1969 Ranchero GT

Oh noo ... please don't weld it to the block, that's how to make a cracked block. Find a cheapo floor shifter -- Autozone. Or it might be possible to make an adapter that would bolt on with the pan bolts.

 

Thanks for the warning bush. I have been looking for a ratchet shifter to put on the floor but it seems that no one makes one that works well with the FMX

 

Vasili ... go to google and search for Mr. Gasket floor shifter conversion. It'll work with any transmission (I think). No ratchet, but it does lock in Park position. Otherwise it depends on the internal shift detents, inside the trans.

 

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/...a-ratchet-shifter-work-with-fmx-trans.275979/
Try this

 

Welding is done on blocks on all the time. Same with cylinder heads. Just use nickel rod, stick, or wire with cast iron.
On the other hand, drilling and tapping holes for a bracket is a much better solution in this case.

 

I've been driving her around and finally got exhaust from her. Re-torqued the rocker arms and it runs better than ever. I've been looking into the Mr. Gasket floor shifter conversion kit. Has anyone had any experience with that product?

 

Yes, I've had them on two cars, both out of necessity (broken parts). Bought one of them from Autozone and then the later from ebay. It appears to me that the crank on an FMX works differently than on c4/c6? Might be some issue with that, but as I understand it you only have to take off the pan to fix it. Note, it's extremely rough, more nearly a rat-rod sort of shifter.

 

Thanks burn. I was reading about how the crank action was different. Is there anyway you could send me the link to the article where you found how to fix it. I would love to go with a ratchet shifter 5.0 chero, however I haven't been able to find any that work with an fmx without alot of fabrication

 

Why is the front tire pressure so low? The glove box tells me 24 up front and 32 in the rear. This sound right to you guys?

 

Old tires were made differently new ones have higher pressure ratings best to stop at a tire store and ask. Not a place that does tires also like wally world. Tires have improved over the years. Then alas we get them from China now one step forward and turn tail and run back.
But the ratings on glove box are now to low. P metric tires need more air.
Old tires 32 max new at 35 and up.
Look at sidewall. Best guess with out looking 35 rear 30 to 32 front.

 

Thanks steve. The tires are rated at 35 max. I think I'll go with 32 up front and 35 in the rear. Feel free to chime in with tire pressures that you guys use. I have Road Hugger Radial GT tires

 

Manufacture-recommended tire pressures are often specified to provide a specific handling characteristic to the vehicle. Volumes were written about the infamous Corvair (google Ralph Nader and Corvair and you'll see what I mean). A portion of the root cause of the unsafe handling of the corvair was oversteer, which was due to improper tire inflation. That being said, the previous poster makes a valid point in that modern tires are much better than what was available back in 1969. If you intend to carry anything heavy in the back end, I suggest you maintain the difference in pressures recommended by Ford, just to be safe. Example: If you're running 35 in the back, run 27 in the front.

If you're interested in a little background, read on.

The tire's lateral stiffness is proportional to it's inflation pressure. The lower the pressure, the lower the stiffness of the tire. The way a car responds when you turn the wheel can be described by 3 different terms. Oversteer, understeer, and neutral handling. The easiest way to relate what's happening is to imagine you are in a huge parking lot moving at 20 mph. You turn the wheel and begin going in a circle. If you speed up and the diameter of that circle doesn't change, your car handles "neutrally". If the diameter decreases, the car is said to "oversteer" (rear tires allow more lateral movement than the front). If the diameter increases, the car is said to understeer (front tires allow more lateral movement than rear).

Another way to think of oversteer is when you're turning and the back end swings around and you "spin out"...

When I studied vehicle dynamics, the following was generally true: Non-sporty American cars tend to understeer. The Germans like their cars to oversteer just a bit. This is particularly true for the rear engine models, such as Porsche. They turn faster but require more skill as a driver. Japaneese cars tend to handle more neutrally. That was a long time ago and a lot has changed..especially with computer controlled suspension, ABS, traction control, etc...

The reason American cars tend to oversteer is because it's safer AND because of lawsuits. If you swerve to miss watever is in your way and the car simply doesn't turn as much as you wanted it to, it's probably a better situation than if the back end of the car passes the front end and sends you spinning out of control.

Additionally, brakes are also (typically) set up to create an understeer situation. If properly proportioned, the fronts will lock before the rear brakes. If you've ever pushed the limits of a car with improper braking bias, you probably experienced a pretty exciting ride.

 

Thank you Basstrix for the response! I did decide to run 35 in the rear, I will change the fronts because I think I had it at 30. I really appreciate you taking the time to give such a detailed response! Thank you so much

 

So I've put over 400 miles on the car. Converted to electronic ignition with pertronix. Retightened rocker arms and front dress. Getting about 12 miles per gallon but that was with alot of flooring it from tuning the carburetor and quite a period of running rich

 

Not bad if you keep sticking your foot in the carb that's for sure

 

Looking at getting a cowl scoop for the car to assist in the badassness. However I also need weatherstripping, headliner install, and paint. I would love to be able to drive in the rain............but a cowl scoop is just sooooooo bad lol

 

When I drive at night I currently have to hold my phone to shine a light. All of the dash lights work but intermittently, sometimes they work and sometimes they don't. Sometimes it seems they only work when the steering wheel is at a certain position and that position will change while driving. My dad was saying it could be my light switch. what do you guys think?

 

Could very well be the swich but most likly a bad groand.

 

Or just that plug under the dash (that feeds a bunch of wires to the cluster). Work that a few times to improve the connection.