Finally bought a Maverick

I've been a member of these forums for almost 2 years now. Why would someone be a member of Maverick forums and not own and have never owned a Maverick? Well it started back in my army days being stationed overseas. I owned a different Mercury/Ford. Overseas the Mercury Capri is called a Ford Capri. It was an 82 with a carburated engine. I learned alot about cars on my Capri.

When I got back to the US I started looking for a classic I could tinker with. After searching for a few months I decided the Maverick looked like my style. It has the musclecar look without the mustang price. I like mustangs but I can't afford them. People want thousands for cars that don't even run.

So I found this website and settled in. I like the community and do alot of lurking for someone with no Maverick. This website reinforced my desire to own a Maverick. Its nice to have a place where others are going through the same struggles and support each other. You guys have some heated arguements sometimes, like whether you should glue down a dashpad or not. But in the end its a good group and lots of good points are made on both sides. It leaves the rest of us less opinionated members with good information to make up our own minds.

That's my background. I know enough about cars to tell the difference between an alternator and a radiator. I've had my wrench dirty several times. A big motivation to learn about Mavericks and engines is my father. He has a 2001 Mustang Bullitt that he likes to take to the track. I see this as a great opportunity to spend some time with him. Like alot of fathers and sons, sometimes we need a good excuse to spend some time together. Hopefully in a year or so, I'll take my Maverick to the track with him. He'll be an old guy with a new car and I'll be a not-so-old guy with an old car.

Back in December I went to look at a 76 Maverick with a 302. It wasn't in the best shape and I thought he wanted a little too much for it. I came here and asked questions. Two weekends ago, I called to see if he'd sold it yet. He had a guy coming to look at it the next Wednesday so he didn't really want to make any deals yet. I told him to call me after Wednesday if he still had the car. He called me Friday morning.

Last weekend we went and bought my first Maverick. It did well on a test drive. But on the hour drive home, she only made it 15 mins. The car has an overheating problem. I've already been searching on the forums for tips. Ratio411 posted a good reply a few weeks ago along with some others. I'll post again in the technical forum if those tips don't work. Thanks.

A little bit about the car. The orginal 302 had bearing problems when the previous owner found it in someone's yard. Kids were literally playing on and in it when he pulled up to look at it. He replaced it with a 302 from a truck. He found an aluminum intake from an 80s Mustang GT and put a Holley 750 on top. The car has the original single pipe exhaust. It has a 3 speed manual transmission in the floor. When he replaced the engine he put in a new clutch.

Some extras I got thrown in to sweaten the deal are a pair of shorty headers, the original 302 block, the original 14" rims (2 have brand new tires), head covers, and a 650 motorcraft carb.

I have to work on the overheating first. It needs an air cleaner on the carb. Next I plan on putting on the shorty headers and running dual exhaust pipes to the rear. There is some bad rusting in the driver side floor with a whole that needs to be patched. Along the way I may replace the 750 with the 650. That should keep me busy for a few months. This will be a daily driver once the overheating is fixed.

Thanks to the people who make this a community. Now that I have a Maverick, I plan on joining the MCCI and other organizations. I already post on the DixieMaverick site too. I hope to make a few rallys and swapmeets soon. So I'm a full fledged Mavericker now. Hopefully I'll be seeing some of you around. You can see my 76 by clicking on my name and looking at my gallery.

 

whoa, your car is in nice shape. Congrats!

 

Awesome! Sure I'll be seeing you at one of our get togethers.

 

Oh and the oringal rims are the dog dish ones that have Ford Motor Company written around them. I plan on using the original block to make a "built" engine. That is the original 30 year paint on the car. It has rust but at least there is no body damage...

Here's the info from the door tag

62A 2R HA Trans 1 Axle 3 DSO 21

So its a 2dr sedan in vermilion red with black vinyl interior. It has a 3sp trans with a 2.79 rear axle and was made in Atlanta, Ga. The vin is 6K91F104445 which makes it a 76 assembled in Kansas, 2dr. sedan with a 302. It was the 4445th made that year.

Now I have to name her.

I'll try to take some pics of the oringal rims tomorrow. They are in amazing shape.

 

Sounds great! A weekend of elbow grease and I think that car will give a great shine! Nice car!

 

I'll save you a bunch of heart ache and time.....those shorty headers will not fit a Maverick.

 

I had done a forum search on shorties and that seemed to be the consensus. I'll give it a shot but I don't have much hope in it.

 

congrats

Good to hear about your find! Im in warm springs, if you ever need somthing let me know. Im always running into parts here and there. Love to see the pics!

 

Warm springs? Heck I tow-roped it through Manchester getting it home. I picked it up in Griffin, Ga. If you happen upon a fan shroud let me know.

 

Will Do!

 

welcome to the board. two things i noticed were the shorty headers. already mentioned by craig that they won't fit. and the 750 holley. unless the engine is built, a 600 or 650 will probably be a better match. nice car. glad to have you around here.

 

Nice car!!1 Welcome aboard matey!!!

 

Yeah I talked him into throwing in a motorcraft 650 he had laying around the shop. I'm having a friend that knows carbs look at it to get his opinion and probably rebuild it if it looks like a good carb. That 750 runs real rich.

 

i run a 750 on mine but it's built for the track only. would probably go with the 650 on my sprint when i build the 331 for it. that will be a street car.

 

Best of luck with your project. It looks like you've got a good one to start with.


Great post, btw - it's refreshing to hear a "respectable" yungin.


<-- old man