iba7467

I am new to the forums and needing help with a little information. I am looking into purchasing an gen-1 hardtop convertible mustang. I can find no information online. I know the owner personally and have seen the vehicle, but that was nearly 8 years ago. If I could find, or be provided, some background information on these vehicles before I fly 600 miles to purchase a car I would be greatly appreciative.

You may post information here or send to my email address iba7467@yahoo.com

Again thanks for any info.

2+2GT

Well, we could get a good jump on it if we knew the year, engine, etc.

The #1 thing to look for on these cars is hidden, structural rust.

stephen.osborne1

Convertible hardtop? I'm confused... Anyways, as mentioned before, look for rust. Behind the front tires in the fenders, lower doors, quarter panels, trunk, wheel houses, rear frame sections, torque boxes and floor boards. Mechanical issues are easy enough to take care of with even moderate mechanical skills but electrical gremlins can really irk some guys. Again, with even basic skills and some money, wiring can be replaced in a weekend.
If this is a convertible ( I think this is what you meant in your post) then the top can be an issue to replace. I haven't done one as I have a coupe, but my dad ATTEMPTED to replace the top on our 66 when I was a kid- wasn't pretty as I recall. Good luck and post pics.

iba7467

I guess I phrased it incorrectly in the first post. It is a removable hardtop. I can find no information about this as a factory option on the gen-1s. It has been 8 years since I saw the vehicle and am tracking down the owner for details. I believe the car was a 1966 model. I do not know the engine size. I am sorry that I have so little information but I know this will be a task for me to locate the vehicle, much less purchase it from its owner for the last 30+ years.


Again, I can find no information about factory removable hardtop generation one Mustangs so I came to this forum hoping to find information.

Thank you for looking and any help is greatly appreciated.

2+2GT

No such thing as a factory removable hardtop. There were some aftermarket items, such as the Towne Top, intended for use on convertibles.

iba7467

Is there any Ford documentation that states that they made no factory removable hardtop? I have not been able to find any stating either way. I know that this was not the Towne Top. It was identical to a standard hardtop with flawless seams. The owner had said that there were only two made with the removable hardtop and they were special orders both by the same dealership. I would love to know if there is anyone I can actually contact to verify/deny this information.

Obviously, if it is true, it would be one of the rarest mustangs ever produced. Of course, it could be all inaccurate information that I am going off of that I received long ago. I know for a fact that I can locate the vehicle and acquire all numbers and information but do not want to invest that time only to find out that it was an aftermarket or custom job.

rtintwo

Ford did make one prototype retractable hardtop. The engineer that designed it has been interviewed several times and he has said he never knew what happened to it but thinks most likely it got scrapped.

Here is a link to one interview with him.

http://www.hemmings.com/hcc/stories/..._feature5.html

He says that there is rumors of it making it to the public but nothing confirmed. He also said that it had all of the bells and whisles, so it would be reasonable to assume it was a K code. What ever one you are looking at if its not a K code then i would doubt it is the original. Another safe assumtion would be that it is DSO 84. This is the DSO that all the prototypes, the cars designated for ford management and the promotion cars had. Basically 84 was fords code designating the car for fords use rather than sale to the public. Some DSO 84s were sold to the public after ford was done with that car.

But above all the car needs documentation dating back to the original sale stating that it is the retractable hardtop. Anything except this sort of documentation means it is a modified mustang and not original. I would be very sceptical that its the original.

Its value until proven to be the original is the value of a modified mustang which is completly dependent on the condition of the car and what you are willing to pay.

IacoccaR

http://www.mustangblog.com/blog/1017...op-convertible

It's possible that the car in question is one of Ben J. Smith's retractable hardtops (only 10-15 are thought to exist per the article).

iba7467

Thank you guys for the great information. I will begin attempting to contact the owner and will post any code information thatI can find.

stephen.osborne1

If it is in fact, an original, jump on that quick! It would be worth a ton at Barret Jackson!