Mustang Misery Part 1

[@GwynnOak1]

Ah another Rustang! You'll never run out of work as long as they remain popular. I'm a bow tie guy, yet always worked on Fords, for that very reason. They don't call it the rust belt for nothing. That's going to get expensive before it's all over.

[@rorydaddy]

Fords are Junk, speaking from experience, at least GM car have real frames, not a spot welded Falcon,

[@rjs2005]

My eyes about popped out of my head when I saw that sag at the door jamb as you lifted that car- I half expected the car to part in the middle. You've definitely got your work cut out for you!

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

I'm going to duplicate that test once she's repaired so watch this space!

[@harriettedaisy2233]

Please let us follow along with this project. I find your lack of overhype refreshing. I suspect the other shop didn’t want the customers to know about the rust issues because they didn’t want to lose the jobs.

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

Thats the plan! Stay tuned I'm gonna take you through it step by step

[@Smurphenstein]

Well it is a kiwi show. We don't hype much, let alone overhype things.

[@Smurphenstein]

Surely that cardboard would be rotted out by now if it had been done in the 80's to 90's? The underseal is also quite fresh. Someone certainly hasn't been telling the truth in the past. These are my favourite cars, I haven't been following long but am certainly looking forward to this series.

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

You that's a good point. The customer never drives it in rain but even so......

[@natevanlandingham1945]

If the guy legitimately didn't drive it in the rain, I can see a "restoration" done with cardboard and covered with enough undercoating to have lasted till today.

[@BareRoseGarage]

Oh boy.... welding in a floor on a convertible unibody car.... yeah.... there's a lot more to that then just grabbing the welder, ordering the parts and going to town on it. Funny that you did this video, and 2 days ago someone stopped in with a baby-blue one to have me "patch a small hole" on their '66 Mustang Convertible as well. I knew right away without even getting under it, that it was more than a simple patch when he had troubles opening and closing the door. Same thing looks great on the outside, but it's ready to fold up on the next railroad crossing.

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

Looks can be deceiving....

[@DoktorJeep]

This is not a flipper special, this is attempted manslaughter.

[@matzrat5006]

Glad he finally got to your shop.

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

Thanks man and thanks for watching!!

[@chrisfreemesser5707]

Good to see another vid from ya Kiwi. Looking forward to you putting that Mustang right!

[@outlawbillionairez9780]

O⚠️M⚠️G⚠️ Yer lucky the car didn't break in half when you lifted it 😳!

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

We didn't leave it up there overnight!!

[@JimmyMakingitwork]

I wish these shop were willing to hire and pay competent mechanics. It's getting harder and harder to find them, while shops are charging more and more but paying less and less. This car will need some major repairs by a competent mechanic/bodyman. Hope it gets sorted and saved.

[@barryrussell4106]

Wow I’ve been working on cars for decades and I learned stuff on this video.

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

Cool, hope it helps sometime!

[@TheOldParakaoStoreCafeBar]

Wow man they did a good job of that cardboard patch 😂🤣😂take it easy mate 👍🏼😎🇳🇿🍺

[@Daniel-st5so]

uncle tony sent me thanks for the content

[@bcbloc02]

They thought that imagination was enough to make it a good car.

[@geraldscott4302]

That's really sad. That is one of the cars I've always wanted, but never had. A red 1965-1967 Mustang convertible with a white top, or even a red 1965-1967 Mustang coupe with a white vinyl top. Stock 14" steel wheels, 1965 wheel covers, whitewall tires, 289/4 speed. Only two modifications. Front disc brakes, and a custom dual exhaust system with glasspack mufflers and two chrome tips out the back. Yes, I'd even want to keep the stock breaker points ignition. I am a recently retired mechanic with 41 years experience, and I have done quite a bit of mechanical work on vintage cars, but never any kind of bodywork or paint. I see mechanics as a skill, and bodywork/paint as an art. As for the flex, I used to have a 1964 Fairlane 4 door I used as a transportation car. It was solid underneath, or at least as solid as it came from the factory. Original AZ car, no rust, no damage. You could jack it up enough to remove a wheel, and the doors wouldn't open and close. I've run into the same thing with all Fox body cars. Mustangs, Fairmonts, Thunderbirds, and the '81 and '82 Granada.

[@imskeptic1]

Wow, lotta work to put that right. But just by lookin' at it, the average (non mechanic) person most likely would never realize it.

[@electrix6751]

Uncle Tony brought me here. :-)

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

Welcome aboard

[@Labergemusic]

Awesome, yet tragic viceo

[@glenfenderman]

Dang! That car looks so cherry on the outside, but an absolute rotten apple underneath. I'm a huge fan of cars shows where I live, but now I have to wonder what truly lives or dies underneath those fabulous cars I see.

[@raymondcanessa7208]

museum quality just don't drive it trailer queen car

[@forthwithtx5852]

They don’t call them Rustangs for nothing. I learned something new today, BTW. I have never heard of the shim rods in a MC before. And I’m no spring chicken.

[@forthwithtx5852]

Oh, and I groaned when I saw that for gap open like that. Shared on Twitter for ya. Maybe bring-in some new viewers.

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

Thanks man. Every little bit helps!!

[@billywird]

If you notice that master cylinder is one of those universal aftermarket chrome parts and there is no real application, so it is equipped this way. I will admit that this is the first I have seen on this spacer set up as well. There are different rods available for the different booster master cylinder combinations and as you well know that clearance should be like KIWI stated. I ran into that dilemma way back in the early seventies when I replaced a master cylinder on a Chevelle (standard drum brakes) and I pumped and pumped and pumped the brake pedal trying to bleed out the brakes until I noticed that there was excessive clearance between the rod and the master cylinder piston. I adjusted it up and low and behold was finally able to bleed the brakes. I guess they did not pay attention to that so much from the factory as I am sure that there was a faster method (pressure bleeding?) of bleeding the brakes. We learn things the hard way don't we?

[@billywird]

Well sir as you well know stuff from the factory really doesn't have those "shim rods" but any aftermarket stuff, well it is definitely "buyer beware". But as you probably know that clearance between the actuator rod and the piston in the master cylinder is critical. I have a 69 El Camino that I purchased used from a private party back in 1973, and when I first did a brake job I did the hydraulics as well and I put in a remanufactured master cylinder I got from NAPA, and I bled and I bled and I bled and could not get the brakes bled out (this is a standard drum brake system) finally after much frustration I closed up the excess play between the actuator rod and the master cylinder to be able to bleed the brakes. You lose a lot of pedal travel with that excessive clearance, and I guess that from the factory the brakes system is pressured bled, and that clearance is not actually checked, but when us common folks get a hold of these jobs it gets quite frustrating. Oh well live and learn. I know on the GM power brakes boosters there are different rod lengths depending upon the master cylinder and brake booster setup and that is pretty much engineered as you well know. Of course, it is a continuing challenge to figure out the "monkey wrenches" that are introduced into auto repair.

[@DanEBoyd]

Krickey! At least he's had it for thirty years, and didn't go out and pay $32,000 for it last year.

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

Yeah! I believe he paid 6k for it

[@glengrant3884]

SHINE BRIGHT KIWI!!💥💚YOU'RE A LEGEND BRO!!👍👊LOVE FROM AUSTRALIA!❤🤍💙

[@FenderTele]

Greetings from the UK I've just arrived here from Uncle Tony, the floor of that Mustang is chilling with the cardboard it would fold like an envelope in an accident! The worst thing I ever saw was a mini cooper with its sills packed with chicken wire, newspaper and fiberglass on close inspection the newspaper was about 6 weeks old!!!! It had the fresh paint and looked the part buyer beware!!!

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

Welcome board! Some people have no conscience when it comes to making a buck. I quite often get asked if we flip cars, I really have to bite my tongue because they don't know how badly they just insulted me....

[@kramrollin69]

I have an English mechanics book first printed back in the 60s. The genuine, legit rust repair for a Morris Minor they exampled, was to use chicken wire to form the panel section , then fibreglass, then filler, then paint. All legit English repair.......from the 1960s. Perhaps those chaps read the same book?.

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

@@kramrollin69 oh how times have changed....

[@FenderTele]

@@kramrollin69it beggars belief to see what 1960s rust repair was recommended!!!! In the book I have they recommend laying down fiberglass on another car. The pictures then proceed to show forming the repair section on a sound sill , cracking it off ,so that it can be used to "repair" the rotten sill!

[@FenderTele]

@@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160 I'm sure you could write a book about the horrors that have arrived at your shop! I've always wanted to see exactly how a car looked before the flippers got to work on it.

[@terrenceseymour]

Good God that last shop needs to be taken for a drive to be explained the errors in their ways... cheers bro.

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

And yet they have glowing reviews on facebook......🤔

[@terrenceseymour]

Shocking behavior.

[@Chopper650]

Love the kiwi on the roof

[@gregorylyon1004]

Corrugated cardboard holding the frame together. This car was resurrected from the junk yard, cobble job restoration and sold for a big profit

[@rustybumperclassics6342]

Thats so sad. I had a mustang in about that same condition years ago.

[@jackpalczynski7884]

The infamous rust accelerating rubberized undercoating. I looked at a very nice 8 year old Jeep Wrangler that looked nearly brand new until I got on my back and looked under the thing. All new rubberized undercoating where it was on so thick, there were lots of drips formed and solidified. Some had completely fallen off showing that it was solid rust under this crap. I let the salesman know that I would have been interested in buying it if they had left it alone underneath. Sure, there was rust but with that crap on it, I couldn't tell if it was surface rust or structure eating holes.

[@skip7243]

I was at a famous swap meet many years ago & in the car corral there was a 66 Stang that didn't look too bad. It was not "all fixed up". A fellow looking at it ask if I knew anything about them, I did as I had done a few, & he asked for advise. It didn't take me long to find several issues, not the least of which was the door gap at the top was tight & at the bottom about a half inch. There were other things & I hope the guy, who obviously didn't know much about them, walked away.

[@billywird]

Unfortunately, the car has to pretty well come apart to fix all of that rust. I view a segment of 48 hrs. that focused on the gas tank design of the Mustang (the car is based on the Falcon platform where the top of the gas tank serves as the trunk floor as well). Well, it turns out that in certain conditions in a rear end collision that floor can rupture and spill fuel up in the passenger area and if it ignites well one can surmise the rest. Lee Iacocca was asked about that problem and his reply was "you need to trade up and dump that old car". This coming from the father of the Mustang (typical car salesman), But he was right. If the owner has had the car that long it only stands to reason that as the car ages the time and effort (money) to bring it up to snuff is going to be more. Some of these cars would benefit with a brand new body from Dynacorn Industries and finished out from there. The long range cost would be more but in the long run the owner would benefit.

[@kurtisstutzman7056]

Rock on...!

[@andrewcarroll1867]

I just watched the UTG post on these cars and HAD to subscribe to YOUR channel, so much invaluable information here! Keep up the EXCELLENT work!

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

Thanks man!

[@thorsrensen3162]

Still better than the new E mach

[@TheLowerman]

Well done

[@billjamison2877]

You can put a shine on a Turd and get good money for it! I feel bad for these people. They really got bent over the barrel on this Stang!

[@peterkovacs8654]

Rustang and lipstick on a pig apply in this case, but the Kiwi will put it right, no worries!

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

That's the plan man!

[@rheidtech]

Its a crusher... lol. Are you sure you want to get into it? Lol. Its just floors and torqueboxes.. until you get into it and realize the whole car is a rotbox. Fenders, quarters, doors, firewall, cowl, rockers, trunklid... Full armor of God. Lol. #blessthismess

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

Actually the rest of the car is not bad. She's worth saving.

[@rheidtech]

@@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160 sounds promising👍

[@gregblack8550]

My opinion. If you want a nice classic and you can’t do body work , pay up the 30 k to buy a decent car . Going to spend way more than that to fix a sub par car . The drivetrain can be delt with much less depending on your power preference.

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

Pretty good advice

[@garyspaun5237]

Hello and thank you for this content. Have you checked the cowl vents? Very common for the cowl drains to clog, the cowl rots, then water drips in and soaks the carpet causing the floors to rot. I use a scope to check for cowl rot. Bad news is cowl replacement is a major repair: many many spot welds. As Uncle Tony says "Hope you got something out of that ".

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

Yea it is a common problem for sure. This car has had the cowl replaced already so it all good

[@garyspaun5237]

Thank you for the reply. Alerts others who are considering an early Mustang purchase to check the cowl vents.

[@MrTheHillfolk]

These are fun videos, not so much for the customer.

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

No..... it sucks to have to tell them but it's great handing it back to them properly repaired.

[@MrTheHillfolk]

@@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160 Yeah I hate being a messenger for stuff like that,I'm sure there's been plenty of cursing and yelling (hopefully not directed at you)

[@moseshancock3336]

Repairs with spit and chew gum Repairs 😂😂😂😂

[@The_R-n-I_Guy]

I would never do this to a good car, or anything that I was going to sell. But I have used household grade expanding foam, window screen, pop rivets, and a lot of other things on my old rustbucket Camaro back in my early 20s. I knew that it wasn't going to be sold to anyone else because I was planning on pulling the drivetrain out of it and scrapping the rest. But since I had to drive it for awhile I figured I'd at least make it look like a car. It had no lower quarters. The quarters ended at the top of the wheel openings. You could put your hands halfway through the top of the windshield. And there were holes and dents everywhere. I used silicone to seal the glass, riveted whatever scrap metal I could find to make lower quarters and used screen and foam to shape everything so I could put a very thick layer of filler on. It was just something to do to pass time, make my car look like a car, and practice shaping body filler. I mixed some black basecoat with gray primer and shot it. My friends said it looked like the car a serial killer would drive in the movies. But it was a fun time. I drove it for a few months, then I pulled the drivetrain and scrapped the rest.

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

Let's call it a learning experience😁

[@kramrollin69]

"He's got a Very Long Piddle" ??😄 Poor chap, I wonder if it keeps him up at night. I know we have hysterical reactions to NZers accents, here in OZ. But Kiwis must baffle the hell out of USAnians, wondering what in the World he is talking about. How do you live over there Kiwi, with all that piddling going on. Crikey, you must be having a hilarious time there. Lets just hope they don't ask you what comes after 5............of course, we know,.. sex!!

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

Living the dream man!!! A seemingly endless supply of old American iron and gas is a fraction of what you pay! As for the accent most of the time I get mistaken for an Aussie. But I'm quick to tell them that's there's no convicts in my family tree😜

[@kramrollin69]

@@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160 Good on ya, Bro. 😉. Nah, no convicts in my family either, mate. I can only imagine the look on the face of the "Americans" when you tell them that the British sent Convicts to all the American colonies first, for 150 years before they even knew about Australia.😆. How did they let you in over there? I thought you had to be a millionaire or a refugee?. Still lots of yank muscle in the land of the long white cloud, and Oz of course. (I got 2 + our stuff).

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

Got here on the green card lottery!

[@kramrollin69]

@@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160 Serious??....I always thought those things were a scam, or some urban legend. Well blow me down with a feather. I know its hard to get into Australia (and NZ I guess) if you are over 40 etc etc blah blah. Well good ol yanks. At least you have brought them some culture.........😋

[@KiwiStag74]

Had a thought on this one, mate. I've noticed with a few other channels that rust laws and inspections (and the need for them) seem to vary from state to state. There are some I've seen that have been plated (what NZ would call 'registered' or 'licensed' from what I can tell) with rot in the sills, cab corners of trucks missing (ie: the likes of square bodies, C10s, K5s etc - the US version of the Ute) and various things either missing or not working or held on with #9 wire and prayer.....and they are allowed to drive them like that. Similarly, tyres seem to be run until they dry rot out through the sidewall or the tread has gone (like if it still holds air and has tread, it will be fine). Could you imagine the blokes at the local VTNZ looking under that Mustang and not fainting while assessing it for a WoF? Is it truly just up to the owners of these vehicles to keep them up to a roadworthy standard and if so, what's the given on that? Is there some measurement that the average owner can look at their car in order to make an assessment of whether it meets a standard or is it all left to the variable known as common sense?

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

There is virtually no policing if safety here. The responsibility falls to the owner and a lot of the time the owners don't know, they just fix it when it breaks....

[@raggmunken1958]

Dont you have mandatory safety inspections over there?

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

Short answer is no. A handful of states have a very basic safety inspections that just checks yours brakes, lights, turn signals etc.

[@raggmunken1958]

@@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160 OK thanks for the answer. Just found your channel. Very interesting stuff.

[@marathoner43]

I think they call that other shop's job a "rattle-can" restoration. Because all they did was put spray paint on the problems. :D

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

Lol. Quite possibly...

[@michaelmorgan939]

Hers. Seems to me that if His bought this car for Hers ... do you reckon that His is trying to dispose of Hers ... improperly ? 😊

[@flperformancegarage4163]

I have a 65 that looks great from the top, until I was physically able to get under the car and it has the same restoration done, must have been done by the same artist. lol!

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

There's more than a few doing this kind of BS It's a real shame

[@flperformancegarage4163]

@@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160 When the accelerator pedal fell off my 65 Thunderbird, I noticed the area that was cut out for the accelerator pedal was red, I lifted the carpet and found a red cardboard sign that was used as the floor pan, and underneath they used undercoating to cover it up.

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

Cardboard is popular 🤦. I've also seen license tags,expanding foam and race tape

[@gregorylyon1004]

That's a Barrett Jackson special. Where everything looks great till it gets a real inspection. That's a parts car. It's not even safe for the road. Restored my ass

[@Chopper650]

u obviously dont know the Kiwi

[@geoffkeller5337]

Everyone knows you will do the job right and not rip them off.

[@sometimesleela5947]

Kiwi's a good guy. 'Takes a lot of class to keep from spending the whole video ranting about the other shop and instead to just levelheadedly say what needs to be done.

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

Thanks Geoff

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

Thanks Leela

[@marcgendron6745]

How low can you go , using cardboard ! I assume no yearly state safety inspections in that state ?

[@Smurphenstein]

I used body filler over cardboard once, when I was about 12!

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

No but there needs to be!! There really are some dangerous horror stories driving around and often the owners have no idea.....

[@jeniaa2413]

If highway and criminal laws were enforced. There would be no reason for inspections. Criminals don't obey laws. They find ways around inspections. And any other laws that are supposed to prevent crimes or dangerous situations. California has some of the strictest inspection laws in the USA. And there are videos all over the internet of death traps, or insane drivers, driving broken vehicles on the California freeways. Inspections are meaningless. They just cost honest people more money. Another hidden form of taxation.

[@mikecanam9477]

Those holes should be filled with spray foam not cardboard!

[@carmudgeon7478]

Typical flip car. The good thing with bellybutton cars is parts availability. The customer is in the right hands.

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

"Belly Button cars" haven't heard that expression before??

[@carmudgeon7478]

@@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160 Do you have a bellybutton? Yeah, so does everyone else. 😁

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

Ahh I get ya👍

[@thomasconnolly7452]

Do you ever get worried about going under a car like that on the lift?

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

There's been some that I simply wouldn't put on the lift!

[@vette63]

The first mistake made was buying a mustang.😁 sorry couldn't help myself.

[@garrypritchard1658]

If that car was patched up 30 years ago i think that cardboard would have rotted away by now something not adding up😮😮😮😮?????

[@mikerichards6311]

😮😪

[@anthonyk1234]

They must have went to a gypsy or a mexican shop before bringing it to you.

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

Yeah could have been .......

[@johnmorykwas2343]

This is why you don't buy a Yankee vehicle.

[@johnwelchs3576]

Less misery,buy new!

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

And a lot of people do.

[@rorydaddy]

Why do you keep working on Mustangs, they were a crappy car new, now most of them are scabbed together messes, get a GM car with real frames, and not spot welded sheet metal frames, I’m talking from experience, believe me, Stay away from these cars, unless you want a huge Headache

[@Cstoreri]

Junk

[@kiwiclassicsandcustoms9160]

I've brought back worse.