[1965stangman]

I just got my hands on a '65 that came with a 289 4 speed. I may freshen up the old motor just to get it going but what I would really like to do is have the advantages of a modern fuel injected engine. I know 32v "Cobra" engines are hard to come by but have heard that the version that was put in the likes of the Lincoln Mark VIII cars was pretty close. I have driven several and was impressed with how well it pulled such a big car. I wonder if anyone here has any insights into what it would take to shoehorn one of these into a classic 65. Any and all help will be greatly appreciated.

[GTRaptor]

Lots of money and many parts, for one you need the EEC Harness, sensors, actuators, relay boxes, plus a transmission (T45, T3650, T56 or 4R70W AODE).

One interesting "twist" would be to use a CARBED DOHC engine, have seen this, but the engine has to be modified to accept an electronic distributor. It mounts in one of the valvecovers and is driven by one of the cams.. the problem is finding someone good enough to do it.

By no means any of the options would be cheap, except if you get a donor car with all the goodies. A Lincoln is a good option, the only drawback of that engine is the CAMS (good for low end but crap on top) and the heads which are a bit restrictive.

If you do get one, get a complete wiring diagram to assemble it.

Also forgot, you will need to cut the stru towers and modify the front suspension to use coilovers. The DOHC is wide, wider than a big block.

[Cracker289]

Back in 93 I think it was, when the 4.6 was being used in the Mark VII but not yet in the Mustang, I read & saw pictures in Mustang & Fords magazine where a guy got one and put it into an older Mustang. It was too wide to fit between the shock towers, so what he did was cut the shock towers out and upgrade the front suspension to Mustang II type setup. Other than he fabricated the motor mounts and transferred everything else from the Lincoln to keep the electronics. Looked pretty sweet and the owner was very happy with the performance.

[Blade10]

Why not use the 5.0 HO fuel injection setup?

Blade

[5.0 in a 66]

The SOHC motors will fit with shaved shocktowers. For the DOHC motors, the stock suspension gets junked in favor of a MII, Griggs, or SN95/Fatman Fab front suspension. You're looking at 2500 and up just for the suspension. The iron block mod motors are heavy and the light DOHC aluminum engines cost a fortune. Neat, and I'd do it if I were rich, but not the best idea for Joe Schmo IMO. Both don't really make insane HP unless super/tubo/nitrous assisted.

[1965stangman]

Sounds like my pipe dream engine would be more trouble than it's worth in the long run. I might have to look more into what might be the best SOHC engine to use. Finding a donor car is a must so I can get all the wiring and the computer but I really want fuel injection. Any ideas as to where to go with this? I have been a chevy guy all my life and can build a sbc in my sleep but the options for fords are not that familiar to me. And I want to post a BIG THANX for the reply's I have gotten this far.

[Perry1977]

I am about to start on my '65 fastback and I have been thinking about this same thing as well. I am trying to figure out the best way to go, and have just started looking around.

The shock towers in these cars are a pain in the butt and very restrictive, so plan on getting rid of them if you do it. $2,500 seems a little steep for the suspension setup, you can get a ready to weld in crossmember from Heidt's for $400 (http://www.heidts.com/heip32-2.htm), and if you don't care about tubular A-arms you can find a donor car for the majority of the components somewhere. For my '38 coupe I found a trashed '80 Pinto and bought the whole car from the lady for $50. Mustang II and Pinto suspensions are the same, except the Pinto has shorter support arms.

Anyways let me know what you find out, and I will do the same. There was a wrecked Saleen at an auction a couple weeks ago that really helped put this crazy idea in my head.

[Preacher17]

Just a thought...but once you rip out the front end and start doing major modifications the car loses most of its resale value in case you were ever thinking about selling her. Makes more sense money wise to sell the car and get something that is closer to what you want or need.

Mike

[edgars23]

Doing a 4.6 conversion is a very interesting project for some people. I actually cosidered it for a shot whiel on my coupe. I decided against it because I have already rebuilt my entire suspension, so to ripping it all out and wasting all of that money did not sound all the good to me. Here is a copmpany that you may be interested in. They sell just about everythign you need to do the 4.6 conversion and have been featured in Mustangs and Fast Fords (or another stang mag) for doing this exact conversion. You may have heard of the project called M.I.B. or Mustang In Black. These are the people behind that conversion.

http://www.dvsrestorations.com/

If you can get ahold of a 99 wrecked cobra, or evern a 99-04 donor gt, it would make such a project easier than ordering all the seperate parts. This type of conversion is for someone with deep pockets or plenty of time and skill.

With that said, anyone considering this project needs to think long and hard about your future goals for this car. If you are going to want to keep until the day you die, or pass it on to your kids, then go right ahead and do any type of conversion you wish. But if this is something you will not finish, you will be lucky if you can sell this unfinished project as scrap. Not many people are interested in cars that have had extension work done in this matter. So before you or anyone start, make sure you will finish this project. Because if you don't, it will be a back yard ornament for some time.
-Edgar

[Perry1977]

Originally Posted by Preacher17

Just a thought...but once you rip out the front end and start doing major modifications the car loses most of its resale value in case you were ever thinking about selling her. Makes more sense money wise to sell the car and get something that is closer to what you want or need.

Mike

I doubt it. I would even argue that with some cars (T-code 6-cylinders for example), it would significantly increase the resale value. Nobody wants a 6-cylinder fastback. Why would they? Bcause it's "original"? Those guys are dying out.

Now, my car happens to be an "A" code fastback, non-GT. Worth a bit more, but still nothing that special. If you've seen one, you've seen them all. But, if it were a K-code or a GT, there's no way I would consider it.

The idea for this car is to be somewhat of a Shelby clone, but that doesn't mean I am going to rigidly adhere to making it an exact replica. I love the idea of a late model motor for the driveability, reliability, and performance. Modern performance with old-school styling is the ultimate ride in my opinion.

As for what I "want or need", I have wanted a '65 fastback for a looong time now, but thanks for your input.

[Preacher17]

Have you checked e-bay lately!!!! Fastbacks regardless of whether they are a six or an eight are selling for am arm and a leg...in the case of the v8 cars two legs! (and in the case of verts an arm two legs and your first born). Coupes are still resonable priced but FB's and verts are going for 20 to 30G's six cyl cars are easily converted to v8's and still bring nearly as much...not the kind of car I would choose to modify to the point of no return. That A code FB of yours may be a bit more special than you realize. Mine's a C code that came original with a Pony interior...nothing left of it at the moment but it took me forever to find one at a resonable price even though it's a basket case. Anyway take care of her you may find that you never get a chance at another. She's worth keeping.

[G-Force]

I took a 65 Fastback Pony int 289 auto, cut it off in front of the windsheild, installed a new inner structure and core support from CJ's. Then I cut out the new shock towers and installed the Heidts kit to make way for the 03 Terminator engine and T56. It's been a lot of work so far but I love this kind of stuff. After the Factory Five Cobra I hadn't had enough fun so I started this project for my son. Ford made so many of these cars that there will always be many stock cars. I wanted to do somthing different. Also when I got this car it was a rusted wreck. What do you think???

[Preacher17]

Originally Posted by G-Force

I took a 65 Fastback Pony int 289 auto, cut it off in front of the windsheild, installed a new inner structure and core support from CJ's. Then I cut out the new shock towers and installed the Heidts kit to make way for the 03 Terminator engine and T56. It's been a lot of work so far but I love this kind of stuff. After the Factory Five Cobra I hadn't had enough fun so I started this project for my son. Ford made so many of these cars that there will always be many stock cars. I wanted to do somthing different. Also when I got this car it was a rusted wreck. What do you think???

What I think is that you have seriously underestimated the value of your car. Sure Ford made over 500,000 mustangs in 65 BUT they only made 5776 pony fastbacks that year. How many of those were A codes?...I don't know but it wasn't many of them the C code was much more common. Your car restored would have been worth about $54,000 (NADA price guide) what it will be worth modified is anybodies guess. It's your car and I wish you the best with it the project looks like it is off to a good start but it surely would have been worth more had you at the least left it in a restorable condition and limited the mods to bolt on and the like.

[G-Force]

The car could always be restored to original. CJ's still sell the parts. Just cut it off and start over. I know where you are coming from , it was a hard decision to modify the car that much. The car was so rusted and wrecked that no one would give me serious money for it. I was thinking about removing the drip rail. That would be hard to reverse, so I probably won't. Thanks for your thoughts. Update: Mustang is a roller and engine fitting starting.

[Preacher17]

The good thing is the car isn't being lost...I'm redoing a basketcase too gonna drive me to the poor house before it's done anyway good luck with the project and post some pics from time to time it will be interesting to see how it's comming along.