Rising from the ashes..
 

Good day all,

Even with a join date of 2014, I'm still quite new to Club Cobra. Being raised in a Ford family, I have never been without a blue oval in my driveway. However, with that said, I have been a long time CC lurker. Many of you may recall my late Father, Rick Parker who passed away mid-November, 2014 while tinkering away on his beloved NAF slabside 289.

As the son of a long-standing CC member, and a fellow gearhead, I have just recently acquired the results of my Father's blood, sweat and tears. Unfortunately, the car has been sitting in storage, untouched and un-driven for three years. Flat-spotted and cracked tires, rotten gas in the tank, lines and carbs, and stale fluids all need refreshing. I have made a promise to myself to get Dad's car back on the road ASAP. New tires are a necessity, and all 4 Webers will likely need to be pulled and inspected and/or rebuilt thanks to the California ethanol pump gas. There is also a diff leak and the battery is toast. The era-specific single stage paint needs a great deal of attention, which luckily is my specialty. I initially set a deadline of completing the car over the winter to debut it at the Cars and Coffee Folsom (Sacramento, CA area) on Jan 5, 2019, however, I don't foresee making that deadline. This will be a long road, but the enjoyment will be in the journey no matter the duration. Regardless, I will complete this and get it driving again.

Below is a pic of the car after Dad completed a L-O-N-G body off restoration many years ago. My goal is to get his pride and joy back to its former glory - in my Father's honor.

http://www.clubcobra.com/photopost/d.../289_Cobra.jpg

You may see me poking in more often, gleaning knowledge from you as I recognize this as the honeypot of experience. I thank all of you in advance for the guidance. I'll update this thread with in-process and completion pics as time allows.

- Justin

Good to hear from you again, Justin.

I do remember your Dad, and miss his presence here on C.C.
What a beautiful slab he has left you ! I'm sure you'll do right by it, and give it the attention it deserves !
RIP Rick

Ted Radtke

Welcome, Justin.
Your dad gave many on here great advice, including myself.
That's a fine looking machine.
I'm sure you'll do your dad proud.

And welcome from me too Justin. A lot of us here on the forum gained much from Rick's knowledge and advice, and whenever I'm looking through an old thread and see Rick's name on a post, I do pause and reminisce just a little.
I'm sure you will look after your "recently acquired...results of my Father's blood, sweat and tears" in a manner that he would be proud of.

Cheers!
Glen

Congratulations and welcome! I did not know your father but am glad to hear you have taken up his well loved Cobra.

You will do your father's pride and joy justice. I remember reading your father's posts and the post about his passing. He is missed and it is nice to have you here on this forum.

@blykins Thank you Brent, I still remember buying that Valeo OE clutch from you back in the day. Worked great in the Foxbody up until I sold the car. (miss that bucket!)

@motorhead Thank you Ted, I appreciate the kind words. Mom actually had the car delivered to my house recently. Very kind of her actually.

@rodneym Good day Rodney, I hope so. Otherwise I have an ass kicking waiting for me upstairs.

@xb-60 G'day Glen, Thank you for taking the time to post up the kind words about Dad's contributions. It pains me to see the car sitting in its current state. I need to get cracking before it gets overly cold!

@1795 Thank you, It still brings a tear to my eye to look at this car which now resides in my garage, remembering the good times (and the bad). Reading that original thread still pains me. :tear:

This car inspired my 289.
Whatta car, Miss your fathers advice and input.
Welcome and keep the pics coming.

Justin,

Your Father was a good friend of mine and he drove the Cobra up here and we had a great day driving over to the dam and other places he found interesting. He did a fantastic job on it and we really enjoyed talking on the phone and deciding what he wanted to do next. It is a beautiful car and I hope that you can get it all fixed and running again soon as it deserves to be driven.

Ron

Justin, I'm sorry to say I never knew your Father, but I'm sure I know what it was like as my Father (He was my Hero) was just like yours. I grew up knee deep in Sports Cars. I had the honor to decide what to do with his last & favorite car (All org 69 Saab Sonett II) I ended up selling (We just called it "The Blue Car") to the Pres. of the Saab Club (The right Caretaker). If my Father owned a Cobra there would never been a doubt who the next "Caretaker" would be. I'm sure both of our Father's are looking down and smiling that we have done the right thing, As you know you have lot's of friends here to help with the Cobra. Cheers Tom.

Thanks all,

I appreciate the warm welcome, much nicer environment than the sense of entitlement I find on the late model Mustang site I'm a member of.

As the sole provider for my household of 4 little people and 2 adults, money is tight, as with many of us. I'm also concentrating my energy on completing higher education in my off hours. As such, I'm not left with a lot of recreational time to tinker. I'll be sure to keep everyone updated as I make progress. Thanks again!

Tom, I love hearing stories like these. Dad and I had many similar stories of our own, including the time he welled up as we watched his former Datsun 510 (partial trade for the Cobra) drive off on a trailer. Thank you for sharing.

I talked more than a few times with your dad! Rick was a great guy and a stand out in our world! Glad to see you’re going to continue on with his car! We’ll be glad to help with any questions that may arise. Welcome!
Larry

Good day all,

Ever since my Dad's passing, I have promised myself that I would be the one to take care and enjoy his car indefinitely, passing it down to my little car guy. However, I didn't realize the car would arrive to me in such rough shape. Items mentioned above necessitating attention, in addition to the time needed, while I'm stretched thin tending to a family make free time pretty much non-existent.

I have repeatedly crunched numbers, visiting multiple scenarios and have come to the conclusion I cannot afford to give this project the attention it deserves. It pains me to the core to say this, but I'm forced to let the car go. I'll be posting a for-sale ad here over the course of this weekend.

Thank you all for the kind words regarding my Father's contributions. It's heartwarming to know he's missed here almost as much as he is at home. :(

Please take specifics about the car to personal messages - thank you

Really sorry to hear that Justin. I understand how much of a wrench it would be to make the decision to lose the car.

Best regards,
Glen