How-To: Bullitt Gas Cap On A Late Model Mustang
July 6, 2009 by Hechtspeed · 16 Comments
Leave a comment below… Why should you win? That’s all there is to it!
Want to add a little “Frank Bullitt” style to your late model Mustang? AmericanMuscle has just the accessory for you! The slick looking aluminum Bullitt gas cap is the first modification you need before you start jumping your ‘stang on the streets of San Fran’ a la Steve McQueen.
MyRideisMe.com provides the installation guide of a Bullitt gas cap on a 1994 Dark Green Mustang GT (McQueen would dig it!). The Mustang you see here might look subtle but it packs a punch at the dragstrip, with its horseman banging the gears to a best of 12.85 @ 106mph on 8″ slicks and stock motor and cam. This Bullitt gas cap will let those Camaros know this is no ordinary pony.
Follow along as we take you through the installation. It’s very straight forward and can be done by a novice with simple hand tools in about 30-45 minutes.
Step 1: Open the box and make sure everything is accounted for and in good shape (nuts, studs, lock nuts, washers, magnets, cap and ring). AmericanMuscle is pretty good about getting you a good unit if yours happened to be damaged or missing a component (ours was missing one of the magnets).
Step 2: Here’s the tools you’ll need; T-20 Torx bit, 7mm wrench and socket/ratchet, allen set and a file/sandpaper/dremel.
Step 3: Remove the 2 Torx head bolts from the stock cap which attach the cap to the body and you’re ready for the Bullitt cap.
Step 4: Using the allen wrench, remove the investment cast hooks from the bullet cap. They’ll need to be turned around 180 degrees and reinstalled onto the car/cap. Our hooks required very minor deburring of the castings where the pins eject the part out of the mold.
Step 5: Remove the “bumpers” with the T-20 torx bit, trim the bumpers just above the bolt head as seen in this picture (cut or grind about 3/16 ” off the end).
Step 6: Slip the unit into place, put the studs in stock holes and re-attach the cast aluminum hooks and tighten with the allen wrench.
Step 7: Install stock gas tank cap plastic lanyard first, then a washer, followed by the nut, then the lock nut using a 7mm socket /ratchet.
Step 8: Finally tighten the lower stud using a 7mm wrench. This takes a minute or two because there’s limited access. Just take your time here and patience will pay off shortly.
The install is short and sweet and gives your Mustang a slick, purposeful look. Steve McQueen would be proud! Get your Bullitt gas cap at AmericanMuscle today.
Hechtspeed
5 Tips for Building a $5000 Pro-Touring Mustang
May 29, 2009 by Hechtspeed · 10 Comments
1965 Mustang Fastback – Pro-Touring Budget
“I bought a 1966 Mustang Fastback out of a junk yard for $400. Thought I would challenge myself to build as exotic a g-machine as possible for $5000. ”
It sounds impossible, anti-Pro-Touring even. MyRideisMe.com asked Ron Schwarz, owner/builder of this Grabber Blue beauty, to share his 5 Tips with our readers. He tells it like no one else can. This guy is hilarious! There are some killer classic quotes here. Stick to these 5 Tips below and you too can build your own budget dream ride.
1. Choose The Right Car
Your car has to be affordable, but still turn you on. If it doesn’t keep your interest it will be just another project that doesn’t get finished. Choose a car you can get cheap parts for, period.
2. Do your homework
The mods on this Mustang were done with factory (Ford and GM) parts from performance models/sports cars. The front suspension is all C5 Corvette parts; great handling, big brakes, relatively cheap, and fairly easy to come by.
3. Choose The Right Drivetrain.
Find a drivetrain that meets your horsepower goals and doesn’t need an expensive rebuild or power adders. Instead of the original 4.6L Mustang mill purchased, Ron ended up with an LS1 that had been in a fire for $300. In fairly stock form the LS1 can easily reach Ron’s goal of 400HP. The purists hate it, but it fit the budget. Best bang for the buck!
4. Use All The Deal Finding “Tools” Available
The “tools” are Ebay, Craigslist, Racing Junk , trade and barter, your buddies “take-off parts”, etc. Network with car buddies, see who is upgrading. “Take-offs” can be picked up cheap. The barter system is alive and well. The tires on Ron’s ‘Stang were traded for a wine cooler.
5. DIY=Do It Yourself!
This is the hardest of the 5, but its also a MUST to meet your budget! The more you cut, weld, grind and paint the better you get and the more money you save! Books are good for learning fab’ skills, but we learn more from being around true craftsman. Don’t be scared to screw up, you can fix it.
Let’s see how Ron used the 5 budget building tips on his own Pro-Touring Mustang Fastback:
We’ll let the Mustang out of the Corral and tell you that Ron didn’t quite make the $5000 budget he set, but who cares! He did do it for under $9000 though, which is amazing. Here’s the parts and cost rundown to see how he pulled off the impossible using his Top 5 Budget Tips.
$2750 Car and Rolling Chassis
Engine/Transmission $500 + trades
Suspension
Body
Ron’s Classic Quotes Continued:
1965 Mercury Comet Caliente Pro-Touring Build
May 7, 2009 by Hechtspeed · 11 Comments
Pro-Touring Hot Rod Comet
Pro-Touring? Does this sound like grandma cruisin’ Route 66 in a Mercury Marquis? Try Again! For those hiding out in your garage working on your own hot rod in the last 5 years, Pro-Touring cars are classic muscle cars modified to be driven hard with modern hot rodding technology.
Call it Pro-Touring or G-Machine, everything on these tricked out rides is upgraded and modern: Late model or aftermarket suspension, big horsepower engine, and body mods to fit those giant wheels with low profile tires and big brakes. New school muscle with old school style. Buckle up.
OK, let’s have a look-see at Josh Martin’s 1965 Pro-Touring Mercury Comet Caliente then shall we? A few magazines are planning to feature this track day-ready Comet, but the details are not set. In the meantime, MyRideisMe.com delivers the latest and greatest in hot rodding. We say, why wait? Type in your email address over on the left and you’ll receive stories like this right to your inbox.
Filling you in on the Comet build then, meet car owner, Josh Martin.
MyRideisMe: All dream cars start with just that, a dream. Personally I’m a big fan of the Comet. Tell us about yours and why you built a Comet?
Josh Martin : I chose the 1965 Mercury Comet after seeing the 1996 movie “Swingers.” (“Baby, that was money! Tell me that wasn’t money!”) I loved the look of the car in the movie so I researched and found out it’s a ’64 Comet convertible. Then I saw a 1965 2-door hardtop and it blew me away. It was the best looking car I had ever seen, and I knew that this was the car I wanted.
MyRideisMe: Once you knew you wanted the Comet, what were your plans and why?
Josh Martin: I researched shops, and talked with a few before choosing Woody’s Hot Rodz in Bright, Indiana. Woody’s started from a small operation out of a garage and grew to a shop doing multiple high-end builds. I also knew that I wanted to do a Pro-Touring build, using the original Comet body, but upgrading everything with new parts (chassis, engine, brakes, interior, etc.). Woody’s was doing pro-touring builds based on the Art Morrison Max G chassis. So, Woody’s was a perfect fit.
Super Rod and other Buckaroo Buildoff-published magazines and they now tout customers such as Jeg Coughlin (2008 Prostock World Champion), Herschel Walker, and Carlos Beltran. Woody's owner Chris and partner Ryan are a couple of good guys, and they really know how to build a car the right way.]
MyRideisMe: Now, one of the coolest parts of this build is that Shelby GT500 5.4L Supercharged V8 shoehorned into that small block Ford bay!
Josh Martin: Right, we originally had planned on a 4.6L mod motor. After the build was already under way, I saw the GT500 5.4L engine. I called Woody’s and we went over all the potential problems, like, how do we get that wide/tall engine to fit, how do we control it (brand new engine not sold with a wiring harness), and is it too heavy for balanced handling. We decided that it was worth the headaches given that there really wouldn’t be many (any?) non-Mustang cars with this engine. And, once again, Woody’s came through. We located an operation that could sell us the engine, harness, and a programmed computer. Finally, a few modifications to the hood and engine bay and it slipped in.
MyRideisMe: Let’s take a look at the rest of the build. What else makes this car stand out?
Josh Martin: Both Woody’s and I would come up with ideas, and then we’d talk them through. For example, we didn’t like the original Comet mirrors so Woody’s came up with the idea of using bullit style Mustang mirrors. Since the Comet was a stable mate with the Mustang, the mirrors fit without any real modification.
Woody’s also came up with a number of original design features. The original 1965 Comet had three plastic front fender badges. We liked the general look, but wanted to update them. Woody’s came up with cool metal badges. Woody’s also added a center rear brake light between the trunk and the rear window that sits flush with the surface of the car. Custom LEDs now reside in the taillights. Check out the modern take on A/FX hood scoops too.
Woody’s also took the old grill emblem (which was red, white, and blue) and changed it to a black and silver “GT500″ emblem. I think it’s cool because we removed all the name badges from the car (it actually does not say “Comet” anywhere on the car). As for the interior, Woody’s has been using Barry Langdon Interior for years, and Barry did a great job using black leather on the seats and a really cool center console design.
MyRideisMe: Wow! I really dig the custom touches Josh. Here’s the Comet’s quick spec sheet:
Engine - 5.4L supercharged Ford SVT engine from the new GT500.
Transmission – T56 six-speed (modified).
Chassis – Art Morrison Max G (frame with pass-throughs for exhaust, Morrison IFS suspension, Morrison triangulated 4-bar rear suspension out back)
Exhaust – Borla kit (includes 2.5″ diameter stainless tubing, two Turbo XL mufflers, and two Phantom tips)
Brakes – Wilwood six-piston calipers squeezing 13 inch front and 12.1 inch rear rotors
Wheels/Tires – 18″ Bonspeed Quasars on BFG g-Force KDW 255/45/18 Rears and 225/45/18 Fronts
Gas tank – Stealth tank from Rick’s
Gauges – Classic Instruments, 6-gauge set, All American Series
Steering – Ididit shorty column, Budnik Famosa wheel
Josh Martin: We set out to create a car that looks like my favorite old car but that performs like a new performance car. It has been quite a journey (three years) , but we got to where we wanted to be. I could not have done it without the help of people on the Pro-Touring.com Forums, whether it was ideas, opinions, or just encouragement. The relationship I’ve formed with the guys at Woody’s Hot Rodz has been awesome, and I’m sure it will last a long time. I can’t wait to get the Comet on the road and to the track, but the journey itself with all of its ups and downs has been a huge part of the fun.
Thank you Josh and Woody’s for sharing your Comet story with us at MyRideisMe.com. All photos have been courtesy of Woody’s Hot Rodz. Not really enough room to showcase each custom touch, but you can see all the build photos at Woody’s Hot Rodz Project page and get all the details of Josh’s Comet build on the Pro-Touring forums.
Whether its traditional hot rods, rat rods or Pro-Touring cars, its all about making our Rides our own and that’s exactly what MyRideisMe.com is all about!
Layton, Utah Burger Stop Car Show
April 26, 2009 by Hechtspeed · 1 Comment
Local small town car shows and cruise-ins are at the heart of the American Hot Rodding hobby. Layton, Utah is a good example. The cars at this show cover the gamut of usual suspects along with some nice surprises.
This show is a monthly event during the summer months and is part of the JC Hackett’s Rock-n-Roll Cruisin’ Oldies car show tour in northern Utah and surrounding area. The 2009 Calendar can be found on the site in Excel.
I hope you dig these photos. Check out the gallery below. I was toting around my 3 sons (ages 6, 4 and 2), so I didn’t get to stop and talk to any car owners and get more info on my favorites. Gotta pass on the hot rod blood, right!?
Have you gone to a local cruise in spot or a big national hot rod event yet this year? If so and you took some pics, let us know about it. We’d like to see what the hot rodding scene is doing in your neck of the woods.
John Force Racing’s Charity Cruise Night Schedule
April 17, 2009 by pikesan · 2 Comments
YORBA LINDA, CA (April 2, 2009) — John Force Racing, headquartered in Yorba Linda, Calif., will be expanding its tradition of giving back to the community beginning April 25th when the first of seven John Force Cruise Night Car Shows will be held.
Participants and spectators at the John Force Cruise Night Car Shows are being encouraged to bring a can of food that will be donated to the Orange County Food Bank. For each can donated a raffle ticket will be distributed good for a chance to win a 52″ Sanyo Flat Screen TV. If participants bring one can of food they get one ticket if they bring twenty cans of food they get twenty tickets or chances to win. The raffle will be held on Halloween at the final John Force Cruise Night Car Show of the season.
“In December we have built up a tradition of giving toys to kids in need with the John Force Holiday Car Show that benefits the California Highway Patrol’s “CHiP’s for Kids” program. 
During these tough economic times we felt that we needed to do something for our community right now, and tying in with our fans at the John Force Cruise Night Car Shows just seemed like a perfect fit. Our goal is to collect as many cans of food as we can, and help make an impact on the community.
We are asking everyone to get involved whether they are a participant or a spectator,” said Craig Hoelzel, John Force Racing – Director of Special Promotions & Car Show Manager.
“The Orange County Food Bank is excited to team up with John Force Racing. The needs of the community are growing during these tough times and we really need the food,” said Kristin Kvesic, Orange County Food Bank.
A special award will be presented at each Cruise Night for the “Most Food Given.” Cruise Night Car Shows will be held from 4 p.m. until 7 p.m. at the John Force RaceStation. At each Cruise Night Car Show there will be family fun, food and entertainment for all ages.
2009 John Force Car Show Schedule All John Force Cruise Night Car Shows will be held at:
John Force RaceStation
22722 Old Canal Road
Yorba Linda, CA 92887
For More Info: www.JohnForceRacing.com or (714) 921-1651
Schedule: (All shows are from 4PM to 7PM)
- April 25
- May 30
- June 27
- July 25
- August 29
- September 26
- October 31
