September 2012 Ride of the Month is: Bob E's "69 XR7 Vert

Cougar Community Ride of the Month
21

Bob, Do you have any new pictures of the car? I know you did some pretty interesting things electrically with the car, how are those things working out? Any updates?

22

Hi Bill,

Well, yeah, I am always taking pictures of my obsession, what sort of pictures did you have in mind, big boy? LOL! I was thinking of asking you to change the ROTM picture to something “a little more revealing” (LOL, I kill me) but didn’t want to impose. I can PM you a couple of suggestions if you like (or let me know what you are in mind of).

Now, about electrical, I took many liberties, any in particular that you are interested in or thinking of? Duraspark triggered MSD 6AL (hidden behind PS dash) and “stealth” underhood wiring, “Dial-a-Rev-Limit” in glove box, keyless entry/alarm and remote trunk release (with manual switch in addition) - using stock horns (no siren) and parking light flash, hidden secondary ignition disable, security light integrated into tach spare lense, H1/H4 halogen headlights with relay kit, AC on any heater/AC function, MP3/HD Radio DIN stereo with stereo dash speakers, door speakers and rear seat speakers (not proud of the last one), prewire for trunk amp and subwoofer (not implemented thus far) that is all I can think of at the moment, there might be a few more. Oh yeah, Electronic Low Fuel Indicator (ELFI)! LED dash lighting too.

How are those things working out? Pretty well for the most part. Try as an OCD person might, there are always a few things that pop back up to be worked on and out. The PS door window mechanism has managed to cut one of the door lock motor wires twice now (haven’t yet fixed the second occurrence), I tried to dress the wires out of the way but guess I was not successful. The rear seat speakers (oversize 6-something" speakers I put in enclosures in desperation) work well enough but the lack of sexiness bugs me. I take them out when I arrive at shows, put them back in when I leave. Stereo and HD radio sounds good but I was hoping for something a little closer to “ear-bleed” if you know what I mean. Wouldn’t mind Sirius too but can’t easily have it all. Keyless entry and remote trunk release is great and very happy to have those. ELFI works great (kinda proud of that), especially with the design enhancement I made recently eliminating flashing at threshold altogether.

Heck, here are a few pictures I thought of at your prompting. Not all new, but…:

Guess artsy photography is not my strong suit, obsessing on what remains (or has cropped back up) is. If there is something in particular you were in mind of, let me know and I will be happy to provide if I have something.

I stopped short of saying a lot after being selected as the ROTM as I figured I have gone on enough about these things of my own accord. If people would like to know more about my obsession with Cougar’s since the age of 17, I can oblige. Otherwise, I am happy to just enjoy the honor of being ROTM without rambling on too much (as I am given to doing).

Thanks All,

Bob

Edit: Later model Ford intermittent wiper module added as well.

23

Congratulations Bob. Your 69 Vert is a truly amazing restoration. It takes commitment, patience, skill, and vision to transform & complete a project such as this from start to finish.
May you have much enjoyment with your Cat. Job Well Done, Sir.

Gary

24

Thanks for your kind words Gary! Off to an all-Ford show tomorrow with hopes for my 20th trophy since completing Isabel in late May, 2011. Such a blast taking her out cruising and sharing the resto result with like-minded people who dig cars at the shows. My buddies say it will get old and to do it while the car is “new”, it hasn’t gotten the least bit old for me yet! Thanks again.

Regards,

Bob

25

Here’s a couple of new pictures (albeit in the shade yesterday after work) taken with my recently acquired HDR-PJ260V 1080p Sony video camera (which takes 8.9 MP stills).

26

Congrats on the win :slight_smile: very nice cat, all the hard work pays off when you see results like this :slight_smile:

27

Thank you Jan.

28

Bob!..

you’re gonna need a bigger desk :unamused:

quality shows :thumbup:

Jean

29

And thanks to you too, Jean. :beerchug:

30

Beautiful car! I enjoyed reading about it too, and it looks great in the pics.

31

Thanks Man!

Here’s a kinda cool shot from the Asbury Park show today, the sparkle thingies, dunno how that happened! And, we cruised “The Circuit” (or what’s left of it) after the show!

32

OH MY!!! what a jewel. The color is simply amazing! Great job again Bob. Can you say what the color is again?

33

Bling bling

34

Thanks.

The paint is 40th Anniversary Mustang Crimson Red, a shade that happens to be dead on to the original B code Maroon but with some really pretty pearl/metallic. When my car was about to go to my buddy Jeff’s body shop, he had just finished painting a fox body 'stang in the color. Jeff suggested perhaps it would be a good color for Isabel. We dripped a few drops of the paint on one of the (many!) pieces of original sheet metal that were replaced and the match was very close. Somewhere I cut out and saved that small rectangle of metal where the drops landed so I could show it, I have to find that to bring to shows. People always, always comment about the paint. Someone at the show even asked me if the paint was House Of Kolor. I told him no but that an HOK sort of look was what I was hoping for (at a bargain price!) and thanked him for the comment.

35

Just wanted to say thanks for the honor of being ROTM for September, it was a lot of fun! Best of luck to the nominees for October.