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Hello from Missouri

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felix1978 View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote felix1978 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: Hello from Missouri
    Posted: 04-August-2014 at 11:53AM
Hello, I just discovered this site recently and I am so glad to have found a place that has information about cars like mine. I have a 1978 Thunderbird, and it took me a while before I realized just how much it shared with the earlier cars and how much knowledge there actually was out there for performance and restoration on these 70s Fords. My car still wears its original Russet Metallic paint, ordered as part of the Sports Décor Package that included the Chamois vinyl top and color matched Polycast wheels, belt line trim, trunk straps and interior. The interior is stock down to the factory AM/FM stereo in the dash and the 36 year old speakers in the doors. Underhood it has the 351M mated to a FMX transmission and the standard 9-Inch rear axle.

My car has been in my family since 1979 when my grandfather traded in his ’74 Nova for it at the local Buick and Pontiac dealer. My grandfather used the T-Bird as his daily driver for many years before he retired and it was garaged for several years. Ever since I was a child I had always loved the car and had often played in it and insisted that my grandfather take it out and drive it. I can remember being in the passenger seat and staring at that large dash when he finally relented and took me for a ride. After a family vehicle emergency prompted the car’s returning to the ranks of the daily drivers I began to drive the car I had loved since my childhood to high school and when I graduated my grandfather gave me the car as a gift.

Since then the T-Bird has been my daily driver on a regular basis, only sitting when it needed repair work or I was unemployed and could not afford to drive it. Now I am employed again, the Bird has been brought back to service and I have been driving it every day for the last three months. But the car is now 36 years old and is nearing 200 thousand miles and the little things are starting to wear out. The motor starts and runs like a champ but as it has never been out of the car and never received any major work it is beginning to show its age and wear as well with some oil leaks and a slight knocking at startup. The body is in pretty good shape for as old as it is, there is very little rust for having been a daily driver for so long and the original paint still shines and looks good, but the vinyl top is peeling badly and the trim is all faded. An accident last year left the driver’s side a little crunched up and missing some trim but the car still looks pretty good in my eyes.

Sorry for all of my long rambling, I just never expected to find a place where my car would be something people know about and don’t look at like it is some oddball from a forgotten era. I will try to post some pictures of it below.

Scott


In back is my '66 Impala


Vehicles in background are not mine






Don't mind the mess in the background, was dismantling an old mattress for disposal and recycling the springs






Edited by Regul8r - 17-August-2014 at 5:19PM
1978 Thunderbird
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antlerfiend View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote antlerfiend Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 05-August-2014 at 3:31AM
Awesome car and story. Welcome to our site. I think we are planning a show in Springfield Missouri next year.
Alex
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote legend onirot Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 05-August-2014 at 3:51AM
x2... great story.  and the car looks great for her age.  
---------------------
malcolm
1973 gran torino sport (formal)... "Stacy Lynn"
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote unlovedford Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 05-August-2014 at 4:36AM
Looks great and it has the rarely seen smog equipment still on it! Love the trunk strap option.
Joe
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote n2fordwagons Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 05-August-2014 at 5:11AM
Welcome!  Great story!  Love those Thunderbirds.  Love the color combo on yours.  Looks great, considering the mileage and use that it's seen.
Jeff

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Ranchero Fan Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 05-August-2014 at 5:31AM
Thumbs UpGreat story. Looks like you've taken good care of her. I forgot about that décor option. Certainly didn't see many around here in Chic. with that, back in the day. I'm kind of partial to Tbirds as my 1st. car was a black '63 Landau, then later when I thought I was livin' large, I bought a Black '75. Oh yeah, Welcome.
Brian   1973 Ford Ranchero Big Block. ''THE OTHER WOMAN''
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote GTW Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 05-August-2014 at 6:02AM
Welcome to the board. Your car has a great story and is very unique. 
Griffin
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote kychevyguy Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 05-August-2014 at 6:30AM
Welcome from KY. Great story, I have owned a few older Tbirds in my time and they always have a soft spot for me. Great sentimental story on your ride, cherish her and continue to take care of her and she will take care of you in return. I love that color combo and decor group. Welcome.
JT, USAF Ret./Architect
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote 75ranchero460 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 05-August-2014 at 6:39AM
Welcome!
Gary

Ranchero=Fun

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote felix1978 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 05-August-2014 at 7:05AM
Thank you for the warm welcome everyone, it's nice to finally find somewhere that people understand and share my love of these cars. She's in pretty good shape but the pictures hide a lot of flaws, not having a garage to keep her in has been the cause of most of these, and naturally all the normal wear items are either replaced if they are needed for driving, or in need of replacement and I haven't found them or don't know how to replace them yet.

Funny enough I still have the factory air cleaner housing, it's just off at the moment because happened across the open element one with a good filter for really cheap and figured I would use that for the summer months since the heat tube and air inlet hose from the factory housing are long gone and replacements need to be found. I would love to chuck all the smog equipment in a box and stick it in storage but I have yet to figure out how to fully remove most of it and I have heard that removing some of it requires fairly involved tuning of the carburetor and distributor. I will probably remove it all whenever I get around to building a new engine for it, the one that is in it runs so well that I don't want to take it out of service to build it up so I plan on finding another 351M/400 block and building a 400 to swap in its place.

I actually forgot to mention it and I don't have a picture of it at the moment but the car still has its factory Uniroyal HR78-15 spare tire in the trunk.

I will probably be bugging you all soon enough with questions on how to fix the many things wrong with her, like the fact the dome and courtesy lights don't work or how to clean out the HVAC box, but I will definitely start up a project thread and actually fill in a little more of the story, I trimmed it down here. I'll also add photos of the factory paperwork that I still have, as well as a photo of the buildsheet for the car, I can't believe I forgot to mention that I had all of that, everything right down to the payment booklet for the loan my grandfather took to purchase her.

I hope you're all as interested as I am to see what comes next,
Scott
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote GTW Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 05-August-2014 at 7:32AM
I look forward to your project thread. I'd make sure there isn't any rust underneath that vinyl roof (We know that 72-76 cars get tons of rust under theirs, if equipped). You can also order a Marti Report from Marti Auto Works if you want some more stats on your car, depending on what report you get (actual date the car was built, production numbers, etc.). I've never seen that trunk strap option before. It's always nice to have a car's original paperwork. Once again, welcome to GTS.org. 
Griffin
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote californiajohnny Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 05-August-2014 at 12:07PM
welcome, cool story! yeah i've never seen those trunk straps on a t-bird like that before,  almost 200,000 on that era of car is damn good! it shouldn't take much to desmog it. and a vintage impala too! Thumbs Up
JOHN
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Big Bird Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 05-August-2014 at 1:39PM
Yeah!!! Another thunderbird!!!! Welcome!!!
Love the trunk straps, and the polycast wheels too!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote felix1978 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 14-August-2014 at 2:24PM
First off I can't believe I misspelled Missouri in the thread title, I'm so embarrassed. Embarrassed

Secondly I started a project thread over in the projects section of the board, the first post is a basic recap of my introduction here and I added another post with all the documentation I have on the car a little further down, along with current projects and goals.

http://forum.grantorinosport.org/felixs-1978-thunderbird_topic12364.html

Scott
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote CarBuff603 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17-August-2014 at 3:47PM
Your story with this car is amazing, and its a amazing looking car too, i often go to car shows and I see all these muscle cars that everyone is crowded over, then ill see the 70's-80's cadillacs, lincolns, tbirds, and mercurys ignored, i believe that any classic car deserves the same treatment as any other. Sometime in my future i plan to Own a junkyard, and in that junkyard, i will buy any type of car, and have a limit as to what i will and will not crush, i would not allow a car that is 25 years or older to be crushed, and every single one will be sold as a project car to whoever is looking to start a nice project, and all the unwanted projects, ill keep for myself :),
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote CarBuff603 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17-August-2014 at 3:55PM
There has not been one single car i have yet to dislike, and thats because i appreciate any car (with the exception of modern day hyundais,hondas,some toyotas, and some nissans). People think of them as machines, while to me they are part of my family, and they are what my whole life and family's lives are all about :) . I hope to share with you my cars throughout my future, Unfortunately my cars might not be suitable for this page since they are chevys, but i hope you guys will appreciate them as well as many other cars like i do!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Robbdtme Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17-August-2014 at 4:09PM
Amazing and welcome to the group here. You found the best of the best right here. Keep the updates coming.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Regul8r Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17-August-2014 at 5:20PM
Originally posted by felix1978 felix1978 wrote:

First off I can't believe I misspelled Missouri in the thread title, I'm so embarrassed. Embarrassed
Scott
 
Fixed it for you
 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote antlerfiend Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17-August-2014 at 11:26PM
Originally posted by CarBuff603 CarBuff603 wrote:

There has not been one single car i have yet to dislike, and thats because i appreciate any car (with the exception of modern day hyundais,hondas,some toyotas, and some nissans). People think of them as machines, while to me they are part of my family, and they are what my whole life and family's lives are all about :) . I hope to share with you my cars throughout my future, Unfortunately my cars might not be suitable for this page since they are chevys, but i hope you guys will appreciate them as well as many other cars like i do!
We accept any car here on this sight. You can post pics and stories of them in the Basement. I have posted a few there.
Alex
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Eliteman76 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20-August-2014 at 11:45AM
Welcome to the site. Nice story and car.
Andrew:GTS.ORG admin, '72 Q code 5 speed Restomod
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote unlovedford Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 21-August-2014 at 2:43AM
Let me know if you need a couple of those tan Polycast center caps. I have 2 in my basement I'll never use.
Joe
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote kychevyguy Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 21-August-2014 at 6:04AM
He is missing the front two...
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote felix1978 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 21-August-2014 at 12:38PM
Thank you everyone, I quite like her, though the past week or so has been trying, what with brake problems and such.

I would very much like the center caps, I have no idea where the ones for the front of my car went, I don't even remember if it ever had them in as long as I have had it, gotta find some trim rings too, I have three of the four, but two are in poor shape, one is bashed from a curb hit in snow, the other has very loose and mangled clips on the back from an idiot mechanic in the past, not sure where the other one got to.

Thanks,
Scott
1978 Thunderbird
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote unlovedford Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 22-August-2014 at 4:05AM




Here's some of the Polycast centers I have.
Joe
1972 Mom's Squire Wagon
1972 Torino Wagon
1976 Torino       
1968 Cougar XR7-First batch
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1989 BroncoII/Jeeps/Titanimous
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Torinogts73c Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 22-August-2014 at 11:08AM

Great story have there car staying in the family! Brings back some memories of a car my Grandfather had that I thought was very cool back in the day. Like your T-Bird had a 78 like that in Chamois in the early 80's.  Smile

Gary 73 Gran Torino Sport 351CJ,17 Mustang Ecoboost,15 Jeep Grand Cherokee LTD, Ford Ranger parts hauler


"Never complain Never explain" Henry Ford
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote felix1978 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 25-August-2014 at 8:08PM
Sorry it took me so long to reply, been busy here with work and the heat wave we've been having. Those wheel centers look to be in excellent condition, and a couple do look to match the odd color of my factory wheels. The emblems on them don't match, but since the red ones don't have any defining logos or lettering I could easily work around that by putting the two with the Thunderbird centers on one side and the two with the red on the other, unless of course there is a way to change those center emblems, but it's not that big of a deal, would look better than not having them at all.

Now I just gotta see if I can find some trim rings, mine are all messed up and hiding in the trunk. Cry

Scott
1978 Thunderbird
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