67 Country Squire - Adventures in Poor Impulse Control

DSC00239_1 by Jacob Ronald, on Flickr

TLDR: Had been looking for a 67 for the better part of a year, but nothing really lined up. Found one in CO, flew in from Boston, and after a few delays and more than one change in plans, brought it back home after an epic 4500 miles. I've posted most of whats up to date on a station wagon specific forum, but what I'm doing to it shortly isn't quite the restoration they're looking for. First post is mostly the road trip back, second post will have most of the poor work until now. 

Found a 67 out in CO, looks like it's had a series of owners with varying takes on quality work. Car was way rougher than the photos I was sent suggested. Colorado allows for a 30 day out of state temp tag, so I had planned on taking a road trip out to CA, spending a week out there for work, and a week+ to make it back to Massachusetts. Grabbed a load of tools, fluids and spares, knew I had AAA with a 200 mile tow, and figured worst case, rent a uhaul w/ car dolly to get it back.

DSC00217 by Jacob Ronald, on Flickr

Took a few days to get a temp plate, since I timed everything poorly. Got to visit Fort Collins, catch up with friends with fantastic coffee!, and take a day trip up to Mishiwaka. From there, headed west and up an additional 6k feet to winter park CO. Coming down, popped a steering coupler, and limped it on the bolts to Silverthorn - ~45miles and 6k feet closer to sea level. Spent a day waiting on parts, and another day putting them in. Sadly, could only get a hold of a 1970 or later rag joint, so needed to file the column out to accept the 2 big pin setup. Looks like a prior owner had welded these 2 pins on at somepoint. Terrible photo of it, but it definitely wasn't long for this world. 

IMG_20200124_123557 by Jacob Ronald, on Flickr

With 2 days left to get to CA and 800 miles+ to go, I punted and ended up going back to denver and flying out to LA for the week. Wasn't the fun answer, but likely the smart one. Will definitely make it to AZ scrapyards and a 66 proper adventure another year.

DSC00088 by Jacob Ronald, on Flickr

Got back to the car on a Friday, and had 11 days to get back home. Decided to stick southish to avoid winter weather (or so I hoped). Went down to Colorado Springs, spent the morning in Garden of the Gods and took the car up the Pikes Peak toll road. She's an original disc brake model and luckily no significant issues up or down. If you look closely at the front right tire - it turns out it was a 26 year old mismatch to the rest of the set (my fault not noticing before). I stopped at a Discount Tire in Colorado Springs, and got setup with quite possibly the worst all seasons I've ever owned, but only thing close to the original 215 75 15s.

DSC00169 by Jacob Ronald, on Flickr

Next stop was White Sands, NM - which was absolutely fantastic. Have it on the list to come back and camp here in the future. Got to enjoy sledding down the sand dunes. Making the turn east, went to Roswell, NM. The tourist traps were just as kitchy as expected, but the surprise was finding out about Bitter Lakes Wildlife preserve and Bottomless Lakes salt water sinkholes.

DSC00270_1 by Jacob Ronald, on Flickr

Woke up the next morning to a bit of a surprise - snow in New Mexico! This started what turned into 2 days, 14 hours behind the wheel to go 450 miles to Oklahoma City. I've joked like everybody else about 2-3" of snow shutting down the south, having driven through it - I get it now. Drove 10mph for 1:30 outside of Amarillo, and watched a cruiser slide into the car they were stopping to check on.

IMG_20200204_103134 by Jacob Ronald, on Flickr

Got a break at Amarillo in the morning, so at least got to stop at Cadillac Ranch! I ended up with poor timing on most of this stretch of the trip - Tried making the Route 66 museum, got there 30minutes after it closed. 

DSC00608 by Jacob Ronald, on Flickr

Next few days were a slog, until I made it to the capital. Will be going back to TN / NC / DC etc this year (if Summer Nats is able to happen), so wasn't too sad to go through them quickly. Was pulled over for the first time, but completely reasonable for cruising around the capital at 4AM looking for photo opportunities. Officer was super nice, and pointed out a place I could park and take photos after making sure I was just crazy, not a nutjob. Not the greatest photos with the car, but had 1 or 2 I liked. Found out the fun way after making plans with friends, that there are 2 National Air and Space museum locations ><

DSC01167 by Jacob Ronald, on Flickr

DSC01229 by Jacob Ronald, on Flickr

And that pretty much wraps up the trip! 4500 miles, and 3 weeks away from home. 1 major steering repair, and a daily fight in the morning to get her to catch. Cold start can be traced to disconected 12v for the Holley electric choke, and 500CCA battery. Body will be mostly left a lone this year, but will be next winter's project (or at least that was the plan back in Feb). 
Link to an album of trip photos - mostly just more silly car shots, but some mixed content from other stops:
https://flic.kr/s/aHsmLdfBp8

And since this is supposed to be a build thread:

Going 4500 miles in something is a great way to get to know it (and make a "short" list of things that need to be addressed). She's in rough enough shape, I don't intend to try and keep it original. Current plan is a mix of bad ideas, but basic goal is to tow ~3500-4000lbs behind it in the form of a miata "race car" on an aluminum trailer. Stretching that, I want to slowly start prepping it for SCCA CAM-T autocross use (Read Pro Solo practice starts). List isn't in priority, but things that bothered the most on the road trip. My initial goal was <$10k for the year, including the car and roadtrip home, and with the suspension stuff needed shortly will be blowing past that (any sort of budgeting might have helped prevent that). 

1) Door weather sealing / Broken Vent window rod.
All the doors have disintegrated rubber, which has helped them to rust from the inside out. Wind noise was miserable on the ride back, and after the power window switch died (again) I ended up taping the seams. I expect a good portion of the dennis carpenter catalog to get thrown at this eventually, but ordered C5AZ-5420530-PR, which solved 90% of the wind issues, aside from the broken vent window rod. Need to disassemble the door to get at it, and will be doing the rest of the window seals then. in the mean time, added additional foam around the glass and clear taped. not 100% but more than livable. 

2) Radio!
Car has an AM dash plate, and appears to have once had the radio to go with it - now long gone along the way. Dash is cracked and has a pad over it, so the center mono speaker is covered and useless. Has an aftermarket 3x5 in the back that I'm guessing dates back to the 70s. Current plan is to be dumb, and fit a single din Android auto head unit inside the dash - the joying unit I've ordered should fit if tapered down. the screen is on a cable, and uses pushpins for connections, so I shouldn't have to cut the OEM plate to make it work (though it will cover the analog clock). The kick panels are tattered, and can't find decent takeouts / NOS / Reproductions, so going to take a crack at making a set, with provisions for 6.5s up front. Part 2 will likely be 6x9s in the back along with insulation / dynamat when power seats are out being fixed and new carpeting with backing is going in. 

3) Wiring

Car has a total of 5 (glass) fuses. The wiring is a mix of every worst case scenario. There are enough added installations chained off the starter relay that the nut barely threads. 12v was stolen from wherever was convenient (choke tapped the power window relay (unfused)). Headlight switch is on its way out - overheats with high beams, seems fine on low beams but even with the 4 lights its unusable. With the bits I'm adding - way easier and safer to get a new harness made up. I was looking at the painless ford OEM kits, but Norman's post with the Ron Francis setup seems like it may be a better idea. 

4) Wheels / Tires

I know better than to get $50/corner all seasons - why someplace in colorado even stocked them I don't know. Replaced the GT Radial Touring VPs within a week of getting home. Got a set of 15x8 ET0 knockoff bullitts from jegs - they needed a 7mm spacer to clear the front calipers (spoke issues), no issues with the drum rears. Mounted a set of 215 70 15 General Arctics for the rest of "winter" since I used it a couple of times to go snowboarding. Have been trying to plan out dual purpose fun rubber, and have test fit a set of 18x10.5s ET22 which need a 2" spacer up front, 1.25" rear is more than enough (and what I had on hand). Without hacking up the the fenders more than the rust and a wheel have done for me, sticking to 275 40 18s for now. Still need to test fit with rubber mounted.
DSCF3993 by Evan C., on Flickr 

5) Exhaust

Is actually pretty much done for now. Car had 2.5" y-pipe into 2" all the way back. Factory manifolds weren't exactly performance oriented either. Since I'll be needing a wideband sooner than later, figured I'd get it all done at once. Found a set of imitation Hooker Super Comps off of ebay for <$300 - fitment was surprisingly good. Most issues getting them in was getting the car up high enough (install from below), played out motor mounts having it sag slightly low, and differences in ford/saginaw power steering boxes. Kept 3" from the collectors back to the H-pipe, then 2.5" all the way back. 2.5" was from a GM B-body kit that I tried using to save time and effort, but realistically wasn't the ideal way to go (correct size though). 

IMG_20200224_155712 by Jacob Ronald, on Flickr

IMG_20200307_135726 by Jacob Ronald, on Flickr

6) Cold Start fun

I didn't enjoy the 10-15 minute process of starting the car every morning on the way back from Colorado. Once warm, was turn key (and possibly crank for 5sec). While the carb seemed to run OK from 11k ft above sea level all the way down to sea level, its not something I want to have to play with on a regular basis. So I was dumb and ordered this:
IMG_20200302_184756 by Jacob Ronald, on Flickr

Weighed options between FiTech, Holley, and the Edelbrock kits, was able to snag this from Summit with the sump kit for <$1700 with promotions and SCCA member discounts. The original appeal was not needing to modify the tank / add a return line by using their sump setup. Doesn't appear to be baffled, and has notes in the documentation about not for use at extreme angles.  Will likely use it for now, and start planning fuel cell (since tanks are unobtainium for the wagon) with proper plumbing). 

7) Suspension and handling:

I've been procrastinating on this. I knew all the rubber was gone under the car (endlinks are typical for the rest of it):
IMG_20200305_144512 by Jacob Ronald, on Flickr

I've checked for play every time I've swapped wheels around and its always felt tight (for a 60s steering box). There was a slight click in the steering on the way back from Vermont, and a week later, sadly this happened:
IMG_20200323_113639 by Jacob Ronald, on Flickr

IMG_20200323_113635 by Jacob Ronald, on Flickr

Options at this point are OEM Style Stamped parts with bolt in ball joints at just under $500 for the pair (or $400ish from amazon some time next month), I've got a quote from PMT with a 6-8 week lead time on a full front end kit (corrected uppers, lowers and strut rod), and then there is the Hotchkis bits Norman did, (which if you haven't seen the Jay Leno 7 litre videos, you should). With everything going on, need to take a step back and figure out what to do here. I've got a set of QA1 Camaro DA coil on shocks to go up front, going up from 400lb/in(ish) to 600. These require either reinforcement of the OEM lowers since the shock bolts in from below, or aftermarket arms built with the load in mind. Aftermarket arms are likely the way to go, since they take some of the funky angle out of the ball joints, and allow for actual caster/camber up front. 

In the rear, its a mixed bag. Good news is ford 9". Bad news is 2.x open differential. While the car is down, will be measuring for the a caliper kit in the rear. Its a 3 link car, and all of the rubber is gone there too, so replacements are in order. 

Loving it! Great photos also!

'67 is my favorite year Galaxie/Squire. Great work so far!

Looks good! Love me some wagon

Love the old Ford wagons too!  There was a Mercury wagon here in Detroit that I keep thinking about but realized two project cars and a somewhat project bike were plenty.  
 

With a champion three core you would have 4 3/4 inches with a wraptor cvf kit. I'm at 3 3/4 because I had to move my motor a inch forward.

Bravo for taking on a "large" project.  I especially like you aiming towards restomod improvements.

I have a lot of great memories driving a brand new 1967 Colony Park with the 345hp 428.  Something like 5000 pounds.

Norma66-Brent said:

With a champion three core you would have 4 3/4 inches with a wraptor cvf kit. I'm at 3 3/4 because I had to move my motor a inch forward.

Thanks for that! My choice of fan makes it tough, since already 4" deep. Offsetting with the water pump pulley will get me what I need. 

Any adventure in poor impulse control that doesn't end with your glass knives shattering at the wrong moment in a fight with a razor-weilding mafia don is a good adventure! Good luck on the suspension overhaul; this looks like a great cruiser project.

I found a headlight wiring kit on E-bay.   Has new connectors for the lights, and relays, reduces load on the original car wiring and switch.   Comes all assembled just connect some of the car wires and plug onto the lights.  Might be a easy fix for some of the electrical.   To reduce power load, I would replace tail lights with LED's.

TED_fiestaHP said:

I found a headlight wiring kit on E-bay.   Has new connectors for the lights, and relays, reduces load on the original car wiring and switch.   Comes all assembled just connect some of the car wires and plug onto the lights.  Might be a easy fix for some of the electrical.   To reduce power load, I would replace tail lights with LED's.

I've found those, and likely not a bad idea. With the electric fan needing 30amp peak, need to revisit alt / wiring harness anyways. I tried LED rear lighting, but this old wagon flashes the rear brake lights as blinkers. Reverse lights, License plate and front directionals were able to be switched to LED already. Brake lights would just show as dead on dash from lack of load (and not blink at all), so would need further investigation.

I found a bit of documentation on the headlight switch - its meant for 12amp max, which doesn't leave a ton of working room. The Ron Francis kits use an updated switch capable of 30amp, so that will help mitigate in the future. Everything about the wiring of the car is a fire hazard, so a modern fused system is key. 

Going to use this as a scratch pad of parts and quick notes on them for this (wiring/electronics is not my strongsuit, trying to keep it from burning down):

• Headlights:
  • https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B07L45VCT7/ref=ox_sc_saved_title_1?smid=A10QY6INFH3C39&psc=1
  • This seems to be a decent compromise. Want LED lighting, but not the Halo and similar "modern" looking lights. These are classic looking glass housings with adapted H4 LEDs. Total power draw seems like <10amps, so should be fine on stock wiring short term. Look decent on the mustang in the review, but blue'er than ideal. 
• Wiring kit:
  • https://www.ronfrancis.com/prodinfo.asp?number=XP%2D733
  • Car is power window, Power Seat, Power rear window, Electric fan(s), and will have AC added. OEM harness is a E36 M3show of patchwork and brittle / rubbed wiring. 
  • Need to confirm lengths and if rear window can be added since traditionally a separate circuit. 
• Alternator:
  • https://www.summitracing.com/parts/sum-810300
  • 1 wire, so cleans up a bit of wiring. Looks like it works at idle (at least 13v). This engine won't go over 6 for the short term. I can't find labeling on the existing alt. 
  • OEM dash has a charge light that this may cause issues with, need to investigate further. 

Purple Frog said:

Bravo for taking on a "large" project.  I especially like you aiming towards restomod improvements.

I have a lot of great memories driving a brand new 1967 Colony Park with the 345hp 428.  Something like 5000 pounds.

I scaled the car with my gear in the back on the way back and it was 4390ish. I bet that 428 helped it move. I've got drivetrain plans, but nothing worth rushing through, given maybe a trip to bristol and 2? trips to lincoln this year. 

Any reason for not going with Ron Francis part number wr-75

When I was a teenager back in the early 1970s, I worked during the summers as a cook at a boy's camp.  The owner of the camp had a '67 Ford wagon just like yours.

Anyway, one day I had to drive to town to pick up an order of pork chops at the meat market.  It was a rainy day, and I was in a hurry to get back to camp in time to get ready for lunch.  I went to pass a car but there was oncoming traffic, so I had to hit the brakes and pull back in my lane.  The road was more slick and the tires were more worn than I anticipated, and I ended up going into a spin.

The car spun around twice, and fortunately the oncoming traffic missed me.  When I finally came to a stop, there were pork chops laying all over the interior. 

(sorry for the sidetrack, I was just reminded of my own Country Squire experience.  )

Norma66-Brent said:

Any reason for not going with Ron Francis part number wr-75

https://www.ronfrancis.com/prodinfo.asp?number=WR%2D75
It would most likely work, but doesn't seem to support power windows / seats (and I'd like 1 harness, not patch harnesses in addition). Electric fan is going to be relay driven, and controlled via the Edelbrock ECU, so not a major concern there. original power windows were controlled by a non-fused relay on the firewall, and I can confirm it doesn't trip with a short (as found out in the rain in VT, after temporarily reconnecting it so the choke would work). It doesn't mention radio wiring as well. 
As someone who has very little idea what he's doing, the slightly bigger kit seems like a win - anything I can run from a single fuse block is a win for tracing problems - this will be a 3 season semi-daily / toy hauler, so actually trying to solve for reliability for once. 

I need to call them / write up a longer email with everything I'm planning to run and see what they suggest though. There may be a 3rd option better than both

stuart in mn said:

When I was a teenager back in the early 1970s, I worked during the summers as a cook at a boy's camp.  The owner of the camp had a '67 Ford wagon just like yours.

Anyway, one day I had to drive to town to pick up an order of pork chops at the meat market.  It was a rainy day, and I was in a hurry to get back to camp in time to get ready for lunch.  I went to pass a car but there was oncoming traffic, so I had to hit the brakes and pull back in my lane.  The road was more slick and the tires were more worn than I anticipated, and I ended up going into a spin.

The car spun around twice, and fortunately the oncoming traffic missed me.  When I finally came to a stop, there were pork chops laying all over the interior. 

(sorry for the sidetrack, I was just reminded of my own Country Squire experience.  )

Love the story! No idea how you could spin that on anything but a 6 lane highway and avoid other cars though. 

Radiator shroud progress - on 3rd attempt at a shroud layout. Think I'm happy with the following:
IMG_20200331_193548 by Jacob Ronald, on Flickr

Need to finish sealing it tonight (using highbuild automotive primer), then wet sand and wax in the morning - hoping to have a chance to layup and bag it too. I've read a ton of shroud design notes, and hoping this helps. its ~6x17" of space on the right side of the fan, which means I can fit 4x 2x3-4" slots to rubber seal for venting at speed. 

Friend posted this for completely different reasons, but going to pickup one when I get a chance. Its perfect for the back of the wagon and I should be able to score it for the hatch in the back / 2nd row seat tilt. Have big plans for the excess for sealing gaps as needed up front (the shroud vents for one). Expecting it to dampen some of the resonance in the cab too without needing to figure out how to dynamat that surface!

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/4-ft-x-6-ft-x-3-4-in-thick-rubber-stall-mat 

  A single wire alternator will make things a little simpler, but that also eliminates the battery warning light.  But if you have a volt meter that won't matter.

    Avoid a high amp alternator, you can over power some old  parts and melt stuff, can be OK once you have enough relays to reduce the load on the old parts.

    I would use the original switches just to trip a relay.   Getting a LED to work as a flasher is trickery, I tried a LED flasher relay and still had trouble.  Found if I used a normal bulb at the front for the turn signal and a LED at the rear it would work.

     You might want to add a relay to the starter switch, a lot of older cars just use the switch, which worked when new, many years later the switch might only be good enough for tripping a relay.

Awesome Project!!

I got some much more modern looking LED lights for the Travelall. I like the output, but not the style, those ones look much much better.

Fair warning on the stall mat. Its Freaking Heavy.

TED_fiestaHP said:

  A single wire alternator will make things a little simpler, but that also eliminates the battery warning light.  But if you have a volt meter that won't matter.

    Avoid a high amp alternator, you can over power some old  parts and melt stuff, can be OK once you have enough relays to reduce the load on the old parts.

    I would use the original switches just to trip a relay.   Getting a LED to work as a flasher is trickery, I tried a LED flasher relay and still had trouble.  Found if I used a normal bulb at the front for the turn signal and a LED at the rear it would work.

     You might want to add a relay to the starter switch, a lot of older cars just use the switch, which worked when new, many years later the switch might only be good enough for tripping a relay.

I tried playing with light combinations, as far as I can tell the car doesn't even need bulbs in the front for it to function correctly in rear / show on dash. rear is dual tail light bulbs / side, and it worked with just one being LED, but I couldn't stand the brightness difference.
The Starter is on a relay, I actually switched to a high torque mini-starter for header clearance vs the original Ford Coffee Can. To get it clocked correctly, I did ground down a bit of bracing on the current block (and the engagement teeth are pretty beat up, will need to revist at some point).
I don't have a real volt meter, currently using: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07G8Y94PJ for switched 12v power. Bought for road trip accessories and so far not minding it hanging out on the seat. the 12v Cigarette lighter is currently just constant hot, not key switched, so this was an easy solution and the voltmeter is a nice to have. 

java230 said:

Awesome Project!!

I got some much more modern looking LED lights for the Travelall. I like the output, but not the style, those ones look much much better.

 

Fair warning on the stall mat. Its Freaking Heavy.

I was a bit worried about that, and it may be more than I need back there. TSC also carries these, which aren't as cost effective, but might be smarter. Just not a fan of the pebble pattern:
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/utility-rubber-mat-black-4-ft-x-3-ft-x--frac12-in

Since I still am waiting on the temporary arms (Thursday), no rush to figure it out. Might be a better option still. 

Edit:
I did find this place, and while not the cheapest option, 8mm seems like a decent compromise in weight/durability, and would be cuttable on my plotter for making seals / gaskets. The blue fleck might look okay in the car too. 

https://www.rubberflooringinc.com/rubber-roll/8mm-pre-cut-roll.html

Edit #2:
So looking at these 2 photos - a) a lot of air gap to seal, b) I think I can actually pull the radiator forward a 1/2" to an inch. All the room in the world to add the condenser upfront. Will likely be adding an additional trans cooler, since the only way to kill a c6 is heat. 
IMG_20200331_175910 by Jacob Ronald, on Flickr 

IMG_20200331_175927 by Jacob Ronald, on Flickr

  My big electrical adventure, Maserati Biturbo.   The weak link is the complex fuse box, must be a thousand solder joints.  To much load and a solder joint will fail.  The original design had to much load going thru all that.

    I found a single wire alternator to replace the flakey original, same low output, I think it's only 55 AMP, the replacement is actually a ford tractor part.   Too run fuel injection you might need more AMP's.   It's ok if the voltage drops some when running a powered window, since that is just a short temp load.

     As I added relays, things started to work better, load now supported by new wire and the relay.   Relay added for the ignition coil, that seemed to help.   Each relay you add will reduce the load on the original stuff and add clean power to the load.

      The LED tail lights helped to reduce load.  The new head light harness, provided fresh connectors and relays, that helped a lot.

TED_fiestaHP said:

  My big electrical adventure, Maserati Biturbo.   The weak link is the complex fuse box, must be a thousand solder joints.  To much load and a solder joint will fail.  The original design had to much load going thru all that.

    I found a single wire alternator to replace the flakey original, same low output, I think it's only 55 AMP, the replacement is actually a ford tractor part.   Too run fuel injection you might need more AMP's.   It's ok if the voltage drops some when running a powered window, since that is just a short temp load.

     As I added relays, things started to work better, load now supported by new wire and the relay.   Relay added for the ignition coil, that seemed to help.   Each relay you add will reduce the load on the original stuff and add clean power to the load.

      The LED tail lights helped to reduce load.  The new head light harness, provided fresh connectors and relays, that helped a lot.

Both ways come with risk - I'm trying to lean towards the failure points that won't burn the car down. I'm not sure I need a 150amp alt, but way more than an original 55, since that would only cover the electric fan / headlights. 100 would be tight, but the advice I've read has been don't exceed 80% of load rating with expected draw. 

• Electric fan: 30 amp
• Headlights: 10-15 amp (if LED and I go 4 bulb high as an option)
• Edelbrock EFI (not an issue of amp draw, but voltage drop):
  • CHARGING SYSTEM The Pro-Flo 4 EFI System requires a constant battery voltage of 12.0 volts or greater to operate properly. Recommended battery capabilities are: 1000CA @32°F / 800CA @0°F. The vehicle’s battery must be in good operating condition capable of maintaining a proper charge at all times. Verify the vehicle’s charging system is operating properly and that the system voltage maintains 12.0 volts, or greater, at all times. All chassis grounds must be tight and clean. A ground cable from the engine block to chassis should be employed. All battery cables must be in good condition providing a clean tight connection to the battery. BATTERY CHARGER PRECAUTIONS: PLEASE ADHERE TO THE FOLLOWING GUIDELINES OR DAMAGE TO ECU MAY OCCUR. • Be sure the battery has a full charge prior to attempting to start the vehicle. • Never use the “engine start or jump start” setting on a charger to start the engine. • Do not set the battery charger above 10 amps when charging. • Never turn on the ECU or attempt to start the engine with the battery charger connected • Make sure the charger is not charging over 18.0 volts. • If the battery is completely discharged, it is best to disconnect the negative terminal on the battery when charging.
• Fuel Pump: 5-10amp
• Head unit: 10-15 amp initially, with more likely. 
• Vintage air: 10-15: Replaces the original heater box fans, but 7-10amp draw for the replacement, + clutch coil. 
• Everything else: Power windows, Power seats, Tail light / blinker wiring, dash lighting. 

Its likely everything might work on a 100amp just fine, for the cost difference and head room, I didn't mind the extra capacity. Since I'll be using this to bring car and gear to national events, being able to charge power tool packs via inverter wouldn't suck either. Source of power while camping would be nice too, since I usually take a week for oscoda at a primitive site.  

So no real progress the last 2 days. Held up waiting on delivery of most bits / fresh epoxy for the shroud. Have spent a little time thinking about the interior / exterior body work, after seeing @java230's thread. With the folded fender, rot behind the rear doors / rear rockers falling apart - I'm not constrained to keeping the original body lines. This cleaned up Ranch wagon (same year, lower trim) should be sploosh worthy, but I'm not feeling it.

The front and rear wheel wells need to be changed IMO. For the front, I needed to pull it about an inch long term, but there is way more than enough material to make that happen without an issue. With the folded fend damage from the ball joint failure, was going to taper the trailing edge back a bit and smooth out the inner moldings. The rear irks me most , the almost straight drop is aggravating, when there are no vertical lines like that on the car. thinking of using the glass lines from the second row doors, while opening the space up for fitment - 275s fit currently, would like to go larger next year for autox use. The rake there I don't like, given how the rear of the car tapers upwards. Will definitely not be tinting, given that look as well. Nothing solid, just quick thoughts.

From there, was looking at solving some interior hate. Photo shows ~6 different shades of blue in the front seat:
DSC04716 by Jacob Ronald, on Flickr

I like the blue, would just like it to be consistent. Thinking of fixing the dash pad with a plastic welder / putty so I can ditch that carpet molding. Kick panels are shot and stained, was going to mold new ones with speaker provisions (6.75s). and the door cards are made out of cardboard, and the vinyl is wearing through. I've pulled the drivers side door card off, and looks super simple to make a mold of (and can update the attachment method).

I'm not sure if I'll like it, but heavily considering flocking everything - dash / kick panels / door cards. Was going to order a nylon sample set of the black / grey / various blues. I have a carpet swatch I'm leaning towards, and hoping its close. (both are nylon so fingers crossed). 

Below is a Mustang with the Prius EPS conversion - similar room available with mine, though little different in column angle. 

Love your "new" wagon, and the road trip. Thanks.

Way beyond my talent, but I'm liking your thoughts on the fender wheel well opening mods.