I just recently bought a very original and well maintained 1972 Maverick for my first car. I've got plenty that I'm going to do but I have no idea what to start on! I'm thinking of things like new rims to replace the hub caps, new dual exhaust, and possibly a engine rebuild (new heads or cam) but I'm unsure what would be the most cost effective upgrade. OR if anybody is looking for some stock parts just ask and I'll be incontact with you.
Welcome to the fold. One thing that you'll find is that there will be many options open to you whatever route you decide to take, racer, daily driver, etc. These underated cars lend themselves to many things and cost is what you decide, mild or wild. There are several in our community that have opted to change from stock and certainly will lend advice and experience to help guide you on your path. The 302 lends itself to numerous possibilities and parts abound from many suppliers as well as transmission supplies for either the C4 or the manual. You just have to decide what path you want to take and how much trauma your wallet can withstand. Just don't hesitate to ask anyone and I'm certain we'll all be interested in your progress a your project moves ahead.
First of all Thanks for the welcome and advice. I suppose that I should have been more specific. First of all the car will be a daily driver (going to school and around town) but I want it to have some pep, harness at least some of the potention it has. Second of all it has a 302 in it already (original with over 176,000 mi) and is currently a automatic. In the coming years I want to convert it to standard but for now the C4 in it works perfectly. I should also mention that one of my main concerns was whether or not it would be worth putting on headers and taking the shifter off the column and putting in a floor kick-shifter.
First of all, welcome to the wonderful world of the "out cast" You a maverick/comet owner, congrats!!! OK, now here is those famous words,(but I can say that cause I am doing this very thing to mine).....OK here goes, "If it was me, I would....." If the motor needs a freshening up(rebuild) do that. As far as getting some pep out of your car. I would change the rear end gear, go to a 3.55 if you do alot of highway travel, or maybe a 3.83 or 4.10, depends on your purpose. As far as headers go, "if it can breathe, it can run." BUT there are a few (little) problems with headers. example: heat, room to work, I am assuming that it has the double hump tranny crossmember for dual exhaust, and then there is putting the new exhaust system on(that cost money) Me personally, I have headers on my race car and I have exhaust manifolds on my 75 street mav. If you have power steering you will need to buy the drop kit for it. I would definitely move the shifter!(thats just cool!!!) I guess this is my final thought, if you are on a budget but want performance, freshen the motor(if needed) change the rear gear, add a good after-market ignition system, and just put a good eaxhaust system on running through the exhaust manifilds. There is alot of knowledge on this board(I am NOT one of them) but if you have any questions during your journey, the guys here can answer them. Hope this helped!
I have to say that is some very wise advice. First of all my dad, who I do the work on it with, doesn't want me to put on headers anyway. Gears are also a priority of mine although I somehow forgot about them. Anyway the more I post the more it seems I leave out. One thing that I bet is very surprising is that I currently am on a good sized budget. Since I'm not currently driving it I don't have to spend any money on insurance and all that. As well as that since it cost only $1000 my Dad was great and said he'd pay for it and I'd pay the restoration costs. So as of the moment my budget consists of the money I've saved for the past years, and is about $2400. Anyway if anybody has a thought on how I could improve my car leave a message! PS: take a look my car! Not that great now hopefully in the future it will be a good "before" shot.
Your car looks good!!!! Its hard to tell by the photo, but is that a vinyl top or is it paint? Either way it looks sharp! 1 more thing, if you do work on the motor, I would get a good cam and intake combo, Edlebrock sells some nice street set-ups. Good luck!
Hey whats up? Even though this isn't my topic you guys are giving a lot of tips which is definetely going to help me out with my project. It's a '73 Mav with a 302. Its in great shape and It was a great buy at 2200. But my question is what do you guys think of that stupid trim on the sides of the car? I don't like it personally. What do you people think?
MaverickMan had it on his white 73' mav until recently taking it off. I think it looks good as long as it is clean and straight.
Yet another thing I forgot to mention. It is supposed to have a vinyl top but is missing it as of the moment it's only primer that you see....one reason I want to get it painted or at least to something to it and change that.
Donnie McGee, I am also from E-town, welcome aboard! Maverick5946 is our state rep and Squeal1 is close by in Evansville In. Are you driving your car now? I've only seen a couple Mavs around here, none that were being fixed up just driven. Anyways, maybe we can hook up sometime.
Donnie if you get the chance drop me a e-mail. Maybe I can talk you into joining the MCCI! (if you have not already) Either way, I can give you some info on some of the things we (Ward, squeal and a few others) are planning to do locally this summer.
ADC_72Maverick, Welcome to the board. I too have the primered roof on my '75 4dr. You wrote: Since I'm not currently driving it I don't have to spend any money on insurance and all that. Please make sure you have at the least comprehensive insurance on the car while not driving it (fire, theft, vandilizism). Comp. insurance is cheap. Even though the Maverick/Comets are not on the Top 10 most wanted list, fire and vandilizism are still considerations. Home Owners won't pay for any damages. My lesson came from a Harley that I wasn't riding at the time. Shop burned down at took the bike with it. Comp. insurance is cheap.
