English Ford Build .......

[Old Coyote]

We are in the process of a total ground up rebuild of a 1948 English Ford Thames 1/4 ct panel van ........... thought you guys might want to see some "underneath the skin" reference pictures

The car led a long life (25+ years) on the dragstrip and we found out it was in really bad shape when we started this project ......... all those years of hard launches had done a job on the frame ......... it was stress cracking in several places and was warping badly .......... this is what we started with

when we got it disassembled, we saw all the problems

Edited June 13, 2010 by Old Coyote

[Old Coyote]

So, the first thing we had to do was get a new chassis built for the car ......... we got Fatman Fabrications in Charlotte, NC to build us a new 90" chassis ....... Mustang II (Pinto) rack, four link rear suspension, narrowed Ford 9" rear, discs up front & drums in the rear

[Old Coyote]

then we had to get after all that rotten (acid dipped) sheetmetal ...........

[David G.]

Thanks for the photos, they're cool. I don't have a particular use for them at the moment, but images like this tend to get filed away in my mental archive for later use. They usually end up in the "I seem to recall..." file.

With the new frame and other patching and re-fab, it doesn't look like there is much of the original vehicle left.

[Old Coyote]

now we're into the subsystem fabrication phase ........... wheelie bars, chute pack, tilt nose mechanism, steering, dashboard .......... plus the aluminum rear doors had to be stripped by hand, they are so thin that a media blaster would have destroyed them

I'll continue to post pictures as we move along

Edited June 13, 2010 by Old Coyote

[Old Coyote]

... the last two weeks have seen more progress in our attempt to see completion by the end of September

... the transmission crossmember has been modified to house and support the brake booster and master cylinder

... strengthening gussets were fabricated and the unit has been installed into the chassis

... floor and firewall modifications have been made ... pedal arm assembly is in place ... just waiting of the brake pedal itself to arrive

... the Hurst V-Matic shifter and console have been positioned ....... the console has been rounded to match the curve of the transmission tunnel

[Old Coyote]

... the battery box has been fabricated on a newly made chassis crossmember ....... it will hold either an Optima or a standard battery ....... will also be the mounting location for the "disappearing" license plate

... the custom 4-row aluminum radiator with built-in transmission cooler has been positioned ......

... space limitations will require the use of a "pusher" fan in front of the radiator

... a shroud system fabricated from sheet aluminum has been attached to the front of the radiator ...... it not only will seal off the radiator but will force incoming air through the radiator for maximum cooling

..... we are now starting to work on pulleys, alternator bracket, fuel and brake lines, transmission and oil pan dipsticks, proportioning valves, electric fuel pump, etc., etc.

[puddingwrestler]

Groovy! Those chassis pics will come in handy. Not that I am building a Thames, but I'm just looking for chassis pics in general to get a bit of an idea of how they are engineered.

[Old Coyote]

.... into the final stages of mockup ..........

... brake line routes on the firewall ......... the center and right paths are to the brake proportioning adjustment knob under the left corner of the dashboard ....... will be able to adjust the bias from inside the car ........ the left path will go to the remote brake reservoir

... we have changed our minds about the placement of the fuel filter ........ it will be mounted at the rear in front of the fuel pump (see mark on frame rail) ...... that way the filter will the first item in the flow from the fuel cell ...... just a little better when the pump receives filtered fuel

... the wheelie bars have been tack welded to the rear axle housing ..... the measurement will put the upper bar 1" below the roll pan and the casters 8" above the ground

... the exhaust system is being put in place ...... 2-1/2" system ..... other than bolting the collectors to the headers, the entire system will be welded in place ....... no clamps ......... even the hangers will be welded to the pipes ........ slash chrome tips will exit just in front of the rear wheel flares

... the fuel pressure regulator and gauge have been mounted to the right frame ........ and the fuel line has been run to the intake ......... braided transmission cooler lines will attach to the frame ..... and then hard lines will take the transmission fluid the rest of the way to the attachments in the radiator

... Lokar transmission tube, fuel lines, and brake lines can be seen from this angle ........ the rear end has been moved back 3/4" by adjustments on the four link ..... will allow for proper tire clearance with the body

... still waiting on a few parts ......... body will go back on this Wednesday for its final mockup along with the repositioning of the body mounts, fuel cell positioning and line (and vent) attachments ........... hopefully all mockup will be completed this week .......... then starts the complete chassis tear down in preparation for paint ........ we hope to have the chassis totally painted, re-assembled, and with totally functioning engine, tranny, and rear end by this time next month ......... that will leave us over a month to finish the body mods, prime, paint, and upholster

[Old Coyote]

......... after being dormant for over four years and having gone through a rebuild by yours truely .......... the little 327 growled to life this morning under the watchful eye of Josh Richardson .......... and I can't begin to tell you how great it sounded !!!!!!! With the 270H cam from Comp Cams, it has a sweet lope at idle but it barks loudly at the slightest touch of the throttle ............. and the little beast can put out a lot sweet noise (cam, timing gear drive, and mufflers) under power ............. it will definitely draw some serious attention at the touch of the pedal

The greatest thing was no problems or issues .......... no leaks, no rattles, no nothing .......... after a full prep to get oil back into the system and make sure the lifters were pumped up, it came to life very easily .......... a little adjusting of the carb and twisting of the distributor and it was beautifully alive

The firing setup was all jerry-rigged ............ all wiring is not in place yet .......... we had the coil sitting on the right frame rail along with the temperature gauge ........ he ran at 3000 rpm for 30 minutes to seat the cam (per Comp's break-in instructions and the temp never rose above 180 degrees ............ had to trigger the fan manually and it immediately brought the temp down to 170 degrees

There's a little bit of finish work to be done to the chassis, but for the most part it's complete ......... the body was moved into the primary position for final welding and cleanup ............ door panels (rear & side) .... curved inner roof panel, window surrounds, final dashboard work, etc, etc, ............ Josh expects to have his Aqua Blue paint on in a couple of weeks .............. really getting excited now !!!

Edited September 21, 2010 by Old Coyote

[Modellpularn]

Wow, you're doing a great job on this one! Those injector stacks look awesome.... and that new chassis was quite a difference from the old.... Way cool!