Classic Mustangs List Archive

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Mail From: (email redacted) (email redacted)

I took the family with me to a job conference the other day. We jumped in my
67 Fastback and down the road we went. A ways out of town the car started to
make a little noise periodically. This started to worry me and I was trying
to determine what the problem could be as I was driving. It kind of came and
went, a little tick, tick, tick. Almost sounded like I was begining to get a
leak from the gasket on my headers. I always bring my tools, so I can tighten
it up when I reach the next gas station...about 20 miles away. Remember I am
dressed in a 3 piece suit the whole time also. I get to the station , pop the
hood and get a better listen. I was wrong, it is a valve/lifter making a
little noise. I go to get my tools and remember the box I keep in my trunk is
laying on the garage floor back at home. I cuss myself out a little and
notice the station across the road has a shop. I drive over and talk to the
mechanic. He looks and thinks the same thing I do....good mechanic. His boss
comes over and says..."You'll need a feeler guage to do that. We don't have
one. Can't do it for you." End of conversation. The station I was just at
sells tools, so I go looking for a 5/8 socket...with no luck of course. I
sneak back in to see the mechanic and offer to buy, beg, barrow or steal a
5/8 socket and drive. He is a great guy and comes over to the road where my
car is parked (off the station property because I couldn't work on it there)
and slips me the socket. 2 minutes, the sound is cleared up, I thank the
mechanic and the family and I are back on the road. Some miles down the road
the noise comes back. I'm begining to sweat it now. I have to drive another
70 miles before I can find a parts store and buy a socket to readjust that
valve. In the parking lot I go to adjust the valve, but it is a different one
this time. Puzzled, I adjust it and four others just to make sure...don't ask
me why I didn't do them all. Down the road it starts making noise again!
DAMN!!! I pull off the highway and sure enough it is the two valves I hadn't
adjusted. By now I'm real glad I have the wing-nuts on my valve covers. I
re-adjust them and down the road I go. All should be good and fine, but you
know better right? A few miles down the road my car sounds like a sewing
machine again. I have to get to this job fair come hell or high water and
down the road I go. Let me mention that a few months ago my oil sending unit
broke and oil was shooting out of it, so I replaced it with what Ford gave me
(they had in stock) at the time. Instead of the type that registers how much
pressure you have , this one is the type to work an IDIOT light. I've been
meaning to replace it with the right one ever since. Well I zip around a
corner (old country back roads) and notice my oil guage needle moves. Its
only supposed to move when it would be signaling the IDIOT light. My heart
sank into my stomache. I only have a few more miles to go and remember the
couple of extra quarts of oil I always keep in my trunk is sitting next to my
tools on my garage floor at home. I get to the job fair, do my thing and then
come out to check my oil. There is less than one tiny drop at the bottom of
the stick. I look around and there is a station about a block down the road
so wincing as I do so I start my poor little car back up (my wife doesn't
want to be left there with the kids while I go get oil). I drive to the
station and buy 6 quarts of oil. It takes 4 1/2 and I am cussing myself the
whole time for being such an idiot. I restart the car and the noise slowly
goes away. I stupidly drove my mustang about 200 miles with little to no oil
in the engine. I think I used 8 of its 9 lives yesterday, but one thing I
have to say is FORD engines are tough. I have a 68 302 in my 67 and my father
has an old Ford van with over one million original miles (no rebuild) and
yes it runs liike crap but it still runs. Its probably close to rebuild time
for me, being the complete idiot that I was, but I will always own a Ford. I
just had to vent and let everyone know what an idiot I was. Hope your pony's
are running well. I need to go change my oil and readjust my valves again.

Mike B
67 Fastback
68 GTCS
57 Tunderbird

ME LIKE FORDS!!!

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This read-only message was archived from a public mail list.
Mail From: doudou content (email redacted)

Well glad to hear somme have better luck i did ... I
used to have a freshly (1 month old) rebuilt 302
(unknown year) in my '66 coupe.
Was driving on the freeway and suddenly saw the oil
pressure needle down. I pull over, check the oil ...
Perfect ! So i decide that my guage must be dead,and
keep going back home.
30 miles latter, i can feel the engine getting real
rough. Two solutions : stop there at 3 in the morning,
in the middle of nowhere, leaving a rare piece of
collectible car, or keep going for the last 5 miles to
reach home.
I decided for the second solution.
The next day, not very sure, i tried to start the
engine ... Bang !!! Cranckchaft or smthg must have
been welded or something.
The car has now been sitting in a garage since then (1
year and a half) : can't afford two engine rebuilt in
less that 2 years.
So allow me to just modify a little bit your subject
to :
"Some FORDS never die ... and the idiot is ME".

Glad to read everything went weel with yours !

Ben
'66 coupe


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