We have a long way to go before our baby is restored. She will never be totally original as my husband refuses to use the original radiator. He says the original radiator just gets too hot and over heats. It simply will not do as we live in the High Desert where temperatures rise into triple digit numbers for a great deal of the summer months.

Right now our girl has a a four-barrel 289 making 220 horsepower Engine and a 1968 C4 3 Speed Automatic Transmission. It does not have the original air cleaner, intake, distributor, fan, shroud, radiator, exhaust or steering wheel. Her interior is all stock but needs to be re upholstered! Her paint is in dire need of some enhancement, new make-up you could say! My husband would like to have her re-painted the original yellow color. I would like her to be a beautiful deep red! We both agree we would like to see a Wild Mustang Mural painted on her.

My husband is thinking about taking the 302 (5.0) Engine and E4OD 4 Speed Automatic Transmission from our 1991 Thunderbird and putting it into our 65' Mustang. As for me, I would really like to go back to as close to the original 65' Mustang as we can, minus the original radiator of coarse, I can meet him 1% of the way :)

I would like to join an antique car club. We live right along Route 66 and there are several Car Shows in our area yearly! We love to go to them, and I would love to enter our car. We have several other vehicles we could restore, given plenty of time and money, a 62' Corvair, 1970 1100D Internationl Pick Up Truck, 1971 1010 International Pick Up Truck, 68' International Travelall, 72' Ford F250 Pick Up Truck, and Just For fun how about a 1945 International Farm All Tractor, 1968 Ford Air Force Tug Tractor or 1968 Crown Passenger Bus camper conversion!

The statistics for our 289 engine:

289/ 4 /220hp

About the C4 Automatic Transmission:

The Ford C4 was a three-speed, medium-duty automatic transmission introduced in the 1964-1986 model year and produced through1986.

It featured an aluminum alloy three-piece case (bell housing, main case, and tail-housing). This was significantly lighter than earlier cast iron Cruise-O-Matic designs. It also used a Simpson planetary gear set.

It was used with Ford's in line six-cylinder engines and small V8 engines usually up to 302 in³ (5.0 L). By comparison, the 351 Windsor and 351 Cleveland small and intermediate-block engines were backed by the medium-duty FMX. A few C4s were built with a big-block bell housing shared with Ford 335 engines, notably the 351M, but these are very rare.

The early model C4 (1964-1969) used a .788-inch 24-spline input shaft, which was upgraded in 1970 to 26-spline and .839-inch. The upgrade also included a matching clutch hub of 26-spline. In 1971, Ford went to a 26/24-spline input shaft, meaning the torque-converter side is 26-spline and the clutch hub is 24-spline.

It is especially notable as the original automatic transmission option in the Ford Mustang.

The C4 was also found with valve bodies requiring a different number of bolts, 8-bolt vs 9-bolt. A 9-bolt valve body can be used on either case, but a nut & bolt must be used on the valve body in the empty hole, dropping the bolt in from the top and using the nut on the bottom/filter side.

Modified C4s remain popular with hot rodders and drag racers due to their simplicity and durability. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_C4_transmission

This is a good transmission but not good on gas mileage! For gas mileage an overdrive transmission or taller gears are recommended by my husband!

I look forward to each time we work on this project together. He is an accomplished mechanic. I like to keep him company, get him a drink or whatever he wants and hand him tools! My job is easy, I hardly ever get my hands dirty. I learn a lot as I watch him, and he never gets tired of answering my questions! We spend quality time together.

I can't wait for the day we can jump in our baby and head out for our first Car Show with her as an entry! It will be a great day, even if we only win in our own hearts!

The Ford Mustang was born in the early 1960's'. Young drivers were tired of driving their parents style of car! They were in need of something new, something youthful, with style and flair. On April 17, 1964 during the New York World's Fair, the Ford Mustang was revealed! It was a hit!

The Mustang's unibody structure was laid over a 108-inch wheelbase and stretched out 181.6 inches from bumper to bumper. While it shared its front double-wishbone/coil spring and leaf spring rear suspension as well as its overall length with that of the Falcon, the proportions of the Mustang were different. Its cockpit was pushed further back on the chassis, resulting in a longer hood and shorter rear deck design, and both its roof and cowl were lower. It's with those proportions — detailed with such iconic touches as the running horse in the grille, the side scallops along the flanks and the taillights divided into three sections — the Mustang became a car people were instantly passionate about. Engine choices started with the utterly lame 170-cubic-inch (2.8-liter) OHV straight six that made just 101 horsepower; then proceeded through a 200-cubic-inch (3.3-liter) OHV straight six rated at a flaccid 116 horsepower; a 260-cubic-inch (4.3-liter) OHV V8 breathing through a two-barrel carburetor and making 164 horsepower; a 210-horsepower two-barrel-equipped 289-cubic-inch (4.7-liter) V8; a four-barrel 289 making 220 horsepower; and, at the top, the famous "K-code" high-compression, solid-lifter, four-barrel 289 pumping out a lusty 271 horsepower. K-code-equipped cars got a special badge on their front fenders indicating that not only did the engine displace 289 cubic inches, but that it was also the "High Performance" version. A three-speed manual transmission was standard with every engine except the 271-horse 289, which was available only with the four-speed manual that was optional on other models. The Cruise-O-Matic three-speed automatic transmission was also offered.

Nothing could stop the 1964 1/2Mustang (especially not its four-wheel drum brakes) and with Ford furiously adding production capacity for the "pony car" at plants around the country.

The three most significant additions to the Mustang for 1965 were the neat 2+2 fastback body, the optional GT equipment and trim package and optional power front disc brakes. Gone forever was the 260 V8 that few buyers were choosing anyhow.

Even Ford was shocked at America's appetite for the Mustang during '65. It sold an astounding 409,260 coupes, 77,079 2+2 fastbacks and 73,112 convertibles that year. That's a total of 559,451 Mustangs for the '65 model year.

http://www.edmunds.com/ford/mustang/history.html