Still recouperating from a mad dash from Florida to New Jersey over the weekend we created this blog to introduce our next project here at Mustang & Fords. Check it out and give us your comments! Long time readers will remember past Oval Office columns where I discussed about my teenage son, Kyle, and what he might be driving in the near future. Well, the near future is today, as Kyle turned 15 last month and is now carrying a Florida restricted use (learner’s permit) driver’s license. Over the last six months or so the topic of conversation has been what he will drive. The first thought was something cheap, yet safe like a Focus coming off lease, maybe a used V-6 Mustang, or an Escort ZX2. The problem with all of these choices is money. We don’t have three to six thousand dollars (minimum) to purchase a car. So I talked to Kyle about a magazine project vehicle. The thought would be that he’d not be driving it right away, but he would learn some great skills fixing it up, we’d be able to get into it relatively cheap, and he’d have a cool car at school when we’re done.  I kind of wanted our next project car to be a non-Mustang. A Fairlane, Maverick, Falcon, etc. but when you’re talking to a 15 year old about 40 year old cars the Mustang was the only car on his mind (hey, better than a Honda right?). So the search began for something not too far gone, but not out of our price range too. I knew we’d have to stay in the ’65-’68 range, and probably a coupe (he wanted a fastback) to make the project affordable. As I started putting the word out Dave Stribling at DVS Restorations told me of one of his customers in a pinch. It seems this customer, Shawn Potts, was moving to England for three years and had to sell a bunch of his Mustang projects and parts fast. A deal was made and we had a ’68 coupe with a 9-inch, factory discs added to it, and a boat load of spare new and used parts to go with it waiting for us in New Jersey. Can you say road trip?  The weekend of 2/1-2/3 2008 my friend Randy Bolig (editor at Mopar Muscle) and I loaded up his Dodge Ram and the company trailer, grabbed Kyle (and his best friend Ricky), and drove through the night to get to New Jersey by Saturday morning. We loaded up the car (which was full to the roof with parts) and the bed of the truck with more parts, grabbed some lunch with Shawn, and headed home. It was all a blur, covering 2,300 miles in 36 or so hours, but it was all worth it just listening to Kyle talking in the back seat about all the things he wants to do to “his” car. Now that’s the way to grow the hobby to the next generation!  Now that the car is home and we’re looking it over and making some build plans we’ve got some decisions to make. First and foremost, whatever we do to the car it will be safety and reliability at the top of the list. Luckily the ’68 already has a collapsible column and the plan calls for high-back seats, three-point belts, power brakes, and more to keep everyone safe. I know Kyle wants all sorts of cool gadgets and trick suspension, but I was thinking the ’68 would be a nice budget build, say no more than $10,000 cash investment (that doesn’t mean we can’t barter or trade sweat equity for other items/shop labor). So what do you guys think? Should we stick to a low-buck build or should we splurge a little bit for some better handling, better braking, and what not? Let me know by replying here with your comments. Thanks!
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