That’ll Make A Diff-erence

Posted on December 19, 2021 by Mustang Maniac

Our work this week is coming to an end on the 66 Coupe with a few little updates. To bring this little lady up to a real nice spec again. The other 66 Fastback is getting out of sight TLC as well.

Customer Cars:

’66 Coupe

The old carpet was pulled out and the floors checked over while we were there. A couple of little bits to keep an eye on but nothing to cause concern.

Nice new carpets makes quite a difference to the interior and shows the Pony interior of to its best.

With the carpet out we replaced the heater plenum, which again can make nice difference to the ventilation and heating inside the car.

We had our glass guys come in and fit the front and rear glass once we were happy with the final adjustments to the headliner. We also make sure the glass is bonded into place to make sure there are no leaks from the screens. It may not be concours but at least you wont get wet feet.

The lights have been upgraded to a LEDs so that you can see where you are going. The difference is amazing to be honest and a well worthwhile upgrade.

We checked over the wiring and being exposed to the constant temperature changes under the hood they had gone a brittle. A direct replacement from stock will sort that out and give many years of trouble free usage again. A couple of little mods and it’s all done. See and be seen.

The other end of the car required a replacement trunk rubber. not a difficult job but time consuming to get right. Removing the old glue and prep for the bonding is the key. We have a couple of little trick up our sleeves for these type of jobs to make it go smoothly, but we shouldn’t share those to make life easier for others.

We have enjoyed working on a nice unmolested car like this, it makes life so much easier to be honest.

‘66 Fastback Time Trial

The fastback has had the upgraded brake pads from EBC fitted to give that performance (and more) for a car used for this style of driving.

We took the drive shafts out and replaced the bearings on each shaft. This makes a difference to having a ‘bum hum’ as Adam calls it, or a relaxing quieter drive.

With the drive shafts out we cleaned out the diff case, and the gears. We could then get a good idea of wear and tear. Those who have had dealings with the diff oil knows this is not the best job as it’s a bit on the stinky side.

Nothing out of the ordinary. But it was worth checking while we were at it. Nice new oil to go in, adjust the brake shoes and road test to see where we are at and maybe some small tweaks.

WebShop

Adam has decided that with his connections with Holley he would be willing to make special orders for the right customers outside of his normal ordering regime. You may or not know that Holley is a huge company and recently added Scott Drake to their inventory of parts. IF, you want to order some of these parts, email Adam and he will see what he can do for you. The caveat is that customers who order £10 worth of stock once a year need not apply.

Adam has had five big pallets of stock arrive and we are busy going through back orders and have notified those customers of their orders now being dispatched. Within the order we have detected a couple of bits. What they are for we’re not sure, yet!

All we know is that these parts were custom made with the dimensions and specification on the order form!

Adam has also ordered from the dark side! Yep, ACDelco parts. Not just any ol’ bits, these are compatible with Mustangs. Parts like the alternators which are direct replacement items. The spark plugs have black bases to make them look concours.

We have parts for the “Wolf” project come in, a part for us which has been on backorder for a while now.

We as in the ‘Media Team’ m may be taking next weekend off, so there may not be a post. Depends how bored we get with crap TV or families having a row. Sitting in a workshop surround by classic mustangs and a beer in your hand becomes a very appealing idea!

Mustang Maniac wishes all our friends and customers a Merry Christmas & Happy New Year.

Stay Safe & we will catch up with you – in ’22 👍

Posted in Blog, Classic Cars, Customers' Cars, Mustang, Mustang Maniac | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Trial & Error

Posted on December 12, 2021 by Mustang Maniac

We’re trying to wrap up the outstanding jobs in the workshop to leave us in a good place over Christmas. This year falls nicely with the days off and we are looking forward to the break it has to be said. We have had many partners of our customers drop in for a few Christmas bits and pieces along with a number of emails for our ever popular gift vouchers. With yet more covid restrictions coming into force we are not sure how the offices will be opening, we will play it by ear. For now the offices are open, but we will ask that you wear a face mask. Keep an eye out on Facebook for updates if we are restricting access.

Customer Cars

’66 Coupe

We are continuing more upgrades on the coupe. The headliner is stretching out nicely now.

The front brakes from our stock of Leed Brake kits has been fitted and just needs the bleed.

New split reservoir master cylinder, custom Yogi lines and proportioning valve too. A no brainer safety upgrade.

Under the car we fitted a full twin exhaust system with H-Pipe.

Inside we still need to replace the carpet, the trunk weather strip seal, LED front headlights and the glass front and back to go in. Finally a road test then the owner can come and take her away and she will feel like like a new car.

’65 Fast Back Time Trial

It’s quite rare that we get a “Time Trial” car into us for some work, not for the model of car, but the fact they are fitted out with the complex equipment.

The interior was fitted out for the specifics for time trials and has been done well.

We couldn’t think of a better car to time trial in. It’s not about thrashing the car round a track at all, but getting from A to B with specific parameters to be met, number of miles, check points time constraints etc.

This car has finished a 10,000 mile trial and inherited some braking problems. The front discs had a caliper binding and also has a warped front disc.

The rears drums had the linings disintegrate and had to be removed to avoid a binding rear wheel accident waiting to happen. The brake shoes had nothing left on them at all. The metal shoes scored the drums themselves. You can see all the brake liner dust on top of the wheel cylinder.

The car was nursed back to us where we are going to sort these brakes out properly, new drums cylinders, shoes etc. to the rear. Were not sure why a bar was welded to the shoe as they are supposed to move, there must have been a reason for it at the time.

We will check the spindles for damage as we replace the front disc brakes with another disc kit. We will be recommending some performance pads to go with the new discs this time. We shall catch up with the owner to see exactly what the requirements are when we get to that point. We have plenty of options to suit all needs and budgets.

WebShop

We have been very busy behind the scenes as we reported a number of posts ago. The WebShop now has a “For Sale” section where blemished or promotions on certain items can be found. This page will be updated regularly, when they’re gone they’re gone. Potentially, this page could be updated on daily basis. Not just classic Mustangs parts, but also the newer models too. Things like service kits, air filters for modern models, grills, shock absorbers, in fact anything could go in here. We recommend a bookmark to keep an eye on our new For Sale page. Click the picture below on any of the links to go straight to the For Sale section.

Also we are getting emails to ask if something is in stock. Even though we say it is in stock. So now we are updating (again), all the items will (eventually) show the real time stock levels. These stock levels are updated instantly, as soon as somebody buys something, the items will update within a few seconds.

We are working our way through the many thousands of items to show the new stock levels at the bottom of each item. So as you can imagine that’s a huge task, so please bare with us while we update the sections. We’re getting there!

Hopefully there should be no need to send us an email to ask if the item is in stock, it says so and also now has the number of the items in stock as well now.

Something Different:

Adam’s wife Lynn has got her own little side line going of home made items. They have been in the offices on the counter and been selling well. Check out her instagram account here or the link below for the

There are some great ideas for stocking fillers, company logos, Football team emblems, customised items, bespoke printing, embroidery you name – it’s probably there.

Her best sellers in the office for obvious reasons are these little items. We think it also has something to do with Adam’s sales pitch! “If you get your car tuned by us, and you give it some – you gonna need one of these afterwards!” 😂

The embroidery is also on fabric, so you can simply remove the tissue from the logo and and sew the patch to your clothing or wherever else takes your fancy.

Adam has got Lynn on the case to add a few little bits of customisation – ‘to get some practice in’ as Adam had led her believe.

Stay Safe & Take Care!

Posted in Customers' Cars, For Sale, Parts, racing, Repairs, Sales, Travel, Video, Webshop | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Heads Up

Posted on December 5, 2021 by Mustang Maniac

A little treat this week for us with a nice ’66 Coupe has has been pretty much unmolested. The owner wanted to have a few little bits done to her so we gladly obliged. The end of the post we will reveal Adam’s latest toy. We had very near miss with the answer.

‘66 Coupe

A nice straight car with red stripes always a good mix and guaranteed to turn heads. The headliner needed to be changed which is a big job as the front and rear windows need to come out to do it properly. Of course when the windows are out we check for rust damage and clean up ready for the refitting.

With the old headliner out we can see the original sound proofing still in place on the roof and the rear pillars. This is often removed or falls down and not replaced.

We changed out the rear quarter felts as they had all but disappeared.

The front quarter rubbers is a simple task but the overall process is a much bigger job, as they have to be removed. There is a definite technique to it, but we can’t be giving away all out little secrets.

Metal Mayhem

We are now at a pint where we invite the owner down to see the progress and decide on the next steps of their project.

Big Reveal:

The last few weeks we have been teasing you with the guess the car quiz. We have had a near miss courtesy of Peter R. with his guess of the Perana 4 door.

The (Full) Answer: Ford Cortina MkII “Perana” – 2 Door

The Twist? This is the only two door Perana with a V8 in white from the Perana workshops.

History:

Basil Green Motors (VIN: BG) is a former car manufacturer and racing team which is located in Edenvale, Gauteng near Johannesburg, South Africa.

The company has specialised in Ford vehicles, in which the manufacturer’s models are recognised by the brand name Perana added to the model name. The name Perana is a deliberate misspelling, as Piranha already had been protected.

Founded in 1967 by Basil Green the company dealt with engine tuning of Ford vehicles and participated in a variety of races as a racing team. After winning several races the Ford Motor Company became aware of the company and used the company for some of the South African models as a kind of in-house tuner.

The first model of the manufacturer was the Ford Cortina Perana V6, which was launched in 1967 as a tuning model. Production began one year later in the summer. Grosvenor Motors, then the largest Ford dealer in South Africa, took over the sales. The standard version was based on the Ford Cortina Mk II GT. For the units ordered by the Gunston Cigarette Company, the Ford Cortina XL was used as base model. The Ford Essex engine with 2994 cc was used as engine. Those engine were taken from the Ford Zephyr as well as the powertrain. Along with the engine conversion and lowering the Cortina Perana V6 was 64 kg heavier than the Ford standard model Cortina. The original recognisable features for the Cortina Perana V6 are a black strip over the bonnet, a black front grille and black coloured rims.

Why?

Adam has been looking for an unusual UK Ford with something different to the normal modded UK stuff. During his hunting around his contacts led him to a source in South Africa. This car was owned by one of the tuners who worked for Perana works in South Africa. He took his own car in and it was given the same treatment as the other cars that were Perana(ed) at the time. A perk of the job if you like. This car did indeed have the V6 as they were designated at the time. But with the quest for power that never ends, the owner took this V6 back into the workshops for the nice new V8s that were becoming available from Ford.

So, Adam now owns a rare Perana from the original South African Perana workshops. He didn’t want the four door that he could of had that he found during his searches. Like all things from those days, this is not a fully documented Perana, but as it’s one of a kind. Adam just had to have it, a unique South African piece of Ford history to add to the collection.

The car needed a few things doing to it, like having a new fuel tank for a start. These fuel tanks are not off the shelf items, so Adam had one made for his car along with a couple of extras while he was at it. Now they are available of the shelf, whether he will sell them or not is a different matter of course. The rubber filler hose and fuel hoses were shot and perished. All the rubber fuel lines have now been changed over to the E10 compliant rubber hoses, available here. The rear mounted battery gave the engine bay the little extra room it needed for the V8.

The Adam has the original wheels, but he wanted something different, so he had these made just for his car.

The transmission is fine and shifts as you would expect.

Under the hood a new radiator was needed, water pipework and the fuel lines as we mentioned. The old carb was working (sort of), but wasn’t consistent in running. Adam has replaced it with a new Holley and will have a look at rebuilding the old one as little sideline hobby when he has nothing better to do! (Ed: Sounds like a Christmas Day job to us when the crap TV comes on.)

This single exhausted car sounds like a Mustang, not in your face loud, but you know it’s a V8 from that classic Ford burble.

Inside is pretty much original, except for a couple of bits missing. Nothing that can’t be sourced from the internet or an auto jumble.

Adam is pretty smitten with his new toy, ask nicely and he may take you to see if when you pop in!

E-Vouchers

Since we mentioned these in a recent post they are selling very well as they can be sent via email. mustang Maniac stock service kits and parts for Classic to Modern Mustangs. If you don’t know what to get the petrol head in your life for Christmas, let them choose with our E-Vouchers.

Stay Safe & Take Care!

Posted in Customers' Cars, Ford Facts, Mustang, Our Cars, Parts, Repairs, Restoration, Webshop | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Double Trouble

Posted on November 28, 2021 by Mustang Maniac

This week we have had a couple of near guesses with the little quiz and the end of the last few posts. We will have the last part four of our guessing game with the some dead give away photos at the end, but there is a little twist to look out for which will challenge any petrol head. We also have a fairly common problem brought to us a couple of times a year, coolant leaks.

Customer Cars

This ’67 convertible has the double whammy, a radiator leak and the heater matrix. While the coolant being drained from the system this is the ideal time to replace both the radiator and the heater matrix and have a good look around the hoses to check for any splits or persihing. The radiator in this case was quite obvious where the problem was and the owner has gone for a more modern efficient aluminium radiator as the replacement.

The heater matrix is a little more awkward to get to, and you have to be careful with the original heater box as over time it becomes brittle. There are a number of sprung clips that hold the two halves together via a lip which can break off. The leak inside the heater box builds up then eventually you get a footwell puddle.

The heater matrix needed a replacement and really recommend going for a quality part as this is not a job you want to do often. Under pressure the size of the hole only needs to be a pin prick size to start the rusting and onto the eventual failure. If you’re unlucky you will ruin the carpets and under carpets (sound proofing if any) if the failure is sudden.

Once the matrix is refitted it’s a case of cleaning up the mess and check for more leaks after the system has been flushed out a couple of times. The are little tricks to remove the airlock from the system. Did you know that there is a right way and wrong way for connecting the heater pipes?

The car wasn’t running very well and we soon found one of the issues. The carb was held in place by incorrect bolts along with a broken spacer, if that wasn’t enough the carb was held down by more than the odd washers as the wrong bolts being used. The carb gasket was also mounted with a mechanical no no. An unhealthy amount of silicon which is not exactly best practice. The reason for that is that the fuel reacts with the silicon and can break down going into the engine or block the airways on the spacer.

Then comes the fun bit trying to remove the old silicon without dropping the mess into the manifold. Once we had it all cleaned up we replaced the spacer, gaskets and carb. Then it’s a case to sit back and watch Yogi as he does his dark art magic ‘thing’ when retuning tuning the carb.

Above we have the carb located correctly before the throttle connections and the tuning starts.

Metal Mayhem

We’ve shown the build up dry fit process of the cowl section to the body. Now we have taken it to the next level by applying the colour before it’s all sealed back up again.

The base etch coats going on.

The primer base coats.

The top coats of colour and lacquer.

Once the paint was dry could clean the coating of the cowl ready for a good connection the chassis and spot weld into place properly. Just how they would have been from the factory.

Guessing Game (part 4)

A couple of good and close guesses last week so we will give the game away surely this week. We have the badge of the exact model and plenty of the car to see.

We had a previous guess which almost nailed it but the wrong MK version.

All is not what it seems or should be…

Clue: from the above picture on the left, what is the unusual twist about this car? Next week we will show you the rest of the car and reveal the details of why this particular car, is one of one!

WebShop.

We are nearing Christmas and wondering what to get the owner of a Mustang? Don’t worry as our Mustang Maniac gift vouchers are now available digitally too.

Click here or the picture below for the links. 😀

Stay Safe & Take Care!

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Road Trip

Posted on November 21, 2021 by Mustang Maniac

It seems as though we have stumped a few people with our little teaser quiz for the last two weeks. We shall give you a few easier pictures this week which should give you the model of the car at least. This week are also coming to the end of “The Pear’s” restoration which we have been working on since April of this year. It will be a little sad to see her go but she was worth the wait.

The Pear

This is how the poor ol’ thing came into us before we got going on her.

Now she’s a real beauty.

Some of the last parts to go in the car was the door cards. Before fitting them we drove her around for a little bit to settle the suspension down and make sure the door opens and shuts as it should do.

With all the bolts adjusted and windows aligned we applied the damp proof to the door and fitted the cards. The trims which go onto the doors instantly make the car look finished.

When we are happy the car goes out for a final road test. Here Yogi takes the honours for a ride out and we think he enjoyed this one!

Carpet Differences

We have sold many carpets to owners of the 64 and 65 owners. But, did you know that the carpets were different? The ’64 carpets stopped at the bottom of the inner sills, the upper part of which was covered in vinyl like this one below. It’s quite rare to see cars with these original vinyls still in place.

We also had to repair the drivers seat frame as it had collapsed over time which is a fairly common problem.

With the seats out this gave us an ideal time to remove the old carpets and replace them.

As you can see here the correct carpets stopping short. The later models had a bit of an upgrade where the carpets rose up the sills and were mostly covered by the much neater chrome sill covers.

Most of the time the 64 owners used the 65 on carpets as they looked just that bit neater. Once Yogi had welded and re-upholstered the lower seat frame, the seats were put back in.

It’s amazing what a difference a new carpet can make.

Guessing Game (part 3)

As we said earlier, here is that big photo clue. If you look very closely there is a huge clue to the exact model.

Clue: This was a huge seller and an important car for Ford UK in the 60’s. This car had five generations before it ceased production.

Adam had these wheels made for his car as you can’t buy them!

And to finish of with a couple of bonus pics;

We must have given the game away now?

Stay Safe & Take Care!

Posted in Customers' Cars, Ford Facts, Original Reconditioned Parts, Repairs, Restoration | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Spot On

Posted on November 14, 2021 by Mustang Maniac

This week we show you the updates to a couple of customer cars, one nearly complete the other is in the body shop. Thanks for joining in with the “Guessing Game” this week. Yes it was hard from a little red picture. We have added another couple at the end of the post to see if it gets easier.

Customer Cars:

The Pear is having the underside completed and all put into place. The suspension has been geo’d and cleaned up. Adam will take it for a second road test to settle down the carb and its settings.

The old exhaust and parts that we could salvage have been fitted back to the car.

This gives the car that just looks like it has been lovingly looked after for fifty odd years. We actually like what this customer has done and their idea.

During the week we had been asked by a visitor why we sprayed the interior panels dark blue? The answer was simple; to match the seats!

Another nice little touch to make this car their very own, and it looks right too.

Metal Mayhem.

The last post showed the front end assembled all be it with clamps to hold things in place. The fenders and hood have been removed in order to start the spot welding, just like the original cars had.

The floor pan is prepped ready for the seat mounts and ready for the welding and drilling.

Most of our competitors will will use welding plugs and simply leave them. We grind them off to be how they should be, even though you won’t see them.

Ground down plugs look so much better. In the back of your mind – you know it’s done right!

The front radiator support and inner aprons are spot welded and red oxide sealed. These tiny indents are the signs of attention to detail. Adam had to dig deep to buy a new spot welder as his old one had given up and had welded it’s last panel. You had been a good tool – we shall miss spot!

The scuttle and cowl will be taken of and taken to paint. Then we will clean up and spot weld back into place – just like they should be.

Guessing Game (part 2)

We had all sorts of guesses some with specifics like we asked. Many of this car’s parts are not available off the shelf. So Adam has had them made with a spare or two at the same time.

  • Clue 1: It’s Not a Mustang.
  • Clue 2: It’s a Ford.

These pics are not obvious, but once you see it, you will know. Then it gets a little more tricky to nail the model/version.

Stay Safe & Take Care!

Posted in Customers' Cars, Mustang, Parts, Restoration | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Have A Guess

Posted on November 7, 2021 by Mustang Maniac

Our WebShop has had an overwhelmingly good reaction to the free postage, which we are really pleased about that of course. We are even seeing people buying items that total under the £50 limit and are paying the extra for the next day courier service as well. “Thank You” for all the support via comments, emails and notes with the orders being placed. We appreciate all the feedback. However; somebody even moaned that the postage is not “Free next day courier service”. We will just leave that there for you. We didn’t respond, as we can only assume somebody is having a laugh or trying to wind us up.

The WebShop is also having some behind the scenes work done which again we have had a couple of comments to us which made sense, so we will change it. Our WebShop has well over five thousand products, not just for Classic Mustangs, Fox body, Mustang II, S197, S550 (and everything in between to modern day), even Mach E parts already, that’s not taking into account the Falcons parts either! Behind the scenes we are are starting to optimise the WebShop search engine to find more products for you. In the past, a couple of comments were ‘I can’t find it’. The optimisation is a long slow process, but we are on it. When we get a few spare minutes in the offices we look at the product lines and try to make it easier to find them for you.

Customer Cars:

The Pear is getting closer to completion as Yogi has been painting the inside panels of the car. They may look black, but they are in fact a dark blue.

Fitting the panels with damaging the paint, then adding the cumbersome rear seats and shelf is a challenge, to be on the safe side we made it a two man job.

The seats going in makes a huge difference to inside of the car and looks almost finished.

Metal Mayhem

The skeleton chassis that is the Metal Mayhem has had the panel work added to make it look like a car again. Sheet metal all from our own supplies of course.

As we pointed out on The Pear, aligning the panels and gaps take lots of adjusting. When you take the panels off to be sprayed they need to go back on with the tolerances you allowed. Again a lot of clamps and tack welds until we are happy. Only then does the inner aprons and radiator supports get welded up.

Guessing Game

Adam has treated himself to a car, like he needs another one! But we can see why he got this one though. This is not a new car, but a rare car and this particular iteration of it is a one off. What we intend to do is place a cropped picture here each week. The normal photo is made harder to identify by taking a tight crop or random angle. Why? Because we can just for a bit of fun.

The winner can have their photo, their photo and their car or just their car on our fabled Mustang Blog, if you want to or we can just say well done to you by name. It could be an opportunity to get a Mopar on our blog!

Those that have seen the car during one of Adam’s ‘Mustang Maniac Tours’; please don’t spoil it for the others by telling everybody what it is in the comments.

We are after the Make, Model and the version of the car. We suspect that many will get the make and model, but not the particular version of this car.

Lets start of with a hard one! Go……

Next week we may post a couple of pictures to give more of a clue. If somebody gets it partly right we will acknowledge it as comments come in. Let’s see how good you guys are, light up the comments and have a guess! Bragging rights are at stake here. 😉

Stay Safe & Take Care!

Posted in Blog, Customers' Cars, Parts, sheet metal, Webshop | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Trick Or Treat?

Posted on October 31, 2021 by Mustang Maniac

This is not a trick; we have some very, very exciting news regarding our postage rates. Full details are towards the end of the post about our post. It will be a real treat treat for you.

Could our postage be free? Take a look and see! 😎

Last week’s post about the ‘Evil Ethanol’ where we could be slowly destroying our cars with has caused a bit of a stir. Thanks to the those that posted a comment, messaged and emailed us. That post was one of our most engaging and kept us busy with responses, more than we expected. The answer to the question ‘Are we selling the Lucas Fuel stabiliser as a marketing ploy?’ Yes and No, let us explain. The research we done a little while ago revealed some pretty nasty facts about the government’s new ‘green fuel’, as well as the positives that the additive reduces emissions. For classic car owners – there is hardly any good news to be honest. We were a little shocked at the damage it can cause so we looked for a solution, hence we are now stocking the Lucas Safeguard to counter the problems. We reacted, to the research arranged for the stock that took longer to get here than we expected, then we released the article. Yes we are using it ourselves!

Customer Cars:

We have a ’67 convertible in with us with a couple of upgrades to be fitted.

This little lot will give a nice boost to performance that’s for sure. New intake, new Holley Carb, spacer, new spark plugs, headers, gaskets etc.

While we were taking the old intake out we gave her a service. We cleaned the sludge as best we could, which makes perfect sense. You don’t want fresh oil dragging around old sludge. While it’s all exposed bite the ‘Bullitt’ (see what we did there?) and do it.

The shorty headers were on next, the valve covers, plugs and the spark wiring. It’s always a good idea to remove the plugs when fitting the exhaust outlets.

Under the car we need to make a custom fit exhaust to already new(ish) system. We would like to point out that the welding here is not the best and not a lot we can do about it.

We cut the pipes back to give us enough room to make the bends and clearance to the shorty headers.

The front strut rods were a little worse for wear so they got swapped out while we were at it.

We need to make the rest of the exhaust, take her for a little run to settle down then we will do some dark art magic on the carb settings. Then she should be good to go.

WebShop

No Tricks, It’s Free Postage!

Mustang Maniac has taken more than our fair share of abuse over our postal charges, most of which are dictated to us by the couriers. So we got our heads together and come up with ‘TRIAL‘ for free postage. We will be offering free postage on orders under £50.

How it works;

  • Go to the WebShop as normal
  • Shop for your items and add them to the basket
  • Proceed to checkout.
  • If the order is under £50.00
  • Select your postal method
  • Proceed to payment
  • We do the rest and ship out to you.

If your order is £50.00 or over then you will be paying the same courier rates as before.

Please Note:

We will be keeping a very close eye on postage with a few things we have put in place. If we see that people are trying to ‘work’ the system, we may well stop that person ever getting free postage again, or remove free postage for everybody altogether. This was launched on 27/10/2021 on facebook. That very afternoon we have had a one person trying it on!

This is a trial to see if works for everybody. You asked for it, we listened (again), so let’s see how this goes.

Happy Halloween Shopping.

We have moved with the times again after a customer came up with a great idea; ‘Can we have E-Vouchers’ or electronic vouchers? Yes, thanks to Roger, you can indeed now buy online and use the vouchers, you can print them out for yourself to give them as a gift.

Click the images below to take you to the WebShop pages where all the instructions are there for you.

Have a great Halloween, Stay Safe & Take Care.

Posted in Blog, Customers' Cars, Mustang, Mustang Maniac, postage, Sales, Webshop | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Alcohol Free Zone – C2H5OH

Posted on October 24, 2021 by Mustang Maniac

A few of our customers have asked us about “Ethanol” in the standard UK’s petrol on their Mustangs. Yep, that very word ‘Ethanol’ the chemical formula which is ‘C2H5OH’ strikes fear into any classic car owner. Ask us the chemical formula should be ‘DEV1L’s juice. Many questions since the switch over to E10 in September this year here in the UK. A few problems have arisen from their old fuel lines now under attack the Ethanol, and leaking. If you’re not careful, you could be in for some big bills! Despite what people think and say about us, here we are going to try and stop you spending out large wads of cash with us believe it or not.

We have done a little research and collated some pointer and facts for you;

  1. Ethanol is an alcohol substance, those properties will dry out the rubber components in a fuel system. This leads to cracking and brittle fuel lines, floats, seals and diaphragms, caps off’s etc.
  2. Ethanol is corrosive when in comes into contact with certain materials within the fuel delivery systems and its related storage. This will be things like the flexible joining parts, rubber compounds and also the more worrying aspects of the zinc and aluminum alloys used in carburetors. Yep, your nice new shiny carb will slowly disintegrate inside out.
  3. Ethanol is ‘hydrophilic’. In other words it loves water. Because of the water absorbency properties, the water content enters fuel containers when they are filled up, that’s your fuel tank, jerry cans, plastic petrol cans etc. Once water is in the fuel it forms a chemical mix that causes corrosion of internal parts. As the fuel level in your fuel tank or container drops, water condenses on the cool surfaces of the container, droplets form and run down into the fuel where the ethanol absorbs it.
  4. Ethanol is also a solvent in older or classic car engines. Not such a bad thing you say? Well, the ethanol begins dissolving the varnish and other deposits in your tank and fuel lines. These deposits are then carried to the carburetor or injection system where they can clog the small or tiny orifices involved. The results of which could cause all sorts or problems, over fueling, fuel starvation, stuck floats, blocked jets, engine stumbling, idle issues, pick up issues and so on.

Facts:

  • Because of the Ethanol’s love of water, petrol containing ethanol should not be allowed to sit for any length of time. This is the very reason that ethanol is not present in giant storage tanks, pipelines or bulk carriers.
  • The Ethanol is added at the refinery just prior to delivery to gas stations Where it sits until it’s sold to you!
  • The shelf life of gasoline or petrol containing ethanol is only about thirty days, compared to two or three months with standard petrol.
  • Ethanol part fueled engines will be hard to start after thirty days without some sort of stabiliser being used.
  • Petrol and milk are both organic — they decompose the same way. A foul, sour smell indicates bad fuel in your car!
  • Ethanol is one-third less powerful when burned than gasoline. This has a negative impact on your miles per gallon statistics. Thought – So you have to use more to travel the same distance? Very Eco – not.

Tips:

  • Don’t use high Ethanol E10 or certainly not E15 fuel in your classic, buy premium fuel with little or no ethanol mix. Yes, it’s more expensive, but a lot cheaper than a new carb!
  • If possible, run any tank containing ethanol dry before putting any engine away for a season or more.
  • Buy your ethanol fuel in small quantities, run tanks near dry before refilling and after use.
  • Do not store in that little red container more than a month, especially not over the winter or summer months.
  • If the fuel is older than that, dump it into a car or vehicle that uses gas frequently where it will mix with the fresher petrol.
  • Use ethanol-resistant hoses or nylon tubing to replace any plastic or rubber fuel lines.
  • Replace fiberglass fuel tanks with a stainless steel tank.
  • Use a inline water separator filter leading to the carburetor. Since the water collects in the filter, you can easily remove it and replace.
  • Change out any O-rings in the fuel system to ethanol compatible rings.
  • A carburetor fogging solution prevents condensation from filling fuel bowls.
  • Use a non-alcohol based fuel treatment to prevent excessive water collection in your fuel. Ethanol based fuel treatments worsen problems caused by E10 gas.

A couple of pics we have borrowed from the internet to show the effects of Ethanol on your classic car.

Don’t take our word for it, just do a quick google search.

WebShop:

This leads us on nicely to our latest products prompted by our customer’s requests. We are now starting to stock “Ethanol” protection products, like our first range of fuel lines:

Ethanol Proof Fuel Hose Pipe 8mm (5/16″)

Ethanol Proof Fuel Hose pipe 10mm (3/8″)

Fuel Treatment:

473ml 1pint
this bottle treats 80 us gallon 302.8 litre

1 oz treats 5 gallons usa

30 ml treats 18.9 litre

On average mustang 60 litre tank is 100ml or 3.38 oz

Lucas safeguard ethanol fuel conditioner with stabilizers was developed to specifically address issues associated with using ethanol-based fuels. This applies to e-10, e-15, e-85, pure ethanol, and any mixtures in between including gasoline. Product is completely soluble in all ethanol fuels and will not harm filters. Lucas safeguardethanol fuel conditioner with stabilizers contains effective additives to prevent rust and corrosion associated with the use of ethanol fuels.30 ml treats 18.9 l of fuel. An over treatment will not be harmful. For use in 2 and 4 stroke engines. It can be used in e-10, e-15, e-85, pure alcohol or any alcohol gasoline combination, even pure gasoline.

Main Features:

  • Cleans injectors, valve seats, combustion chambers and other critical fuel components
  • Stabilizes fuel and prevents varnish and gum formation in ethanol and gasoline
  • Combats deposits and protects your engine oil lubricants from the harmful effects of alcohol combustion
  • NOT RECOMMENDED FOR DIESEL APPLICATIONS

You may have noticed that we are starting to post a little more often on social media about our new products and special offers we have going on within the WebShop. One thing we are getting excited about the potential of free postage on some products. Watch this space and our social media for updates. 👍

Customer Cars:

‘The Pear’ is now at a stage where the little lady is rolling under her own steam and we was able to move it around the yard to settle the suspension down before we took her into Adam’s workshop for a little wheel alignment.

The outside is done apart from a few minor adjustments. The interior is nowhere near finished yet as we need to get to a few of the bolts for final adjustments. We will put a seat in, just for a little test drive for a few miles, recheck the alignment, gaps, fittings etc. Then we can start the proper process of getting the interior back in.

Remember this? Yep, its the old donor car being stripped down for ‘The Pear’.

To this, where a shell was prepped and painted then we start to put as much original parts to the car as possible.

Like we said many times before, We only need a few bits from a car, to make you a proper car. Providing it’s all legal with paper work of course. We have everything in stock you need here in the UK.

We are starting to see some of the back order parts arrive to us, but it’s a slow process not just for us but many other suppliers too.

We end this week on a nice note:

Congratulations to Yogi’s daughter Beth who married Martin last week. The getaway driver, sorry ‘chauffeur’ was Yogi in his ’69. Needless to say that they got to the church on time, it was just a quarter of a mile away. 🤣

It wasn’t really, but it would make a story though.

Stay Safe & Take Care!

Posted in Articles, Classic Cars, Customers' Cars, daily driver, Mustang, Parts, Repairs, Webshop | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

Rolling On

Posted on October 17, 2021 by Mustang Maniac

We often browse through many forums, classic Mustangs, Electric Mustangs, Coupes, fastbacks, Mustang II, Fox body, S197, S550 etc just about any Mustang forums we can find. We look to see what is going on in the world of all things Mustang. During one of our browsings we noticed that somebody was after a window guide roller nothing wrong with that of course. From us the rollers are £1 and we have one or two in stock, a box full in fact. That’s it £1 each; the small cost includes the design, metal tooling, the plastic tooling, the metal shaped spring, the plastic mould itself, plastic materials, the assembly of the roller, shipping costs and finally the import charges to us, the later of which has gone up nearly ten fold, but the rollers have not gone up from the £1 we absorb the cost. We mention this because we have been beaten up again for being expensive, then we get bashed about the cost of the postage. If you buy one or two the price is the same, or four, or ten or twenty so on it’s the same, until the parcel increases to a size or weight which is dictated to us by Royal Mail. The response was that these rollers are rubbish and should be made of brass. Let us quickly explain that the reason for failure is that these parts are over fifty years old now, they get brittle and break or just wear out. We ask the hobbyist mechanics out there; would you buy a brass one at £5- £10 each, if £1 is already too much to pay? If you would like them in brass, let us know and we can look into machining them up for you so you can sell them on with your own markup, subject to minimum order of a thousand like many manufacturers require as a minimum order. We wouldn’t even pass on our costs on to you, just the actual manufacturing costs, how’s that for a deal? We would even buy one or two from you to get you going in the marketplace. 🙂

We are looking to have a trial of another postage option. Whether we do it or not depends if we can make it work without Mustang Maniac selling at a loss. Watch this space.

Customer Cars:

‘The Pear’ has most of the outside completed now apart from some fettling that is. Now the inside has been the focus and getting that freshened up to look as good as the outside.

To do that we have some of the left over external colour being used to colour match the interior. Yogi has got out his spray gun in the body shop room and started the meticulous and art form process of spraying the parts.

Curved surfaces are some of the most difficult to paint due to getting an even coat and avoiding paint runs. Although it doesn’t look much, but this type of work can take quite a while to prep and complete.

We have a couple of little ladies in for a regular once over and servicing one of which is almost a daily driver. It’s always good to hear stories of these cars being used often, but we do know that they aren’t used in real bad conditions like snow and ice, torrential rain and fog for obvious reasons. Some cars can be a lot of fun in the dry maybe bite you unless you show some respect, but where traction is limited they become a lot of fun to being a real handful.

WebShop:

Finally we have now got the ‘T Park Lock’ handles added to the webshop, click here for the link or the screen shot to take you there.

Stay Safe & Take Care!

Posted in Customers' Cars, Mustang Maniac, Parts, Repairs, Restoration, Sales | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments