Confirmation from Kevin Marti

A few days ago I sent Kevin Marti, whom got me my Marti report earlier, an email asking for confirmation about my car being build on the very last day the Mustang series 1 was manufactured.

This was my email:

Hello,

I have recently purchased a report for my Mustang with VIN 3F04H262848 and I'm pleased with it, thanks!. There is one thing I'd like to ask though: It states a built date of July 6, 1973 and I was told that that was the very last day that the Mustang series I was produced. I was wondering of you could confirm this?

Thanks and have a great day!
Vincent Koopman

This is Kevin's reply:

Mr. Koopman,
It was the last day Grande's were built. There were a few other models of Mustangs built a few days later.

Thank you,
Kevin Marti 
Marti Auto Works

Identifying parts

I have decided to ditch the LPG kit. I want to make the car run on fuel only again. It'll make the car lighter, cleaner and simpler. All good things if I want to be able to work the car myself. So tonight I went over to have a look and learn about how things are hooked up.

This is the scariest bit; the connections with the tank. The right side is where LPG comes in to the tank. The connector is a valve so I should be able to just unscrew that. On the left is where LPG comes out and goes to the engine. The tank is closed by an electronic valve. With power off, it should remain closed when disconnecting things. But I think I'll try and get the tank as empty as possible.

I also wanted to check out a few things about my engine. What type it is and what carburetor sits on top. Never looked before but it appears I have an Edelbrock intake manifold.

An Edelbrock Performer LB 351-2V to be exact. No idea if that's good but it's probably better than the standard manifold...

(Click on image above for a much bigger version)
The engine compartment is a mess because of all the LPG crap in it. I want that filter gone and the original blue cap back on there. Also, the airco pump used to be where the air filter is now.

Another thing I wanted to figure out is wether my car is fitted with a 351W (Windsor) or a 351C (Cleveland) engine. For some reason people seem to favour the 351C over the 351W but from what I've read they are both fine engines. Advantage of the 351C is that it's a bit stronger "out of the box" and can be improved by screwing around with its own parts. The 351W is not as strong but has a lot more "after market" parts available for it. I guess the 351C doesn't need that many after market parts...

I read that the early seventies models all were equipped with the 351C type (if it had a 351 that is...). Anyway, one way of telling the difference between a 351W and a 351C is by counting the bolts that hold the valve cover. The 351W has 6, the 351C has 8. On mine I counted 8. And the remains of the yellow sticker also still show a bit of "351C". I'm pleased.

It was fun to learn about my car. I learned stuff :-)

The Marti report!

There is a garage in the USA run by a guy called Kevin Marti with access to the Ford database. For $40 he looks up details about your car and creates a PDF with those details that you then get emailed.

This report shows production dates but also the exact car specs as it came out of the factory. Engine codes, colours and installed options.

Now, at first glance there doesn't seem to be much special about this car. Also we can see that it was not white originally. Suits my fine because this looks better than bronze anyway I think... However, the production date is July 6, 1973. And this is believed to be the very last day ever that the Mustang series I (1964-1973) was produced. So my car could be the last Grande that ever came off the production line!