72 Mercury Comet GT in Germany

Cool!

 

Those Cragars look great!

 

thanks, folks!
i have already been on the autobahn - doing 60 mph at just 2000 rpm. i guess there's potential for more!
the red plates you see on the car are my friend's dealer plates. the car needs to pass inspection next week and will have proper plates then. i'll keep you updated...

 

I just read this whole thread. Makes me want to go rip my car apart and put it back together right. Excellent work!!!

 

here's a - to me - very special picture. that's my granddad standing next to my car, on his 88th birthday.

he used to work as a mechanical engineer and spent some time in the sates during the sixties, building a processing plant in cleveland. one of the stories he loves to talk about is when he was walking from his motel to the plant - he was asked whether his car had a breakdown. admitting to the staff that he had none, they gave him a rental - a 65 mustang fastback! he is supposed to have been famous for his colleagues quote 'screaming tires? heinz takes off...'
he's always very keen on riding with me in my mustang, but the new car really thrilled him. haven't seen him as happy in quite some time...

 

That's awsome!

 

the car still needs little tweaks here and there.
today, i ditched the cheap grant steering wheel and mounted the ford sport steering wheel i got off ebay. anybody know what kind of center emblem that is? anybody know where to get a mercury decal with the right diameter?

 

Nice score on the wheel.

That emblem looks like it might be a generic Ford item.

They put these wheels in a lot of different vehicles, and I would expect that if it came out of a Mustang, you would get a running horse emblem or something Mustang-specific like that.

Someone here had Comet wheel centers, Seth Roberts, I think. Maybe one of those would work with some trimming.

EDIT ... just found this old post .... maybe he still has some or can get some ... http://mmb.maverick.to/showthread.php?t=19581&highlight=comet+wheel+center+emblems&page=3

 

If not I may have one or two around here somewhere..

 

thanks guys, i'll keep that in mind! i'm not sure whether i like what i have...

i solved some more problems in the meantime. wiring all sorted out, every instrument now working. speedo sorted out - the brazilian tach can be taken apart pretty far. cleaned everything up and sprayed it with wd40. no more rattling noise, everything working.

got a new fuel sender from autokrafters through ebay. when i got the car, the needle was was to the right, half full meant empty. put in a new voltage regulator - now full was half full. put the new sender in - everything working as expected.

put in the NOS hood hinges from rayzorsharp - great, no more hood lift!

made the first oil change after putting a couple of hundred miles on the new engine.

went for a test drive today - i'm afraid of my own car! it's a beast...
goes to 100mph within seconds. 110 was the most i went to - the steering box needs some more adjustment, it's just too sloppy...

 

I wish I had sloppy lol

 

sloppy steering box adjusted with the help of a friend.
kyb gr-2 swapped out, gas-a-justs are in - a whole new ride it seems, much firmer now.

going to switzerland next weekend, 350 miles one way. we'll see if the car really was built to last

to do:
swap out new (and leaking) heater core
get the lc-1 AFR gauge working
readjust front alignment
check driveline angles

 

took the car for the big drive yesterday. nearly 12 hours on the road - i guess now i really know how to handle this car.

seats are a little uncomfortable. i'm sitting too high - let's see if the ldo tracks will take care of this.
fuel economy is decent - 15 to 16 mpg on the autobahn at 80mph!
the car is a blast to drive. constant 80mph at 3000 rpm - and i still jumps forward from there!

the downside to it: oil consumption. two quarts in 1000 miles is less than acceptable. i doubt it's the nature of the 347 to consume that much oil. currently, i suspect the valve cover pcv-combination. there's a little puddle of oil on the intake next to the pcv, and the vintage cal-custom valve covers don't have an oil baffle. i have a new pcv at hand, but i guess i'll also get the "comet" valve covers from scott drake...

 

1980 Granada. I believe the Ghia models had that wheel. Almost a Maverick steering wheel.

 

thanks, that's good to know! i guess i'll just keep that center emblem...