Bit of an unusual project.... Having progressed with cars liking Alfas, Fiats, Skodas and generally European stuff and never really considering American cars this was offered to me a few years ago. I work in a dealership and out of politeness I said I would ask about to see if I knew anyone interested.... The cogs got turning and I went to see the car and before I knew it I was the owner of a 1971 Mustang Coupe. The car had not been driven since 1994 (tax disc on windscreen being the give away!) luckily the car had been dry stored but full of rust in most of the usual places.
Despite the obvious route to go down of sourcing a V8 the car as original had a 4.1 Ford straight six. Thinking about power and cubic inches I knew that if this was to be modified it had to be different and an idea brewed so I started looking at ways to keep a straight six but with decent power and my search took me to looking at Australian Ford Falcons which used a newer version of the same engine which was then replaced with a decent and modern straight six in the past 20-25 years. Being in Scotland trying to buy/locate or import an Australian engine was not straight forward, thre were options and ebay offered some hope but suddenly it then dawned on me that in scrapyards up and down the country there are Jaguars with lovely 4.0 engines in them sitting waiting to be crushed!! A nice 4.0 with decent power and they made one with a supercharger too....
Initially the plan was to repair and treat the rust/rot whilst at the same time remove the old rear axle with drum brakes and install the Jag rear axle too complete with a LSD, decent brakes and decent suspension. What has happened over the years is that the car now has a bespoke rear end and after purchasing a second donor Jag also has the front floorpan/inner wings/bulkhead of a Jag XJR with the AJ16 supercharged engine. In doing this swap I also now have rack and pinion power steering, ABS, the ability to fit the complete interior with electric heated seats, climate control, cruise control etc etc.
It has turned into far more than originally planned and all things going well the car will be ready to paint in the Spring (famous last words) I did the easy bit (stripping it down and hatching the plan) and have to hand the credit to my friend Scott who has the skills with the welder and shares my vision that anything is possible!!
I have a thread running on an American site specifically for 1971-1973 Mustangs so will not list all the photos here (got carried away and have gone ahead and shown progress up to date) but when I have the car painted will complete this as a full thread.
If there are any other Mustang owners out there I have a surplus of 1971 parts including the original engine and 3 speed gearbox available to a good home!
Despite the obvious route to go down of sourcing a V8 the car as original had a 4.1 Ford straight six. Thinking about power and cubic inches I knew that if this was to be modified it had to be different and an idea brewed so I started looking at ways to keep a straight six but with decent power and my search took me to looking at Australian Ford Falcons which used a newer version of the same engine which was then replaced with a decent and modern straight six in the past 20-25 years. Being in Scotland trying to buy/locate or import an Australian engine was not straight forward, thre were options and ebay offered some hope but suddenly it then dawned on me that in scrapyards up and down the country there are Jaguars with lovely 4.0 engines in them sitting waiting to be crushed!! A nice 4.0 with decent power and they made one with a supercharger too....
Initially the plan was to repair and treat the rust/rot whilst at the same time remove the old rear axle with drum brakes and install the Jag rear axle too complete with a LSD, decent brakes and decent suspension. What has happened over the years is that the car now has a bespoke rear end and after purchasing a second donor Jag also has the front floorpan/inner wings/bulkhead of a Jag XJR with the AJ16 supercharged engine. In doing this swap I also now have rack and pinion power steering, ABS, the ability to fit the complete interior with electric heated seats, climate control, cruise control etc etc.
It has turned into far more than originally planned and all things going well the car will be ready to paint in the Spring (famous last words) I did the easy bit (stripping it down and hatching the plan) and have to hand the credit to my friend Scott who has the skills with the welder and shares my vision that anything is possible!!
I have a thread running on an American site specifically for 1971-1973 Mustangs so will not list all the photos here (got carried away and have gone ahead and shown progress up to date) but when I have the car painted will complete this as a full thread.
If there are any other Mustang owners out there I have a surplus of 1971 parts including the original engine and 3 speed gearbox available to a good home!
