Micah's Second Maverick Project

About five years ago, there was a white ’71 Maverick regularly parked at a house a few blocks from the office. I passed by it several times and always intended to see if it was for sale.

About two years ago, I came across it on Craig’s List. I went and met with the owner, a mid twenties female. She bought the car from the original owner and it still had the blue and yellow California plates. The body was fairly straight, except for a recent fender bender to the right front bumper and fender. There was no rust but there was a bit of damage to the floorboard and the underside of the left rear quarter. Under the hood was the original 302. No AC, power steering and column shift automatic. The interior was a strange shade of green. It still had the AM radio. The back seat was good but the front was torn up. Surprisingly, it had Sport Mirrors. She was selling it because they did not think it was safe for the kids. The fender bender was because of the drum brakes. She wanted $1,000 but we settled on $700. She could not find the keys. So for a couple of weeks, I would call to make arrangements to try and get a tow truck over there once she found the keys. Finally, I went by with the checkbook, told her to get the title and let’s get this done. A couple of hours, she calls and says that someone else offered her $1,000 and that was the new price. Pissed, I told her to FO. I really wanted the car to use while I restored my Maverick. For a long time, I regretted not just paying the inflated price. It was still a decent deal, but I just hate dealing with snakes. It’s the principle.

Last week, I see a Maverick on Craig’s list. I go to look at it and, before even seeing it, I ask if it came from the girl. It was the same car. He said that she never mentioned someone else had already agreed to buy it. Interestingly, I had met the seller just a few weeks ago at a pre “Hot August Nights” event. (My Maverick could not make it. The Jag substituted and won a trophy.) He had a ’74 Maverick that he made into a Grabber’ish clone.

Before, the car was a real survivor. Unfortunately, the new owner robbed the 302 and C-4. I was bumbed. He had a 289 that he could have put in, but he wanted the 302 for the clone. He really should have just left her alone. It was a sin to have robbed her for his “clone” project.

So, I got the same Maverick, minus the engine and trans. He replaced the bent front bumper and mounts. I got two extra rear bumpers, an extra front valance and two extra rear valances. He threw in some new inner door handles and a new turn signal switch. It comes with the original hood. I paid $500.

Previously, I was going to use it as a spare. My red Maverick is a bit over the top to drive daily. The Jag is strictly for show. I have a company car, but that is just for work hours. So, I’m kind of stuck. I could go spend $20K on a Honda, but I would rather not.

So, I’m going to try to do this one on the cheap and fast for a change. This is going to be really difficult for me. I’m use to multi-year rotisserie restorations that clean out my bank account. I was thinking about going EFI, but I know what all that will entail.

HERE IS THE PLAN:

I’m not going to do a color change. This saves the cost of painting the jams and the engine compartment. I have a Grabber hood and tail. So it will be a clone.

I need to find a vintage block, this will circumvent any emissions issues. I may convert to a roller cam in case some day, I want to do the EFI conversion. I want to go with a stock late model serpentine system. The rebuild will be otherwise stock. I will probably give it a four barrel. I have a freshly rebuilt C4 just sitting there. I have all the V8 mounts.

I have a set of ’74 disk brakes. Also, I have a new Adco front sway bar and new shocks all around. I have a set of good tires.

I’m going to keep the interior stock, unless I come across a good deal on some buckets. I will have the bench re-done to match the rear and replace the carpet. The panels look a little rough and hopefully a re-spray in the same color will make it presentable. I have an extra AC box but will need a vacuum control switch, the defroster and the center vent box. I have an AC parcel shelf.

All the seals will get replaced. I may attempt doing a headliner when I pull the glass.

So, let’s see if I can control myself.

Micah

 

Ya, I have a lot of "would of - should of" stories to tell from my life too but in the end, I'm really glad to see you finally got the car

 

Great story! Can't wait to see what you do with it.

 

looks like a decent place to start!

 

Thanks guys.

I'm having a hard time resisting doing something over the top. I'm back and forth on the color change, doing a little something more to the engine ....... I have a floor shifter and a consolette. Would really like some buckets.

For now, I'm going to get her down to the frame shop and make sure it is all in spec. They do paint too. So, I'll get some idea on cost and time frame.

I'll post more when there is some movement.

Micah

 

Once you start...

Looks like a car with lots of potential. Too bad about the first seller, and the parts removal by the second seller.

 

I'm trying to decode this car but the data tag is not matching what the factory book says. I'm not sure if the interior is "Gray Gold." The 1Y code says all vinyl but this has cloth. So, is it a 3Y?

Also the body color code is 8. It looks like white to me but the book says "Light Gold."

My interior paint chips appear to match the Light Gray Gold Metalic.

Also, what is the color of the head liner and the carpet?

So, what do I have here?

Micah

 

Went to Pick N Pull and got a serpentine system off of a '86 Mustang. I just need a vintage 302 block.

Tomorrow, I will take it to the frame shop to have it checked and get an estimate for paint.

Micah

 

Car is at the frame/body shop for a check and an estimate on paint. If I do a color change, I think Bullitt (Hyland) Green would look good. Hmmm

Picked up some bucket seat tracks off eBay.

SMS appears to have the seat fabric I need. Samples are on the way. Still trying to nail down the headliner.
Micah

 

I was wondering the same about my car. It's a 71 grabber that says its a regular blue(#6) and not grabber blue.

 

My book show 6 as Medium Blue Metalic.

 

That interior is the same as how my 72 Comet came originally .... Gray Gold. Same pattern on the upholstery. The code on mine is AY. The code might have changed for 72. The only thing different is my steering wheel, mine having the horn bar across the center.

I converted everything inside to black. At one point I was thinking of a paint change from green to orange, and opted for black to match either.

 

Jeff,
Did you paint the panels or switch them out? My rear panels are pretty rough and I was hoping to find replacements but I think this color is fairly rare. Since the red Maverick has a black interior, I'm going to keep this one Gray Gold.

I have some bucket seats for it and found the cloth insert for code 3Y, it has a green and gold color. I'm looking at doing this combination rather than all vinyl.



A&B are the originl 1Y interior combination.
C reminds me of a scary set of drapes from a 1970's doctor's office.
D is the cloth insert I'm going to use. The flash does not show the green/gold tones. It looks better in person.

In the mean time, the car is back from the frame shop. Everything is nice and straight.

I'm not going to get much farther on this car for now. Work is going to take me away from home for a while. It will probably be a year before I can get back to her.

Thanks for the interest.

Micah

 

My rear panels were toast. The Florida sun darkened the upper surfaces and just touching them made the baked parts crumble. I did a pretty crude repair using JB Weld Plastic Epoxy .... patched where the texture scraped off and played Michaelangelo with the epoxy to give it some texture. Shot this mess with black semi-gloss Fusion paint and it is passable if you don't look too close. Problem is that if you knick it, it is still Gray Gold underneath.

After doing all that, I got some primo dark blue rear panels out of a 77. Shot black, these would be a better option to have back there, and next time it is apart, that is the plan. They are bigger around the seat belt mount on the floor, but I plan to add retractors, and that shouldn't matter then.

Fabric D looks like an excellent choice to go with the Gray-gold vinyl. Much more interesting than the woven insert that the seats came with. I would bet that looks good when done and definitely still has a very good 70s factory vibe.

I only had a couple of useable pieces from my interior (passenger door panel, armrest, 1 kick panel) but these were sold off years ago. That color does really show any wear and age more than most. A lot of it faded to have an orange hue in spots, like the upper edge of the back seat.

Best of luck finding what you need. Probably uncommon, but I bet that others are switching that color out, so you may have some luck there.

 

Jeff,
Thanks. I'm having the same issue with these panels. I might try shooting them when I repaint the dash, doors and parcel shelf trim in the original color.

I'm trying to keep the period vibe. So, the cloth should work well. The other insert is actually vinyl. That stuff gets real hot in the Nevada sun.

Be careful on your rear panel transplant. I think your rear seat will have an issue fitting in there. '71-'72 rear seats are different.

Micah