1974 Mexican Maverick Restoration

looks like something's wrong with your motor mounts? engine is indeed sitting too deep.
i have the same headers, this is how mine came out:

 

thanks tody, i have to check that with the engine mounts.
i know they had to make one of the mounts new because it was twisted, but i dont know what they took the measures from...

but i searched a bit the internet an on popular hotrodding a found an image of a 65 mustang with the same headers and they look very low too...

http://www.popularhotrodding.com/tech/1306_day_two_bolt_on_performance_parts/photo_10.html

 

To me, it looks like your engine is sitting lower, and farther back than most of ours are. Are you using the same frame stands and engine mounts as the cars came with stock? Plus, you can see where they've done some alterations to your transmission crossmember, to lower it...

 

yes, i think that too after comparing to others.
no idea what mounts it has.
i called the shop and told me it has to be like that, but i dont believe them.

the crossmember has been adapted to the T5 transmission (angle), but to me it is very low, as the transmission also has a lot of space to the floor...

would be great if someone would have a way to measure the position of my engine compared to others?!? especially height.

 

I'm not a pro at building cars, but the first thing I would look at is the pinion angle of the engine and trans... Looks to me to be too low at the trans tail shaft... that will cause the headers to angle down...

 

agree with that i have to check the angle, but it doesnt explain why the headers are lower in comparison to the transmission.
its all one part, it moves together, if its in an angle or not.
but other have the headers a lot closer up to the trans, no matter what angle.
i advised the to check the motor mounts and change them if needed.

 

here we co with the selection of the paint.
got two examples yesterday.
not exactly right yet, but ill go with the brighter one, as the dark one looks horrible if not in bright light...
matching to this another green in between for the stripes.

(its very difficult that the pics show how its in reallity, but it gives an idea...)

 

so, after some more fighting with the shop owner after he tried to rip me off some more, i made the decision to get the car out.
ill visit him this week with my lawyer to get some money back from what has not been done and on saturday ill get some friends and a truck an get it out of the shop.
its time, to much nerves and money lost so i will go on myself.

the sheetmetal work is done, so ill do all the mechanical and electrical installation myself, take it all apart and bring it to paint to the ford agency of my neighbor.
so it will be painted professionally and even cheaper than in the other shop.

im looking forward to do it all by myself and with the help of a friend, but it will take some more time to get it done.
i hope ill finish it one day, cant wait to be driving it again.
but for sure when its done it will be lot more pleasant as i have done it by myself and exactly how i want it. so wish me luck, ill have to learn alot...

--> if you want get served well, better serve yourself!!

 

and meanwhile i was working on my heater system, to get it prepared for installation...

all the parts of the 1970 Falcon Maverick and the replacement parts from the us (thanks alot Joe for your help!!) got cleaned and painted and are getting installed now with new seals and heater core.
hope to get this done before xmas holiday, because ill be 3 weeks at home in switzerland... yeah! :bananaman :bananaman







all the pics of the heater restoration on my fotoblog:
http://braesspics.smugmug.com/Maverick/Heater-system

 

Awesome job on your heater restoration Mike!

...And I agree that you will be much better off, having your restoration done in a way that's more to your liking. Keep up the great work

 

Great job on that heater box! I thought the metal in my box was in poor shape - it was nowhere near as bad as what I see in the pix u posted. Guess I was lucky!

 

Agree! Beautiful job

 

thanks alot guys!! appreciate a lot your nice comments of people with so much experience and great projects!

ill try to do my best and take my time, sometimes even to much.
my biggest problem is, that im so in love with details, that i dont see the whole thing and lose too much time in these...
but i like how it is restored and i can be sure that it will work a few decades more

tonight ill be with my lawyer to see what i can do to get my car and a bit of my money back.
hope it will work out, i want to get it on saturday...
wish me luck!

 

a looooong time gone, finally im back on it.

i had a great holiday staying 3 weeks with my family and friends back home.
returned back to mexico just to hear my dad needs a 4x bypass in a open heart surgery, so a week later i headed back home to stay with him 8 days around the surgery.
it was hard to go back to mexico, but im happy to say that hes very well and recovering slowly but surely well.

meanwhile i was fighting to get the mav out of that shop where it was.
the owner wanted more and more money for doing nothing and i was trying with all i have to get it out. it took me almost 2 month untill he brought it back to the shop here in the city and i was there 3 times with a tow trunk only to have him not coming or saying that the car is not there...
last friday it arrived finally in town, so i wanted to go to pick it up.
but on the way there (going with 2 cars) my girlfriend crashed my car going over a stop sign because she was following me. i had to see in the mirror how a big bus shoots her front with high speed.
luckily she got out with just a bit a head and spine ache and a burnt arm of the airbag exploding. the car is probably a total loss, but never mind, it only was my now company car with already 2645km on it... aaah, brand new and already trash...
so i couldnt get the car because of my girl in hospital and all the things to organize with insurance and rude thumb mexican police...

but all the bad luck finally payed out yesterday as i got the car and almost all parts out of the shop with alot of fighting and threatening with lawsuits.
i even managed that i didnt have to pay the more than 4000 usd he wanted more from me because he made wrong bills and everything, so i got out pretty lucky (but hat to fight 2 months!!)

and the lucky day kept on going, in the evening i went to see a guy selling a grabber hood and i bought it for very little money compared to what all the other sellers want, it was here in town and it only has some little details which should be fixable by a good sheetmetal worker...

so all by all, the car is back, i have a new hood (missing the inlets so if anyone has a set!?!) and i can go on building the car myself.

now ill see exactly what has been done, what needs to be improved and what parts i have to order from the states now...

lets keep rocking (time is little, maybe ill move back to switzerland in juli, so the car has to be mostly finished by then)

here is how the car looks at the moment, more pics to come

 

That is a shame that you had to go through all of that trouble but I am glad to hear that you finally got your car back - I can not believe that guy is still in business