I am giving my engine bay a bit of a cleanup. I am not aiming for show quality or anything, I just want it to look a little nicer when the hood comes up (and not so much like the engine bay in the Ford given to Will Hunting at the end of the movie).
Most 351 2V engines that I see have an outlet for a tube running to the oil cap that is at the front of the housing, just above the distributor. If you look in the photo, mine is on the side, just above the oil cap.
I have a Holley carb.
Has someone stuck a 428 or 429 sticker on the old filter housing, or have I ended up with the case from another Mercury?
My other questions is this: what other simple things can I do to tidy up the engine bay?
It is a 1970 351W air cleaner with the exception of the decal. I’m not using the correct one on Ginger, but that is what it had when I bought her. The cowl should not be body color, but if you like it leave it, The fuel line is not correct, it has been trimmed back to add that in line filter. It this were mine, I’d pull off all the accessory’s and brackets and paint the front and top if the engine FORD Blue. The water pump should be painted.
This evening I’ll look and see if I can find a decent picture of a 70 351W engine bay. I am not sure what I have. But should have something that will help.
In addition to the above advice, I recommend getting a fan shroud. It’ll neaten things up, but more importantly, your car has the “standard cooling” radiator, and in my experience they’re barely adequate in hot weather. A shroud will help.
Also, please don’t use the “Front” decal on the air cleaner. Those were used on some early to mid sixties Fords on which it was possible to orient the air cleaner more than one way. By '68, the provision of exhaust heat risers and crankcase vent connections meant that the air cleaner could only fit a certain way, and a decal to indicate the front served no purpose. I’ve never seen one in vintage photos or on an unrestored '68 or newer Cougar.
Original style voltage regulator and windshield washer tank would also be nice upgrades, as funds permit.
And here are some nice detail shots showing the correct routing for hoses and wires: http://www.classiccougarcommunity.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1449
Here is a photo of my 1970 Cougar H code engine compartment (converted to a 4V). Not concours but an example for you as it has power brakes, power steering and non AC like your photo above. Any questions/comments let me know.
While you are painting things blue… The silver duct you are using for a heat riser - paint that blue as well so that it blends in a little better and doesn’t look like you robbed the laundry for some parts.
I have the same set up on my car, but painted blue
Get black plug wires, either reproduction or just parts store wires, but in black.
Same with the battery cables, either reproduction or parts store units in red & black.
You could also get one of those battery toppers that makes it look like you have a vintage / original style Autolite battery.
Here are a couple views of a 70 351W engine compartment I did a number of years ago. It isn’t completely concours but it’s reasonably close with the exception of the one piece shock tower brace.
There seem to be lots of fan shrouds to choose from. Are there any obvious traps I should avoid, or does the usual rule apply (i.e. you get what you pay for, so buy the best you can afford)?
As for the voltage regulator, WCCC says the quality of their repro is poor and they recommend a ‘solid state’ with a repro cover. See http://www2.cougarpartscatalog.com/c8af-cover.html Has anyone done this and is it a good solution? It looks like a nice cheap way to upgrade.
Shock tower brace. Should I respray what I have or put on something better? Yours look more study than mine, but then it could just be that yours has a better finish on it.
I vaguely remember seeing a video or comment from someone at WCCC that recommended upgrading these in a convertible (maybe because of body flex???).
I see that Jeff’s is a single piece. That looks stronger to me.
Any suggestions are appreciated (including from Jeff).
I’ve read tons of complaints about the repro VR. I see WCCC is selling just the covers now. I’ll be buying a few of them. A one piece export brace is a nice upgrade. It’s just not correct.
Not difficult, especially since you don’t have A/C plumbing and bracketry to worry about. The accessory brackets unbolt with basic hand tools, and the painting can be done with spray cans. The most time-consuming part is usually getting everything cleaned up and ready for paint. Use a good primer on the bare metal parts, semi-flat black on the brackets, and dark Ford blue on the waterpump/engine.
Snap a pic or two of each component before you remove it, so you’ll have a visual reminder of how things go back together, and you should be good.
