Here’s what 50-year-old stock hood springs look like. Amazingly, they still function great, unfortunately they’re not much to look at.
1. The Eddie Motorsports Ford...
1. The Eddie Motorsports Ford Falcon Billet Hinge kit (PN EMS149-86M) comes with 168-pound shocks and all the necessary mounting hardware for a super easy installation. They’ll also add tons more eye appeal to the otherwise bland engine bay of this 50-year-old Falcon.
If you're a regular reader of this magazine, you may recognize this 1964 Falcon Futura from past tech articles involving a complete TCI suspension makeover, and more recently the Champion aluminum radiator install from a few issues back. With the car running great, and the killer suspension holding its ground, it was time to dip into some simple bolt-on accessories under the hood to get the car looking a little better.
We know the engine bay needs quite a bit of work, including a good detail job. A new engine is the ultimate goal, but with budget a factor, it may be a little while before that happens.
So, to get things moving in the right direction under the hood (there really is no official starting point), we got started by getting rid of the original hood hinges. The stock hood spring setup is just about as unattractive as they come, so we got in touch with the folks at Eddie Motorsports for a set of their Machined Finished Billet Hood Hinges '64-'65 Falcon (PN: EMS149-86M).
The Eddie hinges made a great improvement in the overall looks of the engine bay and at $495 for the pair, as you can see in the final photo, the small investment produced huge dividends for the underhood appearance of our little Falcon.
2. Although this is an easy...
2. Although this is an easy DIY job, it’s a good idea to have help when removing the hood, so we got Kris Kelly and Gabriel Villallpando of Eddie Motorsports to handle the removal process. It would be a shame to scratch or dent a perfectly patina’d hood of this vintage. Remember to check the gaps on every side before you remove it so you have a reference point of how it fit with the old hinges. You are going to be making a number of adjustments to get the gaps just as they were with the old hinges.
3. With a 1/2-inch socket,...
3. With a 1/2-inch socket, Gabriel loosened the upper and lower bolts to remove the old hinges.
4. That’s 50 years of old...
4. That’s 50 years of old unidentifiable crust trapped between the old hood springs. We carefully scraped that off before installing the new hinges.
5. You may or may not have...
5. You may or may not have an issue with this metal tab attached to the firewall getting in the way. If so, you’ll need to grind off about 1⁄8-inch in order for the new hinges to fit without binding on this piece.
6. Using the supplied allen...
6. Using the supplied allen head bolts, Gabriel snugged them in place using the existing mounting points. No need to tighten them down all the way just yet, as some height adjustments will be made during the final fitting process.
7. With the shock mounted...
7. With the shock mounted in place, you can see how (red arrows) the new hinges allow for plenty of vertical adjustment.
8. Next up is mounting the...
8. Next up is mounting the hood. It’s very important to adjust the hood forward enough so it’s not binding on the cowl. It’s easy to cause damage while opening and closing between test fits. The final hood alignment process can require some patience in order to get the gaps and hood height just right, so take your time.
9. Be sure the driver-side...
9. Be sure the driver-side hinge doesn’t come in contact with the wiring plug on the firewall. The shock actually pulled the wiring harness out of the plug on the firewall when we closed the hood leaving us scratching our heads wondering why the car wouldn’t start.
10. We have quiet a bit of...
10. We have quiet a bit of work left to get this engine bay looking stellar, but the Eddie Motorsports Machine Finished Billet Hood Hinges add quite a bit of class to an otherwise pedestrian engine bay. And at just $495, this is a good starting point.
We have quiet a bit of work left to get this engine bay looking stellar, but the Eddie Motorsports Machine Finished Billet Hood Hinges add quite a bit of class to an otherwise pedestrian engine bay. And at just $495, this is a good starting point.