'66 mustang - help!

call a local Mustang club either for help or for references in the SF
area. I know there is at least one in the Oakland/Vallejo area, and in
the Marin area as well.

On Wed, 17 Nov 2004 20:04:12 GMT, rw >
wrote:

>Cory Dunkle wrote:
>>
>>>Finally, can anyone recommend a good vintage Mustang mechanic in the SF
>>>Bay Area? I used to be a shade-tree mechanic, years ago, but I don't
>>>trust myself to work on the brakes of my daughter's car.
>>
>>
>> Brake work is pretty easy and straightforward, but if you don't trust your
>> work it's always best to have someone who knows what they are doing do the
>> work. If you don't know for sure about the carb or something it's no big
>> deal, the worst that happens is you won't go, but it gets real bad very
>> quickly when you can't stop! Emergency brakes don't stop cars very quickly
>> at all. Anyhow, I'm from the east coast, so I can't help you with a good
>> mechanic.
>
>Once again, I'll ask whether anyone can recommend a reliable and honest
>Mustang mechanic in the SF Bay Area, preferably on the Peninsula. I'm
>starting to get desperate.

Hey! Spikey Likes IT!
1965 Ford Mustang fastback 2+2 A Code 289 C4 Trac-Lok
Vintage Burgundy w/Black Standard Interior
Vintage 40 Wheels 16X8"
w/BF Goodrich Comp T/A Radial 225/50ZR16

I owned a 65 back in 1970-71, 289 2v auto, which I street raced in
Seattle, and was quite happy with it's performance. It does sound like
something is not set up right. But it had power brakes. Generally, as
I recall, at idle, the drivetrain should hold the car in place on an
incline (like in SF), not advance (though in SF you might want it to
advance slightly due to the steepness of the hills) or roll back.
Brakes DO make a difference in feel. What you describe I never
experienced with that 65FB. The 66FB I sold a while back, did have
that feel. It was a 289 2v auto with manual drum brakes all around.


On Wed, 17 Nov 2004 20:26:14 GMT, rw >
wrote:

>One thing I don't like about this car is that it's an automatic. On
>modern cars I prefer automatic to manual, but not on this one. The 289
>engine is so powerful and the transmission is so crude that I feel like
>I have to keep extreme pressure on the brakes to avoid running into
>something from a dead stop. Maybe the transmission is not right. I don't
>know.
>
>Is it a really big deal to convert it to a manual transmission?

Hey! Spikey Likes IT!
1965 Ford Mustang fastback 2+2 A Code 289 C4 Trac-Lok
Vintage Burgundy w/Black Standard Interior
Vintage 40 Wheels 16X8"
w/BF Goodrich Comp T/A Radial 225/50ZR16

>Subject: '66 mustang - help!
>From: rw
>Date: 11/17/04 3:26 PM Eastern Standard Time
>Message-id: et>
>
The 289
>engine is so powerful and the transmission is so crude that I feel like
>I have to keep extreme pressure on the brakes to avoid running into
>something from a dead stop.

Your car has the Ford C4, a very good automatic transmission even by today's
standards (except only three forward speeds and no lockup converter of course).

The torque converter on these cars seem to have a very low stall speed, so
excessive idle speed can cause difficulty in holding the car still with drum
brakes in need of attention. I had the exact same problem, and the
transmission wasn't the problem. After rebuilding the carb (so it would idle on
it's own) and brakes, the problem was gone.

John
66 2+2

"John Del" > wrote in message
...
> The torque converter on these cars seem to have a very low stall speed, so
> excessive idle speed can cause difficulty in holding the car still with
drum
> brakes in need of attention.

Drum brakes actually take less affort to hold a car still. the design of
drum brakes naturally aides in braking effort. The only downside to drum
brakes is that they will hold in heat, and water if they are submerged.

Any Car is only as safe as the driver...??? Hmmmmm
SUVs will roll over if you make hard turn at 65 or 70 mph on any road
condition (seen it done on a dry four lane freeway... My 93 Explorer caught
fire under the dash while driving down the road..seen a Pinto get rear ended
at about 50 mph and the driver of the Pinto walked away and there was no
explosion of the gas tank... and just a few months ago I saw a newer Volvo
(safest car on the road ) So they claim... get hit on the right front fender
when a Chevy S10 ran a light moving about 30 mph or so and the driver of the
Volvo was transported with massive head injuries ...seat belts ?
My 16 year old daughters 89 Cadi Fleetwood ( No Bags ) was totaled when hit
on the right front fender by a full size Bronco, her nor her 3 friends had
seat belts on (Already put FOOT to ASS for that one ) they only had minor
bumps and bruises....
She took her insurance money and bought a 73 Mustang Grande... Big, Real
Steel, (I mounted the front seats of a 96 ford Probe and new seat belt
system) but other than that I feel she's safer in it than a little Jap
inspired car, like the ones I drive.
TEACH YOUR KIDS HOW TO DRIVE ... Wide angle vision...always know what's
around you and keep your distance Drive safe...............................

"rw" > wrote in message
hlink.net...
> I've just returned from a long trip to find that my wife bought my
> soon-to-be 18-year-old daughter a '66 mustang for her upcoming birthday.
> It looks to be in nearly perfect condition from the outside. I'm
> embarrassed to say, however, that I cannot figure out how to open the
> hood, and I don't even know what kind of engine it has. Can anyone tell
> me how to get the damn hood open?
>
> I should be ****ed at my wife for not consulting me, but this this a
> very cool car. My best friend had one just like it in college, and we
> had the hood open a lot, so I know it's possible. :-)
>
> --
> Cut "to the chase" for my email address.