the Moreno Coupe

I've been waiting at least 7 years for this project.

It seems Mario had tested me with a series of other small tasks,

to see if I was capable.

His Dad had lost interest,

and so did the rest of the family.

Lucky him!

The coupe was a mix of 60's-80's trends.

It had some of the baddest ladder bars known to man.

So thick and improperly side mounted,

the rear couldn't be lowered.

The mighty gap!

Like most old cars,

the smooth body hid a dirty mess,

new parts with no drive miles,

rusty from neglect.

The slow dismantling process,

uncovered the truth behind traditional hot rod engineering.

These clamps were made 

for the emergency brake.

The crossmember was a work of art.

More custom holey chit.

The builder kept the same drilled bolt theme throughout the e-brake line.

A last look at the custom crossmember.

Now where to start.

The rear end was to be remounted with 36 radius rods.

The 50's chevy Posi needed to be stripped of random brackets.

The welds were very traditional.

This is what 3 hours of torching and grinding get you.

I hope he wants to reuse this!

The front had other issues.

The engine was too far forward,

so the radiator was bumped out of alignment.

With the engine out,

the grille placed the radiator to the hood.

Over an inch off!

Space was tight even with this custom shorty water pump and pulley.

Possibly another reason this 302 ran hot.

What an honor to cut out a cherry firewall!

Don't worry most of it will go back.

The engine was mocked up,

positioned with space for an electric fan.

Almost 5" from before.

A gearhead friend Jason suggested a mechanical fan.

Saving almost 2.5"!

That's a big difference when modifying the firewall.

Before - the rear spark plug hidden...

After - much better.

That's ford in a ford problems.

Custom motor mounts were made from choice scrap.

Gussets made to fit.

Way better than modifying a universal kit.

Clean and strong.

I'll grind and finish weld when the engine is out.

With the engine front mounted,

the tranny mount/crossmember was up.

A lot of open space to work with,

cause there was no x-member left in the center!

More parts made from premium grade scrap.

This was 1/4" all beef.

Now it'll be strong.

Next step is mounting the rear end,

or maybe the firewall.

Next time...

TP