On a recent project, notably the 1970 Mustang Mach 1 shown elsewhere in this site, a decision was made to facilitate an easier method of engine removal and installation, as 385 series engines were never meant to be put in these cars in the first place.  This “enhancement” involved the removal of the upper radiator support member located at the front of the car.  Yes, this is a stiffening member, however, with the installation of a removable fabricated aluminum support, this support is returned to the front end.  Also involved in this removal is the problem that the hood latch assembly is removed along with the upper support, as it attaches here.  Therefore, this must be rectified as well.

To get to the nitty gritty of the process, cut off the support at both the left and right sides of the radiator opening, making sure to cut off the corners remaining so the remainder is flush with the fender bolts.  Once that is done, one must figure out how to attach the hood so it will not flip up upon driving the car for the first time.  This is accomplished a variety of ways, though the way chosen here was simply to install hood pins, as the car has a fiberglass hood and this was the previous method of fastening anyway.  Again, even hood pins can be installed however one chooses, and here the desired method was to weld a threaded rod – a.k.a. Bolt – to the lower frame at the front of the car and extend a hollow rod up through the front sheet metal with female threaded portions on either end.  One of these was then threaded onto the bottom male threads, and the upper end was used to thread the hood pins into.  Making sure these line up correctly with the holes in the hood is really the hard part, and the most important.

Once those are installed, one can fabricate a crossmember/radiator support out of sheet stock – here aluminum was the metal of choice simply for its light weight.  The important thing to remember is the 90 degree bend on the back side to mount the radiator, and a slight bend on the front just for strength.  Also of note is the correct location of the holes for the hood pins (as they are used to hold the crossmember in place) and for the holes for the fender bolts on either end, as these are used to mount it as well.  Once the angles are bent and the holes are drilled, it’s ready to install and there you go.  Fasten radiator and drive away, knowing that the next time the engine has to come out, the job will be oh-so-much-easier.