66 Mustang coupe

[Kenny_Z]

I finally started the teardown of my 66 coupe to fix the damage the PO did to her. The kid lost control and spun her into a telephone pole on a wet road. His mom told him he had to sell the car before it killed him so I got her cheap ($2500 w\ the replacement quarter thrown in).

The day I got her home:


Long tiring weekend:


Right now:


The work seems to be going very smoothly so far. Everything is lining up properly. I've got a few more parts coming before I can really start to weld everything back together. The wheelhouse was a total loss as was the trunk dropoff on the passenger side.

After this is finished I'll be fixing the sagging rear, getting rid of the air shocks, and upgrading to a dual master cylinder with front discs. She was repainted very recently but I may repaint her because the PO did it with a cheapy paintgun and it's not too good.

[fahrenschnell]

Re: 66 Mustang coupe

Good idea on the brakes. I had a 68 w/ 4 drums and you could not stop to save your life. Looks good so far, and great price by the way. I love the coupe. 8)

[BRAVENRACE]

Re: 66 Mustang coupe

Looks good so far! Keep us updated on your progress!

[Freiburger]

Re: 66 Mustang coupe

I admire guys who tackle that much bodywork at home.

[DanStokes]

Re: 66 Mustang coupe

It's mostly time consuming. No brain surgery, though. Still, cool to see this car being saved, and done nicely! Drilling that many spot welds is a pain. Good Job! Looks like a pretty rust-free example. Dents are fixable - rust is a bitch.

Dan

[Nik]

Re: 66 Mustang coupe

Keep the pics coming, it looks like you are off to a great start.

Nik

[PYSCHOWard]

Re: 66 Mustang coupe

The 64 1/2 to 68 cars make Great hot rods, i had several when they were Cheep, including a 65 vert, that got scrapped because the spring hanger came up thru the trunk. I also had a 69 Mach one, it was a nice cruiser but too lite in the frt end, it would float at high speed in slight dips. Its great to see new parts availible for these because
donor cars for most parts of the country are long gone.
It looks like you have a great body to start with, taking your time and doing it right, will be worth its weight in gold
in the future. Soon you'll have a nice car to enjoy.

[Kenny_Z]

Re: 66 Mustang coupe

Thanks everyone.

Yeah, I already did the sliding up to a redlight in front of a police officer with this one. It turned yellow and I thought I could stop, i did but it was not graceful. Thankfully the officer didn't pull me over because I had her under control the whole time.

It seems like a lot of bodywork but it really isn't a great deal of cutting. It is very tiring though to drill out the spotwelds. I'm so glad I have a few titanium bits.

I love the 64 1/2 through 68 Mustangs. They tend to be a little light in the front as well though unless you get that hidious air dam for them. I prefer purchasing from the aftermarket when it comes to parts like this. I have another 66 coupe that'll be a big project for me in a couple of years. I could of turned her into a parts car but with all the available parts in the aftermarket I'll be saving both of these classics. This is minor surgery compared to my other girl.

Before I can go forward, I have to go through a little more destruction...


First section welded in...


Second...I think I'm getting the hang of welding


Attached the quarter so I could see how the body lined up with the trunk lid...


I ran out of sheilding gas in my welder before I finished the wheelhouse but the four remaining rosette welds aren't structural so I can really work on aligning that quarter while I'm waiting to get more sheilding gas. Fortunately dad's shop supplies me with it for free :D

[stillkruzn]

Re: 66 Mustang coupe

Nice project... glad you saved it from the kid before he destroyed it beyond repair... I just sold a '66 back in November to fund my new project...

[terry russell]

Re: 66 Mustang coupe

cool stuff at least one was saved from the fast and the dumb

[Scott Liggett]

Re: 66 Mustang coupe

Please keep the pics and details coming. I've been sitting on a pair of new quarters for my Impala, but haven't had the courage to cut up the car to replace them.

[Darren N.]

Re: 66 Mustang coupe

Nice deal on the car.
I've always had the hots for a well built 64-66 Coupe (or 67-68 for that matter). Everyone digs the fastbacks, but I've always loved coupes because of some awesome examples (Trans-Am and dragstrip history) but also the sleeper vibe.

Major props for doing the work yourself and at home. Nice work and keep us updated!

[Kenny_Z]

Re: 66 Mustang coupe

That's a beautiful car Rebel. One of my favorite designs. Replacing a quarter seems like a huge undertaking but I always remember what my father taught me. It's only metal, there's always more. I figure even if I screw up and I have to purchase some new panels I learned what not to do. I won't be doing anymore damage to the car replacing just these few sections.

Thank you for the encouragement :D I prefer the shape of the coupes to the fastbacks. Not that a fastback is a bad looking car but it just isn't my favorite. When I purchaed my other 66 Mustang a guy had stopped to look at it while we were hitching it up to drag home. He told me a coupe is only good for a fastback parts car. I told him I don't believe in parts cars, which between my rustbelt Rustang 66, my Michigan 89 Safari van, and my 4 door Nova I really don't.

Looking for a little advice if anyone has any to offer. I went back to the garage after these previous pictures and looked closer at getting the passenger quarter aligned. It's very far off and I'm not sure I know the proper procedure for convincing these panels of where they need to be. As you can see it doesn't follow the contour of the deck lid and the wheel opening doesn't follow the wheelhouse lip all the way around.



Any tips or tricks would be welcome.

[Fordplay0621]

Re: 66 Mustang coupe

Looks like you got it going on. Let you get back to work.

[mrocketscience]

Re: 66 Mustang coupe

Looking real good... Obviously I like Mustang coupes as well ;D