Electrical
With the engine ready for the road, we had to get the rest of the truck up to speed. The turn signals didn't work. They worked before we took the dash out, so our first thought was we were going to have to take the dash out again in order to chase the short. As it turns out, the rear taillight pigtails were so packed with grease they would periodically short out. After a thorough cleansing with electrical cleaner, all the lights finally worked.
The next problem was our Optima batteries needed to be secured. We headed down to the local parts store and bought two Lynx battery hold-down kits (part LBHK) for $3.99 apiece. The top strap is made of rubber (an insulator), which will help isolate vibrations. This setup is just temporary. We'll be looking for something strong enough for racing in the future.
Body
With the engine running better, our attention shifted to the body. First we measured diagonally across Project 300's engine bay to see if it was square. It was close, so we didn't need to do any major pulling on a frame rack. The passenger-side corner took the biggest hit. A slight tug with a rope attached to a Jeep pulled the radiator support back to its original position. DP
 Notice the burnt crud coating...  Notice the burnt crud coating the rear taillight connector. This was the source of our intermittent electrical short. We decided to start at the farthest end and work our way toward the fuse box. |  We decided to scrap the Ford's...  We decided to scrap the Ford's front filler piece located between the headlights and the bumper since we live in sunny California and clean sheetmetal is plentiful. |  The rust on the bottom of...  The rust on the bottom of our fenders is not from road salt--leaking battery acid caused it. We also checked the body mounts to see if they had shifted at all--they hadn't. |
 Take a look at the opposite...  Take a look at the opposite side to get an idea of what the mangled metal is supposed to look like. |  Getting the dent out of the...  Getting the dent out of the fender was tricky since it is double-paneled. A stud welder and a slide hammer are needed to fix it properly. We did the best we could by sliding a prybar into a small access hole and pushing it out from the inside. |  Here is Feature Editor Mike...  Here is Feature Editor Mike McGlothlin removing interior pieces. We pulled the headliner and the carpet out. It is noisier but that is OK since it helped us track suspension squeaks we couldn't quite make out before. We discovered our front shocks and shock bushings were trashed. Plus, we got the sagging headliner off our heads. |