About Guitar74

Guitar74

I hear you. I do at times wish it was little more than a gentleman's Mustang when I have to buy the Cougar specific parts.

Guitar74

Sorry, but as an owner of three full size, it is exactly the reason I didn't post any pics of my '65 Galaxie. It has a V8 and rear wheel drive. That doesn't make it a muscle car. Neither does a 413 in a Chrysler 300. The long ram intakes were great for mid range grunt, but terrible above 4,000 rpms. Hence, personal luxury car. In the case of the 413, the short ram intake were the muscle car equipment. The MAX Wedge was the muscle engine. Didn't mean to offend or pick a fight, but the definition of muscle car has been what it has been for decades. Which Bullet car would you call the muscle car? The getaway Charger or McQueen's Mustang. If you answered McQueens 390 Gt, then (buzzer sound), you go to the back of the line.

Guitar74

Gonna be a minute. Have the internals ordered from T. Meyer. It's not gonna set the world on fire, but it WILL make the Thunder chicken a lot more fun when you hit the loud pedal. I'm gonna go ahead and beef up the C6 for the added torque. The 9" will handle it just fine. And it already has a limited slip differential.

Guitar74

The term Muscle car referred to the biggest engine stuffed into an intermediate chassis. The vette has and always will be a sports car. It would be like calling a Ferrari a a muscle car. Why do I bring up Ferrari? Because The Corvette is taking aim at European sports cars. Big block, small block, it's still a sports car. Mustang? Pony car. 1st gen Cougar? Gentleman's pony car. Firebird, Camaro. Pony cars. Challenger and Cuda? Pony cars made to compete with the Camaro and Mustang? No real line blurring. Just because a 340 Duster with a 3.91 gear and a good driver behind the wheel could give a lot of big blocks a run for their money, if not take them in a quarter mile doesn't mean it's a muscle car. It was considered an economy car back in the day regardless of the engine. Jus the opposite with the Thunderbird, Galaxie, and many other full size cars. I am building a 434 high deck Cleveland engine for my wife's '79 thunderbird. That does not change the fact that it is still a full size, big chassis, personal luxury car. It just means that it's a sleeper in the form of a 70s pimp mobile.

Guitar74

I agree. I had to explain to a couple who were older than me what my Cougar was when I first got it. I'm thinking, "Did you two live under a rock back then?"

Guitar74

I know. But that would be like calling my Galaxie a muscle car. It just isn't. I love that car, but it IS a two door luxury land yacht. My Cougar on the other hand.....Well....It's more of a pony car.

Guitar74

I like that one. That is sharp in every sense of the word.

Guitar74

No. They were first marketed as a two seater sports car and over time developed into a personal luxury car. They were NEVER marketed as a muscle car. As an owner of a T-Bird ( a '79 Town Landau), and also an '87 5.0 "bird", and a 3.8 "bird", I can tell that NONE of them were muscle cars. The 5.0 bird was still a luxury car. It was pretty quick for the time, but not "muscular".

Guitar74

I take it someone is a Van Halen fan! Great vid. I missed out on a chance to buy my great uncle's Daytona Charger a little over a decade ago and still kick myself on that one even though missing it was the result of someone else dragging their feet. Great vid.

Guitar74

You COULD have a bad vacuum advance unit. If you plug the hose after disconnecting the vacuum advance and it goes away, then you need a new vacuum advance unit. I wouldn't change from an HEI to an ignitor setup. You already have a good electronic ignition setup. The Ignitor is meant to replace a points unit. If you need to look any further for vacuum leaks, check all of your hoses, line to the brake booster, etc. You could also have a vacuum leak around the carb or intake which is easy enough to find. I use brake cleaner, but have used wd40, and spray it around the carb base and the sides and front of the intake manifold. If your idle changes when you spray in those areas you have found your source. Does the car not respond to the curb idle speed screw when you back it out? Meaning does the rpm drop as you slowly turn out the screw (engine hot off of fast idle)? Or does it stay at the same rpm and just suddenly die? A tell tale sign of a vacuum leak is a high idle that does not drop when you back off the curb idle speed screw until it dies. Sometimes then, it will continue to run with the throttle plates completely closed. If you can back the idle screw completely out and it continues to run, or doesn't respond and then suddenly dies, your engine is getting air from below the throttle plates (carb base, or around the intake, vacuum source below throttle plates like the brake booster, like Sajeev said the vacuum source for your distributor, etc.). I hope that helps. update us with what you find or if you run into any more problems.

Guitar74

THAT Mustang was the reason my '68 Cougar ended up in Augusta Green ( Mercury's way if differentiating itself from Ford) which happened to be the factory color. Talk about happy accidents.

Guitar74

I prefer my speed equipment to be a touch smaller than the big conglomerates. Look what happened to the Weiand name. Their stuff is getting its lunch ate by Professional Products. Just terrible power curves. That's not saying a lot for Pro Products either. It's saying that Weiand has gotten that bad.

Guitar74

Kind of a shame. I have a comp in my Cougar, but for most of my "rodding" life have used Crane with much success. Good grinds, consistent machining, and none of the "lobe wiping" a certain other brand has grown to become known for in their flat tappet line. So I guess my next question will end up being, "Who here is familiar with Isky?"

Guitar74

So this weekend, I thought I would go to Crane's site and maybe do some ordering for a future project if something caught my eye. I am immediately taken to the Comp website. I do a little research and can find nothing about Crane Cams. I found out that S&S, the motorcycle aftermarket brand had bought the name back in '09, which was also news to me. Does anyone know what is happening? Or is there any "official" news about their state of business?

Guitar74

My first Mustang memory? My Dad had a '68 fastback with a straight 6 3 speed manual. Beautiful blue on blue. This would have been around '78 or '79. He put a nice set of mags on it for about 5 minutes. After about the thirtieth guy in a week pulled up beside him and pulled the stoplight Gran Prix, the mags came off. Great looking car that looked much faster than it actually was. My second was my friend's 83 1/2 GT four barrel 5 speed. It was maroon with the black accents. For the time, it was a wicked little machine. Made even more so after we built the engine three years later.

Guitar74

I worked for a glass company that did windows for homes for a high school summer job and they tried to get me with the "use the glass weld" when I broke my first window. I didn't fall for it because it was just a bottle of white out without a label. I did, however, take it upon myself to try it on a new young lady who took two hours trying to "white out" it back together. We told her the white would disappear as it dried. She in turn did it to the next new person. It was always fun and even the person whose expense the joke was at had a good laugh. Good times!

Guitar74

I know where I am buying mine from this point on.

Guitar74

Reminds me of a kid who came into Ace Hardware after his first day at his summer construction job to get his hammer sighted in.

Guitar74

I would gladly pay more for a better product. That being said, I think there are maybe two or three actual battery manufacturers. Ever notice how so many look so similar, but the prices are all over the place? I put a Die hard in my truck back in 2004 or 2005 and it lasted until 2016. Yep. 12 yrs. I would load test it once a year, and it would pass with flying colors until the final test. The Interstate I replaced it with lasted the exact warranty time, no further.

Guitar74

So along with having to replace the Cougar battery, I found the truck battery dead AGAIN. Charged it, let it cool, and got out my trusty load tester. I was kapoot. So I get out my phone and start checking battery prices for a second time. Not that they have changed much in the past month, but JEEEEEZZZ! I looked for the good 'ole Die Hard. It is now sold at Advance, but looks eerily similar to the Advance store brand so it appears that the Die Hard name has been bought by Advance/Carquest and has turned into a sticker that is now covering the store brand. Somehow the store brand has now become 1/3 higher thanks to that new sticker. In the end I just got one from Walmart for $117 out the door with the same CCA and warranty as the, ahem, Die Hard. They even met me at the door. So for $98 before taxes I got a similar, if not the same battery, as Advance for almost 1/2 the price. I'm sorry, but battery prices are off the chain anymore. I noticed the big climb in 2010. Ridiculous!!

Guitar74

Man that is awesome! I am glad to hear it. I am not trying to discourage you. I would just start by saying that you have to crawl before you can walk, so don't expect too much too soon. Some of the more mundane tasks will actually help you out with the more complicated ones. Depending on the shop, and the guys that are full timers, I would say that things can go one of two ways. You will either have a group of guys that recognize that you want to learn and will help you on that path, or guys that will want to order you around and not really try and show you anything. The second group tend to be a LOT less skilled than the first, so remember that. I would also say to be prepared to work with alphas, so don't take things too personally if they like to verbally pounce. I would say that if that's the case, give it right back to them and let them know you are there to learn, not to be a verbal chew toy. There's nothing wrong with standing up for yourself. Just try to differentiate between clowning, constructive criticism, and douchery. I would also say to be prepared to deal with the type that are very meticulous about their cars. I.E., if you work on it, make sure it is clean when you're done. If you have to sit inside for anything, cover the seats and floors so you don't mess up seats, upholstery, carpet, etc. Actually, no matter what the shop, you should treat a client's car like it's your own. That will earn you a lot of respect with the shop owner and vehicle owners. Cover fenders, front fascias, anything and everything that you lean on/over. The first and usually constant rookie mistake I have noticed is that. Also, remember that fast does not necessarily mean good. Take your time and do your best to do things right the first time. Speed and efficiency will come with experience. I wish you the best young man.

Guitar74

Anything with a high ZDDP content that doesn't make me get a second mortgage every time I change it. Most of the time? Shell Rotella T for the high ZDDP content.

Guitar74

First off, welcome! Unfortunately, I have no experience with Mopars of that age. Nor do I with convertibles. Hopefully we can get some attention to this post. Post some pics of your '50 too. I would love to see it.

Guitar74

Wow! I'm not for coddling you. I am also not for jumping on you unnecessarily. I will, however give you an "atta boy" for not taking it. I got jumped on as a kid your age from a few of the more experienced. I learned from it in more than one way. I learned to not let someone talk down to me no matter how much older or bigger they were. I also learned to get some knowledge on things I didn't know about before speaking if I didn't want to get called out. That being said, I have NOT found any of your comments to go beyond your knowledge as someone who doesn't drive or own a car. In fact, I have found your attitude to be quite the opposite. I see you as frequenting this forum to try and gain some knowledge, and bond with other people who are as passionate as you are. I also found your response to be rather mature for someone of your age. Even though I got my first car at a very young age by losing someone very close to me who I would have given the car up for in a heartbeat if I could have had them back, I considered myself a car guy from the day that I told my Dad's friend he was about to put a clutch in backwards. I was 7 at the time. I didn't have a car. I didn't have a driver's license. But I loved cars. Particularly, I wanted to LIVE in my Dad's '69 Superbee. No, young man. You ARE car guy. Now make those plans you talk about a reality. And don't let any of us discourage you. I can have sharp elbows sometimes, so my apologies in advance.

Guitar74

I am not going to coddle anyone on this topic. I think this young man is just trying to get some advice and experience and maybe stand on the shoulders of us older guys in the hobby. I did the same thing once upon a time. And a couple of times I got shut down by the more experienced when I started commenting on things I didn't have any knowledge of. You know, that actually made me more eager to learn than anything. The fact that I got told I was wrong. And...it was told to me under no uncertain terms. Do you know what we called it back then? We called it being guys. And it was how you came back that either put you in or out of the club. We didn't call it being nasty. It was just guys being guys. Heck, what most of my friends and I said back and forth to one another when I was growing up would be considered terroristic threats today. And sometimes we got into fist fights over it. Someone won. Someone lost. And anywhere from 5 minutes to a week later, it was like nothing ever happened. Now, personally I'm not going to jump on him, but a few snarky comments I don't see as that big a deal. In fact, I would go a little further and say that my failures in life taught me more than any successes that I may have had.

Guitar74

I miss speed shops. Most of them here in Metro Atlanta have folded. Amazingly enough, in my home town of Danville, IL, as depressed as that town is economically still has Faegan's (I mis-spelled it on purpose as it was seen as a slur). That place has been there for longer than I have been alive. And, it's still a great speed shop. I'm with you on the over the counter bench racing. I also miss going to the local Harley dealer in Danville and having free coffee. Gutteridge's Harley Davidson was an institution. It ended up being a victim of that economy which is a shame. Mike did a lot for that community, and when the chips were down, they did nothing in return.

Guitar74

Nice. Glad to see you went with the triple carb setup. Sweet!

Guitar74

I guess I should have clarified WHAT it was I did for the PD. I did a remodel job so I probably would be the LAST person with whom you should seek legal advice. Way off topic, but one day I walked in with my tool belt over my shoulder and a prospective client was in the waiting room. Not wanting to be rude, said hello to which he responded by asking if I was there doing community service. I couldn't resist and spun a pretty good tale that had him salivating. It was basically,"Man, I knocked over a liquor store. But that wasn't the end of it. I would have gotten away clean if I hadn't gotten pulled over for drag racing. That would've been the end of it if they hadn't found a kilo of cocaine in my trunk. I'm telling you, these guys are that good." My friend and the PD were close enough to the glass window to hear the whole exchange. My friend was laughing. The PD was a little upset, but still found it funny. His response was,"Do you realize how much more pressure I am under now?" I just couldn't help it. The idea that I walk in and the immediate conclusion drawn from him was that I was there against my will as some sort of debt repayment to society just got me in the mood to mess with someone.

Guitar74

Good point. I remember flipping through the pages of all the car mags WAY before getting my first car. When I did get it, all of the reading of tech articles, sitting on the fender well of some of Dad's cars while he wrenched, a learning things from him, his friends, having auto mechanics classes available in high school, etc., all got me prepared for what I was doing. With many industrial classes being dropped in schools, I see generations without skills we would have considered rudimentary when we were young.

Guitar74

My wife would kill for your Vette. That's niiiiccce.

Guitar74

I think the only difference I would be able to tell is the payment. You communicate as well as anyone else on here. Don't sell yourself short.

Guitar74

I didn't take it that way. I was just trying give a warning about going down that path. I guess to put in perspective, I will tell you of an experience with doing some work for our local Public defender a few years ago. One of the guys I am buds with looked a little stressed and VERY busy. I made the comment about it being a sign of the times to which he replied, "Or way too many laws," as he pulls out a book that would make the Bible look like a paper back short story and proceeds to inform me that THAT book was just the laws put on the books for 2013. The comment made about the average Georgian breaking at least two laws on the way to work gave me a moment of pause even if it was a bit of an exaggeration. I never took what you said as wanting a nanny state. On the flip side, I hope I didn't come across as an arm flailing "Alex Jones er".

Guitar74

Wow. I sure did open a can of worms with this topic. My final thought on the matter is the following: I remember when Volvo REALLY started marketing themselves in the 90s. All I can hear in my head on the radio ads is, "the world's safest car". When I was on the road, my BIG observation was, "bought by the world's worst drivers". NO amount of nannyism will ever take the place of skill, common sense, knowing one's limits, and having/using good judgement. Making laws to "revisit" some of those freedoms because one feels that they are at risk by others using poor judgement is as bad an idea as the fellow using poor judgement. Why? Because, and this is a little less than scientific (much like my little test), you have a cause of an accident, and the results. Just because this guy is a danger with his overloaded vehicle doesn't mean that the others around him are less of one. It's not up to me or anyone else. MY responsibility is to identify the hazard, and avoid it. Many a free society has fallen, and many an individual liberty has been taken away in the world's history in the name of "saving people from themselves". The result? More freedoms taken away, and those that are "protected" are no more than they were before some bureaucrat used his pen to "keep them safe". Example: look at how our society becomes less and less able to take care of itself all the while relying on government, technology, and everyone but themselves to solve their own problems. And to think, this started out as a traction control test.

Guitar74

There's the unobtainium. I would be willing to bet that your inputs had as much to do with it as the system.

Guitar74

No doubt they were going faster. In every case you could see the tread marks that showed the exact moment they ran out of talent, or had the computer decide that it had more than them, as well as the paint and debri marks leading up to the final resting place. In every case the cars slid probably 100 ft. or more. I felt for one guy as he still had the drive out tag. I think it is around 100 feet from the top of the hill to the stop light. I am glad it works for you. I would just caution you, and of course I can tell that you are more than capable of knowing your limits anyhow, to be well aware of how close the system gets you into the point of no return if you end up in a hairy situation, which I also hope you don't find yourself in.

Guitar74

Yeah. From my experience yesterday morning, I will leave the control in my hands forevermore.

Guitar74

So around 2016, or maybe 2017, we had three separate occasions where late model 5.0 mustangs ended up on their roofs in pretty much the same spot. I was left thinking to myself, "With all of the supposed driver aids that are supposed to enhance the driver's ability to keep the shiny side up, how does this happen?" Fast forward to today. Usually at least once a week, I pick up mom's '08 Grand Marquis and take it to work to keep it from just sitting. Since we had a monsoon, I decided to see what the traction and stability control would actually do in a traction deficient environment in a car that had enough torque to actually lose grip, and enough weight to get unstable and make the rear step out around a corner. So as luck would have it, the intersection where Christian Circle and GA 20 meet was clear and I was moving around 20 mph around a wet corner with all of the slick intersection paint. I nailed the gas. The rear end started to step out, and that is when BOTH systems took effect. What happened? The act of cutting the throttle, and randomly hitting different corner brake systems actually worked AGAINST me when I did what I already knew how to correct the rear end drift. It made it worse in every way. Thankfully, I was prepared for this and was ready to shut off the traction system and take control of the car and physically correct it. If I had left the systems on to "accentuate" my correction, I would have either been in oncoming traffic, the ditch, or facing the wrong direction. While this was "less than scientific", I have arrived at a few thoughts on "driver aid" systems. The first being that the computer can only sense a few things and will NEVER be able to take the place of a competent driver. PERIOD. The second is that artificial traction is NOT traction. The traction control sucks in comparison of say a torque biasing limited slip which was already in production and would have been WAY cheaper than, for example, the R&D that went into developing a system that doesn't work very well. Based on my experience this morning, I now know how three mustangs with double the power and probably 1000lbs less weight ended up sliding down the hill at the intersection of Parker Rd and Flat Shoals Rd. It makes perfect sense now. It also makes perfect sense as to why I laid waste to the late model 'Stang in my Cougar. The traction control REALLY pulls back the power. If he had a good limited slip, good tires, and knew how to launch, he would have decimated me. My advice? If you buy a late model 'Stang, just buy a good torque biasing limited slip and get some real grip. If you don't know, or aren't sure if you can keep up with the kind of power in that particular chassis, then work up to driving it hard.

Guitar74 · ‎19-03-2021

Respect. Go with what you like. I would still like to have a '95 240sx. I don't care if they were considered underpowered for the chassis. They looked great. As far as Hondas go , I always liked the looks of the late 80s Preludes. Nice driving cars as well.

Guitar74 · ‎19-03-2021

Thanks, Jon. I wouldn't mind a TR6. That is, if my 6'2" 240 lb frame could fit 😁 .

Guitar74 · ‎18-03-2021

Just keep it 283 and let them believe it.

Guitar74 · ‎17-03-2021

Being a savvy shopper is a great skill. Being well informed and frugal enough to get quality and value is not a small thing.

Guitar74 · ‎17-03-2021

I learned soldering from having played guitar since the 80s. How does it apply? I like to swap out pickups, make my own cords, and do my own repairs. My advice? Start on big thins and work your way to small stuff and pc boards. It's real easy to lift a trace off of a pc board if you use too much, or not enough heat. You then end up in a REAL pickle.

Guitar74 · ‎17-03-2021

Well. On hers, it is SO clean, it would provide a good reference FOR a resto, albeit a six cyl car. That is coming from someone who, much like you, likes to mod but sort of keep it in the period (well that and I like my cars to sort of look like they did when I fell in love with them). The guy who swore his '68 Cougar was much nicer than mine sheepishly answered, "I don't have it anymore" when I asked him where his was. My answer was "I guess it really doesn't matter then. Does it?" He abruptly left while my wife and I laughed out loud (I hate being that way but 30 seconds of that is enough let alone what seemed like 5 minutes).

Guitar74 · ‎12-03-2021

I want the mopars. All of them. And the '70 fastback. It looks like the kids that lived across from my dad in '84.

Guitar74 · ‎12-03-2021

Dude don't take on such a defeatist attitude about it. Be patient (this is coming from a guy whose patience is notoriously short and was even more so when he was your age). The things you want will come to you, but not by giving up before you get started. I saw that "if God throws me a bone" comment and kind of laughed. Have you tried asking? Without getting too philosophical about it, I think in some areas you are on the right track. You know what you want. You have taken steps to get there. Sure, you don't have a garage and live in a townhouse. I didn't have my own garage until I was 27 (when I bought my first house). You couldn't begin to count the times I had to work on my cars outside of our duplex, in the parking lot, sometimes in the rain, just to get them running or repaired so that I could get to work. That doesn't even account for having to work on the only car I had kept at that point rom my high school years to get it back to "fighting weight". What I am telling you is the same thing I tell many younger people who start at my office. Things don't happen as soon as you're out of college. That $70,000/yr job is out there, but you're going to have to work UP to it. The same thing goes for wrenching, fixing, up, or even repairing a car enough to get you back and forth to work or school. You have to crawl. Then you walk. Then you run. It's a marathon, not a sprint. And you'll have to pay some dues/ eat some crow along the way. You work your way up and BUILD that knowledge of exotic fuel systems, cam degreeing, distributor re-curving, head porting, as time wears on. Do you know how I learned most of my car related stuff? My Dad, his friends, Hot Rod Magazine, Popular Hot Rodding, Car Craft, Chilton's big orange EVERYTHING BUILT FROM 1970-1977 (and yes it even has a section on head porting) book, and time. Don't give up before you get started or you will never get where you want to be. And if need be, stand on the shoulders of some of us old guys on this forum. I, for one, would be glad to help out with any questions you may have. I did. So has everyone else.

Guitar74 · ‎12-03-2021

There was an editorial in an old issue of Hemming Muscle machines that called out guys like that. They called them "Makers of the Marquee". From that last post it sounds like you've met more than a couple in your time. I love them, they HAVE to draw attention to themselves by pointing out how much more rare, valuable, etc., their car is. When you point out that his '68 GTO didn't come with a tri power, they just claim that's what makes it all the more rare, valuable, and exotic. Yeah those guys are fun to make fun of. The last guy that picked the Twister tribute my stepdad and I built apart compared to his original 340 Duster wasn't so happy when I blew his doors off with the "paltry" Twister with a built 318. I guess his factory stock 340 wasn't up to the task of taking on a built little 318. Of course it's a pretty healthy little 318 (did the EXACT build Dulcich did years ago when he was the Mopar Muscle Tech guy).

Guitar74 · ‎12-03-2021

I haven't driven the Cougar since I fixed the Headlight covers. I did take the Galaxie to work yesterday and today. Yesterday started out in the high 30s and ended up in the high 70s. Almost 80 today. I hope it sort of levels at this point.

Guitar74 · ‎12-03-2021

I just finished reading the story on the "Black Ghost" Challenger that used to terrorize the street racers and disappear. It was a terrific read, but also brought back memories. When I was in high school, I was running two cars; A B5 blue '69 Sport Satellite, and a '79 Camaro Type LT (I know some will say "no you had a Berlinetta", but that would be wrong. It truly was a Type LT). The Plymouth had a 440 (Indy Heads, BIG solid roller, hemi oil pickup, 2" headers, and Mallory Dizzy with an Indy Single plane and 850 Holley), Torquflite, Dana 60 rear with 3.91 gears. The Camaro had a 327 out of a 66 Corvette (double hump heads, Duntov cam, reworked HEI, 1 5/8 headers), a muncie m21 four speed and more freeway friendly 3.55 gears with a locker in the 10 bolt. Both cars were pretty quick and held their own. BUT!!!!! A couple of times a year, this kid would come across the state line from Cayuga Indiana in a flat black AMX, 390 four speed car. He would literally take all of us to school, then disappear back across the state line. He beat everyone. I mean everyone. He never stopped to hang out, or talk unless he was setting up a race. He never talked about what he was running except to say it was a 390, and never lifted the hood. That car was wicked. And he could drive the wheels off of it. The closest I got to him in the Plymouth was a fender. I didn't even try in the Camaro. I guess I could have tried to swindle him into a top end run with my LTD (did that to a LOT of 5.0 stangs back in the day much to their chagrin), but still would have been playing catch up to a much larger degree (at least until the 1/4 mile was up). That little AMX would pounce out of the hole like a cat that had its tail lit on fire. My cars hooked, but he would always jump out. It looked like Darth Vader's hot rod. it had about as much mystique as the Lincoln in "The Car". He was the "ghost" around our circles.

Guitar74 · ‎11-03-2021

Absolutely. I have been contemplating that one. A fresh AOD with the constant pressure valve body (makes the kickdown just that...a kickdown. no more fear of grenading the trans due to a tv cable that is slightly out). Oh yes, I have DEFINITELY thought about that one.

Guitar74 · ‎11-03-2021

Nothing wrong with restomodding your T-Bird. The FIRST thing I did after taking possession of my Cougar was to get rid of the anemic drum brakes up front and replace them with some 4 piston discs. This is on a numbers matching car, albeit, a base model 289 automatic car. Thankfully it is a console shift. But.....If I ever decided that I would want three pedals instead of two, I wouldn't hesitate to go t5 or tremec. I have been thinking of either a 4 link, or independent rear suspension. My point is, enjoy your car. Make it your own. And make it into what suits YOU. If I had a nickel for everyone that tries to pick apart my mostly original with a few "day two" mods, I could retire while I am still young. I just suggest that if they really don't like my car that much, they are free to build their own, or better yet, just not talk.