ABANDONED Mustang Cobra Rescued After 27 Years - Will It ROAD TRIP & DRAG RACE?

i just spent more in parts than i did for the entire car now if you saw the last video which you have it's gonna be right up here we got this car to run we moved it but we can't stop that's what all these brake parts here for so stick around to the end see if this thing can actually hit the road for the first time in 27 years that's right this 1977 mustang cobra 2 with a 302 4 speed has been sitting for nearly three decades i recently woke this sleeping beauty up from its nap and got it mobile after all this time there's coolant what is that i want to take this car on a road trip it just so happens that my good buddy austin over at ratty muscle cars invited me to come hang out with him at jake's drag strip for his 318 fest drag racing event you would think as a resident mopar guy could show up with something with a 318 in it but instead i would love to see if our mustang 2 here can lay down some solid times yeah right no seriously when this car was new it could lay down a mid 17 second quarter mile i suppose some folks could get out and run faster than that but my goal here is to road trip to the track make or even break the cobra's original time from 1977 road trip it back home and prove that you can have a blast drag racing safely without blowing a ton of money on expensive parts now here's the problem though we have no brakes no trunk floor a bad gas tank and fuel system and the exhaust is a serious bottleneck for performance now i used air quotes right there the most liked comment for naming the cobra ended up being pharah after the late farrah fawcett's iconic role in charlie's angels where she advertised the cobra ii for the world also don't forget that we will be announcing the three winners for the giveaway on the cobras original parts now let's focus on getting pharah ready for the road i think it'll make 150 mile round trip do some drag racing in the middle and make it back home safely stick around to the end of the video and find out [Music] that's right folks i spent a bunch of money at the o'reilly got a ton of brand new parts we've got rotors we've got calipers we've got brake drums we've got brake shoes we got brake fluid we've got brake cleaner we get all the hoses and bearings and all the seals that we're going to need to make all this stuff work here i mean we've got everything to get this car back on the road and i want to see if we can make this thing drive by the end of the video that is my main goal i know that we can move but it doesn't move very well and it doesn't stop so we're going to fix that today by first starting off getting these wheels off these are some nice and mighty 13 inch wheels with the 185 70 13 on it so they're really dinky really nice like a go-kart tire but they look pretty good so we'll just probably leave these back on the car when the time comes but we need to jack this thing up get it on jack stands and start tearing stuff apart now you're probably thinking dylan if you're crazy it's a mustang too they're worthless wrong incorrect this thing is awesome in fact i paid 500 bucks for it and then i spent 600 bucks in brake parts so it's got to be worth something now with all these new parts on it and not to mention all the stuff that i spent in the last video to get this thing to run you know distributor control module coil which you can win by the way stick around at the end of the video if you want to see if you want it by buying a t-shirt that was nasty i want to put this thing in overdrive oh my goodness that is tiny look at that that's not breaks it's a frisbee i'm only seeing one bolt and if that's all that holds this caliper on wow our biggest task will be getting this brake hose off and making sure that it doesn't come flying off the handle i think we got it that's always scary any point you'd like to deactivate yourself that's great we're gonna let you win that one now was i perfect yes what we got here grease nasty i would never reuse a cotter pin [Music] nice now on top of the rotor we do have new bearings included with that is the new outer bearing and then on the inside we've got the new inner bearing [Music] and the seal so all that'll fit in there nicely and keep everything all together [Music] [Music] so [Music] you [Music] [Music] that's some pretty good stoppage right there all that's left is to tackle the other side but everything went smoothly we got new rotors new bearings seals calipers and pads all turns freely by hand [Music] so [Music] i wonder how much of a fight these springs are going to put up i left my tool somewhere for these springs i got no idea where i put them so we got to do the old-fashioned way of trying it off and open for the bed man these things are so small perfect the tearing apart drum breaks it's pretty fun except when you have to put it all back together which is why i always buy hardware you see here i've got all the hardware that you will need to put this stuff back together just in case i break something [Music] well all these shiny parts at least made me feel better about myself because this is not going that fun i won't lie okay that was not fun at all apologize that i skipped it all but you gotta understand this axle flange is the same size as a bigger car with bigger brakes on it except the brakes aren't these are like tiny baby little nine inch brakes so every time i'm trying to reach in here to get something this stupid thing is in my way we got it back together so if you want to see what happened just play all the stuff for me taking it apart in reverse and i almost forgot our new drums to complement everything and finish it [Music] off [Music] only thing left for the brake system is this master cylinder i actually have a brand new remand right in this box so hopefully if this works we'll have everything we need to make the brake system work again hello beautiful dirty smells terrible too it does not hardly want to budge but i got it broke loose we're slowly working our way to getting that filter off brand new filter i'll be honest with you i would really love to sit down with the ford engineer who decided he had to pull a cross brace and the passenger side engine mount just to remove the starter because that was not fun and after i figured out after the third one which one was right it finally cranks up better now i went through all the research the different flywheel counts the depths whatever so yeah i learned it all in the span of like a few days but anyway we're ready to back this thing out see how it drives [Music] [Music] so [Music] so [Music] [Applause] [Music] it rides like a wagon that's second hey it's still going these tires are flat spotted bad third we got third gear it sounds terrible back there i think it's okay you slow down a little bit wow this thing is it's rough rider but it's riding that's for sure let's get so fortunate and stop could be better definitely could be better that's the that's what we wanted good job mustang the shifter is whoa yeah i think we about lost the tire up front or something this whole thing is steering is gone yeah we've lost the tire [Music] well we almost had it let's just stop here before we beat the whole thing well didn't last long maybe it'll air up enough just to get back home but i doubt it fingers crossed this has been on the problem tire the whole time wait it's out of gear that would have been bad we're parked on a hill as soon as i'm putting it in it's just coming right back out yeah i can feel it hear that for the sidewall now i blew the sidewall out oops well i hate to do it but i'm just going to limp at home just go real slow with it those wheels are aluminum and i don't want to hurt them but the only thing i know to do there's a bus full of people hello everybody don't mind me folks just another day dealing with flat tires and junky mustangs let's get comfortable kind of nice though it's really relaxing drive you would just love to go for a cruise and just take in the scenery all the beautiful sights and sounds [Music] real pleasant time of year to be driving well i wasn't planning on getting tired just soon but it looks like it's gonna be sooner rather than later at this point there's my neighbor hello neighbor how's it going good to see you [Music] what are we doing what are we doing you know what's funny though i actually looked at that tire before we left i said that's kind of low i might want to just fill it up or look at it or something just you know what yeah let's just do it anyway stay on the wheel thank you let's only go the steering wheel we go to the right a little defeated but we drove it and that's all that matters right now and the wheel didn't fall off so that's good we're back well everything was going great right up until it didn't this tire here just decided that it didn't want to work anymore and the sidewall blew out of it and you can see that i limped at home and thankfully it didn't ruin the bead on that wheel that's what i was really afraid of because those are aluminum but it was just able to not actually d beat itself and just roll on my tire the whole way home so we made it back next order of businesses to well i'd say replace a tire [Music] now that we have good brakes for some reason i feel like i like this car enough to put a gas tank in it and that's what i bought so we got the car turned around we're going to jack up the rear end here and once we get this old gas tank out we're going to sort out what to do with the floor pan and gas tank at the same time all right there's only a single line for the supply i'm just going to chop it back here because we need to replace all the rubber hose anyway so so so [Music] hey [Music] all right we have the entire floor cut out everything's cleaned up and the structural integrity of the rest of the floor it still looks good even from the underside the only spot is that we're going to leave that alone because i need this level surface right now because we're going to lay this piece of diamond plate across it now normally i would rather patch it with good sheet metal or something new but they don't make patch panels for these cars for the trunk floor so that's kind of the inconvenience of working on a mustang too but it's okay we're gonna patch it and then until i can actually find something to lay in there and weld in properly this diamond plate will work [Music] i obviously got a piece that's too big so that i can cut it and trim it to fit [Music] look at there everything's trimmed up the way we like it got the cut out there for the sending unit wiring so it looks pretty good [Music] this was on the inside of our old gas tank look at how nasty that is over here we've got a brand new one i went got a new rollover vent for it it comes all the new gaskets got a new seal for it ascending units late of course so we're going to put the tank in anyway without it and then we'll just wait for that to come in but i've got my new filler neck or new filler neck in and it's ready to go back in the car our sending unit finally came in we got everything in place got the new tank in only scratch it up just a little bit but everything's looking good tank straps lined up so we're good to go next we'll move up to the front put in our fuel pump [Music] [Applause] [Music] so before we go racing i'm trying to figure out some way to get just a little bit more power out of this wimpy little 302 so i decided to just kind of unbolt the exhaust and see what happened right now we are just down pipes and one catalytic converter that's it sounds wimpy still i think that catalytic converter stopped up all right now we've got this pile of scrap metal out from under the car let's see how this 302 really wants to sound stopped up [Music] [Applause] so here's what came off of the car this is the factory catalytic converter the first muffler and then the second muffler and both sides of the engine were going to this so it was a single exhaust the whole way through this thing was stifled imagine trying to breathe through a straw all day every day and it's like that big like one of those coffee stirs you know imagine trying to do that that's basically what this is so we're gonna fix that because guess how many of these you need zero [Applause] [Music] wow [Music] all right so here's where we are that's that down pipe the catalytic converter was right here i cut it off and then i flipped this flange over and you saw me flatten it against there so now it's got like a flat pipe there with a gasket so that's the old exhaust pipe ran into this clamp that i got at o'reilly for like three or four dollars and i found this glass pack in a truck out in the field and it just so happens that it was already turned out like this so what i did was cut it right at the muffler clamp those two together and then where it was way super long out here i just trimmed it to fit you can see that did do a good job it's nice and crooked but it works bought another hanger for like another three or four dollars and it works pretty well it's it's fairly solid i mean the sucker's not going anywhere so it works out i mean i use the original pipe i got some new bolts and i got a clamp for four dollars and a hanger for four dollars so total for this brand new exhaust that worked great i've got like eight bucks in it sounds pretty good and it looks way cooler i mean who doesn't like a side exit exhaust all the major mechanical problems somewhat fixed i felt the mustang passed all my requirements to hit the open road so we loaded it up and got ready the next morning morning people off to see the races in the mustang too now the plan here is to take this thing drive it 150 mile round trip drag races in the middle and see if it'll survive if we don't blow up i'll consider that a win something's already fell over our new exhaust sounds pretty good the car is running actually pretty nicely believe it or not so hopefully i don't jinx myself on saying that this car is better than it is we're on our way to the gas station first to make sure that my gas tank doesn't leak before we make it to the track it doesn't i put five gallons in it but it hasn't been all the way to the top yet so that could be the make or breaking deal right there this right here will be the longest that i've driven it since this car's been running i've probably been maybe four miles around the block here all right this is the first time entering onto a four-lane highway in this car trimming first nobody coming here we go [Music] hey pops like crazy on the d cell we held 9.6 gallons and it didn't leak and it started back we're back on the road it says i'm doing 70 but i don't think that's actually accurate these tires are so small and i think the speedometer is ringing way too fast let me check my phone and see how fast we're really going yeah we're doing 60. this car is doing 60 though the next stop is to the o'reilly because i need some lug nuts this thing stripped a couple whenever i put the brakes back on so i've got a couple wheels just with three and i don't want to go that far especially the race [Music] temperature gauge doesn't show anything it's charging the fuel gauge is absolutely through the roof it held i guess we're probably at like 13 14 gallons at this point [Music] [Music] all right lug nuts are on we're safe now the next course of action get something to eat [Music] so i've decided to make the conscious decision to not pop the hood as long as i don't know anything bad's going on nothing bad is going on i'm really curious to see what kind of times this thing can actually run in the eighth mile i'm not gonna get my hopes up over some miraculous crazy time but if we can at least run make a few passes and bring this car back home in one piece i'll consider anything like that a win in my vote been riding about 45 minutes at this point and nothing crazy has happened yet one thing i forgot to do was make sure the wipers were got a little quick shower that came in and i don't have wiper blades so i just have to cross our fingers and hope for the best but we're probably almost to the halfway point as far as making it to our destination to drag strip i really hope this rain holds off so we can make a couple passes but if all else fails we'll at least have the story to say that we drove this mustang with us oh boy we're getting on the interstate everybody just calm down i'm merging go baby go you got it suppose it could be worse trucking along our gauges are really perfectly accurate everything's fine i'm fine you're fine we're all fine okay we have made it to jake's drag strip in molten alabama get this thing registered in here see what kind of times it'll make here to meet up the ratty muscle car group good bunch of guys challenger in tow i think we got the ratty part i don't know about the muscle car yet well we made it about an hour and a half we're here at jake's drag strip with the ratty muscle cars group we're going to see what the mustang can do i have no idea what kind of time prediction we got we even break the tens out to be happy in the eighth let's see what happens no problems to get here though i mean it was totally uneventful i kind of got a little bit tired loud here cars running left and right but we'll see what the mustang can do nervous does not even begin to describe how i'm feeling right now i didn't even put the pedal to the floor in this car let alone try to drag race it with a goal time to beat back in 77 was a 17.5 second quarter mile which roughly equates to an 11.2 eighth mile oh god i'm racing a car that's actually a good car i've seen this thing run i don't know guys thank you for spinning off the line i'll be happy because i'm getting one wheel power to a 13-inch tire so there ain't no telling [Music] i did exactly what i didn't want to do and i blew that tire off the line yeah hey that was pretty fun though i got to feather it i just i got my nerves all built up and i just dumped it and left well that's all right that was fun we probably put on a show golly man my legs were shaking i was getting all nervous i need to get over my nerves just doing that first hit i feel better now now that we can at least figure out how the thing shifts and goes but yeah i did exactly what i thought i would do and i blew that right rear just off completely i mean there was there's nothing i could do that's all that's all i need it's not the car's fault thank you 11.92 i think i could have done a lot better if i just i spun like crazy but now that we got kind of the jitters maybe we can figure it out and do a little bit better well here's my problem i keep spinning right now just blow the tire off i'm thinking i just get my nerves so built up that if you even slightly get this thing to spin just a little bit and time for another pass this time with my good buddy will maybe this time my nerves will be better [Music] so it's going like crazy on it hey there's nothing i can do as soon as it spins it's just literally like yeah it's either spin or let off and i let off damn thank you very much yeah that was the worst one the 1187. i know i can run faster i just can't get the damn car to hook third time's the charm right surely i can get the hang of launching by now no such luck i got an 11.5 right here this is it if i don't make this run i am throwing in the towel there's still another long drive standing between me and home and this car will only allow for so much abuse this time has to be different 27 years of sitting and waiting has led to this moment right here her again [Music] we didn't spin on that one that was a lot better i left a heck of a lot slower though i didn't have to i really didn't get after it you know so my reaction time is going to suffer but i feel like overall my et is going to be way nicer so problem is the damn car is not loud enough i can't hear when the ship attacked it doesn't work it just kind of goes and does whatever it feels like [Music] thank you holy 1087 that is a that is a whole second faster and we did it well the cobra did all the work i was just along for the ride this car had been sitting for nearly three decades just a few days prior and it managed to prove that age is just a number by outrunning the original time these cars were capable of back when they were showroom fresh now austin had been watching these events unfold and he decided he wanted a crack at my time i feel like i need to take my hat off in order to fit in the car i have to sit oh if it came on yeah i drove this here yeah a lot further than i probably would have changed i swear the clutch does okay i mean once you find that sweet spot it's like you're pushing up against like a insane spring it's like it's got a wild clutch but it's not wild at all probably the cables probably stiff the board it's got a little pap though is it still running yeah it's right it's just very quiet i need to be an inch shorter at least i'll race him how you feeling i i feel like uh i'm in a race car ultimately like just thumping around you hear it cameron oh yeah i think it's that you ready for me all right we'll make this happen still running it's still running you better check your wood screws oh my god keep it going you got it i need some practice i'm not a very good ford driver hey don't worry it's backwards hey that shifter finding third gear is a knife oh i thought i was about to speed shift that oh yeah i got this no third gear is a nightmare that's not just you i've done it before all right let's hotlap it i got i i think i can do better now we set the track record on that one 11.89 i can make that well that's that's basically what my first time was that's 60 foot 289. okay it is a 302 yeah 302. you see that wheelie you seen that right i'm gonna hot lap it set the track record yes [Music] all right that's track record right there good that was good that's got to be the fastest time i think maybe 10 that was a 10.75 without question do you think so i do think quarterback right deliberately yeah it actually it squatted and did its thing i don't think we spun at all that was good yeah i'm happy with that we're gonna frame that are you impressed 1086. what did you run 1089 you got it yeah with a 244 i beat you by 300. wow right there track right that's all i really wanted to do consistent though yeah yeah those those you would one bracket right there if it was very consistent man you could just alternate off driving and do some bracket racing you get it to hook man it just goes he's gonna sign it for me oh he's autographed [Music] this is uh the mopar versus brand x streetcar showdowns test and tune and uh me and my buddies all do this and put it together so i raced dylan's car and i outran his time with him in it by 300th of a second and beat him in a 60 foot by three that's right that's right check him out about it stoked about it well successful day car made six passes i got beat in my own car you know what i had a blast and as of right now it's still running and we're driving home so we make it home i think we're good had a blast at this event guys if you're ever in the area definitely come check it out and make sure you come out here and support the event guys because this is i mean this stuff is crazy i mean this car literally sat for 27 years i got it running and immediately fixed all that mechanical stuff and then drove it here and raced it we we were not nice to it at all i mean we were absolutely mean to that car i didn't lift i held it to the floor shifted i don't know what i shifted at what rpm attack barely works and i just held it to for what it was worth and gave it all i had so for a car to run after 27 years been sitting there and then drive it 150 mile round trip go drag racing in the middle of it do six passes and just absolutely abuse it i say that was a win so we're on our way back home now wish us luck got a good bit of a weight of a drive to go but i'm very proud of this mustang so far even if it does quit on the way home i'm very proud [Music] we got a barrier listen sun goes down another day tell you what pretty good in the mustang too all's right in the world guess what i spoke too soon well they were doing great until they weren't car got hot they were stuck on the side of the road here [Applause] don't know what happened [Music] it could have just been low i didn't know it try it add a little bit to it see what happens [Music] it's just steaming up immediately [Music] well this is what happens rolled it back from right there into this spot and i'm just gonna have it towed home i'll probably turn this uh engine into something else it's probably been melted for the inside out it will not hold any water will not start i don't know what i i guess it just ran out of cooling i really don't know it was full when i left but i could just leave some out but i don't know here we are though almost almost good night little mustang [Music] [Laughter] oh [Music] well here's where it landed from the tow truck so i guess what we got to do now is well see if the 302 is still alive i mean it would still spin over it didn't lock up uh don't know if it blew a head gasket or not because there's no cooling in it i didn't see anything leaking out of it but uh basically whenever i started feeling problems or noticing anything happening i shut her down so i'm hoping that we were able to save it but i don't know let's try and fire it up and see if anything happens well i guess the mustang isn't ready to give up just yet what do you want to see next leave a comment down below don't forget to hit that like button you

Channel: Dylan McCool

Views: 440,690

Keywords: dodge, ford, chevy, plymouth, motor trend, roadkill, hot rod, revival, abndoned, rescued, restoration, rebuild, first start, old start, cold start, 1320, cleetus macfarland, drag race, ls swap, ls1, challenger, charger, dart, demon, hellcat, redeye, helephant, d100, d150, ram, chevelle, nova, c10, camaro, mustang, f100, f150, car, truck, dodge charger, dodge challenger, dodge demon, dodge ram

Id: 4xVuM4UEm4c

Length: 54min 0sec (3240 seconds)

Published: Fri May 21 2021