Starting Over...and goodbye

(04/15/05) Due to a lotta unforeseen (and undesired) circumstances...like another heart attack, quadruple bypass surgery and being declared disabled, I hadn't done anything with Coyote for almost 2 years. So it basically sat covered up under a couple of tarps. This pic was taken after I got it running again and moved into place in front of the garage.

When I first started working on it, the battery was totally flat and wouldn't take a charge. So I bought a new one and slapped it in. No go. Seems the cable from the Ford solenoid to the starter was corroded at the starter end. So I fixed that up and then it would turn over. When it finally started, it was spewing gas out of the left side of the Edelbrock carb. I had a Barry Grant Street Demon carb sitting on a shelf if my garage so I slapped it on there. It took a little work to get it running, but then I found that it was leaking from the rear float bowl. Hmmm.

It's kinda hard to see in this pic, but there's a fuel pressure regulator on the fuel line. (You can click the picture for a larger version.) This fixed the bowl leaking problem and allowed me to take it to the car wash and clean 2 years worth of dirt and grime from the engine compartment and the exterior. Then I put the Edelbrock carb back on after I'd taken it apart and cleaned the insides out. It wasn't really too dirty, but the needle valves were sticking slightly.

When I'd taken the tarps off to get started on things, I'd noticed that there were a few cracks in the paint on the top. After hitting them with some pressurized soapy water... well, those cracks turned in to big peels.

It wasn't the touch up primer I'd sprayed on it...and it wasn't the primer the previous owner had applied. It was the dark blue paint that had been applied over the original cream color paint, which had some surface rust and the blue obviously hadn't been applied very well. So I had a patchy-looking top for a few days.

Another area of deterioration was the seat covers that the previous owner had put on. They didn't seem to be very durable at all. But then I didn't like 'em, either.

(05/02/05) When the sun finally showed its face, I got out the DA sander and some 80 grit discs and started in on the old multi-layered paint. I could only work for about 15 or 20 minutes at a time...and then I'd run outta breath. I'd take a break and then go back and sand some more.

Eventually I got all the cracked and peeling paint off, a lot of it down to bare metal or at least to the original primer.

Then I sprayed it with tan Zero-Rust primer. I got tired of looking at gray, so I decided I'd do something different. Looks a lot like neutral primer/sealer...but it's Zero-Rust.

Here it sits after hitting it with the ZR on the top and a few bare metal spots.

(05/06/05) I got a pair of cheapo slip-on seat covers to replace the deteriorating pair. They ain't the Ritz, but they'll do until I decide what to do about the interior as a whole. I'd like to find a new (er) interior from an import of some sort and install the whole thing: back seat, front buckets and door panels. I'll have to go looking at the local wrecking yards to see what's available...and might fit.

I spent some time tying up a whole bundle of wires that had become an even worse mess than I started with. After an hour or so and a handful of zip ties, it almost looks presentable. I've gotta get that speedometer working, tho.

In September of 2005, I sold Coyote to a friend in Iowa. I didn't want to sell it, but circumstances made it necessary. I suppose it was unhappy at being sold. The first day after I delivered it, my friend hit a deer and messed up the front end. Didn't do the deer much good. either.

And in July of 2008, it was destroyed by a tornado that came very close to taking my friend and his wife, too. I thought I had a picture of the Nova with its roof caved in, but can't find it. It's in that mess somewhere.

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