I got another project car

[russ69coupe 3]

Now, I did NOT need another project. Really did not need in fact. Don't have the room if nothing else. Really don't have the money for more than one.

But I came across this on Craigslist and foolishly decided to talk to the seller. He is in Tucson, and I am in the Phoenix area with no way to get the car here, so I thought I was safe.

But no, he is willing to deliver it for a small price. And this car punched a number of things on the "I always want to do this with a car" list. And I could afford it, even with the delivery, thanks to finally getting the hiring bonus for my current job. Cost me $700 total. Some may think I got taken. I think that sometimes. But main issue is getting physically able to do this. Health hasn't been great the last few years. But I see a car and forget about that until after I get it.

I should have spent the money on my 72 Ranchero. Now I need to just cover this new one with a tarp until I get the Ranchero back on the road. Like that is really going to happen.

OH, what is it?

1979 Pinto. Glass hatch. Fully caged. Setup for a 2.3L rear sump pan(modified crossmember) with T5 from a fox Mustang. Seller had a turbo in it before he parked it 20 years ago. He had the cage installed and then life got in the way I guess. Recently inherited his brother's Mustang II and decided it was finally time to let this one go.

I have a 89 Mustang with a plain 2.3 and A4ld that will be the new powertrain, for now. Eventually need to get a T5. I like shifting gears. Car has an 8inch Pinto/Mustang rear with 4.10 gears. Seller's parents are the original owners, he was given the car at about 17 years old.

Not my first Pinto. Drove one for about 2 years in Ohio before making it a project car. Currently have a 74 wagon in the back yard that at this rate will never see the road again as it keeps getting pushed back on the to-do list.

Oh, the pictures are at the seller's place. I wish I had that cover.

[russ69coupe 3]

Couple of other things.

No, the cage is not certified. Not an issue, I am not racing this. Just always wanted a full caged street car. I'm not a welder, although I need to at least learn enough to do the floor pans in the Ranchero. But welding a cage likely will be beyond my skills, so finding a car with it done is great.

Missing the windshield. That may be a pain, but will worry about it later. I am on a Pinto site, so I have connections for parts.

Got about 8 storage bins of the parts he took off the car. Overall got pretty much everything but the engine/trans, seats, carpet, radiator support, and inner fenders. Probably won't be using most anyway. I do need to figure out how to piece the stock dash around the cage. Only doing it since the vin is part of it. Otherwise I would just use a racing dash.

I would like to put a V8 in, in fact a 351C. Just not sure at this point. Goal for now is to get the car running and on the road as inexpensively as I can. I have a good paying job, but not THAT good. And I really do need to get the Ranchero going first. But I also need to strip the 89 Mustang and get rid of the shell before I get in more trouble with the zoning people. The 89 has EFI, which should be a good thing. With the 4.10 rear gears, even a blah 2.3L should be fun. At least stoplight to stoplight.

Got most of the extra stuff in a storage place already. Still a little bit in the interior. Front bumper, dash. First goal is to sand off the surface rust and paint the front frame/cage. Then the interior. Thinking of using the VHT chassis epoxy. I used some on the front suspension parts of the Ranchero, and really like it. Not the cheapest paint, but seems to cover well and should last. I'm not really set up to spray, so spray cans are good for me. Brush on wouldn't be bad, but I don't want to see brush marks. POR15 would be a possibility, but I don't think it is needed here.

 

Can't decide on the front sheet metal. I really like the small bumper Pintos, and I have the sheet metal from my 74 wagon, but I would need to get a small bumper and front valence for it as it came with the big bumper/no valence. I do have the entire front end for this, and I don't have to make a decision anytime soon. So something to think about.

Thanks,

Russ

 

[1969Fstback 58]

That would be a fun project.   I like the old pintos. 

[69RavenConv 286]

10 hours ago, 1969Fstback said:

That would be a fun project.   I like the old pintos. 

Me too. Should be a fun project, easy to work on, shouldn't break the bank, and you'll have something that not everyone else has. I'm guessing any missing parts can be found in Arizona.

My buddy back in the 70's had a sharp white with blue trim Pinto that he kept immaculate. And, of course, Bob Glidden and Jack Roush both had nice 351C-powered Pintos.

[1969Fstback 58]

And lets be honest.  Is there anyone who really does not NEED another project?  I have 4.  My 69 Fastback an 1 for each of my 3 kids.  Five if you count the bass boat my wife inherited from her dad.

[ray1970 88]

I have a soft spot for pintos.

There is a pinto wagon that I see in town on and off that even has wood grain sides..(older man driving)Bone stock..

V8 with some under body work and a little lager tires.

I Just get wet thinking about it...

[Midlife 814]

1 minute ago, ray1970 said:

I have a soft spot for pintos.

There is a pinto wagon that I see in town on and off that even has wood grain sides..(older man driving)Bone stock..

V8 with some under body work and a little lager tires.

I Just get wet thinking about it...

TMI!

[russ69coupe 3]

Bit of an update.

I have been  working lots of overtime lately. Spending a good bit on the Pinto. Yes, the poor Ranchero is going to have to wait. So far I've bought tubular lower control arms and 2 inch dropped spindles. I already have tubular upper arms I bought a couple years ago for the 74 which will go on here. Going to put the 79 stock front suspension on the 74 (sooner or later) since I had tossed all of it's parts thinking I would be using new. If I keep it I will eventually redo that front end as well, but I need to get it back to being a roller and this works great for that.

Next major purchase is the Speedway 11inch 5 lug front disk brake kit. Probably way over kill with the 2.3l, but might as well do it while I can. If I ever put a Cleveland in it will need them.

So I have to get the rear axles redrilled to 5 lug. Thought about just getting a Mustang 8 inch, but the prices on those have gotten crazy. Then I have to get some wheels and tires. Hoping Craigslist will come to my rescue there.

Made a deal with my wife. I have to have this driving and licensed by the end of March, or else she gets to spend most of my overtime next summer. We already split it, but not always 50/50. That was my planned date anyway, so it should serve to keep me motivated. And it is finally cooling off here in lovely downtown Hell.  Hopefully taking the last 3 days of this month off from work to get a jump start on this. I should be able to strip the 89 Mustang in one day. I hope. The engine should drop right in since that is what the car had before. I had really wanted to get a T5, but for now I am going to have to live with the auto. I'd rather do the rest of the car the way I want now, and be able to drive it, then to get a trans and not be able to do much else.

Thanks,

Russ

[russ69coupe 3]

Boy, things have changed. I've pretty much gone into the "I'm going to do this the best I can" mode. This could be the last major project car I can do, I am not getting any younger or in better health. I really wanted to do this with a 69 Mustang Coupe, but odds are that will never happen.

I ended up scrapping the 89 Mustang. Decided that since ultimately I want a big V8 I might as well just do it now. So I bought an 89 5.8/351W from a Ford Van. Seller had already stripped the van, was going to use the engine in a project but is moving and can't store it right now. Came with a C6 that I was going to use, but after hearing about how bad it would fit and again realizing it wasn't what I wanted, I am going to sell it, along with the EFI (including the computer and harness) and am looking at a T5. I figure that an 89 shouldn't be too hard on a T5. Eventually I will need to go with a TKO of some sort, but I'll wait until I really get into the engine. I have bought a Quicktime Mustang II bellhousing that will fit the T5 and a TKO down the road. For now I am just going to use a used 4bbl Edelbrock carb I have for the Ranchero. Bought an Weiand Stealth intake already. Also a Summit HEI distributor for it. I wanted to avoid having to use a box with the ignition, hence the HEI for now, but here I had to compromise on cost. We'll see if that comes back to bite me later.

Got the largest aluminum radiator that Speedway makes. Might have overdone that, bought it without measuring, but since I don't have to worry about fitting it into the radiator support it won't be a big deal.

Oh, I bought rear 5x4.5 rear axles from a place called Dutchman Axles. These are made for the Mustang II rear end.

Speedway still has the front brake kit on back order. But I went ahead and got a new master cylinder for 4 wheel disk brakes, and two proportioning valves. One that has the distribution block, brake light switch, etc, and one that is just a valve that can be turned to zero if needed, as I have heard that sometimes the other prop valves don't have enough adjustment. Going to be using 2002 Crown Vic rear disk brakes. Was for the Ranchero, but I can always get another set later.

Oh, I did something I thought I would never do. I bought a 21 ckt Painless universal wiring kit. Decided that it would be easier to start with that than to try to piece together something, especially at the price of just the fuse boxes. I will be heavily modifying it though. The fuse box is NOT going under the dash! But it is a good starting point. And I won't have to worry about 40 year old wiring. And it was on sale.

Summit and Speedway must be loving me right now. I've spent like $3500 in the last month and a half. 

Need to get a trans so I can get the engine mounted properly. Need to get the rear axles bushings pressed on, but I need to dig out the instructions for the CV brakes to see what else needs to be done at a machine shop.

Taking today (thursday) and tomorrow off from work, was hoping to work on the Pinto, but I have to work on our Subaru instead. So if nothing else, I am taking Jan 4 thru 11 (I think) off to concentrate on the Pinto. Still facing the March deadline. But if I get real progress made, I think we can renegotiate that a bit.

Ok, probably way more than anyone here cares about. So I will stop here for now.

 

Thanks,

Russ

[69RavenConv 286]

Quote

 So if nothing else, I am taking Jan 4 thru 11 (I think) off to concentrate on the Pinto. 

On January 4 thru 11, probably the only engine I'll be tuning is on my snow thrower, LOL. 

[russ69coupe 3]

Oh, yeah. I lived in Mansfield, then Akron, then Warren for a total of 8 years. Worked mostly in Solon.

I really don't miss that white stuff too much. At least not having to drive 40 miles or more in it twice a day to and from work.

Russ

[Cantedvalve 128]

On 11/15/2018 at 5:14 AM, russ69coupe said:

Got the largest aluminum radiator that Speedway makes. Might have overdone that, bought it without measuring, but since I don't have to worry about fitting it into the radiator support it won't be a big deal.

Its exhilarating to just buy random parts and see if they fit!  I did the same with my current radiator... JUST fits between the frame rails! "Happy little accidents" as Bob Ross might say.

[69RavenConv 286]

19 hours ago, russ69coupe said:

Oh, yeah. I lived in Mansfield, then Akron, then Warren for a total of 8 years. Worked mostly in Solon.

I really don't miss that white stuff too much. At least not having to drive 40 miles or more in it twice a day to and from work.

Russ

Wow, I've lived just outside Mansfield, just outside Akron, and also worked in Solon for many years. We probably passed each other on the roads many times and never knew it. Enjoy the sunshine in AZ!

[russ69coupe 3]

Been accumulating more stuff, but not getting much done. Tried to get the front suspension on this week, found out I didn't have the upper ball joint castle nuts. Bought the arms used a few years ago, never noticed they didn't have the nuts. Won't be able to install the coils since there is no engine. But I would really like to have the front rolling at least. It took almost 2 hours to get the lower ball joints screwed in. Driver's side did not want to go. Passenger side went in with my fingers. Finally got them though.

Got the nuts today. Going to get the front stuff done tomorrow. I hope. Depression sucks.

Got the hatch lift supports on finally. Been wanting to do this so I can work in the hatch area. That glass hatch is really heavy.

Figured out where to cut the dash to mount it. Going to cut the ends off so it fits in between the cage. Then I will work on fitting the ends around the cage. This way the vin area will be untouched.

Oh, the biggie. I bought an aftermarket Tremec T5 used, $600. Seems ok from the tests I could do. Seller putting a bigger engine in his car and going with a stronger trans. Good gears to go with the 4.10 rear. 1352-251 A/M 79-93           330            2.95 1.94 1.34 1.1 0.63 -  2.76      

Thanks,

Russ

[EastYorkStang 63]

Any pictures ? The first ones don't show up anymore.  

[russ69coupe 3]

Yeah, Bswor had to remove the pictures that were actually hosted on this site to save server space.

I don't have any on a hosting site, might have to do that. Not sure if it would be ok to put a link to the Pinto site here.

Russ

[RPM 1,190]

Post that link Russ. Nobody with any real power checks on this site. 

[Mike65 475]

3 hours ago, RPM said:

 Nobody with any real power checks on this site. 

That is a shame because this an awesome place to visit & get & give help.

[russ69coupe 3]

Here's the link.

http://www.fordpinto.com/index.php?topic=28493.0

Pictures are in post 14, 15, and 16 (I think these are the ones I had posted here), and then there are "progress" pictures scattered through the topic after that.

And here are some pictures the seller had online on a sale site. He also details what he had done to the car.

http://topclassiccarsforsale.com/ford/331828-79-ford-pinto-ess-drag-car-roller.html

Thanks,

Russ

[russ69coupe 3]

Well, hoping to get back into this in another month or so. Been way too hot here for me anymore during the summer. No garage or even a roof overhead.

Big news is I am going to be putting a 351C into it instead of the W. It's what I have wanted to do all along. I have made the decision to scrap my 72 Ranchero, just too much rust. So it will be donating it's engine to the Pinto. The T5 will still work. The 72 2V engine doesn't make a lot of torque or hp stock, and for now that is how it will stay mostly. The W I bought turned out to be pretty bad. I do have some stuff for it that I will have to sell now, which is typical. I seem to be best at paying full price for stuff, not using it, and then taking a bath when it is time to sell.

Going to look at a 73 Ranchero later today. We need a second vehicle, and it needs to have a bed, so a Ranchero is perfect. Assuming I do a better job inspecting it before buying than I did the 72. Worst case, we get a Ranger.

Thanks,

Russ