New guy from Gulfport, Ms. just bought a 64 Comet....

[Zeek]

Just brought this home from W. Virginia yesterday. It was an Ebay purchase (my favorite place to shop!) that I was very lucky to get. It is a K car and Im sure most of you here know the history of the Comet "K" car....

Some where along the line someone installed a power front disc brake conversion along with new axles, ball joints and related parts. Also has an aftermarket R&P steering set up. The guy I bought it from didnt know much about the car. I guess he took in trade or something. The undercarriage is in great shape with no rust, but the body does have a few rust issues. The worst being a spot on the roof just above the passenger door. But all in all a pretty solid car with an older paint job that is a 20 footer for now. I plan on driving it as it is at least until after Crusin the Coast in October and will start doing the body work and mods during the winter months.

I am trying to determine what engine is in it. It has a serpentine belt system that I am sure was not available in 1964. Unless someone put on an aftermarket setup?

Anyway....this is the first Mercury/Ford product I have ever owned that actually had a Mercury/Ford engine in it so I have a lot to learn about the drive train!...

I found this forum by doing a Google search and am hoping to get some input and answers to my questions here and in the future! Here's a few pics of my new toy!

Daniel

edit: well scratch the pics....it wont let me upload pics from my pewter.....

[lavron]

Zeek welcome to the forum, we love pictures but you need to link them from someplace like PhotoBucket and can't directly upload them to the forum.

You have found the right place for both Comet info and Ford in general, when you get picts attached I am sure you will find the answers you need.

See Ya,
Mike

[Zeek]

Ok...lets try this for pics.....Oh BTW before yall say anything....I hate the racing stripe too, but it will have to stay for now.....

[lavron]

Looks like it is a good one, we will just never mention the stripe

Grab a pict of the engine when you get a chance and post it.

See Ya,
Mike

[Zeek]

I posted some pics of the engine in the 64 section, but heres a couple for here also....

[poboyjo65]

Welcome on ! Your car looks great! If you take off the starter , on the block behind it are some numbers that will tell you what the motor is. A K code on a comet is not what it is on a mustang, just means 289 on a comet,not a hipo. Glad you made it to the best comet place on earth!!

[Lip Ripper]

Welcome aboard. These guy's and gal's are great.

Someone cut the shock tower brace off of the driver's side. You will want to address that.

Stacey

[Zeek]

..........Someone cut the shock tower brace off of the driver's side. You will want to address that.

Stacey

Good find! I had not noticed that. Is that a weld on or bolt on part? I wonder why it was removed?

[redhotcomet]

It looks like your crank pulley is from a dual serpentine belt. I'm running something similar. I know some years in the 80's the Crown Vics and Grand Marqs run dual serpentine belts, with a standard rotation water pumps, which yours is, you can tell because the water pump pulley is grooved, not smooth. Most serpentine systems ran reverse rotation water pumps with a smooth pulley to run on the backside of the belt. My alternator is in the same position as yours, but my water pump is cast iron, which I didn't know you could get standard rotation water pumps in aluminum. Very possible that your engine is out of one of these cars.

[poboyjo65]

..........Someone cut the shock tower brace off of the driver's side. You will want to address that.

Stacey

Good find! I had not noticed that. Is that a weld on or bolt on part? I wonder why it was removed?

Probably removed for brake mc work. You still have the single mc which is a lot more dangerous than a duel cell mc.

The best solution for the missing shock tower brace is to get an export brace. it gives you more room than the old ones & IMO is stronger.

http://www.falconparts.com/ford-falcon- ... 8p1082.htm
it is available at other places too. a mustang one wont fit, you need a falcon/comet one.

[Jims65cyclone]

Welcome aboard! You're in the best place for Comet info. John mentioned your single-bowl mc. Since the shock tower has been cut out, the mc booster was probably added later, probably along with the swap to front disc brakes. If the perpetrator didn't know enough to know the need for the brace to be reinstalled, he may not have known to add a proportioning valve, either. You need that to prevent the tendency for the rear drum brakes to lock up before the front discs on a hard stop. You should probably check that out before somebody pulls out in front of you and you end up swapping ends trying to avoid them. Here's a link to a topic on shock tower braces for a info, too.
http://www.cometcentral.com/forum/viewt ... port+brace
Jim

[Santa's Comet]

I thought I saw a porp valve on the firewall. Funny I didn't notice the brace missing at first. I was looking for a duel MC for disc brakes!
NP Dave

[popscomet]

It looks like your crank pulley is from a dual serpentine belt. I'm running something similar. I know some years in the 80's the Crown Vics and Grand Marqs run dual serpentine belts, with a standard rotation water pumps, which yours is, you can tell because the water pump pulley is grooved, not smooth. Most serpentine systems ran reverse rotation water pumps with a smooth pulley to run on the backside of the belt. My alternator is in the same position as yours, but my water pump is cast iron, which I didn't know you could get standard rotation water pumps in aluminum. Very possible that your engine is out of one of these cars.

my 1984 mercury capri 5.0 5spd has a serpentine single belt and a standard rotation water pump.....pop

[popscomet]

CAME BACK for 2nd look see,,I like it very much,,I think the stripe could go ,also...is it painted on or a stick on...I can't tell..if it's a vinyl stick on ,you might take a heat gun and get it off,,thats the way we do these race cars,just alittle heat and they will pull off and not damage the paint,most of the time. Just work slow and steady...but if paint,,well it's there !!!those whls look spiffy also...enjoy and welcome ...POP

[Zeek]

Thanks for all the input! Especially about the shock tower export brace. I will be purchasing one of those asap. As for the MC, that will also be changed out asap! Even though there is a proportioning valve, the car does not stop like it should. The more I look at this car the more I love it! Oh BTW, the stripe is painted on, so it will have to stay. At least until I address the couple of rust issues and do a repaint....

Just a note of interest.....I did a google search of my VIN # and came up with these two previous advertisements of this car for sale. I gained a lot of new info from these ads! Also, I did not pay anywhere NEAR the two asking prices shown in the old ads......

In this first ad, it claims to have a "fresh" 302 roller motor....
http://www.griffcars.com/html/proj08.html

http://www.griffcars.com/html/25.html