I just purchased a 1965 coupe to restore with my son. We want to work on the interior. do we take a drill and wire wheel to the rust on the inside of the car to get rid of the rust and then prime the interior with a rust inhibitor primer or paint?

 

I'm new at this too, but from what I understand, it's best to cut out the rusted spots and tack in new pieces. You can get just about all pieces of sheetmetal replacements.
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Alot of the interior has surface rust and some of the floor has rust where I will have to replace the floor pans. But I was wondering even if the door and under the seats and under the dash etc if I should strip them free of all rust and then primer and paint?

 

Oh, my guess is that surface rust could be cleaned up without replacing parts.

Hopefully someone else who's been there will respond. I'd like to know too.
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If you are dealing with surface rust (or no rust throughs) sand the hell out of it with 36 grit paper witha dual action sander, then go to a wire brush on a drill or other power tool. Get out all of it youcan, and then chemically treat the area to check the remaining rust.

Chances are if you have rust in the interior front floor pans, the cowl ventis probablyrusted out. You will want to check this out to make sure, one way or the other.

Ifthe cowlis rusted out you will need to make repairstoit so that the repairs youmake onthe floors will not be in vain.

I think you should be able to pour some water in the vent and see ifit ends upin the car.

I have seen several posts in this forum regarding the repair of the cowl vent, and if this is what you need to do you will be able to get lots of help from folks who have done this repair. There areplenty of people here who have done this repair, as it is afairly common problem.

Welcome to the forum!! You will find that there are lots of knowledgable folks here eager to give you as much help as they can, it is a good comunity and a wonderfull resource for any classic Mustang owner.

 

My son and I are doing the same, my other son and I previously did a project vehicle. For my sons and I this has been, andcurrently is, a great way to find common ground in a world where finding common ground between different generations is not easy. It is my sincere wish that you and your son get the same or more enjoyment and fulfillment that these projects have brought to my family!!

 

I use Rustmort or POR15 on rust. They are acid based rust removers and inhibitors but you may also have to do a little sanding. DO NOT SAND THE TEXTURED PART OF THE DOOR INSIDES. I use Jasco or some other type of paint remover to get down to the metal. The cowl area is by far the worst nightmare known to Mustangs. The next is the floorboards. Get some reference books, How to Restore your Mustang by Larry Dobbs for a start. I also recomend you get some parts catalogs and do some browsing. Try National Parts Depot, Virginia Classic Mustangs or Texas Mustang Parts for a start. They all carry about 90 pct identical items, it's that last 10 pct that requires you to bounce between stores. When you get down to the nitty-gritty and want speciality items, AMK Products for hardware, Ssnake-Oyl for seat belts and there are a bunch more. It boils down to how much can you afford.
Jim

 

I had the same problem when I stripped the interior of my '65, the front floor pans were gone and a hole in the rear driver side, definitly weld in new metal where you have rot thru. But I had surface rust on the inside of the roof under the headliner. I did what JMD said, attack it with a sander. When that was done I sprayed it will a rust eating caytalist, I can't remember what it was but I do remember you don't want it on your skin, then let it sit fora little and cleaned with denatured alchol and sprayed a high zinc rust inhibitor primer. I wanted to make sure I did a good job instead of waste time I went back about a month later a sanded the primer off to check for the return of rust, there was none.

Yeah cowl, that thing is a nightmare hopefully its not terrible, if you have to replace the whole cowl its 100+ spot welds, fun.

 

yes sir your cowl is most probably shot. through some water in there and jus wait for the water fall. do some research onthe topic ( there is a wealth of information for this). As for the floor repair the swiss cheese or huges holes lol or do it the right way with a whole floor pan! Cowl Repair.... [&:]lol that is up to you; get a cover meanwhile for the vents

 

Actually, if you read the directions on the POR 15 can it tells you not to sand the rust off. Just paint over the existing rust and the chemical reacts to the rust and turns it into a good polymer.