It would be easy to mistake this 1970 Ford Mustang Mach I as a serious organ donor that got left for dead decades ago, and while it has been largely disassembled, some great news is that’s not the case here. The story goes that the seller bought this car about five years ago as a Barn Find from Georgia, then brought it up to Michigan to restore, where it’s currently residing in the city of Howell. However, the reality has set in that he’s not going to have the time to finish, so a decision has been made to find this pony a new stable.
While it might be natural to write this off as a shell at first glance, the seller provides several photos showing quite a few of the removed components along with boxes of other parts, all of which have been stored inside a climate-controlled facility. He also mentions that the factory paint of Calypso Coral is one of the more desirable colors, even though I’m spotting some blue on the detached passenger side fender, so perhaps this particular panel came from another Mustang.
Something I’ve never tackled is attempting to fill in one of those aftermarket cut-in sunroofs that were popular during the seventies, and unfortunately, unless the future owner decides to leave it in place, that’s going to be part of the project. One section that’s already been patched is the driver’s side front floorboard, which puzzles the seller as the rest of the lower metal is said to look really good, as do the frame rails.
Where this one truly shines is in the performance department, as the car was born an R-Code, indicating it left the factory with a 428-4V Cobra Jet Ram Air V8 under the hood. The original block is no longer present, but the seller believes the engine that comes with the sale is also a 428 CJ, although we don’t get any information as to its mechanical state or if it’s still turning. According to the Marti Report, a C-6 Select-Shift automatic transmission was also present when the Mustang departed from Metuchen Assembly in Edison, New Jersey.
Generally, one of my pet peeves is preferring to take apart what I’m going to put back together, but fortunately, many of the parts here appear to be fairly well organized. Hopefully, whoever ends up with this one will be able to use a lot of what’s there, and I’m envisioning a fine 1970 Mach I somewhere in the not-too-distant future. If you’re ready to get started, the Mustang can be spotted here on eBay, where the current bid of $10,600 still hasn’t met the reserve. Another possibility is to own it today, as the seller has also included a buy-it-now option at $29,000. Considering the sum of the parts, is this R-Code decent project material?
As the seller mentions, Calypso Coral is a desirable color. But considering the fact that the car needs a total repaint, it doesn’t make much difference what color it is now.
Classic basket case. Seller should take the current bid of $10,000. I’m all in at $1,500.
They all know how to take em apart !
Putting them back together is the hard part.
Just cringe when I read about all these taken apart cars – will there ever be enough folks to put humpty dumpty back together again ?
This must be 1970 Mach 1 Week.
I love the front wheels.
At least they are real parts pictures. This car is worth rebuilding.
We had a boneyard in town that had one of these picked completely apart. The only thing left of any interest was this weird little square box that had a little gutter over top of it over where the solenoid was mounted. I was too stupid to realize I was looking at the factory rev limiter so walked on by.
DOH!
I bagged and tagged everything on that car it came from Georgia
On a piece like this I think it would help the sale if there were a couple before pictures to see what was taken apart.
Looks like a reasonable project but it is just that, another project.