[umairlashari]

Hi People, I'm in dire need of your help. I'm in Pakistan and im getting a scrap condition 1971 Ford mustang grande coupe. i have never restored a car before and i want a ford mustang real bad. I'm posting the pictures of the car. Please look at the car and guide me if its got the potential. Also what sort of expenditures would be there if im restoring it. keeping in mind that i am in Pakistan and there are no parts of mustang available locally. I'm desperatly waiting for replies. Please help me in this.
regards

 

[MustangBradley]

I can understand your desire for a Mustang, especially in Pakistan. Mustangs are probably not very common there.

You can get just about any part you will ever need for your car, but.......the problem is the parts are here in the US. If you can afford shipping to Pakistan, I'd say go for it. If you can't pay the huge shipping bill for all the parts you'll need, then I'd skip the Mustang. It is just not practical to undertake this project.

 

[umairlashari]

really very rare man. but still i want to restore the car. please see the pictures once and give me an idea what sort of effort will be needed?

 

[MustangBradley]

What sort of effort? Depends on what you want the car to be. If you want to just get it on the road, you can focus on just getting the motor running and the brakes working. Is that a nice car to use every day? Probably not.

I have never been to Pakistan, and in the current climate, that is probably not wise for an American. Therefore, I don't know what kind of cars are used there. What is considered a "nice" car there? Is the fact that it is a Mustang so important that major flaws will be overlooked? Or, are the cars of your peers new cars that look showroom fresh? Perception is everything.

Before I can give you an answer you will be satisfied with, I need to know what you want for the car. You have a hurdle that we in America don't face. The longest we have to wait for parts is about 6 days. And the cost to ship from California to New York is not that bad.

What do you want this car to be?

 

[umairlashari]

71' Mustang Grande Coupe - a set on Flickr



If u cant see the pictures on thread they are available here.

 

[umairlashari]

Mostly the cars here are japenese. altough a lot of Bmw's n Mercedes are around but still the most common family cars are Toyota colrolla, Honda Civic.
Bmw 3 series and Mercedes c & e class is also there but they are less.
Honda Accord is Considered a very nice car. But mostly its because of the prices & absence of better manufacturers. a honda civic's most basic trim costs around $ 21000.
Mazda rx-8 2006 model is available for like the same price.

Coming to the Mustang. yes i want to make it for my personal use. like going to work, coming back. I want it to look great. All i care about the engine is to make it fuel efficent. That car right now doesn't have an engine. And in the current condition( i hope you have seen the photos) the guy is selling it for $7500. Yes Mustang thing is really important you see. :s

 

[Pockets]

that actually looks like its in okay condition, not sure how it looks underneath or in the engine bay, but if you can afford to have the parts shipped over there then it would probably be worth fixing up.

 

[MustangBradley]

What is your definition of "fuel efficient"? You'll be lucky to get 16 miles per gallon driving around town with any V8 engine.

Do you have a source for a Ford V8 there in Pakistan? How about a transmission? Here in America, you could find a used engine and transmission for $1200 without too much trouble. Then comes the installation. Can you do this or will you have to hire someone? More money. I don't mean to sound like I am trying to discourage you from this car, but you need to go into it with your eyes open. After all is said and done, you might have $20000 in it and it will still be a 40 year old car.

While the Mustang will be unique, the wiser choice might be to get one of those common Hondas. Be honest with yourself. Can you afford to turn this car into something that will be reliable and efficient?

 

[silver69]

oh and its a 73 by the way. can be done but will cost you big, pass

 

[umairlashari]

No, i dont think that any of ford's v8 will be available locally. The guy has put a diesel engine into it right now. :s
i just dont want to be in a stupid Honda you see. Having a Mustang in your garage and having a Honda, is a lot of difference u see.
While i am so thankful for your very appropriate and logical advice buh i think in some matters logic doesnt matter much. ie Mustang :s
Please tell me, i have a total budget of $14000. The guy is selling it for $7500. would $6500 be enough for the restoration.
And is there any probability if i can use some other engine in it. Not a v8. ?
And is the car in question worth $7500 or is he demanding more.

 

[v8only]

a car like that in the states with no drivetrain, and being a 73 coupe is worth about $500-800 here

$7500 usd is what I'd expect to pay for that car if it was in show worthy condition....and honestly even that price is a couple or three too high.

However, I can't value something that far overseas, so you're going to have to try and comparison shop to see if that price is fair.

Think of the car as a building block....your main concern is going to be rust. Look over the car extremely careful..you want it to be as rust free as possible, because getting sheetmetal replacement parts will be next to impossible over there.

If it's rust free, the rest of the car can be customized...you can take it to an upholstery shop and have them make a custom interior for it, or you can do it yourself, ...make your own carpet, then add some front seats in it from a donor car over there and fabricate your own seat brackets etc.

The drivetrain though is the most difficult part. The original v8 that that car had won't do more than 13 mpg's or so on the streets.

My personal suggestion is a newer v8 then from say a newer fuel injected mustang, if those are available there. If not, well you're gonna have to be creative.

Keep in mind that that car is heavy, so in your quest for fuel mileage, if you stick too small an engine in it, and it's underpowered, it'll hurt your fuel economy too.

you say that the imports are available over there, what about toyota or ford or chevy trucks? A good modern v6 engine from a modern truck with the tranny would get good fuel mileage and would be powerful enough for the body.

 

[umairlashari]

Currently the car is having a Nissan Rd28 v6. Would a Toyota 2jz work with it?
And the car also doesn't have a dashboard so that too i would have to import from USA. The front grills
There are not much Mustangs here. You get to see a Mustang very rarely. Like i never saw a Mustang in Lahore. This one too is in Karachi.

 

[MustangBradley]

Look carefully at what had to be done to get that diesel in the Mustang. Did they do modifications that have rendered the car unsafe?

Who says you need an original dash board? Can you fabricate one there? Can you build one that makes the car YOURS in the sense that only YOU have a car like that? If you are willing to use a Toyota motor in it, that changes everything.

As pointed out above, this is not a light car, and it will probably never be fuel efficient.

My point is, if you are willing to use what you have available to you in Pakistan, I say go for it. Offer him $6500. If he takes it, great, if not........ After all, it is a car without an engine, and without a dashboard, why is it costing so much? $6500 is more than fair!

 

[silver69]

offer him 4500 and dont be anxious when he says hell no, he will think about it and come back at you with another amount but dont just agree to 7500, explain to him why 7500 is unreasonable( it may not be for where you are but what do you have to lose) you will spend a lot to own this car and if you are not trying to make it original then all bets are off. you can do alot of things on your own and save some money up for a weahterstrip kit and door panels and such in one big purchase. walk before you run. great advice given here, look to see how much rust there is and be honest. are the streets paved there?
you can paint it yourself too. if you just gotta have this car be shrewd and point out all that is missing/wrong to get the cost to a reasonable point. good luck and remember, hot rodding really means"make this mine and make it work"

 

[lindenbruce]

Do you have some underhood pics so that we may further access the situation for you? I may have a complete motor, a 315c 2 barrel, and a good FMX 3 speed trans for you for a real good price. Shipping will be your only problem. Bruce

 

[lindenbruce]

Okay, I did a quick check on shipping to Karachi, ballpark of 500 pounds, about seven days through UPS was right around $1251.00 dollars U.S. Just throwing it out there. Bruce

 

[Chuck M]

Here's my thoughts. It looks like rust is not a problem in your part of the world, but if I'm wrong about that, you want to get a very good look at the bottom of that car. If it's rusty, you should probably walk away. That car has a large engine compartment so fitting a non stock drive train should be limited only by your abilities. Using a vintage car as daily transportation is cool, but vintage translates to "old" so things are constantly going wrong. Be prepared to fix things regularly. The value of the vehicle here in the states is irrelevant to the value of the vehicle there in Pakistan. Be objective. Don't let your desire override your sense. Now a question for you. Is it possible to ship a car into Pakistan from out of the country and how much do you think it would cost? The reason I ask is there are many of these cars here in the states which can be purchased for much less money than the price of the one you are looking at. Would it pay to use your budget to pay for shipping rather than restoration?

 

[umairlashari]

Guys i am posting some new pictures of the condition of the car before the current owner. please see once
71' Mustang Grande Coupe - a set on Flickr

@ Mustang Bradley The current engine is just making the car move on roads and thats it. No vigor.
its a Toyota Supra's V6 dont u think it would be enough.

@silver69 The thing that he wants to cash is the unavailability of Mustangs here. still i will offer him 4500. lets see all i fear is that he might not sell it to anyone else.

@bruce i will try uploading engine bay pics soon. and im really grateful for your help but right now i am looking for possible alternatives for the engine. if i'm not able to then i will contact you.

@ chuck copied man. thankyou.
no i cant import Mustang from there. because according to the rules here you can just import cars that are maximum 5 years old not more than that.

 

[MustangBradley]

Vigor costs money my friend! Have you considered using the current engine until you can afford to get the engine you want? Sometimes doing something a step at a time is the best way.

 

[v8only]

mad max car, I love it. Looks like all the sheet metal is in pretty good shape....may want to have a drivetrain shipped from here, along with some tail lights, headlights, and other stuff all on the same pallet.

Looks to be a former vinyl top car, judging by the trim holes on the dr side, and maybe some bondo work on the dr side roof corner...possible to cover up old vinyl top rust.

Car looks solid, but it will be a money pit. Since they're essentially unheard of in your part of the world, the seller unfortunately has the upper hand on you on having a unique item...still cash talks