1969 mustang newbie

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Hello everyone. My name is Billy and I recently bought a 1969 mustang coupe with a 250 c.i.d. It has the C4 with an automatic. I'm new to this and I have a few questions about it. One, when they talk about matching numbers does that relate to the heads as well as the block or not? Also, I plan on getting the perfomance book everyone has talked about but I also need to know what I need to do in the meantime. I'm learning as I go so please don't worry about being too basic. The engine is not running. The guy I bought it from said it has a cracked piston and it had a broken rod. The head is off of it. If I wanted to get it rebuilt what would I tell the engine shop I wanted? Please be specific as possible. Money IS an issue but I want to get it done right. I want to get the most power out of it I can. After the rebuild what would be the best things to start out with as far as performance parts go. I was really thinking about swapping in a V8 but after reading this forum tonight I think I will keep the 6 in it. Thanks so much for all your help.
 
t would really really help if you could give people a budget
do you want to go with forced induction via turbo or supercharger, or do you want to stay NA?

and if you're going to get it rebuilt, just be patient and get the performance parts now
it'll make it all quicker in the long run


what exactly are your goals from it? how much power do you actually want from it? that would help decide what you need to do
 
I really don't have a budget per se. I would like to do it in steps. Right now I'm working on the body so I'm not in a big rush to get everything done quick. As far as performance parts are concerned I'm not real sure what I need. My goals would be to make it as fast as possible. I had no idea you could even put a turbo in until I was reading the post tonight. That might be something I would like to do in the future. As of right now it will have to be NA. I'm just not real sure what to tell the engine place I want as far as how much to bore and what all is involved in the process as far as what I should get done there.
 
asa67_stang,

I see your at Andrews AFB. Are you active duty? I'm active duty stationed at Sheppard AFB, Tx right now.
 
yup, active duty, stationed at Andrews, and actually gonna be overseas playin in the sand shortly
if you ever get an opportunity to transfer here, spit in whoever's eye that's giving you the opportunity (i don't like it here...)

as for the other part, that's about where i outlive my usefulness
i'm not really that well versed in what's good for mods, but i can remember who you should talk to about various parts of the engine

but, with boring, i believe that the consensus is that you really won't gain much for the effort, and you won't be able to rebuild the block later on down the road if you need to
so you might not want to think about that

you should probably get the head upgraded, install some sort of electronic ignition (DuraSpark II, or the Petronix system), upgrade the carb and the cam

if you're going to stick with the log head, you're going to want one from a later model car
if you want an aluminum head, talk to Mike (screen name "AzCoupe") over at www.fordsixparts.com he's our parts guy, and he'll hook you up with just 'bout anything you'll need
and if you want to stick with an iron head (that i believe flows better than the aluminum head), you're gonna want to talk to..... John? i think.... his screen name is "Inliner" and he'll talk to you about 'em (or you can look at the post about Argentine heads)
 
You've got to crawl before you can walk. Getting it moving under its own power is a big psych "motivator" (pun intended). I'd suggest have the head rebuilt with attention to detail but not overkill. That's one problem area dealt with.

Dismantle the block and check for bore diameter and damage. If it's bored out and heavily worn, those "matching numbers" are history - the engine really isn't going to be worth resuscitating. Look for another (preferably unbored) 250, do a quick zero decking on the block and reassemble with new rings, bearings, cam and timing set as needed.

Assuming the trans behaves itself, you've now got a modestly peppy engine that will respond well as the carb and ignition are "dialled in". It may be far from the final incarnation you desire, but it will be reliable and not borderline overstressed.

Cheers, Adam.
 
I'm with the guys above. One point really worth every cent is being absolutely ruthless on doing minimum to get it up and running and legal. Grab a good 250 engine from a running car, such as a later 1975 to 1980 250 Granada, Monarch, Versailes. Buy one, get the engine and trans tested and then send the rest of it to the scrap heap for cash or get someone here to consider it. Drop the engine in the Mustang.

Then...take one year of owneship costs, see if you like it, then plan a modest rebuild with the focus of correcting common mistakes made.
Find the best people you can, and pay up front to get it on the road as soon as you can.

Avoid all rebuilds now untill you've got the existing block out and sorted.

I've done four back-from-the-dead rebuilds, and they have all cost me a packet, mainly because I've had my head in the clouds. The advice Adam and Evan have is vital. Set aspirations just a little less, and figure on a budget a little more than you'd perhaps like. That way, every step you make will add to the value of your car, and you'll never have to do things twice.

The 250 is a killer engine, with a heap of very special characteristics and ore potential in your Mustang than any other combination. It is one of the best engines they ever made becasue it is so strong. It's also one of the most frustrating becasue of some peculiar machining stuff-ups from the factory which take a few dollars to sort out.

Well help you out with it. MustangSix (Jack Collins) has been there, and a 250 Mustang is a very plesant ride.
 
Pull the motor out and take it to a good machine/engine shop. They can hot tank it and measure the bores to see how much it needs to be overbored.

I dont know that much about 250's but I believe that (hot mod) is that you replace the stock pistons with 255 V 8 pistons so that you decreasce the distance between the top of the pistons and the deck of the block. Youll have to ask one of the guys that knows 250's about that though... :wink:

As far as a good quality rebuild goes I would build up the bottom end of the block as indestructible as you could now, then you could add the hi performance parts later as you get more money.

A good bottom end build up includes, turning the crank, new main & rod bearings, cylinders overbored as needed, deck the block, hot tanked, V 8 255 pistons with new rings, remaned rods, ARP rod bolts, new oil pump, balance rotating assy, new timing chain & gears, your choice of cam.

Depending on how much you want to spend on performance parts, you could look at Mike's (Azcoupe) website to buy all the fun stuff!! Headers, cam, pushrods, balancer, etc, etc, etc!! 8) 8)

Later,

Doug
 
Mustang_Geezer":9mkxq9oa said:
As far as a good quality rebuild goes I would build up the bottom end of the block as indestructible as you could now, then you could add the hi performance parts later as you get more money.



What he said. A proper rebuild of the short block is the foundation for anything that you will want to add later. The good news is that this really doesn't cost much more to do it right than to do it sloppy. If it has cracked pistons then you are looking at replacing them anyway, so upgrading is easy to do. The first, and most critical thing, is to evaluate the block to detirmine if you even have an engine, then go from there.

As for the turbo idea, forget about it for now. Any turbo for these engines is a custom setup, requiring both knowledge and money. If you are lacking in one then you had best have plenty of the other. A clever hot rodder can substitute knowledge for money and do pretty well, and if your pockets are deep enough you can buy someone elses knowledge, but those of us without either need to know our limitations. As Addo said, you have to crawl before you can walk. Good luck.
Joe
 
Evry thing they all said, plus I feel it is best not to make mods thet you can't do up keep on. Some of the things we do to engines make the people in garges shake their heads and wonder how they stay on the road. And if your modified daly driver gives you trouble??? I'm not sure I said this right??? :roll:
 
Personally, the first thing I would do is electronic ignition of some sort, either Duraspark2 or Pertronix with an MSD box.

http://kastang.net/pertvds2.html

That will really help an engine run well and is a good basis for further modifications.

With the rest of the money...Good performance upgrades. If you are going to pull the engine, replace the cam. I would also look into either Aussie 250/2v heads or the Argentinian heads. They are pricey, but for $1000-1500, you'll have performance that few other 6 mods can provide in a single shot.

I love my Aussie head...worth every penny.

Slade
 
I want to thank everyone that gave me advice on what to do. Right now I have the body of the car down to the shell and I'm getting ready to pull the engine so I have time to do the engine right. Again I appreciate everyones input.

Billy
 
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