1969 Mustang coupe - good deal?

[RangerMan]

I have a line on a 1969 Ford Mustang Coupe. Has a 1971-74 351C 2V engine in it, automatic, disk brakes. Floor pans have rust in usual spots but aren't too bad (still drivable). Rough paint, couple of dents, rough interior. Solid car, runs well. Decent brakes, tires, wheels, new battery. Started right up, didn't smoke.

Asking $3500.

Am I crazy for not jumping on it?

Hoping to have an answer for the guy soon.

Of course this was the first classic mustang I have looked at so I am not 100% sure it is a good deal. I haven't seen any other '69s for sale for this price though and it looked to be really solid for what it is.

 

[xoxbxfx]

I have seen better deals on ebay for a coupe

 

[RangerMan]

Thanks.

Definitely no collectors value to it (already mismatched) so I am trying to evaluate it just as an older car with a V8.

regular 351C 2V so nothing special
has disc's so that is a plus
automatic is nothing special

I think other deals will come along so I'll probably pass. Probably needs $5k to make it nice, though a thorough detailing would do wonders as well. I'll keep looking, might contact the guy again if it hasn't sold and see if he can do better than $3500.

 

[351carlo]

For a comparison, I got my 70 Grande Deluxe interior coupe for 4500. It had brand new BFG tires on original Ford Magnum 500 rims in perfect shape. Paint was very good, but it was a repaint and started to peel in one spot. Came with a new set of seat covers (actual vinyl seat skins) and they look great after we redid the interior. Came with a new dash pad and the motor ran just fine. It was a 351c 2v automatic, and after some minor changes it was running 13's with ease.

I feel I paid too much for the car, but it is a very straight car with very minimal rust.

 

[RangerMan]

Thanks 351 Carlo. I ended up passing on the car, another guy ******ed it up so the buyer didn't have to sit on it for too long.

I think for anything other than a Mustang it would have sold for under $2k. I remember looking at a Dodge Dart 225 slant six in high school in way better shape for only $350 (that was 10 years ago).

This gave me a good baseline. It is tough to have the willpower not to buy the first car you look at. My wife and I plan on owning the car for a number of years so we want to find one we just have to have.

We'll keep looking. That is half the fun right?

 

[Max Power]

For a comparison, I got my 70 Grande Deluxe interior coupe for 4500. It had brand new BFG tires on original Ford Magnum 500 rims in perfect shape. Paint was very good, but it was a repaint and started to peel in one spot. Came with a new set of seat covers (actual vinyl seat skins) and they look great after we redid the interior. Came with a new dash pad and the motor ran just fine. It was a 351c 2v automatic, and after some minor changes it was running 13's with ease.

I feel I paid too much for the car, but it is a very straight car with very minimal rust.

If I may ask, what did you do to the motor?

 

[351carlo]

Sure. I had a standard rebuild on it which wouldn't have been necessary but I wanted it done while I had it apart. 30 over flat tops, stock crank, stock rods, Comp Magnum 270H cam, Crane stud conversion with Erson 1.73 rockers, X-CELerator, 750 Speed Demon, Pertronix Ignitor II, Hooker Comps, FMX w/ shift kit and a slight stall converter.

Electric fuel pump and fans. Car ran with Hoosier Quicktimes. This was a stock 2 barrel head which WAS milled down slightly to raise compression. All in all though it was a very mild setup still running 2 barrel heads.

I'm sure that if it hadn't been for the fact that I tore the old motor down, the car would've run well without a lot of the other stuff including the electric accessories.

 

[Max Power]

Did it idle smooth with good vacuum with that cam and rockers? Get halfway decent mileage.

I already have a stroker hot rod, so when I bought this latest project, I wanted a well mannered cruiser. Looking at various combos to achieve that goal.

 

[351carlo]

To be honest I thought it was too mild. The initial build was a stock appearing cruiser and it did just that. It idled very smooth and I used to overhear people arguing over whether or not it had a cam (obviously they meant aftermarket). Rockers were alright, but I would certainly recommend Harland Sharp or Crane Gold.

Gas mileage I wouldn't be able to comment on. I really never bothered checking but I guess it wasn't too bad. I only drove this motor for 2500 miles before the junk hypereutectic Speed Pro pistons cracked between the ring lands and started knocking.

In fact, I still have the cam and the lifters since I moved up to a solid setup.

Shoot me a PM with your goals for the car and I could probably guide you to them. My car was an A/C, P/S, P/B Deluxe interior coupe with stock AM/FM and everything worked flawlessly. It was a pleasure to drive and I really don't know why I took it apart

 

[Max Power]

Sounds like a good combo and similar to my goals. For this car I want a fairly smooth runner that makes good torque, runs well on pump gas, gets reasonable mileage, and has good vacuum. I will be running manifolds instead of headers, and maybe a 650 instead of a 750. Otherwise, you basically had what I am looking for.

 

[302 coupe]

I only drove this motor for 2500 miles before the junk hypereutectic Speed Pro pistons cracked between the ring lands and started knocking.

sounds more like improper ring sizing than flawed pistons. Nothing wrong with hypers, you just have to get the rings right.

 

[351carlo]

sounds more like improper ring sizing than flawed pistons. Nothing wrong with hypers, you just have to get the rings right.

Hey it very well could of been. I overpaid a shop to assemble the entire thing for me so I wouldn't have to worry about it.... last time I make that mistake.

But that still doesn't change my opinion on the Speed Pro pistons. I'll go with TRW forged or something better like a KB from this point forward.

Max Power, stock manifolds would probably have been nicer and the turbo mufflers were pretty quiet. I used a generics Jegs Mustang exhaust kit (2.5'') and it was a real easy job.

Oh and I had a 625 Road Demon on it for the longest time with an Edelbrock Performer manifold. I wouldn't recommend the manifold again, but the carburetor was real nice. Sold it to a friend and he still runs it.

 

[Max Power]

What was wrong with the Performer? Too restrictive? The Xcelerator seems to be designed for more aggresive cams than the 270.....

 

[351carlo]

Basically the performer was an aluminum casting of the stock manifold, except with a 4 barrel flange. It was alright, but certainly not my first choice if I were to do it over. The X-CELerator is a single plane low rise intake, so probably not the best choice when mated with a 270, but I also moved up to the 292 when I swapped intakes. (Now I'm running the same X-CELerator ported with a crane F246... that's WAY too big)

To be quite honest with the 2 barrel heads there aren't many choices for a good intake in my opinion. I'd have to read up on them myself.