I'm not sure how busy this place actually is, I've been linked to this forum a few times from Google so decided to go ahead and join. I recently bought a '77 Maverick for $200 from a friends uncle, the engine and transmission runs perfect(only has 108,000 miles on it, A/T), so I can't complain about the body rust. It has been parked outside for the past 6 years, only being started up and moved when the guy had to cut his grass...so the weather has beat it down quite a bit. Anyways my plans are to restore it, though Im not sure yet whether I should go the OE route or put a 302 in it...any help? Here are a few pics(By the way, those plates are my wifes and don't belong on the car, I used them to get the car home):
Welcome aboard! :Handshake Looks very restorable to me. Good luck with it. Oh...you'll find that this site is very busy too. We just reached over 9000 members. We have quite a few very active ones. We'll be happy to help you any way we can.
Welcome from Pittsburgh Pa! Do a search an you'll find tons of info, plus roundup next week is real close to you ! D.C. area Looks like a great starter an price was right. Good Luck!
Thanks This is my first attempt at a restoration, Ive watched my dad restore a few so I kind of know what Im in for. Do you guys know of any sites where I can buy parts? Such as the dash pad or new fenders/seats/etc...? Im still trying to familiarize myself with the site.
Great start! Looks like most of the car is still there, that helps. In my opinion, if the car in question ist a rare limited #'s car, or some freakish 1 off from the factory, build it how you want it. It's your time and money. Good luck.
to the board. You can use Ebay. I got alot of parts for my car there. You can also use AutoKrafters, they have all the weatherstripping & alot of other stuff.....
Good dash pads are hard to find and expensive. However there are covers that you can get or contact fmc56 here on the forum he can restore your pad. He might be able to assist with the seats as well. Autokrafters and RPS are good resources for parts. Doesn't hurt to place a parts wanted ad in the proper forum as well.
The VIN is F 7X91L107625 The power went out...so lets retype all of this *rolls eyes* Ford DSO Codes:Washington Assembly Plant Location:Twin Cities Body Serial & Type Code:Maverick 2-door Sedan Standard Engine:6-250 - 1 bbl - 70-85 Horsepower Transmission:C4 automatic Rear Axle:2.79:1 Exterior Color: Dark Brown Metallic Interior Color and Material:Tan - Cloth and Vinyl Bench Sounds like a grocery getter.
The X in the VIN actually means the car was built at the St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada plant. Hey man, that's just what the car WAS in it's last life. Dosen't mean it has to be a grocery getter this time around! Build it how you want it!
Thats what I thought...the sticker inside the door says "Ford of Canada" but the source I got the decode from said Twin Peaks. Ive looked at the how-to articles and Im excited now to get started, half the things I wanted to do I thought was going to be extremely hard because Id have to figure it out on my own(v6-v8 conversion, c4-manual trans, etc...), but I got how-to's, thats awesome.
most mavericks wernt really anything special to begin with anyway. atleast in terms of being a muscel car. but you still have alot of potential there waiting to happen good luck with the project. the guys around here have done pretty much anything you can think of to a maverick so you'll definatly be able to find alot of help. not that these are a hard car to work with anyway
we are very busy and happy to help tho i wont be that much help because i need the help more than you do
Well the Maverick was the closest thing to an affordable wannabe muscle car as I could get, whether it actually is one or not...at least its in the 70's era and can be fixed up. Thanks for welcoming me to the board you guys, I look forward to spending quite a bit of time here.
Welcome to the board. Congrats on your new old Maverick. Don't feel too bad about thinking your Maverick looks like a grocery getter. That's basicly what they were intended to be back when they were new. Times have since changed and the Mavericks good looks give them the potential to be anything you want them to be. Stock, mild or wild the skies the limit. It looks to be a very good platform for a restoration. Have fun!