Name is Clint, I'm 41 and live near Charlotte NC. I have a 71 Ford F100 that my dad bought new and gave to me at 15. I've restored it and added a 351w, AOD, PS, PDB and some other stuff. It is my daily driver work truck. The reason I joined your wonderful forum is my daughter of 15. Believe it or not she has just a touch if gear head in he. My 21 year old son could care less about a car as long as it runs. My daughter megan wants a Mustang. After seeing how expensive they are I showed her a Maverick and she loves them. I have found a 74 2 door that I can get for a song but it needs work. I does'nt have an engine or tranny but that is fine. The body is pretty straight and little rust so I think it's gonna make a good car to start with. I am hopefully going to seal the deal tomorrow. It has a bench seat. I will be looking over these forums real good now so I can get up to speed on the little secrets on these cars. What will fit where and from what other car etc. Clint
Hi Clint and welcome to the board. It's great to hear that your daughter has such good taste in cars. Maybe her brother might learn a thing or two from her. You have found the best place to learn all there is to know about our favorite cars. There's plenty of good people here who can help you out with just about anything you need to know. It's good to have you here.
Thanks for the warm welcome guys. if I drag the 74 home tomorrow I'll post some pictures and get everyone's opinion. I'll be either dropping in a 351w that I have or a 302 clint
welcome to the board. just a personal opinion but the 302 will be a lot easier to put in and work on. lots of good stuff around for them also. 351w will fit but you'll have to modify the shock towers to be able to change the plugs a little easier. good luck which ever way you go.
Thanks for the advice Don. I also don't think she needs a 351w in there as a 302 ought to push the mav plenty good by itself. I figure to just use a good solid 302 with a 2 barrel and about a 3,25 gear. with a C-4 tranny. I'll use a Duraspark set-up for ignition and some good wires. Some good flowing tri-y's and 2 1/4" pipes out the back. Ought to be plenty of power and some decent economy. The guy had a 289 in it so I'm hoping it'll be easy to drop a 302 back in it. He does'nt know if it was a v-8 car originally. Is here an easy way to tell? clint
Check the VIN. Here is a website I bookmarked a few days ago (can't remember who posted it) that should help you identify the original engine. http://home.comcast.net/~petebre/maverick/decode/index.html Looks to me like if your car was originally a V8 car, the 5th letter of your VIN should be an F.
What year did disc brakes become standard. In a F100 that was in 73, is it the same on a Maverick? I know I can just look when I get there and we are leaving here in about 30 minutes to go look at it. If my daughter likes it and I think she will since she liked the pictures, I'll be heading back this afternoon to trailer her home. Ya'll wish me luck clint
Hi Clint, to the board. We're happy to have you here and you should get your daughter interested in the board also. We have many young members on here and we are growing like crazy. I think the main reason is what you have already found...the prices of some of the other cars such as the Mustang. I think you have the right idea for your drivetrain setup also. The 302/C4 is just a perfect matchup for these cars and very easy to get the parts you need for it. Good luck with the car and let us know if there is anything we can do to help.
