65-66 HiPo Air Cleaner?

It looks real to me... almost all repros... and even the "concours correct" ones look like fakes from 20 feet away.. (to me) If I was you I would use it.
I looked through Bob Mannel's excellent book "Mustang and Ford small block V8" and I couldn't find the answer... In my fuzzy memory I seem to remember they can be both ways..
But I have been wrong before.
Jimbo

 

As far as the lid goes I would think it is an early reproduction rather than an original.

You mention the case is original... I take it you found the date on it?

 

Hi, if you have any doubts about the air cleaner lid you should weigh it. Original lids are 24oz +/- .5. Repo's are not near the same weight, about 15-18oz. Maybe they made some early ones with no dimples but the weight is definitely the best test I have found. The bottom is definitely original, even if you don't find a date stamp, never saw a repo with the correct nipple for the closed crank case ventilation like you have on your bottom tray.

 

The correct early air cleaner cover was totally different. The top was all rounded off....no sharp angles like the 66 cover and the one in your pictures has. I have only seen one for sale in like 6 years on Ebay....they are rare. I'm not sure when the change was made by Ford.

 

Here's a picture of the two styles of air cleaners, side-by-side.



My first HiPo, a 64 1/2 coupe (that my uncle bought NEW) came with one like the example on the left.
All three of my 1966 GT350's had one like the one on the right.

The domed lids are much more scarce - in 40 years of swap-meet scrounging, I have only run
across a handful ever offered for sale.

regards,

Jeff

 

I'm jumping in a bit late on this, but I have a few questions. At what point did Ford do the cutover from the early to the late version? In some of the parts catalouges I have (NPD in particular), they show a different Hi-Po air cleaner for '65, '66, and '64 1/2. Were there 3 different versions? Finally, I am getting ready to rechrome a couple of original lids that have finally gotten so bad I can't put it off any longer. I have put it off until now because the Hipo decals I had on them are original and I had not found any current decals that looked like the originals. Are there any decals out there that are excellent repros of the originals? It has been a few years since I checked so maybe there are some good ones now.
Thanks,
Jay

 

I use 2 air cleaners. One to drive the car with. It is a repop, with a repop filter and decal. The other is an original one, with an original "Cobra powered by Ford" decal and an original air filter (Autolite FA-41, doesn't fit too well but that is another issue).
Yes, the engine heat will mess up the decals. So, after about 10-20 minutes at a show, I'll switch the entire air filter assembly.

 

As far as I know, there are only two tops. I believe the reason NPD lists three different assy's has more to do with the BASE than the top.

The "humped" top is good for 64 1/2 and early 65 (don't know the cut-off point), and would have a black base with it. The "flat" top version is good for '65, '66, and '67. In '65 it would have had a gold base; '66 and '67 would have a blue base and a nipple for a connection to a valve-cover breather hose.

The cost to get these plated is getting pretty steep - I think I paid over $100 to get one plated a few years ago.

regards,

Jeff

 

Jeff your pics are no longer on your post..unless my machine is just not showing them..could you post again the versions for me..thanks..I will post some pics also tommorrow of two versions I have and see what you all think..

 

I noticed that the early rounded air cleaner lid which was also used on the 289 Cobra's is being reproed. I think it was a dearborn classics catalog. Just for clarification the early style lid was not used on 65 GT350's.

The Scott Drake concours repros have the correct closed emission base now. The heavier weight of the lid is a good indicator as you mentioned before to tell a genuine lid from a repro but some of the better repros once mounted are almost impossible to tell . That isn't necessarily a bad thing.

 

Here are the pictures:







regards,

Jeff

 

Ok..got some pics..need some help now...the first four pics in this post are of an air cleaner lid that is exactly like the one we have that came with a 67 dated base..it wieghs about 21.9 ounces..notice the little indentations for the wing nut are really close to the hole..also the top of its lip has a tall sharp 90 degree angle on it and the side edges flair out at at 30-45 degree angle....is this factory correct 65,66,67?

 

Now here are some pics of another lid...much heavier ..about 27.5 ounces
Notice the top edge is not as tall and has like a 30 degree angle and the outer edge has a 90 degree angle that..notice the wing nut indentations are not as close to the hole opening and also the hole is a bit smaller than the other lids..at least it looks that way..so what is this lid for???

 

Jimmy,

Both my original lids, which includes the one OE to 6S1757, look like your first set of pics.

Dave

 

thanks Dave...66 and 67s should be the same tops then correct?
I wonder about the second top we have...Its just super heavy and of course you can see the difference in design from the pics of the top bump and the rim against the first pics...

 

65,66 and 67 LIDS (bases different) would all be the same . The last picture you posted is strange to me and not one I have seen on any year Shelby.

 

Dave can you weigh both your lids to confirm what 429scott posted...

the one we weighed that appears to be the correct one like yours weighs 21.9 oz and our original that we rechromed weighs 23.3 oz // now granted our scale could be out of calibration..a touch...

Thanks Bob for the input!! I compared it to a pic on ebay of a current repop and it looks identical..but it sure is super heavy 27.5 ounces.

 

I'll try Jimmy but it may take a little while, don't have access to a scale accurate for light weights. I do think the lower set of pics looks like one of the newer repops.

 

Also keep in mind that a re chromed lid will most likely be heavier then a lid with the thin production chrome. Some thoughts came to mind as I read this thread. The info is very informative but I hope this thread does not cause people to fixate on a heavy lid aspect of the air cleaner assembly. That type of nuance is best left for when all of the other incorrect things are corrected in a engine compartment . For those that think they need a scale the difference between a repro and a vintage lid is a substantial difference in weight. Once you have held a light weight repro and a heavier OEM lid it will be hard to ever mistake one again. I am glad to see some of the after market people doing their homework and if they are going to the trouble of making a reproduction that they make it as close as possible.