Looking for 67 sedan or 'vert - what should I look for?

[LithiumCobalt]

There's overspray EVERYWHERE, not just in the engine compartment . That lack of care and attention to detail may cause me pause and wonder what was the level of paint prep and possibly what was covered over. Again, for that price, it may still be worth a look-see. A color change can make or break the value. If it's really a sloppy job and you have to pay to have it done right, it's gonna cost you lots in preparation to "undo", then "redo". Hopefully, it's close by so you won't spend too much time/$ going to see it.

Yeah, I know it looks a little sloppy. It absolutely gives reservations. But, as you said, at $8,000 it may still merit a personal inspection to see if it can be saved. Argh, I didn't really want a big project like this...

[Highlander64]

Perfect! All it needs is one of everything. With 15 or 20 thousand bucks more into it, you can have a top quality driver in just a few short years!

[LithiumCobalt]

Perfect! All it needs is one of everything. With 15 or 20 thousand bucks more into it, you can have a top quality driver in just a few short years!

Yeah, no kidding, right? Don't forget to add 50% because it's always more than what you estimate

[LithiumCobalt]

Latest update:

I don't think the convertible in NH is going to work out. Communication has been lacking from the owner. Probably better this way. That thing looked like a basketcase.

However, I have been in contact with one of the club members that lives in CA. Story goes that he is moving and has many other collector cars and unfortunately cannot take all of them because his new facility will not hold them all. He already has a convertible '67 as well so is willing to let his original '67 sedan go. The car is florentine gold, black leather interior with black vinyl top. The factory vinyl top is intact, not cracked, not dried out. According to him, the interior is as close to perfect as you can get - he even replaced the dash pad back in the 70's due to the popular speaker grill crack and it is supposedly still intact today. He claims the car does need a paint job and chrome to be perfect but it is completely rust free always being a CA car. He has complete service records dating back to the late 1960s on the car as he is the second owner. The amount of maintenance done over the years is almost overwhelming. The car has a little over 130k on it right now and has always been garaged and sparingly driven since the early 80s. I have not yet gotten detailed pictures - he backed the car out to go get new tires put on and was going to bring it home and clean it up and send me the glamour shots when the power steering pump sprung a leak. So, he had to put the car away until his mobile mechanic could come over next Tuesday. He doesn't want to send pictures until the car is properly cleaned. Anyways, he had the timing chain and both gears replaced back in 1981 when the car had around 127k on it. My question is, would the replacement gear in 1981 have been one of the nylon ones or would it have been all metal at that point? The owner cannot remember and I wasn't sure if the problems with the nylon gears would have been known as early as 1981. Invoice attached. I wish labor rates were that cheap today. Anyone know the answer?

You can also get a glimpse of part of his recordkeeping on the maintenance before computers. There's much more, but this is what was handy for him to send at the moment. It looks like the car had the hell driven out of it before it was even 10 years old, but his asking price is $7,000. Sounds like a good deal to me, but I guess I will have to see pictures to be sure and if it looks like what he has been telling me is true, take a short vacation to CA to see it. He did send a very old teaser photo - attached also. He asked if I would drive the car back to IN and I said probably not. He said he was confident enough in it that I would have no trouble. But @ 10MPG and having to stop at least once overnight, seems like it would make more sense to pay another $100 and just have it shipped.

Here is an excerpt of one of the emails that I received from the owner with some of the highlights of other recent service items:

"2006
Rebuild right rear power window motor
service the radio (clean controls, etc)
quartz the clock
replace rear axle bearing and seal
replace the seals in the master cylinder (the cylinder itself was replaced before)
brake system previously flushed and converted to silicon brake fluid after replacing all rubber parts
replace water pump, thermostat, and anti-freeze The radiator was done some years ago.

2005
receipt for fuel sender 0-ring (so I must have repaired the sending unit--it works now).
replaced both factory type resontators with cross over pipe (and I plan to replace the mufflers also) The long pipes from the
manifolds back to the resonators were replaced in the '70s because the original double walled pipes had a tendency to
curl up inside and block the exhaust. This would stop the car from running.
Group 27F Battery 96 months. All my batteries are kept on automatic tenders so they last a long time.

1992
replace drag link*

1991
rear brake wheel cylinder rebuild

1990
valve job, hardened seats, resurface heads and manifolds, new lifters, fuel hoses, points, condenser, oil sender,
thermostat; removed heater core and unstuck temperature blend "door" (actually more like shutters) and replaced deteriorated
and sticky foam with new foam--5 hours labor noted on bill!

1986
replace steering drag link*

1985
replace power steering pump** and oil seal to timing cover

More work was done previously but I'll have to go to the older file to dig up the receipts. The transmission has been done (probably twice), motor mounts, and more front end work was done including a steering box rebuild (which they all need) and new rubber box to frame mounts.

This morning when I backed the car out to get the tires put on I discovered that the power steering pump may have a stuck valve. Fluid was squirting out the filler. I'll get that fixed before I put the car up for sale as well as any other significant problems that I encounter. The engine is smooth and quiet, the choke works properly, etc. I know the last time I drove it (6 months ago) the trans shifted properly and the steering seemed fine. I drove it on the freeway at 70. The only problem was the the radial tires are beginning to separate which is not surprising since I installed them in the '80s. (Later: I just called the rebuilder I use for steering stuff. The pump is going to have to come off and be taken in to see what happened. My mechanic will do this in Tuesday and I'll take it to be rebuilt.)

Everything works in the car including all 6 power windows, the power antenna, lights, heater, and automatic temperature control. The weather stripping is good, the doors and other parts fit and close properly. The air does not get cold which is not surprising since I haven't serviced it in years. I'm sure that adding freon with make it cold. However, if it were my car and I planned to keep it I would go a bit farther. I'm using a retired AC guy who sold his shop but the new owner didn't want to buy his parts inventory. Then the retired guy (who is about 70) decided he needed a bit more income so he comes to the customer's house with his "mobile service" and goes through the system. He charges $30 per hour (!) plus his mark up on parts. Freon is expensive but the system could easily be converted to R134 if desired. I don't particularly care because 20+ years ago when retailers wanted to get rid of R12 they were selling them for $1 per 12 ounce can. I bought 8 cases! I had this guy go through and repair the AC in 7 vintage cars and used most of the rest of my supply. It cost me about $4,000 which is an average of $571 per car--less than half what most shops charge. This included evacuating the system, pressure checking it with nitrogen, replacing the hoses with new barrier hoses on GM cars (Fords don't usually need this because they used coated hoses), replacing the compressor shaft seal, rebuilding the compressor as needed, new receiver drier if needed. Some needed expansion valves, etc. Anyway, that's the way to fix an air conditioning system. If you buy the car and would like to have this done I can arrange it.

*The drag link was replaced with a rebuilt unit from Rare Parts in Stockton, CA. They are pretty much the only game in town and they sell to auto parts outlets, probably even Ron Baker. After 6 years (but only about 1,500 miles) the part was sloppy once again. I had bought 3 of them since they fit both my '64 and '67 Continentals. I later learned that the rebuilt parts were all poor quality "but we've got a new supplier and they're OK now." I don't know if the center link on the sedan is one that will wear out with hardly any use or not. They now cost about $150 and their tech guy said that if I returned the part to them and it was defective they're replace it regardless of age. I think he meant the one remaining unit I have that's unopened, however.

**The power steering pump was slightly noisy and I decided to have it replaced. To be sure I'd get a good pump I went to the L-M dealer and they offered me 2 choices: A new one for $450 or a Ford rebuild for $150. (This was in 1985!) I chose the cheaper one since it was "factory rebuilt"--supposedly. My mechanic put it on and when he went to start the car the pump was binding and making noise. He removed it and found the exchanged pump was practically seized and very worn inside. Since it mounts on the front of the crankshaft like a harmonic balancer It could have broken my crank! I was pretty angry and took it back to the dealer, demanding to speak to the parts manager. He told me, "Well don't blame me. You know it's impossible to get parts for these so the rebuilder just cleaner them up, paints them, and installs new seals. That's all we can do." I was furious but fortunately he still had my core and I got it back along with a full refund. Of course I was still out the mechanic's labor. Anyway, the mechanic took the old pump apart, cleaned it, and polished the interior surfaces. That stopped the slight whining noise!"

[Highlander64]

Gold is considered a shade of brown, so you can join the Brown Car Appreciation Society on Facebook.

[LC67Vert]

If you buy it you will have to remove the ugly body side moulding.

[LithiumCobalt]

If you buy it you will have to remove the ugly body side moulding.

I know it. No idea why anyone thought the extra molding was necessary.

[LithiumCobalt]

Gold is considered a shade of brown, so you can join the Brown Car Appreciation Society on Facebook.

Yeah, it probably wont stay brown for very long if it does end up in my garage. Not much worse than geezer gold.

[Highlander64]

Gold is considered a shade of brown, so you can join the Brown Car Appreciation Society on Facebook.

Yeah, it probably wont stay brown for very long if it does end up in my garage. Not much worse that geezer gold.

It'll fit right in when you vacation in Del Boca Vista.

[16InA68]

I sure do miss those "glory days" when your car needed service every thousand miles.

Great looking car though, even in "geezer gold." Good luck with your search.

[LithiumCobalt]

Hard to say what will happen with the paint. It's good to know that points are not deducted by the club as long as a factory color from the same year is used. In one sense, I am an originality nazi and couldn't imagine changing colors. On the other hand, there's several colors that I like much better than this gold color. (I shudder to think about what a properly done color change is going to cost - I am massaging my wallet - at least I live in the midwest where prices are a bit more reasonable). I guess I haven't seen a florentine gold car in show condition. Maybe I would like it seeing it up close and in person. I have the factory paint chips from PPG and it almost looks like it has a green tinge to it, which would be a little more tolerable than straight up GOLD. My color preferences would be the following:

Pitcairn blue
Spanish moss green
Huntington gray
Silvermist
Royal maroon

Not sure whether I would want gray or silver. It looks more classic, but I'd want some color. I definitely don't want black as it seems like that is what most everyone else uses.

So, anyways, owner took the power steering pump in (apparently it had been spewing fluid out of the filler for some reason). The rebuilder said there was nothing wrong with the pump other than needing new seals. Does that sound right? How would fluid force its way through the filler unless there was a blockage? I am confident he will get it done right. He has with almost everything else. This week he is on vacation so I will have to wait until at least next week for the pump to be reinstalled, tires installed and car cleaned up so that I can get the full photo spread. It's been a slow process so far. He did send some teaser shots of the interior, although the flash washed out the colors somewhat. It's the best he could do with the car parked inside and limited daylight. Will need the trim rings on the steering wheel as well as the crack on the steering wheel repaired. Everything else seems to be in good shape and in order. I'll have to see more of the rear package shelf to be sure on that piece.

I know everyone here is more interested in convertibles. I am too, but I am going to wait until I can buy one already done or nearly done.

[ekm330]

I think you need to see Florentine Gold in person. The black vinyl top will set it off quite nicely. It is a very handsome combination, IMO,A

[Highlander64]

Hard to say what will happen with the paint. It's good to know that points are not deducted by the club as long as a factory color from the same year is used. In one sense, I am an originality nazi and couldn't imagine changing colors. On the other hand, there's several colors that I like much better than this gold color. (I shudder to think about what a properly done color change is going to cost - I am massaging my wallet - at least I live in the midwest where prices are a bit more reasonable). I guess I haven't seen a florentine gold car in show condition. Maybe I would like it seeing it up close and in person. I have the factory paint chips from PPG and it almost looks like it has a green tinge to it, which would be a little more tolerable than straight up GOLD. My color preferences would be the following:

Spanish moss green

Dark green metallic? Good call.

[LithiumCobalt]

I think you need to see Florentine Gold in person. The black vinyl top will set it off quite nicely. It is a very handsome combination, IMO,A

You are absolutely right. I will go out and see it and if I bring it home, let it be for a few months while I decide what to do. It stays bloody cold around here long enough that I could mull over it for a couple months, take it in to have the work done, the body shop could dick around with it and not get it done forever and it probably still wont be nice enough weather to drive it. You don't have to worry, though, Kent. Even if I paint mine blue too, yours will always be more pure with that "K" shown under the paint code on the door placard! It will get painted regardless, I just have to decide whether it will be the same color or another desirable one. I will say, though, that even though I am a bean counter, I am also someone that does it right the first time so if I do have the color changed, I will be done correctly and thoroughly. Although my wallet may be much lighter, it will be worth it to me.

[LithiumCobalt]

Hard to say what will happen with the paint. It's good to know that points are not deducted by the club as long as a factory color from the same year is used. In one sense, I am an originality nazi and couldn't imagine changing colors. On the other hand, there's several colors that I like much better than this gold color. (I shudder to think about what a properly done color change is going to cost - I am massaging my wallet - at least I live in the midwest where prices are a bit more reasonable). I guess I haven't seen a florentine gold car in show condition. Maybe I would like it seeing it up close and in person. I have the factory paint chips from PPG and it almost looks like it has a green tinge to it, which would be a little more tolerable than straight up GOLD. My color preferences would be the following:

Spanish moss green

Dark green metallic? Good call.

I do like the spanish moss. The convertible I almost bought was that color and it was purty. Wifey likes the blue better and I do too really, but the spanish moss comes in a very close second.