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| Note: Click thumbnails to enlarge pictures.) Tom Shiveley's 429 CJ Cougar Convertible
Here is the story on Tom Shiveley's car as described by group member Mitch Lewis. Read Mitch's story and view the pictures of the finished car below; The first that I knew of this car, it was
owned by Jim Helms of the Seattle Washington area. He started a disassembly and
restoration approximately 10 years ago. At that time, he owned two 429 Cougars -
this convertible and an XR7 HT which was later purchased by my friend Jim Tunney
in Phoenix, Arizona.
Jim lost interest in the car and it sat for many years until it was purchased by
Richard Brown. Richard owned the car about 1 year when he sold it to Tom
Shiveley in Indianapolis. Tom first approached a local Mustang restoration house
in Indianapolis about completing the car. After they gave him the run around, he
started looking for someone to do the car for him. I was recommended by a couple
of people. He emailed me and I contacted my friend Mark who is a good mechanic
to team up with. I can be very detail orientated but while I can figure out most
mechanical items, that is not where I excel in a restoration. Anyway Mark and I
teamed up to do the assembly. We drove to Indianapolis the 2nd weekend of March
to pickup the car - a painted shell with running gear in the car. The engine had
to be removed and painted the right color. It also needed a correct pressure
plate. etc. The car came with about 15 boxes of parts from an estimated 3-4
cars. Every thing had to be assembled. For example, the dash board was
completely disassembled, from the wiring harness to inner braces, etc - it all
had to be located and assembled. More time was spent locating clips and screws
and
other missing items. Most major components were there with the exception of the
Exhaust heat shield and the ram air was not correct for a 71 429 Cougar. A ram
air system was located but the heat shield was improvised. The car has
many NOS parts along with AMK bolts where ever possible. Things such as latches
and hood hinges were media blasted to remove years of paint and grime to reveal
the original phosphate finish.
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