Buying a 71 Ford Mustang Mach 1 / Boss 351 for Oz

[TheChaser]

Crickey, she's a beauty isn't she. Is that thing currently used for drags? Now I've seen it, could very well be my favorite too!





Interestingly, I also read that for the Bond movie, Ford gave the producers not 1 but 8 brand new Mach 1's. Apparently all of them were somehow used in production, which sort of makes the two tracable ones a bit less special compared to if they had only used the one car.

[OzHemi]

Quote: Originally posted by TheChaser on 27 May 2007





And to Ozhemi, you have actually shipped Mustangs to Australia before, the mods for the tali lights do not require any major work, do they?









I mainly deal in first gen Camaro's, but do a few mustangs here and there as I said, but have always done pre-69 models and the taillamp issue never came up. Usuaslly the easy way to go is to just wire the blinkers into the reverse lens area and use either an amber lens or amber bulb, then just run a small Hella reverse lamp under the bar or such..

[MFPmaniac]

Quote: Originally posted by TheChaser on 27 May 2007


I have been reading that the 71 351 Boss variant, was overall the best combination for performance and handling, although the thought of the 429 Super Cobra Jet is mouthwatering. If the Boss goes for around $65,000, then the Super Cobra is even more expensive, apparently produced only 531 of these. I also read that total units for the 71 Boss was 1,806. I wonder how many of those are in Australia too?





Personally I can't imagine why as you say scar, people don't like this shape. I think its the meanest and best looking of all of them.





It seems however, the negative points about the model are that the seat is positioned very low, and coupled with the long bulging bonnet makes the drivers ability to view in front of car quite challenging. Which also adds to vision difficulties when performing a right turn.





Secondly, the 14 degree angle of the back makes rear vision something like "looking out of a gun slit". Scar, assuming you have driven your cousin Charlie's beast, how do you find it in those areas?





And to Ozhemi, you have actually shipped Mustangs to Australia before, the mods for the tali lights do not require any major work, do they?

The part on the desirability of the '71-'73 models is for the most part true, Chaser. I've seen clapped out pre-'71 cars get top dollar a lot of times, but I've come across clean '71-'73 models for much less. The lesser models can be gotten sometimes for $2k to $5k US, in reasonable condition. If you're after a Boss 351, however, you're gonna part with a lot more of your dollars!





Myself, I've always liked that body style. Most definitely the most aggressive Mustang body IMHO.





Aaron

[TheChaser]

So Oz, in your opinion, what am I looking at for a Boss 351? At least an estimate on minimum price would be helpful if you have any info. I will try to get in touch with the Mustang Owner's Club in Australia to see what they think. ie, any chance of getting for under US$65,000?

[Scar2783]

[div]My first car was a '72 Mustang that I got back in '79, so I'm more than a little partial to that generation Mustang. Plus, as we all know, I resembles another favorite car of mine that a guy named Max drove. [/div]
[div] [/div]
[div]My cousin has both a '73 Mach 1 and the Boss. Also, my brother has a '72 Mach 1 and all three cars are grabber yellow with black markings, so I've been driving them all for years. It makes for quite the sight with those 3 together with the yellow Falcon. On those Mustangs, I find that the hood is very long but what I don't like it about it most is that the seat doesn't recline at all and being 6'2", the steering wheel is right in my chest. I can deal with the rear window, as both of my Falcons suffer from a similar affliction. However, my stock XB GT drives like a Cadillac compared to the Mach's & Boss. Also, the Boss' drive is very harsh compared to the '73 Mach, as they came equipped with a competition suspension. There are photos of my cousin's Boss along side of my XB when I first got it in the summer of '00 on this site. Peter posted them under the Interceptor portion in the XB vs. USA cars section. [/div]
[div] [/div]
[div]I have a book over here that compares the '71 Mach 429 to the Boss 351 and as the author stated, "The Boss 351 could eat it for breakfast..." That engine is quick. I think the 429's are prized more because of the lower production numbers and the allure of the bigger engine. The Boss 351 was meant to take over racing for the Boss 302 but Ford pulled out of racing and it never got that chance to prove itself. I attended the Boss Mustang reunion at Carlisle a few years ago, and as I recall, there were around 25 or so Boss 351's. I NEVER see them at shows. Also, I have a Ford Performance magazine here from New Zealand and they featured two consecutive numbered Boss 351's the two Kiwi doctors purchased in '71, bought back and still have today. Here are the two best Boss 351 sites that I've found.[/div]





http://www.boss351.org/main.htm http://www.boss351registry.com/


Mark

[Scar2783]

P.S. They make that Sam Auxier '71 drag Stang in 1:18th diecast too...

[TheChaser]

I wondered if the cars pictured were yours. Well, you're bloody lucky in my eyes. It would be a picture to see the three of them driving together. Having studied various pictures, I think that particular color scheme is my favorite too. Thanks for the links, I am checking them out.

[n2dnyt]

Quote: Originally posted by OzHemi on 27 May 2007

Quote:

I mainly deal in first gen Camaro's, but do a few mustangs here and there as I said, but have always done pre-69 models and the taillamp issue never came up. Usuaslly the easy way to go is to just wire the blinkers into the reverse lens area and use either an amber lens or amber bulb, then just run a small Hella reverse lamp under the bar or such..

Hey Oz,


I work for a company which manufactures parts for First Gen Camaros. Where abouts are you?





Kelley

[OzHemi]

I'm in Orange County/So.Cal... I buy alot from Classic Industries (vender account there)


I've even picked up parts from there (smaller orders) in assorted Aussie cars


We've got around 9 of the cars in Oz at the moment for sale (and some just keepers) and I am just in the process of building a Retro Rides "Gen 5" Camaro now.

[Daved]

Hi Chaser,


I bought my wife's 67 Mustang GTA from Mustangs of Melbourne & have bought parts from him for said car also.
[div]I personally couldn't speak highly enough of Steve at Mustangs of Melbourne, he was fantastic with helping us with our search, never once tired of our constant questions & when we bought the car from him he was a dream to deal with. A fully refundable check for a grand was enough for him to search the US find our car, have it checked as genuine matching numbers GTA... etc etc. & o[/font]nce the car turned up he had it worked over so that it looked like what the description that accompanied the photos painted it as. They fixed all road worthy bits that where found & a couple of bits that he felt where not in as good a condition as we had been told they where... all without upping our price by a dollar.[/font][/div]
[div] [/div]
[div]If I was buying another stang, I'd be calling Steve for sure.[/font][/div]