Cutting the firewall

I started cutting the firewall last year, about this time. The problem with cutting the firewall is that there are two sheetmetal stampings that seem to be valuable. I saved all of the sheetmetal that was cut out. I'll keep it around just in case someone wants to go back to the way the car was originally.

First cut is done, and the stiffening rail is being removed slowly at the spot welds.

Sheetmetal removed. There will be some trimming when placing the Coyote.

Coyote Assembly Part 3

I had a very slight problem when I installed the heads. Thinking the pistons would definitely clear the heads without issue, I installed the heads. The installation proved to be a complete disaster. The rotating assembly wouldn't turn over! I realized there was something seriously wrong and deduced it was due to piston/head interference. I called Mahle, and they explained there was a bad batch of pistons that went out of their facility. They offered to send me a brand new set of pistons to replace the set that I had. The only thing I was out was the head bolts since they are a one-time use as well as head gaskets. The new head bolts were still cheaper than head studs, so I counted myself lucky.

Coyote Assembly Part 2

I had the heads rebuilt by a local guy with lots of head rebuilding experience. He knew what to do with the head. I installed Manley stainless valves, Boss 302 springs, and other new hardware as needed. The heads were surfaced at the same time by a very small amount.

 

Coyote Assembly Part 1

Assembly of the short block took a lot of time.  Next time, I'll let someone else assemble this part. 

Each piston assembly is laid out and assembled. Getting the circlips on the pistons was no fun but a big highlighter pen helped my thumbs. Each ring was filed to fit the clearance requirements. I tried to be extra careful to avoid burs and keep the filing square to the ring.

Adding a Fuel Filler on the Gill

I haven't posted in a while. It's hard to have a blog that is about a specific serial-numbered car when you don't have it anymore.  I've decided to keep going on the blog, even though I no longer own #1998. My goal is to keep updating daily for a few weeks to catch up with the current state. As a preview, the Coyote was rebuilt, the new chassis has a cut firewall, and new shocks were installed. I also sold a bunch of parts to keep going with the build, knowing that it will only get me so far. However, I can do a lot with what I currently have.  The new chassis doesn't need body work like the last one did.

The new chassis needs a fuel filler door since I have all late-Ford-era parts, not to mention the safety of the whole thing.

I cut the driver's side gill area, slowly cutting just the minimum. I decided on an aircraft-style filler, black anodized to blend into the gill better.

The new aircraft style fuel filler had screws that were clocked to orient the filler tab back, as this seemed to look the best.

Finished product, but not completely installed. 

The Trade

I traded my car body!

Here's the new, replacement car:

I now own a 1973 Pantera, which is different than my old car but still not too bad. I hauled the old car to Oklahoma City to meet up with Kirk Evans, who traded me for this car. He now owns 1998, which is fine with me. He has the skills to rebuild the entire car, so let him have it!

The new car is in much better shape than 1998. Much better shape is an understatement; the car is mostly original. The rear quarter panel has been replaced on the right side, and some work has been done on the decklid and left rear corner. Kirk added gussets and welded key areas, including welding up the unnecessary holes in the rear wheelhouses. There are a couple wrinkles that I hope to correct, such as in the firewall on the right side as well as in the rear wheelhouse. However, rust is minimal throughout the car and it all seems to be in excellent condition.

I've been working on the Coyote engine, so stay tuned for some updates on the engine progress.