Starting my 289 build...
 

After spending a couple of years studying these cars, collecting parts, and giving Bruce Chervenak time to complete my chassis and body, I finally get to start putting the car together.
http://pic80.picturetrail.com/VOL847.../413803222.jpg

Bruce is a one-man operation who may not be the fastest production guy around, but his quality is top notch and he’s a great guy to talk to and deal with. Plus, while waiting on the chassis & body, it allowed me the chance to get a jump on collecting / restoring parts.
http://pic80.picturetrail.com/VOL847.../413803223.jpg

My build plan is to make it as similar as I can to an original 289 street car within reason. The chassis is similar to the Factory Five chassis in the fact it will use late model Mustang / Factory Five front suspension and late model Thunderbird IRS. I wanted the car to have IRS, but I’m not really enamored with the everchanging roll center/camber/caster that a front leaf based suspension provides. I have Bruce’s fiberglass footboxes and trunk floor, so the plan is for an accurate interior and boot, while the engine bay will be “reasonably” accurate. My goal is a somewhat originally appearing car that is a fun performer to drive.

I want to offer up a big thanks to this forum. I have been active on a couple of the better early mustang forums for years and appreciate what a good forum with knowledgeable members can provide. I have never done a build thread on any previous cars that I’ve restored, but I’m toying with the idea of doing one on this car. Thanks again to everyone for a great site.

Very cool! Will be neat watching this come together!
Larry

Great to see another build thread happening.

The body on my car is a modified Bruce Chervenak body, so I have an extra level of interest there.


Cheers,
Glen

Welcome, and good luck in your build. I have only been here a short time, but in that time everyone has been very helpful with info, parts, and anything else I've needed to get my Cobra done. Try putting one together that hasn't been built in 20+years, couldn't have done it without these guy's, Tom.

Good luck with your build and post pictures here as it progresses. Lots of knowledgable people here. If you are in need of some 289 parts let me know. I had to remove some of mine from the 289 FIA for race and they are brand new and pretty much just taking up space in storage.

Looking forward to hearing more. What parts do you have now? Engine? Transmission?

Jim

It is great that you are getting started on your build and like the rest I am looking forward to following it. Good luck and don't get discouraged if you run into a hang up or two.

Ron

Thanks for the support and positive comments. My engine/trans combo will be a 289 hipo rebuild with a toploader 4 speed. That's part of the reason I decided to build this car - I had the engine and transmission and needed to find a home for them.

Regarding the build process, I understand all about not getting bogged down and disheartened. I built this one over a 10 year span (while starting a career, going through a divorce, getting re-married, raising 3 kids, etc.)
http://pic80.picturetrail.com/VOL847.../397720070.jpg

Then, I built this one for the wife a couple of years ago (converting a rubber bumper 80 MGB to look like a 60s era MGB - steel dash & the whole 9 yards)
http://pic80.picturetrail.com/VOL847.../411619778.jpg

I hope you have better luck than I did

Congratulations! Have fun with the build and keep us up to date with your progress.

How is yours progressing Bill?

Cheers,
Glen

Stacey, been a long time coming. Good luck with the build. It's a very frustrating at times, yet an extremely rewarding experience. Please tell me you didn't take the engine from that beautiful 65 Mustang convertible? :CRY:

John O

John,

No, the convertible won't be losing her engine any time soon.
http://pic80.picturetrail.com/VOL847.../413804944.jpg

I've been fortunate in the fact that I have come across a few 289s over the years that no one wanted and I scooped them up for not a lot of money. I've been able to help people who were looking for particular date coded engines and parts, so it has been a rewarding endeavor. I have one 289 (low mileage engine out of a 65 Falcon) left and it's going into the Cobra.

Bill,

I sent you a PM.

You'll get to a point thinking why the hell did I do this then it's wow I did this.

On & off for 20 years https://goo.gl/photos/898aU1K4dZxSTFq89


https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/2n...=w1280-h854-no

Stacy,

Are you going with transverse leaf springs or coli overs? Mine has transfers leaf springs. I have seen some with coil overs and some with transverse leaf springs. Bill D. did a combination of the two with having coil overs and then some transverse leaf springs for show.

Jim

Jim,

Mine uses the same front suspension as the Factory 5 cars - control arms and coil overs. I like the front transverse spring from an old school, original standpoint, but from a driving standpoint, I made a decision to stay away from that floating upper suspension mounting point. I’ll be honest - that was the hardest decision I had regarding this car.

I’ll be watching this build closely

Bill,

I imagine that you will be able to offer a lot of sage advice. A lot in common with your build.

Jim

Stacy,

Having the transverse leaf springs is nice from a historical perspective, and the car does handle well on the race track. However, let me tell you, mounting the half-shafts and shocks on the rear and having to compress those transverse leaf springs was a pain! Not a one person job. It took three of us, a lift and a floor jack to flex those springs enough to get it together. Good luck with your build.

Jim

One of the first things I have to do is to remove and revamp the footboxes. Bruce’s footboxes are a bit different from the standard 289 footboxes. I would like to get the following dimensions from an original or accurate source so I can try to make theses boxes a little more correct:

- height of the aluminum firewall from the top of the footboxes to the body at the car’s centerline
- the width of the left and right footbox at the front of each footbox

If anyone could help with these measurements, I would greatly appreciate it..