Motorcraft 2 barrel air filter stud/screw extension?

[kingleonidasll]

Alright, so I recently bought a '79 Fairmont with the 302. I've always been a GM guy so this whole Ford and fox body world is pretty new to me.

Now, I was looking at the air filter today and realized that it's only like, an inch and a half tall. Is there any way to change out the stud in the middle of the carb to one that's a bit longer so I can use a larger air filter? The carb is missing the ID plate so not a 100% sure if it's the 2100 or 2150.

Also, a little off topic, but what is the first thing you'd recommend for more power? 140hp isn't quite cutting it for me haha

[mustangxtreme]

Yes you can change the stud to a longer one.

Heads, cam, intake, carb and exhaust.

[JACook]

Welcome to FEP!

Stock carb on a '79 Fairmont 302 is a 2150. I bought my first 302 Fairmont wagon around 1985,
and went through a couple iterations before finally swapping an '85 Mustang 5.0 in it in '89, along
with suspension, steering, and brake upgrades. That was a fun car. My current '79 is a low-miles
occasional driver that I will eventually modify, but it runs well enough for what I need it to do, so
for now it's still pretty original.

I personally would not spend much time or money on the existing 302. It wears some of the more
performance-resistant heads Ford ever made. You could swap them out, of course, but if it were
my car, the original 302 would come out, and a Mustang or Explorer 5.0 would take it's place.

Either way, your first order of business will be to address the exhaust system. The '79 Fairmont
uses a very restrictive pellet-style catalyst, and very small cast iron exhaust manifolds. The '86-
'93 Mustang shorties and H-pipe are a nice upgrade. '85 shorties with the preheat stoves can also
be used, with a bit of modification to the H-pipe. If you have a column shift, the bellcrank shaft
needs to be moved forward about 1/2" is all.

Mustang mufflers and tailpipes can also be used, but will have to be strategically lengthened. And
if you're putting full duals on, you'll need to relocate the rear brake line to the center location first.

Pretty much anything you can do to a Fox, someone here has probably done it. There's a section
down the page a bit that's dedicated to the 'Other' Foxen.

[kingleonidasll]

Okay, 2150, got it.

Mines a wagon too, finally finished polishing it yesterday. Lots of flat sheet metal on these cars haha.

Regarding an engine swap, I know it would probably be the most straightforward way of going about increasing power but the engine I have has less than 50,000 miles on it! It'd be a shame to let something that nice go to waste...

Exhaust was definitely on my list of to-do's but now I think I'll start with that then move onto heads, cam and intake.

Here's a couple pictures of 'er. Happy Holidays!

[grabbergreen84]

Looks very nice. That paint sure came back! But according to ricer logic, those hub caps are costing you 5-10 horsepower...

Some Explorer heads and good valve springs, a good intake and carb, and a good exhaust, should wake that 302 up nicely. Then, the right cam should really add a nice kick.

Cool car, glad you're keeping a Ford engine in it. If I ever feel the need to run a Chevy engine, I will find a Chevrolet body to put it in.

[kingleonidasll]

Yeah, I'm surprised how red it actually was!

Regarding the hubcaps, I'd take them off but the wheels are the original steelies on one side and the more modern style of steel wheels on the other! I'll probably go to a salvage yard once all the snow melts and try to find some more of the original steelies. I want to paint them white...

Thanks for the performance tips. Also, I did eventually manage to get a larger air filter stud so I can run a more standard size filter. Funnily enough, I'm now using the same filter as my '90 Chevy 1500. Hurrah for interchangeable parts!

[Jerry peachuer]

Nice wagon very cool agree about the caps those have to go soon

As far as the polishing looks great are you wetsanding it ? Then polishing or just polishing

First I would tape off the belt mouldings so polishing compound doesn't embeds into the rubber mouldings

If your not wetsanding it you would be amazed if you did the difference is in that step start with 800 wet and go up to 1500 wet then 3 step compound try the roof in a spot

looks great now just curious if you were sanding it most people don't

my car was really bad when I first got it and paint came back pretty decent

Super cool find though and 50k miles awesome nice driver

[kingleonidasll]

I used a 6 inch dual action polisher with an orange cutting pad. Meguiars ultimate compound and Meguiars ultimate polish were my cutting agents. I then used a black pad with Collinite 845 (amazing wax by the way).

I thought about wet sanding if the polishes didn't work but decided to go with the least aggressive measures first, especially since I don't know how thick the paint is. It's by no means good enough for a concourse car but I'm just happy how red it turned out to be! There are very few, if any swirl marks which besides getting rid of the oxidation was my goal.

Oh and the door mouldings are some sort of aftermarket addition made out of plastic... No need to worry about staining the rubber!

I almost think 800 and 1500 grit paper would be too rough? Earlier last year I was repainting a hood and even 2000 was decently aggressive, at least on the colour coat. It hardly touched the clear coat. Maybe it was soft...

[Jerry peachuer]

Definitely looks good and sounds like you met your goal so good deal
as far as 800 being too rough eh depends whos got it in there hands and the key is keep it very wet the water is the lubrication with little pressure and make sure you use a foam backerpad steady light pressure let the paper cut not like your trying to remove paint just the top film to level it all out again is all your doing or attempting

i mentioned try the roof in a spot 12 x 12 or smaller thats all you should polish and work small section at a time to see results and to keep it in somewhat hidden area if you go to far or desired result isnt there but keep in mind the top panels are the roughest cause they get the weather so usually have to work at those harder

really no need to do long 4 ft swipes back forth up down concentrate on small sections seems to work best and keeps the heat your generating concentrated and working to your input on the wheel

Meguiars makes a great product there was a product called the SOLO system i used on a car came out nice was compound and pads but prefer 3m cutting,finesse,ebony compounds with proper pads it's glass but again sounds like you accomplished your goal so thats awesome

clay bar from meguiars works really well too for cars that are not to far gone but upkeep

good job nice find

[kingleonidasll]

Thanks for the advice man, sounds like you've done this before

[Jerry peachuer]

Yeah worked in body shop in previous life and detailed boats on the side boats uses different compound and cuts easy different and gel coat is very forgiving car paint not so much

The wet sand and polish is big big difference and so worth the effort but you can ruin paint in a jiffy never go over a body line no need to in fact body shop pro guy only concentrate on fender flares and certain spots of each panel where it buldges out and catches light this guy we had for paintless dent removal was incredible with a wheel

What is really noticeable even in your photo is how the light is coming off your hood it is distorted that's how I look for the paint not laying level wet sanding makes this go away hard to describe but as soon as you do it you will see it before your eyes and then you can't be stopped you will do every spot on the car lol

When you do use the wetsand paper must use plenty of water lots and lots of it but must use 1/2 x 3x4 inch foam backer work a 12x12 area sizes of pad and area are approximate just to give you idea and move sand paper smooth with little to no pressure you will literally see the water pattern under the paper become a distorted puddle all sloppy and air gaps almost cramoflgue looking pattern to a smooth and uniform wet area that's when you stop and change grades and repeat to 1000,or1200 up to 2000 that will be the best spot on the car and drive you to do the rest almost guaranteed

My buddy who's painting my car uses sanding discs on a d/a sander to knock down the high spots on his previous pant jobs for customers and uses 1000-thru 3000 grit and is attempting up to 5000 grit using pa d/a is something I personally would attempt it works to fast for me he has the feel and talent to do so and does many paint jobs that way but easier t know how thick pant is is another key factor

Without wet sanding your car your leaving a lot off the table it will be like glass and brings out the depth of the paint I wished I had some good before and after pics of my panels on my car

By no means am I trying to say it's the holy grail and it's the only way it just makes all the difference and a lot of car owners have a mentality that they will RUIN there paint when that can only really happen if you sand to much and cross over body lines but as far as the polishing goes it will actually polish easier after the road crime and containements are leveled out but then again I never owned many cars that the paint means that much on them where it couldn't be improved upon and just took the wheel to it

Try old fender or panel from junk yard build your confidence or just attack it with the right compounds and keeping the wheel moving is a must there is a lot of money that can be made on the side especially on boats those customers are the ones with the deep pockets especially the dry dock boats when boating season starts they want them cleaned up before going into the water can't say I miss that though lol a lot of work

My point is don't be scared and Leave the hood last because that's what your starring at as you drive car the roof is best place to start

Look at your hood and look at your garage light shining on it once wetsanded you will probably see the make of the garage door opener when it's all said and done from 7 ft above car seriously

Not knocking your efforts man just trying to nudge you to make it the best it can be with one more simple step but time consuming step and could be your next hobby or side job if you like doing it you will pick up few customers possibly just by showing them your wagons finish good job

[Jerry peachuer]

All paper mentioned above must be wet/sand paper even on the d/a which I don't reccomend unless you have high volume of cars to do but I'm sure you will know when your ready for that short cut process

[kingleonidasll]

Hey you know, I might just give it a try after all. Hopefully the weather warms up sometime soon...

At what grit do you usually stop at? 1500? 2000? Even higher?

I appreciate the write up, it's always nice to see how other people do things.

[Jerry peachuer]

I would definetly try it
Pay close attention to the water under the pad once it is smooth and non spotty then you will know the paint surface is leveled
Your not trying to remove much just a skim coat layer is all that is needed unless it's a paint nub or dirt in the paint then you need to use more caution but don't be
Too afraid to work it a bit
If your sandpaper starts turning the color of your car (residue) then that's about all you can do

800 works it quicker you can start with 1500 try 1500 unti you get the feel

It's really hard to describe in words about the visual and feel of what your looking for so pay close attention to the water for example pour water on your car it will bead up and separate once you level the paint it will be a smooth puddle and you must keep paper flat with a backer other wise you will have finger grooves in paint possibly
As far as stopping I'd say 2000 grit what I stop at my buddy paints out of a garage and has dirt in paint but when he is done it's unbelievable what he can do for final polish effort it's better than some down draft paint booth jobs I have seen with baked on paint finish so the key is wetsand and wheel

You have to get the area warm with wheel but not hot you can set a can of pop or something with writing on it next to the spot after 3 step polish job then finish with hand glaze and you can take picture of spot and read the can through the finish you will be shocked what little effort can do

Then just get good at it by trial and error there is proper wheel direction off of panels just make sure the wheel spins off the edge not into them and watch out for mouldings and emblems and door handles it will grab the wheel and seriously damage them

Compounds aren't cheap and usually sold in a kit the solo system was good for starter kit but there's more aggressive compounds that work aged paint a bit better in my opinion

It could get you started into detailing cars and making money to pay for compounds and such I didn't make much money and didn't do many side jobs and by no means am I a polishing expert and detailer guy but I use to know 2 guys doing it on the side and had more work than they can handle just by word of mouth so it could blossom into a new hobby that pays you back

Of course there's a chance of things going wrong but you have to just do it and learn take the good with the bad if you pay attention close enough and pratice on cars at the junk yard you will be good before your through a bottle of cutting compound

If you do get old painted panel try to push hard on it to see what it takes to burn paint it's not much at all so speed and pressure is everything and just have to learn by doing not reading or watching the result could be good or bad but you will know with confidence to correct if you pay attention to detail

Also helps to have a good friend who is really good at it too lol

Good luck post pic of 1 spot on your roof about 12 x12 if you don't see any difference than it was worth that one spot unseen from you or others because it's on top out of sight

If it is better to your likings than good luck trying to put the wheel down haha

[kingleonidasll]

Oh I've already got 'wheel fever'. It's just so satisfying to clean a car up this way! Hell, earlier this summer when I got my DA, I compounded, polished and waxed my truck that's rusting out on the fenders, peeling clearcoat on the hood and peeling paint on the box. Made (what paint was in good enough condition to polish) look like it rolled off the factory floor. Didn't wet sand it though so I'm sure it could have been better haha

I'll try and get around to sanding it this weekend... We'll see how that goes, might have to fire up the garage furnace

Also, I think I'll make a thread over in the show and tell section. I don't think the V8 specific forum may be entirely appropriate for all this talk of detailing...

Once again, really appreciate the write-up.

[Jerry peachuer]

Oops!!! your right about the v8 specific section just got in a zone

For sure start a build thread