Author Topic: 1963 Ford Fairlane  (Read 148329 times)

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Offline RobJohnson

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #700 on: May 17, 2015, 02:47:24 AM »
It should... it cost enough.

We have a guy in town that does all the wraps for the Corvette track, he gives pretty good deals to the locals that need wraps. One friend with a food truck received an extremely good deal and it turned out nice.


Offline Chris_

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #701 on: September 15, 2015, 10:27:44 PM »
Since the MG is parked in Illinois and I haven't heard from them, I'm doing a little work on the Ford.  Mostly cosmetic (wash, buff, polish, and wax), but the carb and timing need to be reset.  Hopefully the brakes still work.  I have a couple of broken wires in the dash to resolder and some bulbs to replace.
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Offline Chris_

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #702 on: October 02, 2015, 08:47:17 PM »
Just doing some window shopping for next year... rebuild the original gutless turd 260 Windsor and keep the 50-year-old FMX 3-speed or swap in a 5.0/4-speed AOD from an Explorer or Mustang with a mild street cam?  Oh, and the car probably needs a new radiator.  I'm not sure what rear end the car has, but it definitely won't do a burnout. :)
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Offline Chris_

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #703 on: October 09, 2015, 03:09:49 PM »
Breathless headline from Hot Rod Magazine: "Get 400 HP from your small-block Ford!"

Solution: spend $2000 on cylinder heads. :whatever:
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Offline Chris_

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #704 on: November 06, 2015, 04:58:12 PM »
I really don't want to spend any money on the current engine, but a grand for a bolt-on EFI kit?  Sign me up.

Holley Sniper EFI
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Offline franksolich

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #705 on: November 06, 2015, 05:15:58 PM »
With winter looming on the horizon, you're going to slow down a bit, right?
apres moi, le deluge

Offline Chris_

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #706 on: November 07, 2015, 04:17:48 AM »
With winter looming on the horizon, you're going to slow down a bit, right?
I wasn't planning to, but you never know.
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Offline Chris_

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #707 on: January 07, 2016, 10:13:07 PM »
Quizzes, quandaries, and questions.

I have a shopping list of resto-mod parts for the car.  Adjustable shocks, modern suspension parts, swaybars, crossmembers... anything to turn a 50-year-old hulk into a driver's car and serious highway cruiser.  My problem is that the original 260 motor and 3-speed FMX automatic are garbage.  Do I keep the stock 260 and rebuild it with a modern 4-speed AOD tranny or replace it entirely with a late-model or 302 crate motor?  I kind of sort of want to keep the original 260, but it is such a gutless turd (150 hp).  Highway driving is fine... it made the trip from Alabama to Tennessee with no engine problems other than a clogged fuel system.

The following is some advice from some Ford fans in Aiken, SC.

Quote
1. Better steering (in line with your Datsun, BMW and MG) Unisteer rack: http://www.unisteer.com/ford/63-65-fairlane-rack-pinion-for-popular-small-blocks.html You'll never get the kind of precision out of the stock system that a rack will provide.

2. Adjustable strut rods (use rubber NOT urethane). This will allow for greater camber than the stock settings. I did find a company selling adjustable strut rods for the '63 Fairlane.  http://www.streetortrack.com/Street-or-Track-Adjustable-Strut-Rods-pr-16135.html

3. Larger 1-inch front bar. 3/4 inch rear bar.

4. New front springs and rear; contact Eaton Detroit Spring and discuss what you are looking for try and stay away from reverse springs. Rebuild the upper and lower control arms.

5. Hydraulic shocks. Eaton carries a full line of QA1s, we put hem on the '65 hardtop and like the drive much better.

6. Good sticky tires like the BFG KDs mounted on plus sized rims. Be careful. The Falcon and Fairlane are bad about offset. Watch our video on setting up wheels if you don't already have some.

7. Structurally the sedan is much better than a hardtop. You still might consider a pair of home made subframe connectors and shock tower braces both from the cowl to the towers, and from one apron to the other like the Mustang Monte Carlo bar.

Jeff has been an invaluable resource when it comes to Mustang/Fairlane/Falcon/Comet stuff.  What I'm thinking of is sandbagging parts now and installing them over the new year, followed by a replacement motor/transmission at a later date. 

I really do not like the old 3-speed auto transmissions.  I think a 4-speed AOD upgrade would be a huge improvement in addition to swapping the factory 8-inch 3.00 for a lower 3.77.
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Offline Chris_

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #708 on: January 07, 2016, 10:19:43 PM »
I'm still trying to track down the white arm rests I saw a couple years ago so I can match the new seats and door panels to them.  As soon as I get the correct color, I can have the old red seats rebuilt.  I plan on keeping the red carpet but the doors and seats will be white.  It's easier on the ass during summer.
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Offline Chris_

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #709 on: January 07, 2016, 10:29:47 PM »
Oh yeah... forgot about the clogged radiator.  It may be clogged, it may not be, but the car overheats like an SOB and if you run it with the cap off, it turns into Old Faithful after it heats up.

Think I need a new radiator.  The fuel system was pretty rotten... I don't think the cooling system is any better. 
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Offline BattleHymn

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #710 on: January 08, 2016, 04:37:05 PM »
Oh yeah... forgot about the clogged radiator.  It may be clogged, it may not be, but the car overheats like an SOB and if you run it with the cap off, it turns into Old Faithful after it heats up.

Think I need a new radiator.  The fuel system was pretty rotten... I don't think the cooling system is any better.

You can try to flush the radiator out, if it's the old copper style, with muriatic acid.

Offline Chris_

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #711 on: January 08, 2016, 04:45:22 PM »
I tried that with the gas tank with no luck.  I think I'd rather pay someone else to do that for me, but it's still half the cost of a new radiator.
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Offline BattleHymn

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #712 on: January 08, 2016, 04:51:54 PM »
I tried that with the gas tank with no luck.  I think I'd rather pay someone else to do that for me, but it's still half the cost of a new radiator.

The radiator might be different, since the buildup isn't rust, but mineral deposits from the water used as coolant. 

In any event, I'd save your old radiator and have it reworked rather than buying a new one.   

Offline Chris_

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #713 on: January 12, 2016, 12:03:56 PM »
Window shopping the new Holley EFI Terminator conversion.  Two grand.  It doesn't sound like a bad deal until you read the fine print.  Your $2K only gets you the EFI throttle body and wiring.  The fuel system components are not included and are another $700 or more and I'd need a new intake manifold.

The upgrade is pretty significant and I can swap it to a newer 302 or another Ford small-block in the future.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iry0QhiuulM[/youtube]
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Offline Chris_

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #714 on: January 12, 2016, 10:04:36 PM »
I thought someone sold white arm rests for Fords.  I must have dreamed it.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-RvzK3UNtU[/youtube]

I'm going to buy some new arm rests and have these guys re-cover them in white so I can make sure the interior is done the same color.  I was going to use them for the 280ZX dash before I had to sell that car (and the other one burned to the ground).  I'll be sending my MG dash to them to repair later.

They also do plastic chroming.
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Offline Chris_

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #715 on: February 21, 2016, 12:15:21 AM »
I wasn't aware you could set distributor timing using a vacuum gauge.  This is an entirely new thing to me.  I can replace the mechanical points with the Pertronix I purchased, tune the carburetor, and replace the questionable radiator with some reassurance now.  The car runs, but it runs terribly.  I'm looking forward to getting this car done.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0uEMeDVxaA&list=WL&index=28[/youtube]

Stage 1 is a new exhaust, a 4-barrel intake, EFI, and an AOD transmission. :II:
« Last Edit: February 21, 2016, 12:44:59 AM by Chris_ »
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Offline Chris_

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #716 on: February 21, 2016, 06:23:56 PM »
The radiator might be different, since the buildup isn't rust, but mineral deposits from the water used as coolant. 

In any event, I'd save your old radiator and have it reworked rather than buying a new one.
Rock Auto sells an ADPI radiator for the same price as a local recorer and a third less than retail (Auto Zone).  They're based in Texas but they are only listed as an importer and supplier so I don't have a way to tell where it was actually made.  I tried to find a quick replacement at the junkyard today but didn't find anything comparable to what is already in the car.

I was going to pull the radiator this weekend but ran out of time.
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Offline Chris_

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #717 on: February 27, 2016, 09:11:22 PM »
New radiator installed.

I had to go to two different stores to find a new upper hose and clamps.  That and the Tree-B-Gon people held me up for a few hours.
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Offline RobJohnson

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #718 on: March 04, 2016, 02:28:15 AM »
New radiator installed.

I had to go to two different stores to find a new upper hose and clamps.  That and the Tree-B-Gon people held me up for a few hours.

Please tell me you flushed the cooling system before installing the new radiator.


Offline Chris_

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #719 on: March 04, 2016, 08:21:29 AM »
Please tell me you flushed the cooling system before installing the new radiator.
Yes.
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Offline RobJohnson

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #720 on: March 04, 2016, 11:12:49 AM »
Perfect

Offline Chris_

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #721 on: March 04, 2016, 11:36:26 PM »
I should have mentioned this, but there's a thin film of grey goo coating the inside of the old radiator that wasn't visible with it inside the car.  The coolant looked fine when I drained it last year.  :(
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Offline Chris_

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #722 on: March 05, 2016, 09:14:56 PM »
Did a full service (fluids and plugs) and the car won't start.  It starts and runs on starter fluid but doesn't seem to be getting any gas.  I can push the plunger on the accelerator pump to put gas in the carburetor but it doesn't seem to be getting any from the mechanical fuel pump.

Mechanical fuel pumps for old Fords are cheap, but I think I'm going to see about replacing it with an electric pump.  I went ahead and ordered a fuel pump block-off plate for the motor.
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Offline Chris_

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #723 on: March 06, 2016, 05:55:21 PM »
Another clogged fuel filter.  The fuel pump seems to be working fine.

So now I'm back to where I was the last time I worked on the car.  It sort of runs but only for a few minutes and then dies.  It won't start unless you push the accelerator pedal.  I'm pretty sure my timing is off.  I know for sure my idle and fuel mixture are off because I messed with them earlier in a last-ditch attempt to keep the car running long enough to get home.

And the distributor wrench I bought is the wrong size.
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Offline Chris_

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Re: 1963 Ford Fairlane
« Reply #724 on: March 10, 2016, 08:44:15 PM »
I took a page from zeitgeist's book.  Instead of flushing the fuel tank, I just bought extra filters. :whistling:
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