How much rust is TOO much?

Post by **AussieCoupes** » Mon Sep 30, 2002 6:37 pm

I was only giving you a hard time cause I AM an Aussie and it is in my blood! LOL

Glad you know what a GTHO is, it was an awesome car, I wouldn't mind one in my garage any day of the week.

Phil

Post by **Mitch** » Mon Sep 30, 2002 11:31 pm

Anybody familiar with the common rust areas on the Falcon? Here in the States with the Mustangs it's usually the frame rails and shock towers that are bad news. I read on an earlier post that door pillars and such are problem areas. I plan on doing some of the sheet metal work myself, but I hate rusty structural members (did I really say that...?).

So anyway, are patch panels fairly easy to get? Is there a large aftermarket for the restorer over there? And you fellow Americans, got any tips based on your restoration/repair experiences? Looking for all the help I can get.

Since we're talking about guards/fenders, I'm gonna have to cut out the edges of the wheel wells to attach the new fender flares, but there's rust there anyway. To restore to original condition would require cutting also.

And now for something completely different.

At the risk of sounding completely out of touch, who was/is John Goss? I get the idea that he is a famous racer, comparable to Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt over here in the US. But what's he famous for? Does he do Nascar style circle track, rally, what? Just curious...

Post by **Wrinkles** » Tue Oct 01, 2002 12:02 am

Mitch, head over to http://www.autopics.com.au Go to touring cars of the 70's, or specifically, the Bathurst section. This will give you an idea of what John Goss and others from the era used to do with XB's. The thumbnails don't blow up very large, but you'll get the idea. There's a huge collection of photos, and if you're considering making a purchase, I can vouch for the quality - I've got a few 18 x 12 inch shots, and they're absolutely brilliant.

As far as common rust areas on Falcons... lower guards, sills, doors, rear window, trunk, floor, roof, bonnet.... yeah, pretty much everywhere! Best to go over it with a fine-tooth comb.. but don't despair - rust repair sections are available from plenty of outlets. I think you'll find plenty of links through this website. ...but shop around wherever possible - prices can vary.

Post by **AussieCoupes** » Tue Oct 01, 2002 12:07 am

Mitch,

John Goss was in my mothers class at school, but that is not why he is famous.

The biggest form of racing in Australia is Touring Car circuit racing (turning left AND right) and there is a series called the Australian Touring Car Championship that extends the racing season and is then capped with a few endurance races. The most famous is at a track called Bathurst. It is a 1000 kilometer enduro and has been fought for many, many years by all kinds of makes and models from the Mini to the Mustang, the Volvo to the Alfa and of course our beloved Falcons.

Basically the XA/XB GT and the XC Cobra were designed as small production run cars to qualify the model for homologation. In 1974 Goss was considered an underdog and he was not part of the Ford factory backed team. He went on to will the Bathurst race (back then it was called the Hardie Ferodo 500 [miles]) holding off 7 perusing GM Holden Toranas and caused a bit of an upset.

Ford saw this as a good excuse to sell a few more Hardtops so they prettied up 260 white ones in either green or blue and called them the John Goss Special.

Due to the low specification cars used (302cid Cleveland, Borg Warner single rail gearbox, 8" diff and drum brakes on the rear), these special cars have never been valued in Australia and have yet to appreciate at the same rate as a GT even though they are far rarer than a GT.

Here endeth the lesson I guess...

Phil

Post by **FalconGTHO** » Tue Oct 01, 2002 12:40 am

Phil,

Its cool. Yes, I surprise ALOT of natives with my knowledge of your cars, history, country, etc. ESP since Ive never set foot there. I freakin LOVE Fords, so naturally Im going to love Falcons. While your country was cheated out of "big block" muscle, you DID get to enjoy a performance market longer than we did here. Too bad for the damn magazine article about the Phase 4, otherwise the party wouldve lasted alot longer. We had performance small blocks, but not like the ragged edge of the Phase 3. Only bad thing is that the "toughest" Aussie car was based on a freakin four door. THATS something that would NOT fly here.

Post by **AussieCoupes** » Tue Oct 01, 2002 12:53 am

A shaker sedan? Whats with that?

But by the same token, here you get 2 door wagons - how practical is that?!?!

hehehehe

Phil

Post by **FalconGTHO** » Tue Oct 01, 2002 1:05 am

Hey WE had two door wagons. The PINTO!

Post by **AussieCoupes** » Tue Oct 01, 2002 1:07 am

Yeah that is what I said, here in the US you get 2 door wagons.... they didn't make them in Australia - heck we were lucky to get 2 door cars!

Phil

Post by **FalconGTHO** » Tue Oct 01, 2002 1:21 am

Umm, arent the Holden Sandmans two door? To me, thats a wagon, the same as the "porthole" Pintos.

Post by **AussieCoupes** » Tue Oct 01, 2002 1:40 am

No a Sandman is a van - basically a ute (el camino/ranchero) with a fixed hard top and either a bench seat or 2 bucket seats. A wagon is a 5/6 seater with cargo room beyond the back seat.