1965 Fastack Restomod (PICS)

[66 BLAKE 96]

Great looking car man. I think you can roll it as is and have a beautiful, fun car. That said, if you're looking for constructive criticism, here goes...

Exterior looks fantastic, I wouldn't change a thing, and that includes the hood and wheels.

Interior is nice, but that cheapie Grant steering wheel is killin' me. I'd suggest a LeCarra MarkIV. Classic look, but still smaller with a thicker grip than stock so it's more pleasing to the hands when you drive. as others have said, those seats need help too.

Engine bay: your weakest link. Fresh coat of paint, consider re-routing some of that wiring, and stop advertising for Edelbrock. Having the intake and any other parts is plenty. Even the old style stamped steel Export brace would help too. The biggest concern, both aesthetically and for safety reasons: that old single-pot brake master cylinder. It doesn't look that great, and it's just plain unsafe, especially with the disc brakes that you have now. The plastic overflow res and blue battery cables aren't helping anything either.

Well, that's that. Like I said, it's nit-picky. You've got a bad ass car there, but has some weak spots if you're going for a magazine spot. Personally, I'd say do those improvements (Especially that master cyl!) if you get bored, and drive the hell out of it.

I completely diagree... personal preferences though, on both our parts.

Howbout some compliments to go with all the criticism?

I happen to disagree with 2bav8 on this point as well, but since he's moderated this forum for years, I would not tell him how to post, especially since the original poster is looking for opinions.

 

[2bav8]

Nice looking car. I do like the blue w/white strip combo.

I think that was nice

I probably came across a little rough, but you asked for opinions and I gave mine (and were expressed as such at the time) As others have pointed out, your interior and engine bay have quite a few issues before a magazine would seriously look at the car. All in all, its a nice looking car that anyone would enjoy taking out for a nice cruise.

 

[HistoricMustang]

Nice looking car. I do like the blue w/white strip combo.
However, Here are my overall thoughts:

1) Rims/wheels are too large. They unfortately fill up the wheel well too much. This is easily debated... its TOO much IMO.

2) Cowl hoods belong on Chevy products.
I really, really can't make any more comments on this... (or things get ugly quick)

3) I'm willing to bet you NEVER EVER see 160 MPH in your car, let alone 10,000 RPM. Overkill on the gauges IMO.

Same here on 1, 2 and 3 ...........perhaps think of putting the gauges "aka" GT panel.

HistoricMustang
www.historicmustang.com

 

[j_capps]

I appreciate all the compliments and criticisms. I'm not dead set on getting in a magazine, I just wanted some opinions. I just wanted a car that looks nice, turns some heads, and one that I'm not afraid to drive.

The front apron is the shelby apron and I think I got it from Mustangs Plus (it was a long time ago)

The gauges are JME

The seats are worn out. They are the original ones that came in it and were once blue, but dyed black. I would love to have some of the new Bullitt seats for up front (like Dodgestang's)

I totally agree that the engine bay needs lots of work. Sometime in the future I plan on doing some aluminum heads and some other stuff. I will probably pull the motor, and do some smoothing to the firewall and inner fenders, and give it a fresh coat of paint. Relocate the battery to the rear, hide wires, etc.

Thanks again. This site is awesome.

 

[j_capps]

The wheels are 5.72" backspacing and I used a 1" adapter on both front and back and it worked out perfect. Front tires are 225/45-17 and rear tires are 245/45-17. The only rubbing I have encountered is on the front with the wheel at full lock on a slight grade. Other than that, I have no complaints.

 

[Max Power]

The wheels, tires and ride stance looks like it is set to kill on a road course. The Master Cylinder and lack of decent braces under the hood say otherwise. Almost suggest a paper tiger. I love the direction, though, and you are well on your way.

I am not a fan of cowl hoods, especially if you don't need em.

I love the stance.

 

[j_capps]

I forgot to add that I am a 21 year old college student that doesn't really have the sufficient funds to sink into this car right now. Me and my mom wanted to finish the car after my dad passed away so she has financed most of the project thus far. Needless to say, I am very pleased with the results, but it is far from finished. I have my whole life ahead of me to experiment with different ideas for the car. I wanted this car to be one that I could drive without having a heart attack if a speck of dust gets on it. I plan to go to as many cruises and shows as I can this summer so that I can not only enjoy my own car, but others' also.

 

[Shamrock289]

Here's some constructive criticism/ideas.

The exterior looks alright, I would have went with chrome wheels since you've kept all of the chrome trim pieces, I just think it would match up better than painted wheels. I would get a billet aluminum gas cap and fully polish it to match the chrome and get some of those new headlights that have a clear lens and chrome backing. Other than that, leave the exterior alone. The paint and stripes are good and the wheels fill the wells just right.

As for interior, it is the same as the exterior, you should always have a primary, secondary, and accent color. Right now you have a primary (black) and accent (chrome). The secondary color should of course be blue. I would get the seats recovered and have blue inserts put in the with the rest black. On the door panels, I would do inside the chrome rim with blue, but outside the trim, keep black. Doing the entire door panel in blue would be too much. Also, keep the arm rest on the doors black, to help break up the blue. Finally, build a console. Easiest way would be to make it out of wood. Use a router on all the edges to round them off, then just use glue and staples to cover i in vinyl. Unless you've worked with vinyl before, be prepared to tear all of it off the first one you do and recover it. You can put things like cup holders, storage compartment, TV, etc. in it.

On to the engine bay. Smooth it out and repaint it. The simplest way would be go back with flat black. Hide as many wires as you can. You might have to cut them and extend them, but try running anything you can through the fenders, wheel wells, wherever. The ones you can't hide, cover with black wire loom. Don't use blue or chrome or anything, you don't want wiring to stand out. Paint your coolant tank and lid black. Get some sort of battery cover. As for everything else, remember this, when you comes to engine bays, either polish it, paint it, or plate it. That means everything should have something done to it. If something has a rough finish (i.e. alternator) polish it to a smooth finish, then paint it. And like others have mentioned throw a chrome export brace and monte carlo bar on there. A lot of engine detailing is less about money and more about elbow grease and hard work.

If you shop around and do a lot of work yourself, you can do all of that for right around 2k. Sounds like a lot, but if you spread it out over time (which if you do a lot of it yourself, it will take some time), it won't be as bad.

That should give you some ideas and it's just what I would do. So take it for what it's worth.

 

[Shamrock]

Here's some constructive criticism/ideas.

The exterior looks alright, I would have went with chrome wheels since you've kept all of the chrome trim pieces, I just think it would match up better than painted wheels. I would get a billet aluminum gas cap and fully polish it to match the chrome and get some of those new headlights that have a clear lens and chrome backing. Other than that, leave the exterior alone. The paint and stripes are good and the wheels fill the wells just right.

As for interior, it is the same as the exterior, you should always have a primary, secondary, and accent color. Right now you have a primary (black) and accent (chrome). The secondary color should of course be blue. I would get the seats recovered and have blue inserts put in the with the rest black. On the door panels, I would do inside the chrome rim with blue, but outside the trim, keep black. Doing the entire door panel in blue would be too much. Also, keep the arm rest on the doors black, to help break up the blue. Finally, build a console. Easiest way would be to make it out of wood. Use a router on all the edges to round them off, then just use glue and staples to cover i in vinyl. Unless you've worked with vinyl before, be prepared to tear all of it off the first one you do and recover it. You can put things like cup holders, storage compartment, TV, etc. in it.

On to the engine bay. Smooth it out and repaint it. The simplest way would be go back with flat black. Hide as many wires as you can. You might have to cut them and extend them, but try running anything you can through the fenders, wheel wells, wherever. The ones you can't hide, cover with black wire loom. Don't use blue or chrome or anything, you don't want wiring to stand out. Paint your coolant tank and lid black. Get some sort of battery cover. As for everything else, remember this, when you comes to engine bays, either polish it, paint it, or plate it. That means everything should have something done to it. If something has a rough finish (i.e. alternator) polish it to a smooth finish, then paint it. And like others have mentioned throw a chrome export brace and monte carlo bar on there. A lot of engine detailing is less about money and more about elbow grease and hard work.

If you shop around and do a lot of work yourself, you can do all of that for right around 2k. Sounds like a lot, but if you spread it out over time (which if you do a lot of it yourself, it will take some time), it won't be as bad.

That should give you some ideas and it's just what I would do. So take it for what it's worth.

Well, it seems my old SN still works and I didn't need this new one.

 

[a.vannoy]

Great looking car, I like it just the way it is. Individuality and owners prefrence is what really counts, I say go with what fit your bank book and makes you happy.

 

[xj220]

I actually don't mind the cowl. Sometimes the older Stangs (especially the fastbacks) look a little flat in the hood area so the cowl adds dimension. Your car man, do your thing.

 

[Mike Erickson]

fastback

Hey,
Don't worry about all the negative feedback.
Half the people giving thier 2 cents prob don't
have a car that looks half as good.
I'ts amazing to me that so many people refuse
to be individuals when it comes to a classic mustang.
The last thing I wan't is to make mine look like every
other boring (seen it in the mags a thousand times) rides.
As far as how your car looks, It's got a great look.
The wheels are not too large, they fit very well. I may have even tried to fit larger on the rear if it was mine.
Half the melons I see put the same old factory stock whitewall bias ply
turds on. BOOOORING!!
I agree that you need some work on the seats and some parts
under the hood. A nice set of polished alum. valve covers would go a long way. If you keep up the way you are going you will be able use more of
that speedo and tach combo.

"Nice ride" good to see someone that isn't afraid to modernize.

 

[TomP]

My 2 cents, and just stop me when i've used it up...

Chrome Bullitt wheels look awful, i like them just as pictured. Spacers?? Naaaa... there is a far better way. Use a 67-70 rear end, bolts right in and is an inch each side wider, no spacers! 8" wheels on the front of a 65-66 look like Bigfoot with lowering blocks, they can be narrowed down to 7" reducing backspacing to eliminate spacers also. I'm doing just that on a customers car right now.

 

[Shamrock]

Chrome Bullitt wheels look awful, i like them just as pictured.

I never said I would prefer chrome Bullitts. There's other chrome wheels out there.

 

[mudcat]

i like the sumbeech.

"you just shot an unarmed man!"
"he should have armed himself if he's gonna decorate his saloon with my friend."