The 73 is almost done and it's time to get back to the original project car.
NEXT!!!
I bought this in June of 2006 in Hutchinson Kansas. Lot's of work, new parts and money got poured into this car shortly after I got it home and what a disappointment. Still wouldn't run right, coughs, sputters and just wouldn't go. I got frustrated and parked it to work on the 73. 7 days ago I removed the cover, washed it up and low and behold it started right up and ran good. I have since put a little time and work into it, test driving it and all seems much better. I can't explain it but I'll take it and not complain. Still a lot of work to restore to it's former glory but this car needs less than the 73 did so it should go a little smoother and not cost me quite as much. For now I'm just gonna drive it and work some minor bugs out, I need to build up my confidence in this little wagon again.
Cookieboy, thats a nice lookig ride you got there! 8)
turbowagonman
Thanks Turbowagonman, here's some updated pictures with the front spoiler painted and installed. Plus the engine compartment in it's current state.
some of the new parts that have been installed include... head gasket, rebuilt carb, distributor, alternator, and a new coil to name a few. Rear suspension all looked fairly new when I bought the car. Front ball joints, tie rods and brakes were all done too. Right before the above pictures were taken I had the wheels and tires mounted and balanced. Seems to run OK and drives real smooth. Looking good so far...
Interesting story and lesson... I have been hearing a "metallic rattling" sound when when the engine was running. Disconnected the alternator belt and the sound went away. Spun the pulley on the alternator and had a bit of thump to it instead of being smooth. So I buy and new alternator, install it and the sound is still there but not as bad. Took it to one of the local shops in town to have him take a peek and listen. He listens for a sec and tells me to pull it up to the doors. He come out with a can is silicone spray and sprays the belt. Sound goes away :wow: Then tells me to go get a new belt and problem solved. He explained that the belt was sticking in the pulley and as it came around instead of sliding free of the pulley it would stick instead and cause a pop sound as it released from the pulley. Because of the speed of the belt the pop I was hearing sounded like a metallic rattle to me.
learn something new every day, belt has been changed and no more sound.
Nice wagon! It does not look like it needs much on the outside. What condition is the interior in? It looks like an easy project ;D I started working on my wagon a bit this past weekend as well. I wish I had more time lately to get some of my projects done :(
BTW, thanks for the belt tip. You get one up!
Good looking car! I like the red, one of my CW is a yellow 77 and the color is ok, a bit faded. But the red is just sharp, and it looks really smooth.
Thanks Tigger and FlyerPinto, it has been repainted appox 10 years ago according to the seller and looks to be original color. However the paint is badly scratched and lots of issues. It will need a repaint to look good again. At least it's straight and no outside rust. I do have floorboard issues on the driver side and will need a patch and has little rust in the rear wheel wells
Has new carpet, the seats have weird patches on them and headliner has 2 seams coming apart and 1 small hole. The rear panels were cut for speakers and recovered same as the door panels. I have a dash cap to install, gauges need a little touch up but all in all interior looks OK.
I don't really like the color red but it sure is an eye grabber on these cars. The 73 IMHO is a better color red as this one is a little darker but I plan on keeping the original color for the wagon.
on the belt... who would have thunk it...
QuoteI bought this in June of 2006 in Hutchinson Kansas. Lot's of work, new parts and money got poured into this car shortly after I got it home and what a disappointment . Still wouldn't run right, coughs, sputters and just wouldn't go. I got frustrated and parked it to work on the 73. 7 days ago I removed the cover, washed it up and low and behold it started right up and ran good.
CookieBoy,
I know I didn't mention it to you as I hoped Pintony might clue you in, obviously PintoPower didn't say anything in Tulsa but if you put a car cover on a Pinto and utter the magic words P.O.S., they fix themselves. Shhhhh.
H_H
Quote from: High_Horse on July 25, 2007, 08:06:46 AM
if you put a car cover on a Pinto and utter the magic words P.O.S., they fix themselves. Shhhhh.
LOL... sure worked for me, I was thinking it saw the love and attention I gave the 73 and it figured it better straighten up or it would get the same treatment as one of my old mustangs... been parked in the woods for 9 years and just got pulled out with a chain and bobcat.
Good luck with the new wagon project. Did you pull the mustang with the bobcat or run it over? that looks to be a very major project.
Phils toys
Thanks Phil, that mustang is well... dead... the short story is that it was parked 10 years ago with a bad motor, Quite a few years ago someone used a bobcat and pushed it 100+ feet into the woods where it was stored and no one told me. For 2 years I thought it had been stolen for parts/whatever. Couple years ago I went out to the storage place early in the year and spotted it way back in the woods. This year a chain was attached and the car was dragged oh... some 300+ feet to it's current location. I'm stripping some interior parts and a fellow member on the group here is taking the rest for parts.
I also have another 76 mustang that runs good but is not road worthy (brakes are gone) that is sitting out there. Great interior and a shot and rusty body. not sure what I'm gonna do with it yet.
That wagon is just calling for one of those little hockey stripes....maybe in white?
too bad about the Mustang.
Frank
Hey Frank, That mustang didn't look much better 10 years ago when I parked it. Only reason I kept it was because the interior was in perfect condition. Even now the original black dash pad has no cracks in it, Seats are dirty but no major rips...
No "hockey stripe" for the wagon... I was thinking along these lines. Not exact but a variation of....
with a partial hot pants kit... side pieces only....
Quote from: FlyerPinto on July 25, 2007, 07:46:05 AM
Good looking car! I like the red, one of my CW is a yellow 77 and the color is ok, a bit faded. But the red is just sharp, and it looks really smooth.
Hey Flyer, if your Yellow is faded, try to rub it out with, don't laugh, WD-40. I had to do that to my '80' CW because the paint had ABSOLUTELY no "Shine" to it. Then I took some Meguires Cleaner Wax and hit it again. Now the paint on my CW was so Thin you could see the Grey Primer through the White paint, I did the whole Wagon by hand, once with WD-40 and once with the Wax. BTW I won First Place in the "80 to present Modified Class" with a clean up like I described above.
turbowagonman
I never would have thought of that. I might give that a go if I keep the yellow one.
Updated Progress... guess I should try to keep up. Some already know I installed the new dash cap and cleaned up the interior so I could take it to a local car show the weekend of the 28-29th. I used my little "sharpie" trick to touch up the plastic on the vents, gauges, shifter and such... man that works slick and you can hardly tell it's not origional.
I also cleaned up the engine compartment. Pulled the battery and air cleaner and scrubbed down all I could reach. Engine degreaser, dawn dishwashing soap, brushes, scouring pads and even used some old tooth brushes to get in the tight spots. I re-taped and re-attached a few wires to their proper spots. Looks a little better, mostly just gave me a good idea what shape the engine compartment is in.
I need to make another trip to Pintony's this year, I'm getting that rebuilt 2.3 motor he has for this car. From what I have been told this motor has 166,000 miles and 1 rebuild under it's belt 30,000 miles ago. Has a slight engine knock and well... I want something better and Tony's rebuilt and modified 2.3 fit's the want list ;D
Next is seats from the Mustang mentioned above... I pulled the front and rear seats and I hope to be putting them in the wagon. Front seats shouldn't be to big an issue. I hope to figure out some way to use the rear seat from the Mustang in the wagon so they'll match front and back. The Mustang was a hatchback w/fold down rear seat so I think I'll have a chance... we'll see...
Nice job Cookieboy, your engine compartment cleaned up nicely.
Thanks Tigger, I think I spent about 5 hours cleaning it up...
I'm still not sure why except it was to hot to go in the house, I don't have AC at home ;)
Looks real good after that Rub-a-Dub-Dub, both iside and out!
turbowagonman
Thanks Turbowagonman, after I was all done I needed to "rub-a-dub-dub" in the tub to get all the grease off ;D
Well.... the Mustang seat swap didn't work...
Bottoms are different sizes = Big Problem!! Check out the pictures below. You'll see the Mustang rear bottom is much deeper than the Pinto seat. Also there is a metal brace under the mustang seat that keeps it from laying down correctly. I could cut out the metal bar but then I would have nothing to bolt the seat down with and with the extra depth....
The back can be used w/minor mods. In the first picture you will see why I want to swap in the Mustang seats, they are in fantastic condition. You will also see the backs are exactly the same size and mount the same as the Pinto back. When you flip it over you will see the only difference between the Mustang and Pinto back. See picture 2 and you will notice the Pinto seat is flat and the Mustang has extra padding on the bottom where it bends. Not a problem, the vinyl is stapled to a cardboard insert that give the shape and when I removed the staples and removed the cardboard it fit good.
I wonder what kind of issues I might face with the front seats... gonna go measure to see if the mounting studs are the same...
You shouldn't have any problems bolting in the front seats. At least for the short buckets, there are very few differences between the two(other than the material) As for the rear cushion, why don't you just swap the seat covers? I would think the hog rings would come off easily enough without damaging the vinyl. Then you just recover the Pinto frame with the Mustang vinyl? I did the seats in my 67 Mustang years ago and the rear seat was a snap compared to the fronts. Just a thought........
Quote from: TIGGER on August 07, 2007, 08:00:37 PM
...As for the rear cushion, why don't you just swap the seat covers? I would think the hog rings would come off easily enough without damaging the vinyl. Then you just recover the Pinto frame with the Mustang vinyl?...
I was going to suggest the very same thing, as long as the Mustang vinyl is supple enough to stretch a bit. If you warm it up (leave it in the sun or hit it with a heat gun, but don't burn it) it'll be much easier to get all the wrinkles out.
front seats will be interesting...
mounting holes on the passenger pinto seat is 11" wide and 14" long and the mustang is 14"x14"
mounting holes on the driver pinto seat is 12.5" wide and 14" long and the mustang is again 14"x14"
would be a tight fit on the passenger side in the front if I made my own holes.
I like your idea about swapping covers... I was thinking the same thing and I do think the Vinyl is supple enough without heating it up ;D
Great Minds Think Alike ::) 8)