The braking system is one of the most critical areas of vehicle performance regardless of the level of restoration. The car must have a properly operating brake system for safety and performance. The standard braking systems that came with early Mustangs were able to stop the cars, if only just adequately by today’s standards. Few […]

The quality of the bodywork is a telltale sign of the quality of the restoration. Regardless of what level of restoration you undertake, you want to achieve professional results. The body needs to resemble the original bodywork, and be free of rust, dents, and damage for years of faithful service. Beyond components such as moldings […]

In Chapter 1, I provided some advice on how to better define the type of restoration project you intend to pursue and what type of vehicle might be best suited for it. I also gave some tips on where to look for a vehicle and things to avoid. And I covered some resources you can […]

The process of restoring a car is much like most other things in life. You need to know where you are going and how to get there. Therefore you need to make a plan and stick to it as much as possible, to avoid extra expense and a less-than-satisfying result. Still, it’s almost never possible […]

Power is nothing without control. We improved the performance of our engine, transmission, suspension, and brakes, so the steering got our attention as well. Had we not wanted to retain the factory look of the car, we likely would have replaced the original steering system with a rack-and-pinion conversion. While somewhat expensive, the improvement in […]

If maximum authenticity is the desired goal, the solution is to simply reuse the parts that were on the car or replace them. Direct-replacement components or kits that are readily available for most first-generation Mustang models. In our case, we wanted to do a bit better because we had upgraded the engine to achieve higher […]

Installing new seat covers is a lot harder than you might think, especially if you want to do it right. There are many little procedures required to get the new covers to fit properly and look right. A professional often produces a better result, but I show some of the main aspects to consider if […]

Inner door panels are relatively inexpensive and easy to replace. There are, of course, differences in quality among manufacturers, but the better known brands tend to be roughly equivalent and very close to the OEM parts in appearance. If your car’s original door panels are in good condition with minimal to no damage, you should […]

The panels that comprise the interior of most first-generation Mustangs can almost always be repaired or refurbished to at least an acceptable level. While there may be issues, such as pitted chrome, that can’t be completely eliminated in all cases, enough can often be done to make the result pleasing to all but perhaps the […]