project sleeper stang

How about a project car? All the magazines have them. Lets get started and see what can be done with a basic mustang notchback. I picked up an 89 4 cylinder/auto mustang that is rust free but had a blown tranny and a busted front bumper cover. My plan is to switch it to big chevy power and see how light it will be and how quick i can go. First thing I did was go to an autowrecker in PA and found loads of parts cars. They even had one the same color with a good nose for $100. Fair price and I don't have to paint it. Then I looked on Kijiji and found a 8.8 rearend and a manual rack and pinion for $300. The 8.8 has 3.27 gears and a wore out posi. The R&P needs new tie rod ends but luckily my stock ones from my power rack fit fine and are in good shape. To fix up the rearend I buy a rebuild kit for the posi for $85 and I go back to the wrecker and get 2 of the short axles from  aerostars and the 10" rear brakes. This swap upgrades my brakes from 9" to 10" and converts my rearend to 5 lug from 4 lug. Then i grab the front rotors from the aerostar as well to get the 5 lug pattern for the front. Trust me, Aerostars aren't hard to find at a junkyard. This whole swap cost me another $150.  While i had the diff apart I put in some Richmond excel series 4.10 gears that sell for around $165. I also cut some pieces of 14 gage sheetmetal and welded them into my rear channel shaped control arms to box them for added strength to reduce wheel hop. Then i added some used quad shocks from a junked 5.0 mustang. They help traction and fight wheelhop. Now for the front end. I've noticed that the factory front engine crossmember is very bulky and heavy and it won't provide much room for the BBC swap, especially with headers. A quick web search turns up lots of aftermarket tubular crossmembers with a couple that even have BBC motor mounts. These crossmembers are much lighter than stock and have much more clearance for headers. I picked up one made by PAracing and i ordered it with the optional chevy motor mounts, lowered R&P mounts and factory style coil spring perches. This was an exspensive piece at $650 delivered but it will hopefully save me alot of weight and alot of agony in making my motor fit. Here is a pic of the car.  I will wait to install the crossmember when I have a motor. As you can see I picked up a set of used later model 15" 5 lug wheels from a local autowrecker and at $200 for the set I think they were a good deal. Next is the transmission. After making a phone call to a fellow gearhead who likes to restore old Impala's I bought a 2 speed powerglide for $100. I don't have much experience with glides but I've read that they are light and work well in a light car with lots of rear gear ratio. I'll give it a try, it might be a mistake. I picked up a new B&M pro-ratchet 2 speed shifter to go with it. One important tip when buying a shifter is always check to see if it has a neutral safety switch and a reverse lights switch. Many shifters don't have them both and you have to buy the reverse lights switch seperatly. So to wrap up where I'm at right now, I've got my budget rolling chassis completed and I'm looking for a running 454 that i can just drop in to get moving. Then I'll need to buy headers and I've been eyeing up a set online at dynatech.com that are made for this swap. I've got around $2500 total tied up in this car so far. I'm really curious to see what this thing can do and how much it will weigh. As I stock up on parts and look for deals I will keep you updated to my progress. If you have any suggestions feel free to comment using the link below.

Brian