Modify Your Mustang

No other car on the streets has more aftermarket parts available than the Ford Mustang. For those who want more performance, or a customized look for their car, the choices are endless. Most of my Mustangs have had some aftermarket modification, and others have had a lot. My blue 1992 5.0 LX is the first one that I had installed many aftermarket parts on. It had aluminum under-drive pulleys, an aluminum drive shaft, slightly lower ratio rear end gears, nickel plated equal length exhaust headers, Flowmaster cat-back exhaust system, higher ratio aluminum roller rockers, a phenolic spacer in the intake manifold, and several special trim pieces. These modifications, and my special tuning, gave it approximatly 30 more horsepower, and improved fuel milage by about 3 MPG. It was a fast and fun car to drive. There is a lot more about that car in chapter 8 of my book. You can follow this link to check it out or read sample pages. "Grab Some Gears"

My 1992 Mustang LX 5.0

Street Racing -The Way it Used To Be.

When anyone thinks of street racing now, it probably brings up images of "The Fast and the Furious" movies in recient years. Those movies had more to do with showing wild, intense, action movie drama, than they did with real street racing. The old movie "American Graffiti" is a way more accurate portrayal of real street racing. At least, the kind of street racing we used to have. The races between muscle cars, hot rods, and normal, everyday street cars, was the old style street racing. When the souped-up imports started to enter the scene, and originally inspired the "Fast and Furious" style street racing, it marked the beginning of the end for street racing in America. It got too wild and out of control, and the general public demanded a crack down. I was involved in street racing for over 40 years, and I saw it happening. That's what inspired me to write a book about it. For an inside look at my experiences with the evolution of street racing over the last half century, check out my book;  "Grab Some Gears - 40 Years of Street Racing". Just follow this link: "Grab Some Gears"

Photo shoot for the cover of my book, my buddy's Viper and my 2003 Cobra.

When a Mustang was a Fox

Mustangs have been around for 50 years, and have gone through many changes in that time. For a lot of those years, 1979 to 1992, they were built on the "fox" chassis. That generation of cars are known as the "Fox body" Mustangs. Those are the favorite years for a certain segment of Mustang enthusiasts. The last six years of the fox body Mustangs are when true high performance was brought back for the first time in many years. Check out my book; "Grab Some Gears - 40 Years of Street Racing" specifically chapter 5 "The Automotive Dark Ages", for more on that story. The book is available, and you can read sample pages at amazon.com , and it's available as a Kindle book. I owned several fox body Mustangs through those years, and they were an important part of my automotive history. Particularly my black 1987 5.0 LX hatchback. It got the most drag racing and street racing time of any car I ever owned. (see chapters 7 and 8 of my book for more on that story). The "fox body" years will be remembered as a very important part of the Ford Mustang's 50 year history. Here is a link to my book; "Grab Some Gears"

My black 1987 Mustang 5.0 LX, with appropriate personalized plate.

Mustangs for Show and Go

Mustangs have always been a car for everyone. Everything from a light blue "65" convertible for a school teacher, to a black "69" BOSS 429 for a guy who likes a little more wild in his ride, and everything in between. And, that's how it's been for 50 years. I have always loved the high performance models, even when I couldn't have one of my own. Many people enjoy taking their Mustangs to car shows, no matter which model they have, from the original classics to brand new current models. For many years I have taken my Mustangs to car shows. It's great to associate with people who love cars, and to share our pride and passions with the general public. In recient years, I have owned some of the top performance models, and they always attract a lot of attention at shows. I enjoy talking to people, answering questions, and especially promoting our hobby to the younger generation. They are the key to the future for these kind of cars. If young people aren't interrested in Mustangs, and other cars like this, they will cease to exist in the years to come.

My 2003 "Terminator" Cobra at a local car show.

A Mustang of My Own

In the early 1970's, we sold out trusty Falcon Sprint, and after a few months with a couple "other cars", I found my first Mustang setting on a used car lot in Phoenix. It was a light yellow 1966 coupe, with black deluxe interior. The deluxe interior included wood grain on the instrument panel and glove box door, special seats with running horses embossed into the upper portion of the seat upholstery, and special door panels and door handles. The Mustang had a 289 V8, and 3-speed on the floor. I finally had my first Mustang. I went right to work, applying all the "tuning tricks" I had learned, and detailing the car to look its best. Being a young street racer, I also made a few minor modifications to enhance the performance. I had a lot of fun with that car. Those familiar with my book may recall the "Hemi" encounter in Chapter 4. One sunday afternoon, I also made a few laps with the Mustang around the Phoenix International Raceway. It was just after the track was first built, and all the fences and gates weren't there yet. That yellow "66" coupe was the first in a long list of Mustangs I have enjoyed over the years. Follow this link to check out my book; "Grab Some Gears"

Me with my 1966 Mustang in the early 1970's.

Where Mustangs Came From

When Ford decided to introduce a sporty new model, they found a great starting point in their Falcon line. The Falcon was the right size, the power train options were there, and the cost savings of using an existing platform would be great. The cars were a nice little car on their own, but a sporty new body would really ramp up the popularity. The Falcon Sprint, at the time, was their sportiest version, being V8 powered, and trimmed up with some sporty finishing touches. I owned a 1964 Sprint, back in the day, and it was a fun little car. It was the car we had when we got married. Beside the basic platform and drive train, the first Mustangs used the Falcon's basic dash structure and instrument panel. My "64" Falcon Sprint had the same speedometer and instruments as a "65" Mustang. The steering wheel was also the same, only the horn center emblem was changed. The sporty new Mustang model was a hit, and the rest is history. It became the Mustang we have loved for 50 years.

My V8 powered 1964 Falcon Sprint near Phoenix, Arizona, in 1970.

My First Mustang Experience

In the mid 1960's when the first Mustangs were hitting the streets, they made quite an impression. They were so much different than everything else on the roads. I remember well how cool it was to catch sight of one in the small South Dakota town where I grew up. Then in the fall of 1966, my parents actually bought one for my mom. My brothers and I were shocked, they were the coolest parents ever. It was a new white 1966 coupe, with tan interior. It had the 289 V8 with the select-shift automatic transmission. The chances I would get to drive it would not come as often as I would have liked, but for a 16 year old boy, each time was heaven. I remember still the experience, the crisp feel of the new drivetrain, the look of the new dash instruments, and the brisk acceleration the V8 provided in the sporty little coupe. Those first memories are forever burned into my brain. Read my book; "Grab Some Gears - 40 Years of Street Racing" for the rest of the story. Available at amazon.com, and as a Kindle book, or you can read sample pages there. Here is a link; "Grab Some Gears"

Me at age 16, and my mom's 1966 Mustang.

Something Fun to Drive

For the general population, "fun to drive" may not even be part of the process when shoping for a car. For the car enthusiast, it's a major consideration. There are hurds of boring transportation appliances cloging our streets and highways these days. Millions of cars, built for people who don't like cars. For some of us, a car is much more than that. We do our car shopping homework looking through car enthusiast publications, not Consumer Reports. We want something fun to drive.  My son Dan has a Dodge Charger SRT-8, one of their top-of-the-line performance models. It's the type of car a guy can take pride in owning, driving, and even show at the local car shows. We get a lot of enjoyment from owning our cars. From the conversations we have with people at car shows, and even at the grocery store parking lots, many people see these cars as something special. Everyone has a story of a car they used to have, or that a friend once had. But then, they get back into their plain white, front wheel drive, 4 cylinder, econo-box, and drive off with the rest of the hurd.

Dan's SRT-8 and my Mustang at the 4th of July car show.

The Dodge Side of the Garage

Anyone who has read many of my posts know I'm kind of a Mustang guy. Then there is the other side of the garage. My wife's car is a Dodge Charger. It's a 2013 that we have had for about 4 months, and it's a great car. I like the new Chargers for a lot of reasons, but mostly because it's one of the few 4-door sedans that can pull off the "muscle car" image. And, anyone who has followed one at night knows they have the coolest tail lights on the road. We have a couple Chargers in the family, my son has a SRT-8, and I'll write about that in an up-comming post. Anyone who has read my book may remember that Chargers, and other Dodges, have been a big part of my automotive history. One of my first street races, back in the late 1960's, involved a Dodge Charger. Then there was the Hemi encounter on the streets of Phoenix in the early 1970's. And, my last street race in 2006 was with a Viper. You can checkout my book; "Grab Some Gears - 40 Years of Street Racing" at amazon.com, and read sample pages there. Link to my book; "Grab Some Gears"

2013 Dodge Charger  (random google image).