Most people expect to use their cell phone in the event of an emergency. The sad fact is that there are literally thousands of miles of roadway in the United States where cell phones are useless. Because of terrain or population density cell phone towers will never provide 100% coverage of the United States or Canada.

Unfortunately since systems like Onstar rely on cell phone towers they cannot be relied on in many rural areas.

If you are stranded on the side of the road an emergency CB radio can be removed from your trunk, plugged in to the cigarette lighter and operating in less than a couple of minutes. After tuning an emergency CB radio to channel 19 one can often summon the help of a trucker as they pass by. Emergency CB radios do not typically have a great range but can transmit a call for help up to a couple of miles. This is enough to communicate with passing trucks.

In some areas of the country channel 9 is still monitored by emergency personnel or volunteers who work with REACT or the Radio Emergency Associated Communications Teams. In the event of an emergency you should first try channel 9 and if you cannot make contact there, switch to channel 19 and try to contact a truck driver.

Emergency CB radios sell for less than $100 and there is no fee to use the service. In these tough times many are revisiting this old technology as they are forced to give up cell phone subscriptions. No FCC license is needed to operate a CB radio and most models come with complete instructions on how to make a call and listen for a response.

Most emergency CB radios feature a magnetic mount antenna and a transmit power of four watts, which is the legal power limit. In addition to emergency use, a pair of compact CB radios can be used for car to car communications.

Before winter driving season arrives, consider adding an inexpensive portable emergency CB radio to the emergency kit in your trunk.

Popular makers of emergency CB radios are Cobra, Midland, Uniden and Realistic.

For more on how to use a CB radio see: CB Radio, Not Just For Truckers

The Traction Avant appears in 1934, this is the first front wheel drive car. A true revolution. It will be produced for 23 years in various different versions.

Citroën Traction Avant

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And why not use the front wheel drive to create  a van thus giving more space for loading at the rear? The H-Type is light and solid with its corrugated iron body.   It is capable of carrying 1200 kg, as much as the weight of the van itself.

Citroën Type H – 1947.

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Designed for the countryside in 1948, the small and economical 2 CV will become a symbol of freedom and non-conformism in the ’60s and ’70s.

Citroën 2 CV

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In 1955, Citroën creates an event with the DS. Its hydraulic systems control the suspension, gear box and brakes. 1200 units were sold on the very first day of the Paris Motor Show in 1955. It will be produced until 1975 with many upgraded and luxurious versions. In 1958 a landaulet version is designed for General de Gaulle. Black DS were official cars of the French Government for many years. 1.5 million units were produced. The mythic DS (goddess in French) is a landmark in automobile history.  Also check out my article:  http://quazen.com/recreation/autos/fascinating-french-classic-cars-citroen-ds/

Citroên DS

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The Méhari, an original all purpose car appears in 1968 in the 2 cylinder engines family. Its plastic body cancels any risk of corrosion and offers a good resistance in case of small shocks. 

Citroën Méhari

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It is in 1970 that Citroën unveils the SM, a luxurious coupé with a Maserati engine, offering performance and safety: power  steering, hydraulic braking system adapted to the load of the vehicle, headlamps with directional controls. The SM is the fastest front wheel drive car of the day. It is also compared to another contemporary icon: the Concord.  

Citroën SM

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SM profile

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SM interior

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For the 1974 Paris Motor Show, Citroën reveals the CX 2000 equipped with the latest technologies: disc brakes at the front and double hydraulic circuit, a single windshield brush, concave rear window and futurist dashboard. It was used as a presidential car.

Citroën CX

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The BX was produced between 1982 and 94. This model also has a hydraulic suspension. Its style is very angular. 

Citroën BX

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BX, 4 wheel drive station wagon.

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The Xantia replaces the popular BX in 1993. It quickly is a success mainly thanks to its design and comfort. In 1995, the Activa technology even more improving the efficiency of the hydro pneumatic suspension created by Citroën. This system enhances its exceptional road capabilities that can be compared with a sports car whilst ensuring the passengers with the legendary Citroën comfort.

Citroën Xantia

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1996: The Berlingo is a new concept of family vehicle. It is exceptional in terms of space and modularity. its multipurpose functions propose compartments inspired by the inside of aircrafts.  

Citroën Berlingo

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1998: Citroën presents the Xsara Picasso, an innovating vehicle combining the elegance and the performances of a sedan.

Citroën Xsara Picasso

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The limousine C6 was presented for the first time at the Geneva Motor Show in 2005. Its style is very much Citroën and its equipment luxurious. This is one of President Sarkozy’s official cars.

President Sarkozy’s hand out of his Citroën C6.

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The interior of the limousine C6.

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A front view of the C6.

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Not all Citroën models are presented here.

Image via Wikipedia

The opened doors of the Murcieaglo  are a strikingly obvious trait of the well known, Lamborghini.   Photo courtesy wikipedia.com

Given here is the Lamborghini Diablo pictures offered courtesy wikipedia.com

The Diablo was a stable car of the 1990s after a previous rocky history with Tommy Suharto’s VPower Corporation controlling 60% interest in Lamborghini. 

If you wonder how many of these expensive autos are sold, you might be surprised to learn as many as 5000 worldwide are purchased at starting prices of $198,000.000.

No longer is this a totally owned and operated Italian company.   Since it has begun it has changed hands from Italians, Americans, Germans, Indonesians and now is currently run by Mexicans. 

Ford already was present in France since 1912. The Poissy factory recuperated the drawings and moulds of a certain “little” car judged too small by Dearborn. The French then would have the illusion of an American car for half the price of a Chevrolet in their country. The environment and engine of this car would be faithful to the atmosphere of Hollywood. The “Vedette” was born and naturally the name itself meaning star, was not an innocent one.

Ford vedette sedan 1951.

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The Ford Vedette was presented at the Paris Motor Show in October 1948. Compared with the majority of its competitors, the Vedette offered many advantages: a very much appreciated American look, a soft V8 engine that was less noisy than most of the 4 or 6 cylinders of the time, a great comfort for 5 persons. But the 2.2 l V8 engine, so highly praised in the advertisements, was a good old flat head engine equipped with obsolete valves. Its behavior and efficiency could not stand comparison with overhead valves and better designed combustion chambers. The 1932 Ford V8 flat head engine did not allow to envisage noticeable increase in power. Suspension is very rigid and on the 3-speed gear box, the first one is not synchronized. The speed reached by the Vedette is 132 km/h. The car is heavy but faster than the 1951 Renault Frégate.  Its road holding is quite correct. The technicians of Poissy, near Paris, succeeded in giving the best out of an old structure. The main drawbacks of the Vedette remained the brakes  not adapted to the size of the car and the high fuel consumption, at least 15 l to 18 l for a hundred kilometers. But Renault cared for energy and their Frégate consumed only 10 to 12 l. The price of oil in France already reached records in 1950.  Check out: http://athingforcars.com/autos/fascinating-french-classic-cars-renault-fregate-and-domaine/

Trim and comfort however were outstanding, although the model presented rear suicide doors. In 1952, after financial difficulties, it appeared that the fastback line was no longer in the fashion and new European sedans already adopted the Italian style in 1950 and 51. The line with a boot was more harmonious and gave a lighter silhouette. So in 1953 the general line of the Vedette was renewed and underwent aesthetic modifications, especially on the rear. The new Vedette of this year seemed longer, better balanced and lighter. The radiator grille was simplified but this face lift was limited to a minimum. The rear window was enlarged. As for the engine, it was not faster (66 hp), nor more nervous. The brakes however were considerably upgraded. Of course, the 2.2 l flat head V8 engine was no longer adapted to the time even in Dearborn. 

Ford Vedette sedan 1954. Restyled with a boot and different radiator grille and windshield in one part.

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In 1950 a coupé and a convertible had been unveiled. Very much in the American business coupé style, they were heavy, and not very graceful. They were produced until 1953 only. 

Ford Vedette Coupé 1950 with the first radiator grille and windshield in two parts.

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In 1952 appeared a commercial version reduced to essentials and called “Abeille” (French for bee) with a two-piece tailgate. It was produced during 2 years only and in limited number. A Sunliner (four-door landaulet) was also on the catalog in 1953. It was a sedan with a canvas roof that could be rolled down. It was proposed for only one year until 1954. It is a rare model today. Peugeot had offered this type of vehicle on the 203, see: http://quazen.com/recreation/autos/fascinating-french-classic-cars-robust-and-elegant-peugeot-203/  In 1953, Ford wished to install the 3.9 l V8 engine used for Cargo trucks on the Vedette, it became the Vendôme and the engine the Mistral. The car could then reach 145 km/h but was finally sold only to 2500 purchasers in 1953-54. This slightly restyled model arrived too late.

The Vedette line also included the beautiful coupés Comète and Monte Carlo, the body was created by Facel, see: http://quazen.com/recreation/autos/fascinating-french-classic-cars -extraordinary-facel-vega-hk500/ but technically they were identical.

Ford Comete 1954.

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In 1954, Simca took over the Ford factory and new Vedettes were launched see: http://quazen.com/recreation/auto/fascinating-french-classic-cars-the-simca-vedette-series/

The new Vedette Chambord in 1958, by Simca.

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1. Know Your Car/Vehicle.
This seem to be pretty basic knowledge, but what does it mean?

The first thing you should do is know where all the controls are.

• Where is the wind shield wiper controls?
• Where is the turn signal controls?
• Where are the gauges ?
• Where are your mirror adjustments?
• Where is your steering wheel adjustment?
• Where is your headlight switches?
• Where are your gear positions? Whether it is standard or automatic.
• Where is your seat adjustments.

These things are not what you want to be looking for while you  are on the road.

The next part is to know your cars/vehicles dimensions. By dimensions I don’t mean how many square feet or inches, but I mean by visual judgment, how well you can tell where your front, back and sides of  your vehicle is.

One way to figure this out is by trial and error. I don’t mean for you to go out and try to squeeze in tight spaces and learn by banging up your car, but by using cones or other non-damaging objects.

The first thing to do is place a cone that is visible from your driver seat, at each of the four sides. Front, back, left side, and right side. Make sure you place each of them at last within a foot apart from your car. The spacing on where you want to put the cone is your choice in how much of a cushion you want to give yourself.
 Next place from the driver seat look and try to get an idea where your car limits are. You will have to visualize and  visually remember what to look for.
Of course it’s never going to work the first time, but now that you’ve done this you get a idea of how far an object would look being close to each of the parts.

A few tricks you could use also to help you  judge where your car is.
Use your head lights. Your headlights are usually placed at the second to the farthest part of your car before your bumper. Using your High beams you will get a better look since it should be adjusted to shine directly forward, meaning it points a straight line to your object. By looking at the lit part of the object in front of you , judge just how far you might be. Keep in mind how far out your bumper may reach out, but if you have done the cone test, you should have a pretty good idea by now. Keep in mind that the closer you get the more centered the beam get on the surface. If you start seeing a almost perfect illumination on the surface that has little or no blurry edges you should stop. This indicates that your headlight is close enough to almost create a reflection of it self.

Use your side mirrors. Have you side mirrors set so that you would see some of your car’s side, just enough to give you a idea of where your car is. Use the reflected image in the side mirrors to judge just how close you are to the object. This is one of the most overlooked feature of the car when it comes to parking. Most people worry about looking in the rear and front so much that they forget that looking in the side mirrors are just as important as looking in the rear view mirror.

Stop backing up when you start seeing a clear illumination of your tail lamps and reverse lamps. This is some what like your head lamps, but it is harder to judge since it is in the rear and the lights are not as bright. The general rule is, if you start to see a clear red that is visibly close to your rear then, it would mean that you are almost too close.

2. Use your signals.
Face it we all had a time we didn’t use our turn signals. Whether forgot or you simply didn’t want to use them, but don’t make it a habit. Turn signals are not just flashy little light features that the car makers have put on, but they are there to tell other drivers around you what you are about to do or doing. It’s not like we all can read minds and have telepathic powers.

It is more important than you think.  About 90% of fender benders and crashes in intersections and lane switches are probably caused by drivers that didn’t use signals.
Turn signals tell other drivers that you want to get in to their lane or make a turn in this or that direction. Which takes the guess work out of driving. You may not notice it, but there is always some one trying to get past you or get around you. If not they are trying to figure out which way you are going to turn. So if you don’t fail to use your signals, you will make it easier for those people to know what you are about to do and avoid a maneuvering into you way. I’m sure a lot of you have also had the opposite experience, were you didn’t know what some one was doing and almost drove right in to them.

Using turn signals also help in getting into driveways and in parking lots.
If you ever had a person just brake suddenly and do something stupid, then you are doing the exact same thing when you don’t signal before getting into a driveway.  Reason being is, the driver behind you doesn’t know your going in to the driveway.  They probably assume you are going straight.  Then you suddenly step on your brake to slow down to get into a driveway.
You just pulled the same stunt.   If you had signaled the other driver would have know you are going to turn somewhere soon and they would have kept an eye out for that brake light.

In a parking lot at the mall or a office garage, you may think you don’t have to signal since you are off the streets. Of course no cop is going to give you a ticket because you didn’t signal to get in to your parking stall, but it would be a good practice to do so since, like on the streets there are other drivers in a parking lot and you wouldn’t want to confuse them in such a tight space.

Last of all on signals, don’t abuse them by changing left to right then left again all in one segment. If you are lost and can’t figure out which way you need to go pull over and get a sense of direction first. The last thing you want to do is confuse another driver.

3. Check your surroundings.
Whether you are parking, turning, changing lanes, or just simply backing up, check your surroundings. It’s probably a basic rule and lesson taught in driving school, but most people ether forget it or don’t know how to properly check their surroundings.
Here are key principals in what to look for in checking your surroundings.
First check your mirrors. Your rearview mirror (the one that’s inside), then the side mirrors (the one that’s on the outside on the doors.)
Then you would always check in addition to your mirrors the two corners one over your left shoulder. A quick glance would do as it is one of the harder parts to check. A too long look will cause you to not see what’s in front. And a quick look at the rear quarter end of the right side of the car.
All this would be done in a matter of seconds. Remember that time doesn’t wait for you to make sure that everything is clear out of your way. Things can still change in a matter of seconds, so after you check recheck and keep checking as you go.
One thing will make your life easier in this part is adjusting your mirrors so that each mirror will show a good view of each of the sections.
Ideally you would want to adjust the driver side mirror to look at the left side of your car to about a fragment of your cars side. The passenger side mirror, to show the right side of your car and a fragment of your cars side, but slightly lower as to help you judge where your tires are in relation to, for example a curb side. You should still be able to see the rear with the side mirror though.
The rear view mirror, would be your choice in how comfortable you feel where it should show.  Ideally it should be showing the direct rear of your car so you could see what’s directly behind you.  If you get a wide angel mirror to attach to the mirror, you could possibly position it so you can see both the rear and a portion of your blind spot areas (over your left or right shoulders). This is all preference so which ever way is most comfortable.

The last thing about mirrors, use them frequently. Not to check your make up or hair, but to know your position on the road.

4. Be comfortable.
We all like comfort. As you should adjust your mirrors so they are in a comfortable position you should adjust your seat and your steering wheel for comfort as well. 
Drivers often set their seats so they are as close to the steering wheel as possible and upright as possible. Tell me something is that how you would sit in your office chair? As close to the table and as up right as possible, so much that you are almost leaning toward the desk?
I don’t think so.  Driving shouldn’t be any different. 
First adjust your seat’s recline to a position you find comfortable. Ideally it would be a position where you are slightly leaning back in the seat and still able to see clearly out the front. If you have ever sat in a sport car or a sports seat where you felt almost slouched back, then that would be pretty close to what you want. You can go ahead and find a position that suits you best in that fashion.
Next you would want to position your distance from the wheel.
The Ideal way to seat yourself in a vehicle would be where the steering wheel is just in front of you where you can reach it with a slightly bent arm. Make sure at that range you are able to reach the pedals too. If not adjust the steering wheel a little more so you find a comfort able position that you would reach both the pedal and the wheel comfortably and in a relaxed posture. You don’t want to be nether stretched or cramped when driving.

If you need a visual image then, the next time you get a chance to see a NASCAR driver or a professional driver, take a good look at how they are sitting. They are sitting in a position where they can be comfortable driving for long periods of time at high speed and the most severe conditions.

5. Know your pivot points.
Ever had a time when you came around a pillar in the parking lot too close and early you scraped the whole side of you car?
What about the time you took that turn and ended up grinding your wheels on the curbside?
Well it’s time to get educated on vehicle dynamics.
It’s a lot simpler than it seems, all you have to know is your vehicles pivot points.
Pivot points? You ask. All land vehicle and thing have pivot points.  Pivot points on a car would be the rear wheels. These are the wheels that the vehicle is pivoting on. Think of a compass, the pencil is the front wheels, and the needle point is the rear wheels. If anyone ever told you that “the rear wheels will clear what ever the front wheels clear” it’s not entirely true. It just depends on when you start turning.

Here is how you judge when to turn.
Look in the side mirrors and look for the side of your car and locate the rear wheels.
When you see the corner that your are turning around , line up with the rear wheels, you start turning.
Always double check if your judgment was correct. Remember things can change depending on speed and objects.

I was driving past the local Honda dealership one day and something caught my eye…was that a Porsche or something? I turned around and went back to the dealership to check it out. It was blue and silver with a red stripe. It was a 2 seater and the body sloped rakishly towards the back. It was a Honda, and it was brand new. I had never seen anything like it. I thought, oh well, I can’t afford anything like this, I may as well look at the base Civics while I’m here. 

Then I saw the window sticker…just over $6600…can this be right? I had looked at Escorts that were way more expensive than this. Granted, the CRX had a manual transmission (5 speeds, wow!), silver painted steel wheels, no air conditioning or radio…but look at it! I was sold on the spot. But so was the little blue car…literally. It was the only one the dealership had and there was a waiting list for CRXs. I briefly considered a base Civic. They had one of these in stock ready to go.  It had a back seat and was about a thousand dollars cheaper than the CRX. But it was too late. I was sold on the sporty looking little CRX.

So I was now on the CRX waiting list. I felt privileged. For the next 3 months a watched CRXs come and go at the Honda dealership while people higher on the list than me took delivery of their new Red, White, or Blue CRXs. Then one day I got a phone call. The dealership had just got in a White CRX with the smaller 1.3 liter engine. The good news about the smaller engine was another savings of about $600. This car stickered for just over $6000! And the gas mileage quoted was a phenomenal 67mpg highway and 51mpg city. I hurried to the dealership with my old LTD and drove away in my new CRX. The long wait had been worth it. Everyone stared at it. Everyone wanted to know what it was and where I got it. Friends came out of the woodwork wanting a ride in it. 

It’s been years since I’ve seen my CRX. Actually, it’s been years since I’ve seen any CRX. It wasn’t the perfect car, but I have the fondest memories of  it. Maybe I’ll find it someday, or at least one like it… 

I purchased my first 1965 Mustang many years ago for $1300. I couldn’t resist it…Rangoon red exterior with a white interior. It didn’t matter that the paint was faded  and the interior was ragged. It didn’t matter that the floors, rear quarter panels, front fenders, and rear frame rails were rusty. It also didn’t make any difference that the engine didn’t idle good and the clutch chattered horribly. And not to mention it had a six cylinder engine and a 3 speed manual transmission. But from day one I had a vision of how I wanted this car to look. I had an old magazine ad that showed this exact car, with it’s shiny red paint and gleaming chrome. My dream was to turn this tired little car into the shiny red 65 Mustang in this ad. I am happy to say it eventually got there but it took many years. A lot of mistakes were made along the way. This article could actually be renamed, “How Not to Restore a Car”.

The first few things I did was to get the car mechanically decent. I had the clutch replaced, carburetor adjusted, and radiator rebuilt. At least the car was drivable now. I tackled the rusty spots on the body with bondo and spray paint in cans. It actually didn’t come out too bad looking, except the paint I used didn’t match. At least I wasn’t looking at rust now. I drove it this way for a few months. Then one day I saw it sitting in a parking lot. A car just like mine only in mint condition. No bondo, no dented bumpers, no rips in its perfect white seats. I had the fever. I was ready to move on to the phase with my Mustang.

My brother was taking auto body shop in high school and I struck up a deal with him to do the bodywork and paint my car. The only thing was, I lived a thousand miles from him. So on Thanksgiving break I rented a tow dolly from U-Haul and towed the Mustang with my regular car back “home”. The trip back was pretty much uneventful until I got about 75 miles from my destination. At this time it started snowing. I do not recommend towing anything on slippery roads, but I was anxious  to get there. Going down a slight grade on an interstate highway with heavy holiday traffic, the Mustang started to sway back and forth. Nothing I did to try and correct the situation would made it stop swaying. Finally both cars spun out and I ended up facing the wrong way on the shoulder. Amazingly, I didn’t hit anyone and I managed to get turned around and on my way again with no further incident.

While my brother worked on the body, I went crazy with the J.C. Whitney catalog. I ordered bumpers, a complete interior kit, and lots of other odds and ends. After the car was painted I made another trip back home with my new purchases and begin to reassemble the car. How sweet it looked! I learned my lesson about towing and drove the car trouble-free back to my place a thousand miles away. I began to take it to car shows and people just adored my little red car. Everything was okay until I joined the local Mustang club. Then I begin to find out everything I had done wrong. The paint was kind of dull in places. The rear quarter panels should have been replaced instead of patched. The grille was out of a 1966 instead of a 1965. And  the list went on and on. 

About a year later I decided to have everything that was wrong fixed. I took the car to a local body shop that always seemed to have old junk cars parked outside. My thinking was, they know how to work on older cars. So I ordered new quarter panels. I was able to make a swap for the correct grille with another Mustang club member. This was great. This car was finally going to be a show piece. The body shop started working on my car right away. And then stopped. They always had another car they were working on that had to be finished first. About six months later I finally got my car back. It cost about $600 higher than the original estimate. Every time I stopped in to check on the car there was something else that had to be replaced. Oh well, at least it was done.

Over the next year I took the car to more car shows. I actually won some trophies! But over time I noticed things wrong. One of the quarter panels was of a different manufacturer than the other and it was obvious. In the sunlight the paint looked shiny but upon close inspection it was covered in fine scratches that seemed to be under the paint. And there were other issues. The metal dash had been cut to fit an aftermarket radio. The three speed manual had been through two more clutches. Worst of all, the original engine spun a bearing and locked up, leaving me beside the road. It seems after years and thousands of dollars I was back at square one.

A few years prior my Dad had retired and started painting cars in his spare time. Then someone came along with a rusty 1936 Ford Cabriolet and said, “restore this car to show quality, money and time are no object.” My dad worked on that car for months, and when it was done the owner took it to a Good Guys Hot Rod show and sold it for $60,000. My Dad knew of my problems with my Mustang and said, “Bring it back home. We’ll get it done right this time.” 

The car was completely stripped and sandblasted. All of the rusty areas that were patched with bondo were replaced with metal panels welded in. The strange rear quarter panel was replaced with the correct one. The radio hole in the dash board was fixed with a repair panel out of another original car. The engine was completely rebuilt and the crappy  manual transmission was chucked for a 3 speed automatic. A center console and a new steering wheel was added. The engine bay was detailed to show quality. Best of all a beautiful, shiny Rangoon red finish in basecoat/clearcoat…finally a paint job that was the envy of the Mustang club snobs. You get the picture. Everything that should have been done years before was completed now. I finally had the beautiful little red car that I had always wanted, and it only took 9 years and double the money of what the car was worth!

Check the front fenders behind the front wheels for rust or past repairs. Also check the top of the front fender behind the headlights. The front fender is actually one of the easier rust repairs on the Mustang since they just bolt on. There are a lot of aftermarket manufacturers of front fenders, but a lot of these fenders leave a lot to be desired. Check the gaps between the fenders, hood, and doors to see if your car has been installed with one of these.

Rear Quarter Panels

The quarter panels are very prone to rust, especially behind the rear wheels. If the quarter panels are really bad, the outer fender wells may also be rusted. You can check the outer fender wells by looking in the rear wheel wells by jacking up the rear of the car and removing the rear wheels, or by opening the trunk lid. The inner and outer wheel wells are easily visible from inside the trunk. The rear quarter panels on a 45 year old car may have already have been replaced. This is ok if it was done professionally. Check the seams and where the quarter panel and the outer fender well meet. 

Rocker Panels

The rockers are actually under the door sill plates and attach to the floor pans. This is one of the only areas that Ford made out of galvanized steel. If you are lucky the rocker panels will be in good shape, but if your car is from the northeast there is a very good chance they may be rusted through. A lot of these cars had rocker panel moldings that may be hiding rust and past repairs.

Floor Pans

The floor pans actually were assaulted from both the top and the bottom. You have road salt and mud attacking from the bottom and water leaking inside the car through the cowl to puddle on the floor. The floors get so rusty that sometimes there is nothing between you and the road but a layer of carpet. I once drove an early Mustang that had very rusty floors. I didn’t realize how bad they were until I noticed that while driving my left shoulder kept getting closer and closer to the door panel. The sheet metal that the seat attached to was actually falling through the floor.

Rear Frame Rails

The Mustang,  being a unit body car, has no frame. The rear frame rails are actually welded to the underside of the body and support the rear leaf spring suspension.  When the frame rails start to go, the leaf springs can start going through the trunk floor. You can check this by looking underneath the car or opening the trunk lid. Keep in mind the center of the trunk floor is actually the top of the gas tank. Look on either side of the gas tank for any soft areas in the metal. 

Front and Rear Valance Panels

These are the sheet metal panels below the front and rear bumpers. The front valance houses the front turn signals and the rear valance houses the back up lights (if equipped). These panels are very susceptible to rust from road and salt spray. The aforementioned light housings will actually rust out and hang by the wiring in the worst cases. 

Cowl

This is the area between the rear of the hood and the base of the windshield. This will be the hardest of all areas to inspect, but it’s not impossible. What happens when this area starts to rust is water leaks through the cowl and runs down the inside of the firewall and onto the floor, even though from the outside everything looks normal. I have seen cars so rusty in this area that the air vent up under the dash is completely gone, so air and water comes into the car whether you have the vents open or not. The interior of cars with this problem have a very musty smell from the carpet being wet. There was an invention a few years ago called a cowl vent cover. It was a piece of Plexiglas with 2 spring loaded clips that covered the outside cowl area when you didn’t want air or water coming into the car. If a car you are looking at has one of these installed beware!