OEM Air Cleaners
Following is a summary compiled from past posts on the subject of “original air cleaners.” Special thanks to Barry Sieb who has done most of the research into the subject and posted the distinctions between the various air cleaner models in the archives. Posts by Mike Drew and Steve Liebenow were also significant to this aggregation.
There were at least 3 different factory air cleaners used on the 71-74 Ford program Panteras. The orientation of the snorkel was changed several times, pointing in different directions.
Details:
1. It seems the first type was all plain blue, lid and bottom, and came on push-button cars and continued through the cars that had the closed chamber heads, the square bore 4300A Motorcraft carb and single point ignition. These were the 1971 models with the 4V engines (up to car #2292 maybe). The air intake snorkel was at about 8 oclock pointing rearward on the left hand side. It looks like a standard Ford air cleaner with the positions of things moved around to suit a mid-engined car. The earlier cars before #2292 took C8AZ9601A (FA-50). Note that the original air cleaner on Forest Majors’ Pantera (#2242) built Oct 1971 with the 4V closed chamber heads had the chrome plated lid and blue bottom/base.
2. The second type had a chrome plated lid and the bottom was blue. It was obviously a modified Mustang/Cougar part. The air inlet is at about 8 o’clock on the left-hand side. The snorkel and heat stove are both in different locations from the Mustang 351CJ. The standard cut outs are blocked with riveted plates. These air cleaners came on the engines from 1972 that had the 4300D and the dual point distributors and 4 bolt mains. Both pre-L and L cars in 1972 appear to have had this type past car #4000. All the air cleaners after #2292 used the same filter according to Ford (DOGY9601A Autolite/Motorcraft FA-74).
3. The third type came on later product L model cars and is the same as type 2, except the air inlet snorkel is pointing to the passenger side front with a duct attached to pick up cooler air near the ground at the firewall behind the passenger seat (1973-74).
Is it a Mustang air cleaner? Some have purported that the Pantera air cleaner may simply be the same air cleaner, spun around 180 degrees – pointing either towards the front-right or rear-left of the engine depending on the application. HOWEVER, you cannot spin the air cleaner 180 degrees as the dent for clearing the distributor cap ends up on the wrong side (there’s no dent on the opposite side of the air cleaner base). In addition there’s a relief on the bottom side of the air cleaner to clear the carb linkage which is absent on the other side as well.
Note: The Ford parts book lists three different air cleaner assemblies:
a. Before serial number 2292 (#1 above?)
b. 2292 to 3756
c. And from 4840. Which begs the question… what about the cars between 3756-4840?
4. There were different types used on European and post-Ford era cars, but info on them is limited. Post Ford-era air cleaners may have a black wrinkle finish on the base with a chrome plated lid. These were possibly to match the finish on the B&M produced Hall Pantera “DeTomaso” valve covers with the black crinkle finish. Gary Hall once reported that the factory bought a bunch of those air cleaners from him in the 80’s.
Now before you all run out to the wrecking yards to try and find original Ford air cleaners to use as Pantera versions, take note… Since the Pantera motor was a Mustang/Cougar motor used from 1971-on in those models, they likely received the same air cleaners on them when the shipping pallets arrived in Modena. They are special to those model cars as well! While “based” on the air cleaners used in thousands of other Ford cars, they have that little vacuum motor for fresh air intake on the side! Some of you would recognize this option from the “Q” code 428 cars of 1969 and 1970, and the Boss 302’s that didn’t get shakers. Ford continued this same feature in the 4V equipped Mustangs from 71-73. They are unique in that they have the rest of the vacuum and charcoal vent tubes, and hot air intake stuff, plus that little vacuum operated door on the side. That is what sets them apart from the rest. These were the Q-code air cleaners that were used in these later years. “M” code air cleaners are the plain type used on 2V and 4V engines interchangeably. They were used on the Boss, CJ, and HO models of Mustangs and Cougars, making them somewhat valuable to the restorers. Now, DeTomaso may have moved the air intake snorkel around to face rearward, but they also built odd tin shrouds around this “extra” ram air intake too. We have seen some air cleaners that seemed to have two extra shields on them for some reason or another. Having been modified so much, they would have little to restorers of vintage Mustangs except for parts to fix theirs.
Sources:
http://server.detomasolist.com/pipermail/detomaso/2013-March/086773.html
http://server.detomasolist.com/pipermail/detomaso/2009-February/041614.html
http://server.detomasolist.com/pipermail/detomaso/2009-February/041415.html
http://server.detomasolist.com/pipermail/detomaso/2009-February/041500.html
http://server.detomasolist.com/pipermail/detomaso/2009-February/041513.html
http://server.detomasolist.com/pipermail/detomaso/2009-February/041605.html
http://server.detomasolist.com/pipermail/detomaso/2009-February/041611.html
NOTE: This is NOT MY RESEARCH, but rather a summary of the research of others. Hopefully it helps shed some light on the subject. Forgive me if I’ve missed material information on the subject or failed to give appropriate credit. If you have corrections, more information, or pictures to share please submit via the contact page.