Perhaps the greatest thing about this hobby is seeing the transformation of a car that has… hidden potential into something that is simply amazing.
When Bill Pratt and his wife decided to create His ans Hers Cougars, they had a plan in mind. Fortunately for us, Bill chose to share the story with us in the form of this thread:
https://cccforum.discoursehosting.net/t/b3cat-is-the-new-project/1648/1
What started out like this:
Would become this:
The story in Bill’s words excerpted from the thread:
This morning I struck a deal on a 1968 XR-7 GT that I will be picking up next Saturday. The new cat’s name is B3Cat and it will be the Hers half of a His 'n Hers pair of XR-7 GTs. Here is a link to the video I shot this morning while inspecting the car for purchase:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jj3PEitg8R8
The plan (at the moment) is to give the car a makeover, including a new paint job, but retain the current exterior color. A white vinyl top will be added. In the interior, the patterned inserts will be replaced with white inserts. The lower dash and steering column will be painted white. The non-original door and interior quarter panels will be replaced with XR-7 panels and we may have the area bounded by the stitched border in white with the rest of the surrounding panel in blue. The motif is the Mustang Pony interior from '65-'66. My wife even wants to try to have the seat backs embossed with either a snarling Cougar head or the running cat from the headlight emblem.
Over time, the car will be brought up to the same level as BBCat and Catvert.
The name B3Cat is based on an inside joke between my wife and I. A hint is that she’s a natural blonde (there is one of the B’s) who sometimes acts like the stereotype we all know and love. And this is going to be her car.
Since we spent more than we planned, we may have to wait a bit before doing anything with it, but it’s the right car for us to capture and hold until we’re ready.
Not much restoration progress to report but I did get B3Cat registered and inspected, so it can be legally driven on the street now. The inspection station knows me well since I take all 8 of our vehicles there. When I drove B3Cat into the bay, he just looked at me and said “Everything works, right?”. A couple of minutes later, B3Cat was legal.
In about 2 weeks, the Cougar will be going down to my friend Dave’s place, where Dave will start going through all the mechanicals for me. So the process will be starting soon. I know it needs some work since the motor doesn’t like to get any gas at all when it’s cold and it never really runs completely smooth. It is also leaking coolant either at the radiator or the water pump. Glenn told me it needs an idler arm so we’ll go through the suspension completely, as well as giving the brakes a thorough once-over. I think it may also be leaking some power steering fluid so we’ll go through that whole system as well.
I’d like to have it running and driving really well by spring so that my wife can start enjoying it even before the restoration funds are available. More to come…
Phase 1 of B3Cat has begun! It is now in the hands of my friend Dave so that he can go through it mechanically and get it truly roadworthy. I got the first results of his assessment today. The intake manifold gasket is leaking front and rear, so that needs to be replaced and the engine needs to be power-washed. Dave is also going to convert it to a Pertronix setup and do a complete tune-up, including plug wires. The fan clutch is shot so that’s also on the list to replace.
The gas tank is badly dented and leaking fuel, so that will be replaced right away. I’m sending my son down to MU tomorrow to pick up the items I can’t get through my suppliers so I’ll have everything in hand over the next couple of days.
Another step has been taken in the restoration of B3Cat. Here is the progress report on the engine bay. The owners prior to Glenn thought the engine would look better in Chevrolet orange. Since the manifold had to come off to fix the oil leaks, changing this became one of the first orders of business. With the manifold removed, Dave snapped a photo of the numbers in the valley. Assuming this indicates a 352 block, I didn’t realize the 390 used the same block. Learn something new every day…
Ford Blue puts in a much-needed appearance. The engine looks good based on the heads and what little we can see without pulling them off. It’s possible this was already rebuilt in the not-too-distant past.
An Edelbrock 1406 replaces the Holley aftermarket carburetor. One of the things Dave discovered right away is that the fuel in the car was degraded. It smelled more like varnish than gasoline. The fuel lines needed to be cleaned out, the filter needed replacing, and the engine needed a complete tune-up.
Driving home, B3Cat ran smooth and had plenty of punch under my right foot. The front end has a tendency to wander, but the alignment hasn’t been checked yet. So at least now we have a driver for the summer while we replenish the restoration fund and decide on the next step in the journey.
Finally, there is some more activity on B3Cat. I had taken it out for an exercise run and it ran incredibly poorly, so I sent it back to Dave for remedial work. It turned out that the Edelbrock carb itself had something preventing the idle circuit from working properly so Dave cleaned the carb out and got it running right again. He also discovered that the plate inside the distributor that the Pertronix mounts to was loose, so that was retightened. While he had it in the shop, he did compression testing and all cylinders showed readings in the 160-165 range.
A couple of weeks ago, I purchased one of the electric headlight conversion kits, so that got installed as well. So there is no more vacuum to the headlights. I’ll have to test the actuators and see if they hold vacuum.
B3Cat ran really well all the way home, although like BBCat, the 390 doesn’t like hot restarts. Has anyone else experienced that problem and solved it? I didn’t notice any wandering on this ride home so I think the wind was a factor last time.
This Cougar has a 3.00 traction-lock rear end and I have noticed a clunking sound from the rear during low speed maneuvering, especially when I’m turning. Is that the trac-loc doing its thing?
Anyway, I will be driving B3Cat back and forth to work for the next week to continue the shake-out process and see if anything else pops up. Come next Sunday, my wife is planning to drive it to the Mustangs Unlimited show that the New England Cougar Club is putting on, so that’s about an hour of driving each way. I want to make sure the car is in good condition to get there and back with no drama. I’ll be in BBCat, so I don’t want either car sitting on the shoulder even briefly.
The next planned improvement is new wheels and tires because I get some squeal from the ones that are on there and I suspect they may have some dry rot going on. B3Cat will likely get the 15" Cragars from BBCat while BBCat goes back to stock Cougar 14" styled steel wheels and 235/60R14 BFG T/A’s.
Other than wheels and tires, the plan now is to just drive the car and rebuild the restoration fund for the body, paint, and exterior trim.
OK, so I stopped by my friend Dave’s tonight on the way home from work. After some discussion and another test drive, we concluded that B3Cat has a shift kit installed and the clunk is the transmission dropping back into 1st gear at times. I had noticed that the shifts were very firm on this car and it will chirp the rear tires on a 2nd gear shift without even trying, so it makes sense. There is a lot that was done to this car that we don’t know and Glenn didn’t know so we’re discovering it as we go along.
I also learned that Dave experienced the slow cranking on a hot start while the car was in his care last week, so Bill’s information above is very relevant. Now that I’m driving B3Cat, I’m starting to get some front end squeaks from the control arm bushings. A new to-do list is taking shape very quickly but that’s what this summer was intended to be about so I’m not at all unhappy. Even in its present condition, B3Cat drives straight and solid and runs like a scalded ape!
It does appear to have a drinking problem, though. Today’s commute was about 65 miles round trip and the gas gauge suggests that half a tank of $3.99 premium gas was consumed in the process. I guess I’ll know better when I actually fill up again tomorrow.
My wife has decided that B3Cat should have a white interior like Scott’s XR-7G. So that means (ideally) I need a set of white XR-7 door panels, a set of XR-7 rear panels, a set of white kick panels and a white console. Seat upholstery will be replaced anyway with new, as will the headliner. I can buy outright or include a trade of the dark blue interior pieces (console and kick panels) that are in the car now. The door and rear panels may not be any good; they are covered with trim shop panels at the moment.
I’m looking for Grade A, as Don would say. I don’t mind having to refresh but I’d prefer not to have to restore. I also have a complete set of black panels but I prefer not to have to dye them white.
The plan for B3Cat is now pretty well set.
The color will be changed to Madras Blue with a white vinyl top. The interior will be parchment with aqua carpeting. I just ordered a full set of new vinyl upholstery from JCC in parchment and previously purchased all the other interior bits from Randy. The interior bits are at Seamless Customs, where they will be completely refurbished to look new again.
Once I receive the upholstery from JCC, those will also go to Seamless Customs, where aqua running cats will be embroidered into the top front of each seating position. I still need to order the headliner, and will need to find a parchment console/clock pad but there is still plenty of time for that. Worst case, I’ll have the existing pads dyed parchment.
I may wait on doing anything with the console until we’re able to put the interior together in the car. Another idea I had was to use the center console as another aqua accent point and I can judge how that might look by leaving the blue console alone until that point. If it proves to be too much accent, then we can change the color to parchment. If not, we can dye it aqua.
I’m hoping to have the car ready for Carlisle 2015, but we’ll have to wait and see.
Finally, this project is about to pick up steam. B3Cat has been languishing in the garage at the store, occasionally being moved outside when customer vehicle installation activity demanded. But now I have arranged for it to go to Dave sometime right around Christmas to begin the complete restoration. In the meantime, I’ve picked up quite a few parts from members here or elsewhere to make sure everything we’ll need is on hand.
B3Cat is going to be stripped to bare metal throughout. The engine is going to be pulled to allow a total clean-up and detailing of the engine compartment. Anything old and ratty will be refurbished or replaced. We’re still shooting for a debut at Carlisle 2015, so wish us luck!
Another step forward…
In order to make sure the project goes smoothly once Dave is ready to begin the body restoration, I’ve started dealing with some of the long lead time items. I had compiled a full set of window frames, grille surrounds, and trunk/quarter panel trim. All needed to be repolished or rechromed in preparation for replacing the dull, tired parts currently on B3Cat. I started looking for a good, reasonably priced chrome plating shop and ended up uncovering a hidden gem.
2 weeks ago today, I took all the pieces to D&D Chrome Plating in Providence, RI, and dropped them off. I also included the dash gauge bezels because, in a nod to CatVert, B3Cat is going to get the same chromed bezel treatment to add a little pop to the dash. Last night I picked it up again, all completed for a total price of $650.00. The pieces look absolutely beautiful to boot. So I think I’ve uncovered a hidden gem here in New England.
The spare steering wheel I had on hand was shipped off to Best in Show yesterday, but that won’t be back for a couple of months. So right now I have all the rechromed rear bumper, dash bezels, window frames, and hood/trunk moldings ready to go. On Monday, I should receive the Black Friday order from WCCC, which will provide the new emblems, rechromed front bumper, and a host of other pieces and parts.
Sometime in the last 40+ years, someone decided B3Cat would be better off without its factory A/C bits from the engine compartment.
Since it’s going the restomod route, I don’t feel the need to source replacement original parts and would actually prefer to go with a Sanden compressor set up. But the Classic Auto Air kit is $1500 and contains things I don’t need. MU offers a Sanden conversion kit that’s a lot less money, but it doesn’t come with everything. Still, I’m thinking that kit and the few missing items like the condenser should be a less expensive approach. Has anyone done this already?
the speaker pods are missing. I just received a replacement set from WCCC, along with the Custom AutoSound stereo with iPod/MP3 connections. My wife will have better sound in her Cougar than I have in mine! Note also the condition of the splash shields. They are virtually perfect. Every time I see Dave, who’s doing the restoration work, he makes it a point to tell me how good the body on B3Cat is and generally adds that it’s the best one I’ve ever given him to do.
The floors on this car, by the way, are perfect. When Dave pulled out the old carpet, the underlayment was found to be in beautiful shape. It didn’t even pull up with the carpet, so we decided not to disturb it even though it would have been interesting to see if there’s a build sheet under it.
I also stopped by the trim shop and took pictures of some of the interior bits that they’re prepping for when the car comes to them. They look fantastic. The dash pad came out great, although it was by accident. I had planned for the dash pad to go aqua to complement the exterior color, but Justin either forgot or I forgot to tell him. But the parchment looks really nice and I’m going to leave it that way. The lower part of the dash will also be painted parchment so it will all flow in together.
Justin has also recreated new door and interior quarter panels that look very close to the factory originals. He wasn’t able to quite match the original heavy grain pattern but came very close. This interior is going to look awesome.
There is one small adjustment that we’ve had to make in the interior. Originally, we planned to have a running cat embroidered in the seat backs for the front and rear seats, but it became clear that we probably wouldn’t be happy with that look. Instead, I bought four of the running cats that normally go in the headlight cover corral and they will be mounted into the seat backs with a recessed look. I put one of the cats against the seat back in BBCat to get an idea of how it will look and my wife really liked it, as did I. So that will be a unique touch that I’ve never seen anyone do before.
At the moment, it looks like we’re on schedule to complete the body work by early March and get B3Cat to the trim shop right away. It should be fully completed by sometime in early April, which will allow us to do some shakedown drives once the weather clears and before it’s time to head down to Carlisle.
We had our first nasty surprise with B3Cat on Saturday. Dave called me while I was out of town to tell me that he had discovered extensive rust under the lip of the trunk lid once he removed the molding and started to strip the lid. Basically, the message was “we need a new trunk lid”. Since I was at a trade show, there wasn’t much I could do until I got home but a few hours later he called back to tell me he’d found a perfect lid in California, had confirmed the condition through pictures and conversation with the seller, and we could get it for $400, including shipping to MA via Greyhound. Problem solved!
The weather here has also been a factor, so now the timeline for completion of the body work has shifted out to the end of March. But we should still be in good shape for Carlisle.
The new trunk lid arrived from California and was absolutely perfect. It needed nothing but sanding and a coat of primer. This week has been a flurry of UPS deliveries from Mustangs Unlimited and CJ Pony Parts. The new heater core and heater box seal kit, A/C thermostat and other small items arrived this week. The next day saw the arrival of the new leaf springs, shackle and U-bolt kits, and mounting bolts along with the front upper ball joints, lower control arms, and shock absorbers all around. I was able to get the shocks, lower control arms, and ball joints from my wholesale supplier so that saves some money.
Due in this week are the new lowering front coil springs (CJ Pony Parts) and the refurbished A/C evaporator (Original Auto Air).
The 15" Cougar styled steel wheels (WCCC) and BFG tires (my wholesale supplier) came a while ago but I finally dropped them off at an old-school tire store that has the right fittings to do lug-centric balancing.
Dave created a template for installing the vinyl top trim pieces, since this car didn’t have one from the factory. If any of you need something like this, let me know. Dave told me he’ll probably put the template up on eBay once he’s done with my car.
B3Cat will be getting painted this weekend, so we’re getting close to the finish line. It’s now time to decide what exhaust to put on it. I’d like to use the pipe-within-a-pipe exhaust tip that comes through the cutout in the rear valence, similar to the XR-7G, but the only ones I’ve seen like that are 2" inlets and I’m thinking about going to a 2 1/4" exhaust.
Last Thursday I picked up B3Cat from Dave’s shop and took it to Seamless Custom in Leicester, MA for the interior finish work.
My wife has not been allowed to see the car since it left to go down to Dave’s. She hasn’t seen any of the in-progress photos. When the car is finished, I will trailer it back to the store where we will put it in the garage under cover. I’ll have our installer remove the exhaust tips and put on the G-style tips while I install the new windshield washer kit, hood blanket (I know, I know) and halogen headlights.
Then we’ll do an Overhaulin’ style reveal to present her with the finished car. I plan to schedule that to make sure that our kids can be there to see her get the car and, hopefully, have Dave and Justin (owner of Seamless Custom) there as well. That should happen either one week or two weeks from Saturday. The official “show” debut of the car will be at our club season opener, which is always hosted at our store. The first real show will be Carlisle in June.
The reveal was a lot of fun. I had the car sitting all by itself in the center of our store garage area with the cover on it. The “before” pictures were up on the garage computer to remind her of what the car looked like when she last saw it.
Next, I started a YouTube edition of “The Stripper” playing and walked over to the car. I grabbed the cover down by the left front corner of the car and did a fast flip up onto the hood and then right back down again. Repeat. Then I pulled the cover back to the base of the windshield and gave her a minute to absorb the color on the fenders and hood.
Finally, I flipped the cover up over the roof and slid it back off the back of the car. Within seconds, my wife was in tears and saying over and over that the car was more beautiful than she had ever expected. She spent a solid 15 minutes just walking around it, looking at everything, sitting in it, and just enjoying it. So I think the reveal was a success!
Congrats Bill 
very well deserved
Thanks, Jan!
Thanks, Bill, for the effort you put into these threads every month. It is very much appreciated, along with the amazing contribution you make to the hobby through this site, the restoration parts you work on with Don, and all the other stuff you probably do that no one ever hears about.
Very nice cat. Congratulations on ROTM! +1 On thanks for all you do!
Congratulations on your win, Bill. You picked a beautiful color combination.
Congratulations for ROM! A beauty, for sure. I loved that you made it a surprise for Mrs. P.
The color combo is terrific and I really like the dash. It makes the wood grain really pop.
How did you get your “wood” looking so nice?
Congrats Bill! This honor is no surprise.
Conga-rats, Mr. P !!!
Gary, I’ll have to find out what was used on this one. I’ve used brown shoe polish in the past with good results but I didn’t do this set. I’ll let you know when I get an answer.
Gary, he used 3M Machine Polish P/N 05996 on the wood grain fascia.
Congrats Bill on ROTM - well deserved!
Thanks to everyone for the nice comments. I told my wife that, when this car was done, BBCat would become invisible beside it. There’s been some of that, but not quite as much as I was expecting.
I’m just glad that she’s so happy with it. By Sunday, we’ll have done as many shows in 2 months as she did in roughly 3 years of owning her '65 Mustang.