I need an experts assistance. I am thinking of purchasing a supposed unmolested survivor with 33k miles. Car has 351 4v CJ engine with ram air induction. now i've looked and ram air was not offered with the 4v 351 and the hood is all red not black and red.a. should the hood be black over the front and b. should i be worried about ram air being added, looks like Ford installed.there is a build sheet with the car but I'm a little nervous and the price is premium. can anyone assist and give their opinion / advice.your help is greatly appreciated. by the way , the car is beautiful but i'm paying for all original and i'm no expert by any stretch. thanks in advance.

 

you could always start by having him send you pics of the VIN either on the cowl tag or inner door. then get the block casting ID. check with a numbers database to see if there are any inconsistencies (paint codes don't match, block is from 73, etc.). then spend your money.

here are some links:

http://www.mustangdecoder.com/decoder.html
http://home.comcast.net/~cobrasite4/ford_engine_numbers.HTM
http://raceabilene.com/kelly/hotrod/engine2.html
http://www.aacncclub.com/FORD_BLOCK_CASTING.html

 

Yeaqh '72 was the first year that Ford put a 351 Cobra Jet in a Mustang. The 429's certainly had the Ram air induction, but I don't think the ones with the 351 engines in them did. At least not ones that were functional.

 

thanks russ, great info. i do have the vin and i can get the block casting. the hood is the correct type and the ram air was added and is functional, but the hood is all red. it has been repainted once, should the hood be black and red? did they all come from the factory this way? i do have the build sheet and there is no mention of a delete anywhere. thanks again.

 

Functional ram air was available on the 72 Mach 1 with either the 351C/2Vor 4V. See insetpage from original dealer accessory price list, however you would not be able to verify if it was installed at the factoryby door tag info or VIN. Only by build sheet.

[IMG]local://upfiles/65468/16F8399588AC45D2B0820696E39E1427.jpg[/IMG]

 

thanks. I have the build sheet but it does not have ram induction option on it, could have been added later or at the dealership. did all nasa type hoods for 72 come as two tone and did they all come with hood locks. this hood is solid red with no hood locks. how about the gas cap for 72? this car has twist off design but is is the regular cap with the pony logo, not plain. thanks again for your help.

 

According to the dealer option list, a functional ram air hood would have come with either the argent or black (depending on the color of the car) section down the center of the hood and hood lock pins as well as the 351 RAM AIR decals along the sides of the ducts. I have seen stencil kits recently on ebay used for painting the hood correctly. The correct gas cap would be the twist type with the pony emblem.

[IMG]local://upfiles/65468/C489CA0DBCDC4308B5F036DB2527E5D1.jpg[/IMG]

 

So glad I joined this forum, you are a wealth of knowledge.If the ram air was added later and not on the build sheet, would the hood still be painted argent or black? This car is red so if the hood needs to be painted , should it be argent or black?Should it have hood locks? I'm trying to buy as original as possible and decifering is truely a learning experience.By the way, the car I'm loking at looks just like the one pictured in your emails, it's red and gorgeous.Is this yours? Hope I'm not boring you, I really appreciate your help.

 

It is my understanding that all Mach1's had a matte black stripe on the hood.

 

Yes that is my '72. Not all '71-'73 Mach 1's had two tone NASA hoods, although as I mentioned before, for it to be "factory correct" it would need the hood options mentioned in my last post. Red cars had the matte black finish in the center of the hood (like mine).