Installing
Floor Supports
What do floor jacks, jack stands, and rust all have in common? They're
all arch enemies of the 1965-1970 Mustang floor support. Step-by-step
process for removing, preparing, and installing front floor supports
on the 1965 to 1970 Mustang chassis.... |
Air-Fuel
Meter Shootout
Air-fuel meters are fast becoming an ubiquitous item amongst serious
enthusiasts. However, with so many meters on the market how does one
begin to select the best one for their needs? We've compared the most
popular ones in this article... |
Air
Fuel for the Old School
 Don't
let software and information overload prevent you from buying an Air
Fuel meter. FM breaks down even the most stubborn "old school"
Ford man by using only "real-time" (no data logging) air
fuel data to dial in a carb. |
Double
Vision
With the cost of wide-band oxygen sensors
dropping in recent years, more and more enthusiasts are utilizing
wide-band devices for tuning their cars. We got a hold of FAST's new
dual-sensor kit for install. |
I'm
No Dummy.
New cars are so sophisticated that the manufacturers have assumed
we just want a dummy light to tell us if something is wrong. Here
is a device that will get you all the information you want and then
some... |
Vital
Signs - Gauge Cluster Upgrade
for Vintage Mustangs.
 If
you are growing tired of all those cluttered gauges on your dash board,
try installing a JME Enterprises Autometer Gauge cluster for your
vintage Mustang... |
Don't
Be Baffled
...by un-holey valve covers
Buy a pair of valve covers without provision for breathers and you'll
have to pop your own holes. Whether they are stamped steel or fabricated
aluminum, it's a great opportunity to go "grommet-less."...
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Powder
Coating at Home
Realize the satisfaction of the perfect durable finish for your underhood
metal parts with a home powder coating unit. It's easy and best of
all you'll never see a fingerprint smudge again. If you've never heard
of powder.... |
Auxiliary
Lighting
 Here's
the proper way to power up auxiliary lighting. Follow along as we
install a continuous duty relay and a convenient underdash toggle
to safely apply full battery voltage... |
Full
Throttle
How to convert your mechanical throttle linkage and accelerator pedal
to a cable actuated style. We're using Lokar's Hi-Tech cable assembly
with their new vintage Mustang pedal kit..... |
Take
the Guesswork Out of Carburetor Tuning
FordMuscle uses the Innovate Motosports LM-1 Digital Wideband Air/Fuel
Ratio Meter to tune our carbureted 1972 Mercury Montego. We prove
that tuner technology isn't just for the EFI and import crowd. Bog,
flat spot, hesitation, stumble, and surge.... |
Make
Your Bed
We review and install a unique style of bedliner, the BedRug by Wise
Industries. This soft bedliner offers rugged, no-slip, durability
yet a soft comfortable surface. We're installing it in our new 2006
Ford F150 truck..... |
Check
Your Gauges
Head to head product editorial has been nonexistent in traditional
media for decades. Why? Well, we'll let you take a wild guess. Still
stumped? It has to do with the editorial staff keeping the corporate
suits happy. As for FordMuscle, we've got another product quality
evaluation this month... |
Interior
Motives - Part I Project MX
The first of a two-part series demonstrating how FordMuscle revitalizes
the interior of Project MX, our 1972 Mercury Montego. With DIY motivation,
local services, and restoration parts suppliers, we get the job done....
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WheelWorks
 Just
want some steel wheels widened to accommodate more tire? Shouldn't
cost that much, right? Last time we checked a 15x8 steel wheel with
a custom offset will run you about $102 a pop. Want it powder coated?
Well, that'll run you an additional $55. FordMuscle reader Tom Zuloaga
shows you how... |
Interior
Motives Part 2: Versatile, No Deck Stereo System
Forget trying to figure out how to fit a typical car stereo head unit
into your project car. With the use of a stereo mini-plug, a decent
amp, and a couple 6x9's you can create a discrete stereo system that
uses an MP3 player or an Ipod .... |
Modernizing
Door Panels Part 1
Update your early Ford door panels with late-model panels, power windows,
and door locks. In a two-part series, we'll demonstrate how we added
a modern appeal to a vintage Ford's door panels. When we say "real-world"
we're talking about using junkyard parts....
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Super
Tuning
 Use
Data Logging to make power.
Data is defined as a collection of facts from which conclusions may
be drawn. When speaking of engines, a tuning decision (e.g. should
I jet up or down?) must be based on a variety of good data (such as
the air-fuel ratio is 14:1 at 5000 rpm)... |
Fitting
Flare Up
If you want to separate yourself and your car from the amateurs you
have to stop using cheap rubber hose and clamps to plumb the vital
fluids to your motor. That stuff works and gets you by, but it is
not classy and has major limitations in durability and more importantly,
safety. |
Strut
your Stuff
How to replace your hood prop-rod.
It is amazing how sometimes an auto  manufacturer
can neglect the seemingly smallest of details, which if otherwise
corrected or updated, could change the perception of the entire vehicle.
The hood prop-rod on 80's and up Mustangs is one such example.
|
Gauge
Rage
Instrument Cluster  face-lift
for 1999-2003 Mustangs
One thing Italian and German sports cars have always had over
their American counterparts is a true racing inspired cockpit. Form
hugging seats, ergonomic steering wheel and shifter, and of course
those distinct competition-like gauge clusters... |
Dealing
with Rust
Rust can cause an automotive enthusiast to  reach
for the "For Sale" sign or prevent a buyer from capitalizing on a
good opportunity. Don't let the smallest sign of rust lead you to
think an entire car is rotting from the center outward. You can save
your classic or use the rust as a bargaining tool if you know how
to eliminate the intimidating... |
Make
Your Own
Custom Throttle Linkage
 During
a recent dyno test of a new carburator we were shocked to see our
power numbers down about 50%. The first thing that came to the mind
of our dyno operator was that perhaps the carburetor throttle blades
were not opening completely... |
Engine Compartment
Detailing
The engine compartment in our '67 Mustang  suffered
from 25 years of crud buildup, plus at least a half-dozen half-assed
attempts at repainting it. Look closely at the firewall, the blobs
of seam sealer from the factory did not help the appearance either.
Getting all the ruberized paint off was a huge undertaking. Overall
it took roughly 30 hours... |
Paint
Budget?
There is nothing more discouraging than  driving
something that looks hideous. No matter how you justify the car to
your friends and family, - " it runs good, it handles great,
it's reliable, it doesn't burn a drop of oil" - they still think
you drive a piece of...
|
Light 'em Up! Late
Model Head Lamp replacement.
 We
all know that anytime you make your car look better, it just feels
like you've gained fifty horsepower. Although we've made it a point
at Fordmuscle to focus our content on performance, rather than restoration
or "looks", every now and then we come...
|
Sudden Impact!
Ford engineers scrambled on short warning  to
meet a federally mandated bumper standard in 1971. Here's how we improved
their compromised design more than 30 years later. On April 9, 1971,
the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration issued its first
regulation on passenger car bumpers. |
Make your own Engine
Torque Strap
 If
you've ever had an engine mount break upon hard acceleration, you
may be familiar with the damage it can do. The fan can hit the shroud,
and the air cleaner can come up and smack the hood.
|
Bad
Vibes: Vibration Diagnosis Guide
So you're driving along and suddenly you feel a  vibration
coming through the steering wheel. Or perhaps you're feeling it coming
through the floorboards and under your seat. Maybe you don't really
feel it all, but you hear it. The only thing worse than driving a
car with a vibration, is trying to find where the bad vibes are coming...
|
Shocktower modification
for big-block header and spark plug clearance.
 Yes
we hacked up a 1969 Mach 1. If this were a purist
magazine we'd expect a flood of hate mail from the "trailer it,
don't drive it" crowd. However this is FORDMUSCLE, where we believe
Fords are meant to be driven fast, no matter what it takes, including
modifying... |
Interior Renovation:
Upgrading the environment in our '88 LX 5.0L
Ford has used some downright ugly interior  colors
throughout the years. Not only were the colors unappealing, but matched
up with funky cloth fabrics and uncomfortable seats, made for an uninspiring
driving environment. The '80's and early '90's Mustang 5.0's were
perhaps some of the worst victims of Fords ugly sticks...
|
What is Horsepower?
Everywhere you turn, people and  manufacturers
are making horsepower claims for their cars or products. Unfortunately,
most people do not really understand the theory and history behind
the horsepower rating system. In this short article, we explain a
little of the history, and use analogies to help the reader... |
Drop ET's with a
Short Accesory Belt
Short Belts are not just for 5.0 Mustangs. Any  engine
which uses the crank to drive multiple accesories, can benefit from
temporarily by-passing the parasitic components. Keep in mind, this
is for the track only, and bypassing the water pump or alternator
can lead to problems. 
|
5.0L Surging Idle
Fix
Every owner of a 5.0L EEC-IV controlled engine  has
probably experienced, or one day will, the dreaded "idle surge".
Ford terms it the rolling idle, but either way its annoying as hell
to watch the idle stick at 1500, then drop to 700, then float to 1000
and so on. Or perhaps you've just got strange and annoying EEC gremlins
and you're at wits end. Well we've... |
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