Who would have thought simply taking in the SHO to get a screw removed from the tire would have me driving away in a 2016 Showroom Floor Ford Fiesta ST?! Story time!

Hop in the SHO and start it up, peek over at the radio and see the TPMS for the back right tire is at 10 PSI. Great… Hop out, grab an air gauge and test it, 34 PSI. Okay then, lets check the front right. Ding ding ding, 10 PSI. Not sure why the head unit had it swapped, but at least I know that a tire is indeed low. Fill it up, and see if maybe I can get lucky and spot the problem. I can, and its a nice screw right in the tread, well whats left of the tread, as my tires were getting pretty worn (Kinda sad they only lasted 15k miles, but they were crappy tires and most people I have talked to said they had about the same mileage out of them…) Anyways, take it to Firestone since I didn’t want to have to go to Ford (Mullinax chipped my Fusion rim and would take the blame, saying there machines wouldn’t do that…I’m sure the grease monkey is more than capable though…) Go in and they are booked for the day (it is the Monday after Christmas afterall) so I schedule and appt for the next day. Decided to run over to Ford (Prestige) and see what they can do. I get told it’d be about 30 minutes, nice!

As I go to sit down, I decided I’ll go test drive some cars. Get out, get some fresh air and have some fun. Up until this point all I wanted to do was get the tire fixed and go home. I was NOT test driving for a new car, just to go out and drive. I started with a new Explorer with the EcoBoost. Not bad I must say! Comfy and lots of features. Then moved onto a Flex with the standard 3.5L non-EcoBoost. I liked it, had plenty of get-up-and-go, even for not having the turbos. After talking some with the sales person, I realized even though they were nice cars, I didn’t want to move up to something bigger than my already large boat of a car. Before we went back inside, I got talking to the sales guy about a smaller car, like maybe a Focus ST, but they didn’t have any (small dealership in old peoples town) so we went into the show room. He wanted to have me talk to his boss to see what he might be able to do for me (even though at this point I was still just using up time) , while waiting they guy fixing me tire comes over and says due to policy, they could put a plug in the tire but not hot patch it since the tread was so low (and it really was…probably around if not past the legal limit…) so I said sure, just plug it. I didn’t have 2k to drop on new tires (thanks Ford for have 19″ fat tires that almost no one carries…) by this time the manager came over and we talked a little and I said how maybe I want something smaller than the SHO, but something with a stick to make it  fun car. Then I spot the Fiesta ST. Showroom floor, White Platinum Tri-Coat, Black 17″ Rims, looks sweet! I took a seat in it and fell in love with it. I knew from right then I wanted it. I fit comfortably, hell I felt like I had more room than in the SHO! Seeing a possible sale, my sales guy brought it out of the showroom after moving a nice looking F150 off the showroom as well. I take it for a spin and having some troubles with the clutch (little stiffer and the contact point is much different than that of the T5 in the ‘Stang) but I loved the way it drove, the way it took off, the way it corned, everything! When we got back I sat down for the paper work on it.

It was higher than I wanted to pay, but after really going over the SHO, I realized how all the little things really added up. The flaking clear coat on the hood and front bumper. The PO’s accident damage to the front bumper, the rust bubbles on the roof from the hail damage 8 months prior, the fact that the tires were practically bald, the after market head unit which the frame had a slot meant for a non-nav car’s screen making basically an oval hole into the dash, the partially blue carbon fiber wrapped dash, the not-in-the-best-shape seats, the fact that the paint had swirls and scratches that for the life of me and my DA could not remove, the accident damage from when I was rear ended (which was reported as major damage, and what really made the value of the car go down…)

I ended up talking them down 1.5K and made them throw in the ST rubber mats and walked out the door with one of the best cars I have driven! Now I just need them to replace the silver calipers with the red ones it is supposed to have since the 17″ Ebony wheel upgrade package (which I have) is supposed to come with red calipers…

Got the old inline 6 and T5 pulled out of the 67′ yesterday (Christmas Eve). Never thought I’d be so happy to pull the engine and transmission for what I believe to be the 7th (yes really) time. It was a great engine for what it was, and was to a point fun to see what I could do to add performance and reliability, however I wish that I would have instead spent the money towards putting a 302 in it. I have one I am working on to put in, however if I would have put the “performance” mod money towards it, I’d be much further!

Anyways, with the engine and transmission out, I should be able to roll the Mustang around much easier, and i’ll be able to get in the engine bay to “refresh” it, be able to replace the battery apron since it is rotted out from sulphuric acid from the years of batteries in it, etc. I am almost finished with the lower cowl “repair”, just a small triangle to weld in and grind down the rest of the weld I made. From here i’ll be able to move onto the floor pans. I need to remove the gas tank and fuel line coming from the tank, and then I will be able to use my new Plasma Cutter! The plan is to start on the drivers side, remove the floor pan, fix the frame rail (mainly pound out the metal so that it is square again, coat the inside with Eastwoods Rust Encapsulator, and clean the outside in preparations for the Subframe Connectors (http://www.summitracing.com/parts/CEE-3040). Then I will weld in the new floor pan and move onto the passenger side repeating what I have done for the drivers side. Once both pans are in, I’ll move onto dropping the rear end and getting the subframe connectors welded in since I have to notch out the new floor pans. Once those are in….

So just a thought out loud, now that the engine is out, and soon the tank will be out and rear end, maybe I should go ahead and make a tip over jig for it and do a 360* restoration on it instead of a 180… This will set back any sort of timeline I may have had, but I rather do it right then to rush it. This would also make it easier to install the subframe connectors and any other sort of bottom-of-car modifications or replacements. This would allow me to install a passenger side torque box and replace the driver side if it needs it. Also, when finished with the bottom, I could rotate it 180* and be able to do body work to the roof. Take off the paint, do any metal work, spray a body filler and get it nice and smooth while it is easier to work on then having to lean over it. And while on the bottom, I can get it prepped and apply a good underliner to keep it in pristine condition for years to come!

It’s in need of a complete restoration…