March '26 Chat -- Madness is the Different Drummer

[TheBac]

And Awayyyyyy We Go.....

I wonder if the groundhog will be right or wrong. Will we have two more weeks of winter or is the whole month going to suck?

 

[Chevy1925]

Its not march! How dare you lock feb down already

As for erin mustang, its a 200 i6/3 speed manual. It runs/drives but needs some fixing.

Exhaust leak between manifold and exhaust pipe. Rear end leak at pinion seal. Shifter is like a hot dog down a hall way (bushings are shot). Steering Gear box has a ton of play. Temp gauge reads wrong and its on 22 year old tires.

It was her first car. This was after i fixed the brakes (new front shoes, hardware, wheel cylinders and brake lines)

Long story short. When i met Erin in college, she had just sold the mustang back to her dad so she could buy an 01 ford focus to drive back and forth between flagstaff and mesa (this was circa 2006 iirc). I got to drive it one time in 07 or 08 and it sat in my fil garage from that day on. Erin lost her mom to cancer in 2023 and her dad decided to clean house 6 months later. The car was gifted back to erin, and i drug it onto my flatbed with a locked up tire. It got a fuel pump, new brakes, aired up tires, fixed the loose pinion nut, found the temp issue and we drove it a few times.

She wont drive it till i put tires on it. I want to fix more than that lol. Finally making time for it so i want to get it road worthy without dumping a bunch into it… yet lol.

Ultimate goal is a built 302 (450-500hp, depends on if i want to buy a block), t5 trans or t56, 9” rear, disc front conversion, power brakes and probably do an electric power steering on the manual rack.

 

[TheBac]

Im not staying up past midnight just to get the time correct for you guys, ok?

I think you mentioned that car a while back. Really nice car, IIRC.
Dont forget A/C, esp where you live. LOL I myself would put a decent stockish 302 in it and cruise it all day, every day.

 

[malibu795]

Ole tom getting a jump on March madness

 

[PureHybrid]

450hp on a 302 won't have power brakes unless you go hydro, that's pretty stout without going stroker or boosted. Last I checked SBF cyl head options are pretty limited anyway. I'm with Tom, mild 302 and ship it

 

[jlawles2]

Either leave the stock I6 in it or go completely bonkers and drop in a SBC.

I'd hate to know how bad they want to keep this thing in parts somewhere waiting to build it but options are out there. https://www.chevrolet.com/performance-parts/crate-engines/small-block-engines/383-engine

Looked up the parts number on one of the online sites. https://www.gmpartsdirect.com/oem-parts/gm-engine-19435454 Probably not too bad since it's a turnkey engine with electronics.

 

[malibu795]

Either leave the stock I6 in it or go completely bonkers and drop in a SBC.

I'd hate to know how bad they want to keep this thing in parts somewhere waiting to build it but options are out there. https://www.chevrolet.com/performance-parts/crate-engines/small-block-engines/383-engine

Looked up the parts number on one of the online sites. https://www.gmpartsdirect.com/oem-parts/gm-engine-19435454 Probably not too bad since it's a turnkey engine with electronics.

I'd say Coyote engine swap it.. stock your 400-450 pending the year

Coyote Engine Swap Guide: Cost, Compatibility & Best Kits

Thinking about a Coyote engine swap? Learn about costs, compatibility, required modifications, and the best swap kits to make your Ford build a success.

wadesmotorsports.com

 

[Chevy1925]

Cant believe after all these years, you guys don’t know how i always go against the grain

Ttb turbo chevy tracker prerunner
600hp “tow tune” 02 lbyzmlp
Home built 1500lbs LT sand car

Vacuum pump will fix the power brakes easy. 302 will be a high revver. Probably 7500-8k.

 

[PureHybrid]

A hot 302 isn't what I'd call against the grain, it's just not going to be a good driver. Which I assumed was the goal

 

[TheBac]

Ole tom getting a jump on March madness

Im hoping Michigan State makes a good run. Hard to believe the 2000 Champs were the last BigTen team to win it all.

 

[TheBac]

Turning a stock 302 block 7500-8000 probably isnt a good idea unless you find a Boss 4-bolt-main block. Ive been there back in the '80s.
A stock shortblock with a good set of heads, a streetable cam, shorty headers and FI will be a mid-13 second car and be fun as heck on the street.
2800 stall converter, decently built big-bell C4 (or AOD if you want OD) and 3.73 rear would make it easy to drive, too.

But build it however you want.

 

[lutzjk]

Coyote swap it.

 

[Chevy1925]

Like i said, may buy a dart block and build from there. Depends on what i find

Its going to be loud, manual and rips tires up. Probably do electric cut outs. There will be a point that i grow tired of whats in it and will change it up but for now, thats the goals and what im after. May or may not see the drag strip.

Maybe ill find me an ex ford nascar engine from the late 90’s early 2000’s.

 

[1FastBrick]

+1 on the dart block!

 

[JoshH]

Started responding to this last week, and got side tracked before I could finish.

What did the truck look like prior? Lol

It was a really nice truck, and I liked it a lot. I don't really have any great pictures of it, but here are a couple I got right after I put the 37s on it. I hadn't put all the lights in the bumper at this point, but this is pretty much what it looked like before the wreck.

 

[TheBac]

Just glad you're still alive, Josh. That accident was a bad one.

 

[JoshH]

Thanks Tom. I'm glad I walked away with no life threatening injuries. I'm definitely still feeling the soreness, but it seems to be improving some.

James, I picked up a project a few weeks ago, and I'm kind of in the same boat as you with the Mustang. Granted mine doesn't have any sentimental history to influence my decisions, but I have always loved 55 Chevy cars. I found a pretty decent one that was a decent price, and I picked it up from an old guy that had too many projects already (and interestingly enough his wife wanted to use the cash he got from the car to buy a 68 Mustang). When I was first looking, I thought I wanted a car with a big block or wanted to swap a big block into whatever I ended up buying, but after doing some reading it seems like to make them fit you have to either cut/bash the firewall or move the motor forward for clearance. I'm not super excited about either option, and now I'm leaning towards a larger displacement small block. I'm leaning towards a 427 (4.125" bore and 4" stroke) and keeping it vintage appearing but adding modern accessories like alternator, a/c, and power steering. I might do one of the Holley sniper throttle body fuel injection systems on it, but I'll probably initially stick with the 4 barrel Holley carb that is on it now. I have people telling me to LS swap it, but that's not what I want. It currently has a 250 hp 327 from a mid 60s Corvette (that's the story the guy I bought it from got which seems to add up to what I'm seeing on the car) with a wide ratio Muncie 4 speed. I want to pair the new engine with a Tremec TKX 5 speed for better engine RPM while cruising. I don't think I'll need the added size/weight of a 6 speed or the extra overdrive. The .68:1 5th gear should be good enough for what I'm doing. The biggest dilemma I'm facing is what to do with the rear axle. I don't think the stock rear axle will hold up to the power I plan to put through it, and most of the aftermarket options are Ford 9" axles. I know they are plenty strong and relatively easy to work on, but I'm having a hard time putting Ford parts in my GM car. I'm just hoping I don't regret swapping out the current drivetrain and not going with a modern engine with the associated modern fuel injection.

 

[1FastBrick]

Aftermarket Ford 9 inch is really the way to go. No C- clips to deal with and very stout. It's almost the gold standard for an upgrade at this point.

I recently built a 14 bolt 9.5 for my 06 Sierra just to keep it GM... But frankly If I had to do it all over again to hold any power, I would just build a 9 inch based rear end.

 

[JoshH]

Aftermarket Ford 9 inch is really the way to go. No C- clips to deal with and very stout. It's almost the gold standard for an upgrade at this point.

I recently built a 14 bolt 9.5 for my 06 Sierra just to keep it GM... But frankly If I had to do it all over again to hold any power, I would just build a 9 inch based rear end.

I know. I'm just being stubborn by resisting. In the end, I'm sure that's what I'll end up doing.

 

[TheBac]

I did a google on that, Josh, and came up with a FB group talking about using a later-year S10 rear axle.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1658527624411494/posts/3539441326320105/

The '55 rear axle looks to be 60" flange to flange.