Thanks Sal!
Jan 17th – Drove the cougar to work this morning. This car made me appreciate cup holders, since it has none. First thing I managed to do was slop coffee all over my self. Yeah, mug between the legs is fine until you need to push that tall @ss clutch pedal, then the cup shifts and you can’t grab it because you have one hand on the wheel and one on the stick. Good times!
Now add in that it died on me twice while decelerating and turning right (not left, only right - maybe a sticky float or something? Or maybe it was still a bit cold). It was a juggling exercise: braking, pushing clutch, grabbing mug, turning wheel, downshifting… crap, lost all power…must complete the turn without taking out the guy in the turn lane! …ok, now pop the clutch…crap, wtf gear am I in / is it even in gear? Damn! That coffee is HOT! Yeah buddy, I know I’m blocking traffic, but I missed all the other cars, thanks for showing me I’m #1… Give it a crank while muttering “please, God, let it start”… Yes! Off we go again! Damn coffee cup, I knew I should have left it at home…
Stopped at Napa on the way to work and picked up some 2000grit sandpaper and polishing compound.
I started the car and let it run several times during the day, showing it off to various coworkers. Opened the radiator while it was cool and watched for flow while the car was warming up. It started to flow after warming up a bit, so confirmation that it does have a thermostat. Not sure of temperature though. Noted that the exhaust had quite a bit of water vapor in it initially, but it dried out after a while. The driver’s side took much longer than the passenger side though.
Confirmed that oil is leaking (slowly) from where the oil cooler connection is rubbing against the front frame. *Later check of oil level showed it still reads full, so very slow oil loss.
One coworker told me that fixing the power steering leak will be easy though; if it is only a drip then it is on the return side (low pressure) and is held on with a hose clamp. I should be able to remove and re-clamp it. He gave me a tip that when pulling the hose off, have a small section of crimped hose ready to slip on so all the fluid doesn’t drain out (some will though).
Another coworker brought his fancy Nikon camera in after lunch and snapped some pictures for me at the end of the day. He says the color is saturated ~ some of the pics look a bit more orange than they should, but it was also getting on toward sunset.
Holy cow, who is that corn-ball with the cool car? Oh wait, thats me!
Used head light assembly arrived from eBay! Haven’t opened it to check it out yet though.
Mike,
Cool pics! It looks like your car sits just a tad lower than stock? Is it maybe those are 60 series tires on those wheels? Nevertheless, it has what they call a nice “stance” to it! I like it.
Mike, cool cat! The suspension might be a bit lower because it is 42 years old.
Now add in that it died on me twice while decelerating and turning right (not left, only right - maybe a sticky float or something? Or maybe it was still a bit cold).
At least if it is stolen out of the parking lot, you can tell the cops, " I know he turned left because if he turned right out of the parking lot, the car would still be on the corner". LOL
The 66 Monterey that I purchased would kill when I took my foot off the gas coasting to a red light or stop. With power drum brakes it was a white knuckle stop until I had a buddy rebuild the carburetor. SalD
Jan 18th – opened used headlight assembly… main mounting frame was damaged in shipping. It is bent and cracked. Luckily the eyelid door appears unharmed, as well as the headlights. Both bumpers are also on there, so I’ll use those to replace my 2 missing bumpers on the Cougar. Removed the headlights and noticed the high beam has “Ford” ink stamp on the center (factory?). Ohmed out the high beam and got continuity – a good sign! It has something inside it that rattles around when you give it a little shake though – a bad sign :-/
Wet sanded the rest of the stains out of the hood with 2000grit. Driver’s side took some work, it was deep. I also experimented with 2k paper on a large area. It smoothed it out, but my paper was pretty shot, so it didn’t brighten up the paint much. Still a lot of orange peel in it ~ makes it look “dirty” and dull.
*Since then I’ve finished sanding the hood and tops of the fenders. Also pulled the scoop so I could do the whole hood. Although they still show some orange peel, they are better than they were!
Jan 19th – Picked up a cheap meat thermometer and some buffing pads today from Harbor Freight. Backed the Cougar out and opened the radiator (yes, it was still cold) and stuck in the thermometer to see what temp the thermostat is opening at… 160degrees, which is probably why it is running cold. It should be a 195degree thermostat.
Hooked up the timing light and disconnected and plugged the vacuum lines to the distributor. I removed the air cleaner so I could adjust idle as needed, and plugged the ram air vac connection. I also loosened up the distributor clamp bolt. I found the timing was set at about 12 degrees BTDC at 600rpm (spec is 6 degrees at 600rmp idle). I noted that there are red marks on the damper that are 2degrees off from factory marks, possibly put there by the last builder. I adjusted the timing, which changed the idle, so I had to also adjust the idle to keep it at 600rpm. I set the timing to 6 degrees BTDC, which is 2 degrees further than the red mark (red mark is at 4 degrees BTDC), but it should be close enough – certainly closer than 12degrees (but not necessarily “better”).
Damn, I also found that my fuel leak is still there, slowly dripping :-/ Time to pull the carb and send the secondary bowl off to get fixed, and order a rebuild kit!
*I should also mention that a few days prior, when I first started having my carb leak, a coworker brought in an old Holley carb that he had sitting on his shelf. He offered it to me to scavenge parts off of, and to pull it apart so I could learn a thing or two before I tried to rebuild my CJ carb. Thanks Dave!
Driver’s side exhaust is steaming quite a bit. It continues steaming long after the passenger side stops, due to warming up. Driver’s side also condensing a good sized puddle under the exhaust while warming up. Puddle has a bit of gasoline sheen to it. Noted that anti-freeze is a bit cloudy once the thermostat opens up and looks like it has small bits of “gunk” floating on the surface (looks like cigarette ashes and some sort of residue). Anti-freeze was nice and clear when I first checked it off the truck (*seems to clear after sitting, so maybe gunk getting stirred up). I could see down to the fins and noticed they had some buildup on them. Should flush it.
Maybe signs of a bad head gasket. Car does not seem to be using coolant though, or not much, and the oil definitely has no water in it (*been keeping an eye on that).
I noticed when I was showing the Cougar to coworkers that the vacuum connection at the brake booster was loose. I pulled off the connection and verified that the check valve (a black connector) was working properly, and then reconnected the check valve and vac line. Seems like a good connection now.
Jan 21st – found a repro turn signal wand on eBay for $9 with free shipping. I ordered it, since most of them are $15 or more. Mine is missing the knob at the end that appears to press on. Maybe I can use the knob from the repro on my original wand.
*turns out the repro wand knob screws on, but I may be able to mod it and epoxy it on the original wand.
I saw some black anodized nuts with captive washers at Lowes the other day and I’m wondering if they might be “correct” replacements. Need to confirm size / shape. WCCC has them but none in stock right now. My scoop nuts are the same type used to mount the tail lights, so not correct. I’m also missing one, otherwise I probably wouldn’t even worry about it.
*Scoop Nuts Discussed here: http://www.mercurycougar.net/forums/showthread.php?62134-69-70-hood-scoop-NUTS
*Stopped by Lowe’s; they don’t have the right black phosphate nuts – wrong size. I’ve also checked Napa, O’Reilly and Baxter. I could buy a set with the bolts for $20, but I just need nuts. AMK has them, and I also spotted them on another fasterner website. For now I’ll wait for WCCC to get them in.
Jan 23rd – Got some time out in the garage tonight and worked on my power steering leak. Found the return line hose clamp wasn’t very tight. Also found a lock nut on the high pressure side at the pump was not tight either. Loosened hose clamp and repositioned it and tightened it down. Wasn’t able to get the hose very loose, so I couldn’t push it on further. It’s on there about 1~2” though, so should be ok. Cleaned underneath fairly well with 409. Will monitor for further leaks.
(*Haven’t seen any more drips since then).
Cleaned the inside of the back window, as well as the back seat area a bit. Package tray has moisture stains at the corners by the back window and is faded. Wonder if I can remove it and re-color it. Also tightened a few loose screws here and there (door sill plates, seat latch bumpers).
Removed the power brake pedal pad. The bezel and disc are pretty bent up. I cleaned them up a bit and will get the trim straightened out next time.
Jan 24th – Straightened out the brake pedal trim and reinstalled the pad on the pedal, then installed the trim around the pad/pedal – seemed easier that way. Looks decent, or at least better than it was.
Installed the used high beam headlight bulb (mine on the car is burned out). Tried it out…“Sweet! It lit up!” …and it worked for about 10 seconds before the filament totally fizzled. I knew it was dodgy due to the crud rattling around in the bulb. “Ah well…”
Did some more color / wet sanding on the hood. With a bit more effort it should sand out nice and bright. I also rubbed out and polished a sanded spot. Didn’t spend much time on it, but it sure shows potential.
Jan 26th – Removed the hood scoop to make it easier to polish up the hood, and so there won’t be “dirty edges” where the scoop sits.
*Pics were after I wiped all the built up dirt and crud off the hood. The black marks around the scoop post holes are from someone spraying flat black on the underside of the ram-air cut out area - you can see the black on the bottom of the scoop too.
Really sweet car and in time, you will have it in the condition you will be pleased with, just stick with it.
In regards to the timing, personally I would have left the timing where it was. At least 10 degrees BTDC, is a good place and you will find it will run better and it will be quicker.
Thanks! I thought about leaving the timing, but it was acting like a pig when I’d give it any gas, so I figured “lets put it all back to spec and go from there”. I can always fiddle with it more later, right? 
Was out in the garage again tonite for just a bit. Fiddled with my door hinges some ~ bushings are shot, but hopefully the holes aren’t oblong yet. Also put the rubbing compound to the hood to start buffing out the wet sanding. Mmm… shiney! Made a shiney spot, now I’ll have to do the whole car! LOL!
One thing to remember, It runs hotter and uses more fuel when the timing is lower. Being a pig when giving it the gas, is not the timing, this is a carb thing. You really should have it properly rebuilt and have the ignition gone over as well (points, condenser, spark plugs, wires, cap and rotor).
Thanks, that’s good to know. Yeah, I’ve been told it was a carb issue. Already have it off the car for a rebuild ~ hopefully this weekend.
Cap, rotor, plugs and points look good. Wires, I know I have one that is “questionable” - resistance is slightly higher than the others, so those are on my “to do” list.
Condenser… It’s connected good, so I’ll have to deal with that if symptoms direct me there.
I’m more curious about checking Dwell and the range of total timing on the distributor. Eventually, once the carb is done.
Thanks for the tips, I DO appreciate them! 
In regards to the Dwell, I would concentrate on that more than the point gap, One changes the other. The wider the gap the less dwell. More dwell, less gap. I used to try and gap properly to the required settings, but found my RPMs were effected and the points would float. With the Dwell at the required setting, the point gap would be less than the proper setting, but the car operated much better with a quicker RPM response. I also recurved my distributer so that my mechanical advance would be also sooner as well. This worked well for me.
Why would the car runn hotter when the timing is low? Oh and Mike great thread topic and cool pictures. 
Steven
Thanks Steven!
From what I’ve read it seems that some say too high causes high temps, others say too low does it. So I’m guessing it has to do with “inefficient combustion”, or some-such, depending on engine speed and other tuning.
Im saying this from experience, when one car I had, would run hot all the time and then I checked the timing and found it to be near 0 degrees. Once the timing was set up, the problem of overheating was fixed. Im not going to say I understand it fully, but even with, lets say, quench heads. Timing effects combustion/compression and with a lower compression you don’t get proper quench. A proper quench will run cooler then timing that is retarded. Having timing a little more advanced will not harm the motor or performance, in fact it will run more efficient and will have better response.
Jan 27th – Removed the carb today. Drained it and removed secondary bowl. Removed float and all fittings from secondary bowl. Took pics of all part numbers on the carb; all looks correct for “AB” carb. Looks like the carb gasket surfaces were not cleaned very well during the last rebuild. Also a lot of “gunk” / particles in the fuel bowl and metering block ports.
*Stripped fuel fitting on secondary fuel bowl.
Pulled the valve covers to check for moisture (found none) and to make it easier to pull plugs again. Decided to pull the plugs to look for signs of moisture. Took pics of all plugs;
- #4 was oily around the threads, and plug was a bit dark.
- #7 was wet and black; looked into the cylinder and there appears to be a bead of water in there. This is most likely where my “steamy exhaust” is coming from :-/ **Reviewing my pictures on a big ol’ monitor, plug #7 has an obvious green sheen that the flash lit up. Looks like there is definitely a head gasket in my near future. Hopefully that is all it needs (please God, don’t let it be cracks).
- #8 was dusty black with carbon. Maybe not firing or still rich? Verified wire connection at dist cap.
- All others looked good, with light brown / tan coloring. Previous carbon all burned off.
Noticed that 2 of my intake bolts are not actually bolts; passenger side middle 2 are studs with nuts on them. *Research shows that one or two intake bolts may come as factory “studs”, for mounting various components to, but when I first saw them I was like “WTF!”
Also tried to re-torque the driver’s side intake bolts over cylinder #7, but it seemed they were not tightening down so I stopped. I may need to remove / replace all the intake bolts. Hopefully the threads (into the heads) haven’t been stripped. *Turns out the intake bolts were torqued to 25#, not 32-35# like it should have been.
Wasn’t able to check torque on the head bolts due to the valve train in the way. Need to remove that first; an adventure in itself!
Asked the Community what they thought of retorqueing the head bolts. I’m thinking if the intake isn’t torqued down properly then maybe the heads weren’t either.
http://www.classiccougarcommunity.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=2144
http://www.mercurycougar.net/forums/showthread.php?62088-Thoughts-on-Re-Torqueing-Bolts
http://www.428cobrajet.org/forum/index.php/topic,19513.msg131218.html#msg131218
Jan 28th – Received my new turn signal lever today and installed it.
- Original has a “milled”/turned appearance, with the end knob pressed onto ridges and the wrench flat-spot is “squashed”/pressed in the shaft.
- Repro end knob is screwed on, and the wrench flat-spot is “cut out”.
May be able to cut down the end of the original a little bit and epoxy the new knob onto it.
Also picked up some Seam Sealer / Strip Caulk for use on various nuts/bolts.
Polished fuel door plastic bezel and started to clean other fuel door trim. Cleaning up nicely, so far.
Jan 29th – Ordered the carb rebuild kit from NPD; $35.95 with shipping.
http://www.npdlink.com/store/products/1970_mustang_rebuild_kit_carburetor_holley_4150-107433-409.html
Jan 30th – Cleaned up all the fuel door parts and polished the plastic bezel / lens a bit more. Noticed that the mount bracket that connects to the car is bent somewhat. Probably not enough to be an issue, but I’ll make sure when I mount it back on the car.
Re-assembled the fuel door using strip caulk on the various speed nuts. They tightened up nicely (*it was loose and rattled when I pulled it off). The center / cougar part is still a touch loose, but the speed nuts won’t tighten up any more. It doesn’t wiggle and the strip caulk keeps it in place nicely.
Jan 31st – called up Allstate Carburetors to find out details about repairs, shipping and payment. Boxed up the Secondary Fuel Bowl, read to ship!
Feb 1st – dropped fuel bowl in the mail this morning.
(**Fuel bowl arrived back in the mail today, so Carb rebuilding time this weekend!)
Feb 2nd – Installed the fuel door, using strip caulk on the mounting screws. Looks good (to me)!
*I swear, this is the cleanest part on the car now. But ya gotta start somewhere, right?
Cranked the engine to position it TDC + 45degrees and then removed the valve rocker assembly! Was pretty easy. Cleaned up all the gunky oil sludge.
*Yes, that is my daughter’s Dora towel. It has been downgraded to “garage towel” 
Checked torque on the head bolts - they seem to have been torqued down just fine ~ didn’t budge at 70, or 80, or 85.
Checked torque on the intake bolts ~ THOSE moved a good amount. No movement at 20#, but when I went to 30# they tightened up, so they were probably only torqued to 25# (*I guess that is normal for aluminum intakes, but not cast iron). Torqued intake bolts to 32# (spec is 30-35#).
Reinstalled valve rocker assembly, and valve cover.
Feb 3rd – The back bumper was loose, so I took it off to tighten it up. Snapped a few pics of the mess behind it. Rear valance has a nice dent in it, AND it appears to be welded to the rear quarters at the corners, not to mention being held in place by 3 different kinds of screws ~ where they bothered to put any in the holes at all.
Removed the front and rear license plates and brackets as well. Front plate bracket is all bent up. Not even sure if it is the correct style it is in such bad shape. Rear plate bracket was epoxy’d into place, with the mounting screws installed backwards. Luckily the epoxy was quite old and brittle, so it flaked off. Cleaned up the rear plate assembly and reinstalled it on the bumper.
Removed the rear plate lamp. It was missing the glass cover (ordered a new one from WCCC previously, so I’ll be “covered”), and also badly bent up. I checked it previously, so I know it works, and all the other parts are there. Looks like I can clean it up and straighten it out though, and make it serviceable again.
Tightened down the loose bumper bracket that started this whole thing. Made a half-@ss attempt to polish the back bumper a bit, but it really needs rechromed so I didn’t spend much time on it. Rehung the back bumper so nothing would get lost or broken (*how do you break a bumper? i dont’ want to find out). Need to clean up the plate lamp and the front plate bracket (they are bent all to hell).
**Tried researching a correct replacement for the front plate bracket but couldnt’ find anything ~ no pics, nothing.
Your off to a good start sorting out all the little things. Looks like whoever had the car before, really didn’t know how to drive. Keep up the good work. Im not sure how the rear valance mounts on the out side edges where it is welded, but it would be worth pulling off and straightening out the best that you can. Use wood as your backer on the painted side of the valance, It won’t mark up the paint much that can’t be buffed after.