Welcome. You certainly sound enthusiastic.
The best advice I can give you on looking at an old Mustang is to crawl under it and look for rust. Check around the wheel wells--especially at the outside lip, and check the floor pans. These old cars have a bad problem with the cowl area leaking(those vents right in front of the windshield). This allows water to run into the car, drip on your feet, and rust out the floor pan.
Another problem on cars this age is the electrical system. Avoid cars with lots of wire splices, maybe the owner knew what he was doing...maybe not. Either way it is a sign of trouble.
Other than that, it's about the same as looking for any other car. Look for signs that the car has been in a wreck. Check tires for uneven wear.
I see by that last line that you are interested in performance. A 351 in a 65 coupe can be awsome, but before you do it, consider adding power to a 289 or 302. My favorite change is new heads. You could even put heads on the 289, and if it's not enough for you, you can take them off and use them on that 351.
Regardless of which engine you use, be sure to match the cam to the heads, buy some rear gears, and yell at us for help if you ever get stuck. We all spend time on these boards to help one another, and I've said it before....this is the greatest resource tool ever invented. I wish I had this to refer to back when I was just getting started in the hobby, my life would have sure been easier.
Good luck finding a Mustang, and don't hesitate to ask us opinions on your potential purchase.
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66 GT Fastback 5.0, 5-speed, cable clutch, JBA's, 3.40 gears, EFI coming soon?
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