fang your Fairmont? I always thought since your user name is Fangar150-ex, that has something to do with an Fake F-150 Ranger you used to have. So I'm wrong about that? haha

Holy crap, I just went back through my car spending for this year, and it's about double what I told the wife I'd be spending. I'm in the process of trying to figure out where it all went right now. Dang. $30 here, $50 there, really adds up!

hey the fang as I call the Fairmont is a cross bred between a F/airmont & a must/ANG!! yeah I took it out before dawn yesterday to see the lighting striking the mountains and lighting up the sky. it was gorgeous, the wind was blowing pretty hard, so I stopped off at mc Donald's to take some pix of the US flag flapping in the wind, it looked great! so while I was there I got some grub and went home. later in the evening me and the wife were out burning some gasoline and stopped along the hiway and watched the firework display, that was also fantastic, no crowds/drunks/fighting/parking issues etc.
I had to go about 100ft or so to the shop then that and some more to the car.
so far as ranger plans go, i'm thinking about a 30's 40's car or truck on a ranger frame with a 5.0 or 4.6. that's kinda gone against the wall with the focus plans, but the 4.6 or 5.0 fits in a ranger if you'd ever like to do one, also the fox body mustang dash and console fits the ranger if your interested......
I think way too much and get myself into to many sticky situations, and money is tight, people think anything with rust or dents is valuable nowadays, and if I cant buy, I cant sell, so if nobody is buying i'm sitting on my hands for now.
the Prestone hose should be ok I would think, coolant's not as tough on the rubber as gasoline except for the heat, I was thinking more on the line about some "push-loc" hose from JEGS, its for coolant & oils, however I'm not familiar with the AN sizes, so you would have to call them for the right size. it comes in black, red, blue & yellow, its located in the fittings & hoses section. this may be exactly what you are looking for. I hate when I feel cheated, because the smooth talking bar-steward will ask "did you read the fine print or does it say anti-freeze" what else does prestone sell ....coffee & dogh nuts????? do they still do anti-freeze???

Okay, I've got it now, haha.

Sounds like some nice trips you took! I'm looking forward to doing the same SOON. I really hope this hose thing is the last kink post-engine work to work out.

I like your Ranger idea! That would be really cool! What if you were to take an '02-09 Explorer chassis and do something like that? You'd have IRS and everything! A Ranger would be a lot cheaper though.

I was thinking about my eventual purchase of a new '69 sportsroof body. A real '69 dash/interior might be pretty hard to come by, let alone drivetrain and suspension. Your chassis idea might be good for something like this too! A real frame would be stronger than a unibody anyway. I'd just have to "channel" it, or whatever that's called when you sink the frame deep into the floor. For a dash, I always liked my '07 Milan's dash. It's modern, but not so modern that everything's controlled by a touch screen. There's a nice big radio opening so I could put a nice double din aftermarket head unit in there, and I could use the factory automatic temperature control and cool stuff like that! It's a long ways down the road though... sigh...

Anyway, I probably wouldn't do a Ranger, but I WOULD like to do a 5.0L 2-door Explorer with a manual. Haven't decided yet on 2 or 4wd, haha. My dad has a nice '97 Ranger though. It would be cool to help him do a V8 swap on that bad boy! That 3.0L gets crap for gas mileage anyway!

You are right about channeling, it been done since the dark ages. My dad and one particular uncle were in the “leather jacket” club, sometimes they did it for fun, sometimes they did it out of necessity to keep something on the road & running….my uncle was a shrimper/fisher and had a garage big enough to do rebuilds on small shrimpers, he also worked on cars, trucks farm machinery, my old man was an aircraft engine mechanic and welder , so in the off-shrimping season when they were younger they were always building some “contraption” they knew all the tricks of the time.
I will try to remember to get a photo of a car at work today, it’s a genuine 69 mach 1 in white with red interior, with the clock on the passenger side. Seems the guy chased it down, rebuilt the eng & trans etc. He let it sit so long the tires rotted…???////****. He had a problem with the Edelbrock carb, brought it in for a tune-up & trans pan gasket, while it was sitting in the Arizona sun, one of the tires blew out at the dealership. I have no clue why he won’t DRIVE it or SELL it, yeah it needs work, but it’s drivable. He needs to do something soon or that dash with be destroyed by the brutal desert sun.
I think the “69 in a crate” is probably the best way to go, personally I’d bastardize the thing in some way or another, get it looking right so far as body trim interior etc, but the suspension, powertrain/drivetrain would have to go, they were crap in the day and certainly crap by todays standards.
Cool idea about the exploder frames, I’m not a 4x4 person, but I can imagine that chassis siting under an old truck body tooling around town. Imagine something from to40’s or 50’s up starting up on a cold morning without doing a tap dance on the accelerator actually passing an emissions test. I don’t know how high the engines sit in the frame, but I’m sure we could get a lower center of gravity…

Well if a guy wants to drive a truck all year round in these parts, 4wd, certainly makes his life easier!

I wonder if a Panther chassis would fit under a '69 reasonably well. Upper and lower control arm front suspension (good-bye shock towers!) and coil spring rear with Watts link on the later ones. That would be pretty good, I think. Get a Town Car air suspension for it, and ride on a cloud! haha.

When I'm king, people that own muscle cars and don't drive them will be shot on site. Plus, obviously, I'd bring the prices back down to earth.

Wow, your dad had some skills!

i don't think the panther chassis would be a good idea on the mustang body, however if you just want to get rid of the shock towers, there is a kit offered that not only gets rid of the shock towers but allows for rack and pinion, I saw one on a 67 mustang at a car show, I forget what size engine was in the car, 5.0 or 351, it was definitely a beasty daily driver from out of town, we talked for a while, he said it wasn’t that difficult to do, and believe me bro, there is tons of space in the engine compartment, I noticed the car because I could see rack and pinion steering so I went to have a look, he had done tons of mods to the car, but I didn’t look crappy, I didn’t like the console with cup holders, but that’s my problem.
I don’t think my old dad or uncle Dutch were really talented, they did what they had to do keep things going or keep their minds occupied, they needed each other, and at least they drank less when they were busy. They were good folks who had a chance to work and travel for Uncle Sam during the early 40’s, all of my uncles had that opportunity for fun travel & adventure.
Did you know that the “hells Angels” were based at RAF Molesworth Cambridgeshire in England, there is a marker in the frt of the air base even today, so now you know why I am interested the Great Depression and WWII history. So many of the things they said are true even today as history begins to repeat itself. Jimmy stewart and clark gable were based at RAF Molesworth, Clarke gable was “taken care of” so he didn’t see any “Real Action” but it was good propaganda for the war effort.
There was a massive technological explosion during this time, I suppose they got bit by the bug, that’s why they would say you can do anything you put your mind to.
That’s probably why I like doing things that are difficult or unusual, but once you do a difficult task, the second time is easier, but the “fun factor” is lost.
When I’m head of Ford Motor company, you’ll be vice president (the king won’t have time to mess around) when we release the new Fairmont & zephyr’s, people will be ashamed to drive a Camaro.

It's not so much I don't like shock towers, I'm certainly accustomed to having them. it's just a readily available, common, probably cheap chassis.

I'm a WW2 history fan too. Mostly Pacific/Navy stuff. Probably because Naval battles are so much more cut and dried. You sink the air craft carrier, the battle's over. Whereas land battles can go on almost indefinitely.

well you would certainly have to measure the length of the wheel base and wheel track, the hieghts of the frt and rear aches for the wheels, then the position of the engine location and height to see if it would fit the mustang body shell and if all looks well, then you would have to start cutting the shell to match the frame. don't forget the awkward position of the fuel tank. I would think the steering rack position would be fairly close.
I have no info on the dimensions of the panther frame, I see them quite a lot, and would say that the later ones are handle/steer/ride better
you can see a video on youtube called the "The Last Crown Vic" it's got all the assembly steps, so you can see the frame in its full glory.

Yeah, I imagine you'd have to cut it short in the middle somewhere. I doubt a classic Mustang has a 114" wheelbase. haha.

I'm still waiting on that heater hose to come. I did get my spring clamps, but they look a little chincy. The metal is just thinner than i'm used to seeing from OEM spring clamps. I'm not sure if i'm going to use them yet. If everything works out though, I have a chance to meet a new guy to the local F/Z scene tonight if it comes in and I can go to the local show. We'll see. I guess he writes for a Rat Rod magazine!

The big show I plan my whole summer around is next weekend. I guess Joe Elmore from Detroit Muscle (originally from Horsepower TV) is going to be there and everything. I have 4 other F/Z guys interested in going, most of whom I haven't met in person yet. It should be really fun!

There is so much to talk about when it comes to WWII, radar, televisions, radio’s, enigma, chain home system, degaussing, VI & VII rockets, submarines, supermarine spitfires, mosquito planes, etc, I am somewhat familiar with the pacific region, it was harsher than most people would like to believe, it was a terrible waste of life, however this is a Fairmont zephyr site, so I’ll keep my big mouth shut and be glad I never had to endure what those poor guys had to go thru. No wonder they all drank too much.
You are pretty lucky to meet all these people at your Car Shows. I’m thinking you would be fortunate if you could get a job at one of the mags, I think you’d do well. I like to see all the pretty good hot rods people make, I don’t like money pits or clones, just nice hot rods.
I stopped buying magazines long ago, I felt I wasn’t moving along with the times as it got too rich for my blood, and it all started to get “branded” and too much advertising of parts and not talent or thought behind the wheel.
I would not be happy to have all the big buck parts (chrome tire valve stem caps) advertised and some skimpy dressed young lady photographed washing the car, what if the poor lass washed the WHOLE car and not just the windows, I’d be banished from the scene.
Seriously though, I think you have the qualifications to work for one of those mags, and be a great writer or judge at a show. After all you’ve done the job………and know the ropes and what it involves. You’d be able to write an article each week on difficult parts to find, headlamp bushings, brake hoses, heater hose etc.
Maybe I could be you minion and do a bit on how to wire up crap to make it work, and then change your mind and put something else in next week. By the way……………I found a mirror last week for an EDGE, auto dimming, and compass, do you think I should put it in???? you be the judge!!!

Battleships, air craft carriers.... haha. But yeah, I know there were a lot of nasty land battles in the Pacific too. Okinawa and Iwo Jima, especially.

Well, I met all these people online. I'm not so good with walking up to strangers and introducing myself, haha. I think I might be a decent magazine writer, but he works for a rat rod magazine. I think I'd be too cynical about rat rods, as I'm not a fan of the trend. "This car looks old and sh**ty, and his choice of powerplant, a small block Chevy, really sucks." hahaha!

I don't mind articles that focus on specific brand speed parts. At least that way you know the stuff works. The numbers are right there. It's better than just an endorsement. "You should buy STP". Okay, thanks Richard Petty. Just because you say so....

Also, those magazines can help me find more sources for parts that don't necessarily pay Google to be one of the top results in a search. That's quite a racket they've got going, Google.

Tell you what, if I get a magazine job, you're hired. Auto-dimming, sweet! I say slap that bad boy in there. I would. I've already replaced mine with a manual day/night one.

I found out that my heater hose was never sent, so I'll be waiting a bit longer as it's in the mail now. Oh well, that's okay. I'm too tired to hit any shows this weekend anyway.

i'm gonna hook that mirror up on Monday or Tuesday, we should have an Edge to swap with, it's just another gimmick to occupy the mind.
see; now if you worked for a magazine, you could find a vendor that actually has all the parts you need and get the part #’s posted, then with the extra income you could support more projects for your car, and your bubs cars and give true evaluations.
I’ve put in a lot of alarms, and some say easy installation, some of the “easy “installs were the hardest I’ve ever done. You may be able to clear this up.
Maybe you could do an article on “wraps”. At first I thought they were crap, but after seeing a few, I’ve since changed my mind. They can last 5-7 years in the Arizona sun…. I watched a guy do one in a day on a Ford Flex, he was pissed because he was from Phoenix and had to drive down, and forgot to bring some of his stuff, but was still able to complete the job.
I’ve seen a lot of documentaries on the U864, she was on a mission to transport a large quantity of mercury and parts and designs to Japan for German jet fighters. It was also the only time in naval warfare when one submarine sank another while both were under water. She was sunk by HMS Venturer, it’s still a dangerous wreck contaminating the ocean because the mercury containers are rotting out and spilling the mercury into the ocean.
I also find the Bismarck to be an interesting wreck, it sits on the bottom of the ocean upright, with no guns. The Bismarck sank the Hood, and all hell broke loose. The Bismarck was sank by a Swordfish Bi-plane, it was a crappy plane that flew too low and slow for the Germans to hit it.
I felt bad when Big Mo was retired, I know it’s really old, but it’s also historical.
As my old man was in the USAAF, I’m more into planes, having uncles in the Army, Navy & Marines I had plenty of stories told to me about Germany, France & Italy as a child. I only had one uncle who went to Japan. They were all good stories, but it also explained to some degree why they drank so much, I had two cousins damaged in Viet Nam; luckily they shut that down before I became of age.
I know a hell of a lot about the B17 Bomber, all useless information, but I still watch the video’s today, even know how to change the starter!!!! Some of the German aircraft had a clock-spring device which requires winding it up to start the engine, pretty cool eh…Spitfires,Lancasters,wellington’s, Mustangs with rolls Royce merlin engines, Avengers B17’s,B24, b25 etc .  
There is a big Polish war memorial on the Northolt roundabout between where I lived in Greenford and worked in Ruislip on the outer edges of London. We could see the search light still on every night from our back yard as a memorial. There were a lot of brave Polish guys who flew for Britain. I heard the battle of Britain stories from so many people who lived it. My wife’s grandmother said that during the WWI, the Germans would literally lean over the side of the airplanes and drop bombs out by hand, and use rifles and pistols to shoot!!! There were barrage balloons the the Germans would hit at night and crash.
One of my favorite stories told was by our cleaner, he said while on patrol one night they crept up on a U-boat that was on the surface, it was too close to shoot, so they rammed it!!!!

When my Uncle Dutch gave me Some German Coins to put into my collection, I really started to get bit by the bug; we have some small artifacts from both sides,  German, UK & American.  My Uncle Arnold was lucky he spoke German when he was on tour, hey isn’t this a Fairmont/Zephyr site………….
Way too much about WWII, but I do find it interesting, as it is historical, and history has a way of repeating itself. If you get a change look up” Die Glocke”  (the German Bell).
Have you had a chance to evaluate your LED lights since you put them in, are you pleased? I see some of the new Fords are using them a lot now. How do your new headlights work, are they brighter, any better.
I will try to send some pix of the 69 mustang to your e-mail today, I don’t know why the guy just lets it sit, it’s not a bad car.

Hahahaha, "true evaluations", huh? If they have me evaluating anything but Fords, they might have a hard time getting people to want their cars in the magazine after a few articles. "Ho hum, here we go again. It's yet another '57 Chevy, folks. And what has this owner done with it to distinguish himself? Jack sh**, that's what. It has the '57-style Fuel Injection badges, and a modern EFI motor. SOOO clever, right??!! NO." Hell, I'd even be cynical about some Fords, "This is a super-rare '70 Torino King Cobra. The owner doesn't touch it, let alone drive it. Boooooooorrrring." hahaha!

What sort of trouble are you having with the alarm? I know I remember I bought a remote start system to put on my wife's '07 Fusion, and later decided it wasn't worth the trouble, haha.

I'm not a fan of graphics of any kind on a car, so I haven't really considered a wrap for anything. It might be fun to change exterior color on my car, but I've only seen wraps either with graphics, or flat black, and I don't like how either of those things look. Not to mention, I think that's quite a bit of money to spend on something that's only temporary.

One of the coolest things I've seen in recent years is a show called Battle 360. It follows the aircraft carrier Enterprise throughout the war, and re-creates the battles with CGI. Enterprise did miss a couple of key battles, but it was there for most of them!

The Bismarck is one thing I'd like to know more about. There was hardly any battleship on battleship action in WW2, and that's the coolest I think. Those ships were the pinnacle of battleship design. If I remember correctly, the Yamato and Musashi were defeated in similarly boring ways. Sunk by planes, scuttled or whatever.

Yeah, all the LED stuff seems to be working nicely! They are definitely nice and bright! I still think I need to do some more work aiming my headlights. They're close, just not quite right I don't think. I think I'm going try the Popular Mechanics method. Gotta be able to drive the car first though.

I found out my hose was never sent the other day, so now I'm waiting for that. This heater hose ordeal is going over 2 weeks now. There was a chance to go to a good show this morning, and I missed it.

I got my spring clamps in the other day, but I'm not so sure they'll do the job. They look like they're more for a small engine or ice machine type application. This guy's been bugging me to check out these fuel line clamps that don't have uneven pressure like worm drive clamps do, but they still tighten with a bolt. I'm going to O'Reilly to have a look today, since I have time before the hose comes. And it's too hot to do anything outside.

Well, so far so good. My 1/4" heater hose came in and it's REALLY nice stuff. Very stout. I've got it on there now, and I used the fuel line clamps too. Not surprisingly, I had to buy them in a variety pack, and it only came with 3 in the size I need. So, I had to use a bigger one in one spot. How stupid.

I started the engine for the first time with the correct MAF sample tube installed too. It was confused at first, but soon settled in. It definitely seems happier. It idles without rolling and everything. haha.

I'll do more shaking down today and tomorrow before the big show, and hopefully all is well.

it's funny how some things are readily available and the things you need to keep the car going are obsolete. I have a friend with an 85 crown vic who needs a water pipe on the intake, it's almost a joke trying to find one. they were available a couple of years ago, now they seem extinct.
i'm having no luck finding the mirror, I hope it hasn't migrated to another home.
I was always wondering about those tubes for the maf, I'd never played with them, so I don't know anything about them.does it affect A/Fuel ratio?

This is for a SEFI engine, but would this do the job for the Vic?

http://www.latemodelrestoration.com/item/LRS-9424BB/Mustang-Heater-Tube-Assembly-86-93-50-58

I have run into a few things that just aren't available. Gotta find 'em used, that's the only way. Really though with how popular Foxes are, there's no excuse for that. SOMEBODY should be making them.

Yes, the sample tube definitely affect air/fuel ratio. The fuel smell in my garage is pretty much gone now. The car just purrs at idle now. No rolling at all. Funny how that'll happen with the right parts, haha.

I'm still a little nervous about it, but I think the car's ready to go sit in traffic tomorrow, and then that long line getting into the show. That's where my cooling fan failed last year.

here's a great way to test the fan, turn the lights on and put the blower on at full speed on cool vent, but do not use the heater, run down to the local convenience store, grab a bag or cheeto's and a32 ounce fountain drink, and a box of wooden matches. be kind of aggressive with the engine to get some heat built-up. when you get home you need to put the frt half of the car into the garage, and put a blanket in ftr of the hood & grille to block any airflow. start but running the engine at idle and begin munching on the cheeto's and sipping on the coke and monitor the temp guage until the fan cycles 2 or 3 times, make sure the headlights and blower fan are switched on to load the engine, if you have a rear window defroster, switch it on also.
the fan should cycle off and on and it may stay on longer or shorter each time, but it should cycle and continue to cycle while the temp guage will rise and lower, this is ok. if all proves well, grab a match and put it in your mouth , get out of the car, punch the air and do your happy dance. if it over heats, don't despair, adjust the temp on the electric cooling fan and retry.
if the fan is the correct size and working well you should be good to go, if all else fails, try turning the heater on at full blast to act as and an additional cooling fan. some aftermarket fans just cant do the job of cooling a car down for extended periods of idling times time, they are not all made for street cars. you should be fine.
I know this sounds a little out there in left field, but that's how test electric cooling fans.
I don't know if a 32 ounce mountain dew fountain drink will work, but I know that pepsi is ok, I have tried using the chili cheese frito lays, but cant offer a true perspective as the results were mixed, so i'll stick t the cheeto's as I know they are reliable.
the reason to leave the lights, blower and defroster is to load the engine a little bit and simulate warmer ambient temps with a resrtricted airflow thru the radiator.
you'll be fine.

No need to simulate high ambient temps, we've got 'em! It was ridiculous hot today and will be again tomorrow. I drove the car to the show today and it behaved pretty much, but one of my stupid Lincoln calipers was sticking again. I've about had it with those things. I think I'm going to look for some SN95 brakes to replace them with.

The thing died when I was almost home from the show today. No idea why. It wasn't overheating, the temp gauge read at about the halfway point. I thought maybe I was lacking in enough amps to run the engine with the fan running so much, and my stupid underdrive accessory drive pulleys, but the starter was cranking at full speed, so I don't think that's it. I did notice that after the car would kill, the fuel pressure gauge would always read zero. So, I don't know if my not that old fuel pump is going or what. I did get the thing restarted eventually, but it was pretty reluctant. It's safe in the garage now, but it might just stay there indefinitely. I'm pretty disenchanted with it right now.

there are 2 relays that could cause this lack of fuel pressure and the engine cutting off, one is the brown PCM relay and the other is the green Fuel pump relay.
if the engine just shuts off, its usually the brown relay, if it chugs a bit then stops, it's usually the green relay, they are not that expensive, so I generally replace them both t the same time.
if the brown relay is not working, the check eng light /maywill not turn on, and the fuel pump relay will not operate. if the check eng light comes on and the green relay dumps you wont hear the fuel pump buzz .

Sounds like a relay, huh? Thanks, i'll check it out!

Replaced the fuel pump relay, and didn't have the problem today. So that may have been it, haha. Drove it to the show and back with no trouble. Today was temp hotter, but the humidity was way lower since we had severe weather last night. I was proud of myself for getting back on the horse given how I felt yesterday, haha. Had some fun conversations with people about my car. We have one more day of it tomorrow!

i had a look at the pipe from that site, it may fit, I'll have to look at it again. his car has a mandrel bent tube where it comes out of the intake, but it's worth the time to look, thanks.
I hope the relay solves your problems, we generally put try to fit a replacement pump relay & fuel filter on when we change the pump on the older foxes, I suppose we should change the EEC relay, but people think you are trying to rip them off.
we got a mustang freak who recently bought a 08 mustang, and this guy is is super paranoid that his cars will fail him, and he reads the internet constantly for bad reviews, he does his own work, then wants to know if its right, the fact is he probably know more about the foxes than I do! now I'll learn more about the 08's! it would be nice if he could just drive the cars and enjoy them.
cars are just machines, and they do break down occasionally, but not like in the 60's/70's.
enjoy the shows and reap a bit of relaxation.

Yeah, stupid auto zone said they couldn't get the eec relay, or I would have done that too. $15 is cheap insurance.

Man, if you're not messing with an '08 too much, just drive it and enjoy!

yeah the poor guy is just paranoid about cars, probly got stranded as a kid or something. its a nice car, runs well, he's just waiting for it to break.
how did your car show work out for you?