Pace Car change in driveline

[forgotn]

Farting around in the garage and got a couple things done. Primed the oil pump and mocked up the accessory brackets and other stuff to see how it looks. Need to order some more crap but I'm getting closer to getting it put in.

[69clark]

Looks great!

[forgotn]

Looks great!

Thank you sir! Yours is slightly more impressive! Awesome build!

[forgotn]

Started doing a little work cleaning out some of the old wiring and trying to clean the engine bay. Still need to install new front soft break lines, V8 springs, and then put in the new M/C & break lines to the Proportioning valve. The hood release cable is going to get routed into the inner fender as well as some of the other harness. There are areas in the tunnel that I can't clean because the car was undercoated in 1980 by the original owner. I guess that was helpful in keeping this car in as good of condition as it is.

Before


After


Also did the roll and tuck of the harness & breaklines that used to reside above the pinch seam on the firewall.


I will be doing away with more in the future but I need the assistance of a professional to guide my wire cutters in the right direction.

[forgotn]

More parts arrived!! Unfortunitely the clutch has to go back because UPS destroyed it in shipping. Looks like the box came open and they threw all the crap back in and retaped it closed. The pressure plate was sliding around with nothing holding it in place which caused it to destory the clutch alignment tool. The grease packet in the box was popped and grease all over all the parts. The Pilot bearing has some pretty nice dings in it as well. New clutch is on the way and hopefully I can get the flywheel, clutch, and starter mounted this week. Today the power rack needs to be pulled forward so I can access the main power steering line to replace it. It is near impossible to get to the line on the rack side because it is buried underneat the k-member motor mount area. The PA Performance 3G alternator wiring kit came and it plugs in exactly where the old voltage regulator was. Pretty nice plug and play item. I installed new struts and when the motor goes in, new shocks in the rear as well. Need to do some modification to the cross member so it will fit my 79 mounts. Tubes will need to be cut down.

[forgotn]

Looks like the motor installation will happen this weekend. Stay tuned as I'm certain there will be some ranting on here then.

[forgotn]

Doing a little engine bay cleanup before the motor goes in. Not quite done with the passenger side yet but it's getting there.

It did look like this. Hard to tell a huge difference in the pictures, but it makes a HUGE difference.



This is after I cleaned it with simple green



These are some in process paint pics. I had already painted the K-Member, Sway Bar, frame rails, and the area above the pinch seam.

[forgotn]

Got my radiator hold downs sand blasted at work this morning. They will get a fresh coat of paint this evening.



Also modifying my new crossmember to fit the 1979 brackets. That will be painted this evening as well.

[forgotn]

Getting everything ready to drop the motor in this weekend. They finally sent me a clutch that wasn't busted to crap in shipping. Finished the painting to the engine bay and got the new crossmember cut to fit my 1979 brackets.

[ZephyrEFI]

If the tranny mount doesn't line up with the crossmember, you can use a '96 manual trans mount. It has an offset that makes it fit great! I needed to do this on mine, which originally had a C4. Latemodel Restoration has it.

Can't wait to see this thing on the road!

[forgotn]

If the tranny mount doesn't line up with the crossmember, you can use a '96 manual trans mount. It has an offset that makes it fit great! I needed to do this on mine, which originally had a C4. Latemodel Restoration has it.

Can't wait to see this thing on the road!

Awesome! From what I've read the T5 should line up but with my luck mine will be the only one that doesn't I've had a lot of strange things happen during this build. Late model restoration sent me oblong nuts for my motor mounts today. I just have to shake my head.

[JTurbo]

Looks good.

[forgotn]

Looks good.

Thanks!! I saw your build thread when I first started to tear mine apart. You've done awesome work on it. I don't have the skill to do the body work so that will be another large bill down the road. I will also need to address the "A" posts in my car as there is a little bubbling under the paint in these areas. I see you have yours well in hand.

[forgotn]

Got the motor and transmission in today. I had some starter issuse and discovered that I will need a different starter. Kind of a bummer because I was hoping to save a few bucks there but oh well. The throttle cable will need to be replaced with something shorter unless I want to bend the current one into an "S" pattern to make it fit. There will be plenty of other items that I will need and I still need to get the new shocks and different springs in the rear as well as hooking up the fuel system and wiring.

[JTurbo]

Thanks!! I saw your build thread when I first started to tear mine apart. You've done awesome work on it. I don't have the skill to do the body work so that will be another large bill down the road. I will also need to address the "A" posts in my car as there is a little bubbling under the paint in these areas. I see you have yours well in hand.

Thanks

And another good update on the motor install.

[forgotn]

Installed some new shocks and some stock GT springs in the rear this evening. Need to order more parts and tomorrow I will be mounting the fuel pump and removing the thermostat housing per Les' recommendation. I have a new OEM type unit comeing. Last thing I need is a leaky(er) ford.

[forgotn]

Car is sitting level in the back now since changing the strus, shocks, and rear springs. It used to have a lean to the drivers side.

Looked like this...........


Now looks like this!



Got the old fuel lines removed and the fuel pump mounted where it going to be. Had to stop for the day because I need 3/8" braided fuel line. So more money to be spent. Also need some padded clips to secure the fuel line along the frame rails. It would be so much easier if I had a lift in my garage but instead I'm rolling around on the floor with the Box Elder Bugs. I also discovered that I need a new drive shaft or need to shorten mine. The old drive shaft appears to be about an inch too long.

[80Notch]

just get a junkyard driveshaft...i did that with my old notch from when i went from a 2.3/4 speed to the 5.0/5 speed...it cost me $20

[forgotn]

Drive shaft issue has been solved. Bunch of parts in my basement and I will be getting busy with them tonight

[forgotn]

New webbing for the Recaro seats came today. It's amazing that you can find all the padding, webbing, and checkerboard material for these thing still. Feels like a new seat now instead of sitting on the floor.





Looks like it will be another busy weekend of tearing apart and installing more crap. Got my 1985 GT throttle cable.



New lower shifter boot.



OEM style thermostat house (thanks Les)



PA Performance 4 Gauge Power Wire Kit Premium W/Noise Suppression 3G for the 3G alternator conversion



And a new clutch cable.



I feel like it should be a new car after this is all said and done. Need someone to help with wiring now since I don;t know the 1st thing about it. I would prefer not burning it to the ground after building it up.

[forgotn]

Another setback today. It appears that I will be needing a new brake/ckutch pedal assembly. The one that is in the car has no clutch quadrant and appears to maybe have been broken and rigged to work at some point. The old cable looks like this.



It was mounted the the post on the end of this arm with a cotter pin



Also will be needing a different radiator. Kind of a downer day for the build but I'm sure there are more to come. Old junk sucks.

[forgotn]

Got the interior put back together today. The T5 is finally mounted in permanently. Took a little while because some fab work needed to be done before I could mount it to the new cross member. It will soon be making a little trip out of the garage to have the wiring completed. I will then finish the fuel system and hopefully it will be ready to run. I wound up using the original clutch cable and it seems to be working correctly. I'm happy that I did not have to put in a different set of pedals. I was really not looking forward to tearing the underside of the dash apart. I can finally see the end of this project coming so that is good news. I'm slightly over budget

[klekey]

looks like you are doing an awesome job, keep up the good work

[JTurbo]

Good update - is it running yet....

[forgotn]

Good update - is it running yet....

Not running yet. I don't know anything about wiring so I am having it towed to a friends shop near me to have the wiring done. I'm going to a 3G alternator, Electric self regulating fuel pump, HEI, Electric Fans, and the T5 needs to be wired to the factory harness. I can do none of these things so I will pay someone who can so I don't burn the car to the ground. The main things needed to do now are wiring, exhaust, and running the fuel line from the tank to the carb. Very close