1974 Maverick Project

I figured I'd set up a thread for my project. I posted a while back when I bought it in February but I thought a proper project thread would be nice so that people can see what I'm doing and what I plan to do. Right now the car is 99% stock. What I have changed so far is adding a rear view mirror (my car didn't start with one when I bought it) and I'm in the process of adding bucket seats from a 1994 Ford Windstar van. The seats fit just fine, we (my dad and I) just need to make the final version of the mounts. Right now there is just a mocked up concept mount to see what works. The suspension needs to be overhauled, the headliner needs to be replaced, car needs an alignment, and the rear interior panels need to be cleaned up and repainted. Other than that it is just little things here and there. I'd like some new wheels (running the stock steel ones with mav hubcaps now) and tires, some seatcovers for the buckets, a split header and dual exhaust, a 2bbl carb, billet grille, possible small bumper conversion, maybe a grabber hood before it gets repainted, etc. I'm going to paint it midnight blue and maybe do some white accenting. I also need a stereo at some point, my stock am radio doesn't work and I'm tired of listening to myself think. Last weekend I cleaned the rust off of the bumpers using good old coca cola and tin foil, worked great. I'll post up some pictures tomorrow of its current state and how the seats are going. I plan on entering it in my high school's annual car show next friday, as it beats just about anything anybody owns at my school

 

Some photos of the car as it sits right now. You can see the mocked up seat mount. Looking at my engine compartment and reading through Matterick's thread makes me really want to do the V8 swap. Right now we have a 289/302 sitting in our shop, but I have no idea which of the two it is. Right now I want to swap it to a V8 and a manual transmission so that I can salvage some degree of mileage from it. I plan on building the V8 and running the 250 until it is complete and swap it then as opposed to swapping now and building on it while it sits in the car.

 

289 would sound cool when people ask whats in it. nice looking car, ide leave it just the way it is, but its your car lol

 

Forgot to add the pictures from under the hood. Personally, I want more power out of the car, and if I build the 250 up, I think I'll seriously regret it down the line when I eventually want a V8. There is just so much more potential in a V8 than the 250.

 

is the battery tray still there?

 

The original tray was falling to pieces, so we bought one from O' Reilly's. Had to add a battery disconnect switch as there is a voltage leak somewhere.

 

nice car, i would do as you said and build the v8, once its done then worry about the swap, theres a lot more involved in a v8 conversion other then just simply pulling the 6 n dropping in the 8, as im finding out with my build

 

6 cylinder?

I've own my share of ford 6 bangers and surprisiling enough, the run with the 302's. Don't be fooled...the 302 has potential but if you taje the 250 head and put the 300 head on it, custom grind a cam or comp cams has one readdy for that, 4 bbl intake and headers, match port the heads/intake. You're looking at an easy 300 HP. then put a turbo on it and badda bing, 350hp. Which is considerably more than a stock 302. I'd leave it unless you're serious about putting in around 350 hp in your classic.

 

My issue is that if I stick with the 250, I will most likely at some point want a V8. I can't justify spending the money needed to build a 250 when it could be spent on the V8 for a little down the road. I'll run the 250 for now, but I don't feel like running it forever. I see a lot more potential in a V8 powered Mav than an I6 powered one

 

hey crusader where did you get the battery disconnect switch from and how do u do this because i think that i have a voltage leak too because i just got a new battery and it already doesnt work and i already changed the alternator so this is the only other thing i can think of

 

6 cylinder.

Mine is a 74 and it's only a weekend hobby. I would prob do the same with the 6 cyl and swap an 8 in it. I took all my wiring out and am using the HEI dist. But looking back at some of the cars I've tossed along the beaten path, I treasure this ole Comet. It's beat pretty bad inside but it's the real deal. It had the 5 lug conversion and 8.8" in the rear when I bought it and someone welded a piece of straight iron under it and called it ladder-bars haha. Good Luck with the conversion. those 250ci are pretty quick though. People will jaw drop after they've seen they just got owned by a 6 cylinder. Seen it before and all I could do is smile back at'em.

 

We bought the switch from O' Reilly's and then you need to mount the switch wherever it is most convenient. You need one ring to ring (stud mount) positive cable for this. For where mine is located, I ran a positive battery terminal to ring cable to one end of the switch, then ran the ring to ring cable from the other lug of the switch to the starter solenoid. When I did it, I replaced both cables. You may not need to depending on the quality and or mounting location. If you'd like a picture, I can take one for you of a closer view of the setup.

 

I'd love it if my 250 would put out some more horses, but I just know that I won't be satisfied with it in the end. There's only so much you can do to it, and wouldn't turbocharge it. I think a V8 will be a fun experience to build and have it be uniquely set up for my tastes. There's a lot more personalization that can be done to a V8.

 

During many a road trip in the Windstar, I thought the seats would be great to have in the Maverick. You should like them. They are very comfy on a long trip. The rails look just like the ones on my Probe seats.

 

Yeah I sat in them at a wrecking yard in Washington and thought that they'd rock in the Mav. They were the most comfortable bucket seats I could find there.