Bill and Darlene Clasen live in Sparks, Nevada, and they have owned this extensively modified '67 Mustang coupe for 23 years now, and by this time the car seems like one of the family. For the first 11 years of their ownership, the coupe was stored under wraps on the side of their house and was little more than a bare shell. Then, Bill got motivated and worked on the car over a period of four years, finally getting the Mustang up and running. He would take it apart again, sometimes for more modifications and sometimes for paint. Then one day Bill and Darlene got to talking and decided that they wanted their Mustang to be different than anyone else's. This is how the purple and yellow paint scheme came into being. Different it certainly is, and possibly not everyone's cup of tea; but we're not here to judge, as modified (in all manners) Mustangs are what make the hobby interesting to all walks of life.
Bill and his brother disassembled the car once again. This time they went through the coupe with a fine-tooth comb perfecting the bodywork. Then, using materials from House of Color, they applied the outrageous purple hue. Bill has always been interested in drag racing, and his original intention was to build a competitive car for the quarter-mile dragstrip. This explains the equipment that was chosen for the project. From the Windsor-based 427 stroker engine to the Chris Alston Battle Cruiser ladder bars, it looked like the dragstrip was the ultimate destination for the car.
As time went on and with the drag racing possibilities clear, something else began to happen. Bill and Darlene started to take the car to shows where it generated a lot of interest. Soon their focus became getting their car clean enough to really shine at the various shows, and the result is the car you see here. While the extreme powerplant remains, the car isn't really used for the drag racing that it's outfitted for, and has never made the quarter-mile journey down the track. When the day came for the quarter-mile run, Darlene decided she didn't want to risk a dent in her husband. The day at the digs has been postponed indefinitely. Bill estimated that the car should be good for elapsed times in the mid to upper 10-second range.
So, instead of being used as a racer, the car stands as a pristinely clean example of a truly modified Mustang and the coupe was outfitted with all of the required equipment to be street legal and was then registered as such. As time went on they began to clean and chrome components more and more to enhance the show potential of the coupe. The interior was also refurbished to match the unusual color scheme found on the exterior. After several years, Bill and Darlene report that, indeed their Mustang has accrued a healthy collection of trophies. The car now leads a pampered existence, living under cover in an enclosed garage. They say that every year some new change or modification gets done to the Mustang to make it, "even more interesting," and we'd say that they've got the nicest example of a Mustang Pro Street show car that we've seen lately. We'd like to congratulate both Bill and Darlene for their extraordinary effort and on this outstanding result.
The Details
Bill and Darlene Clasen's
'67 Mustang coupe
Engine
- 427ci Windsor
- Ford SVO four-bolt block with roller cam bearings
- 4.00-inch bore
- 4.25-inch stroke
- Callies billet steel crankshaft, balanced, lightened, and knife-edged
- Eagle ESP H-beam rods, 6.250-inch length
- BME forged aluminum pistons
- Total Seal rings
- 12.5:1 compression ratio
- World Products cast-iron cylinder heads, ported, polished, and flowed
- 2.05-inch intake, 1.60-inch exhaust valves
- Comp Cams solid roller camshaft, 0.702-inch lift, 272-degress duration at 0.050-inch, 110-degree lobe separation
- Crower 1.6:1roller rocker arms
- Edelbrock Victor Jr. aluminum intake manifold
- Holley 950-cfm competition four-barrel carburetor
- Mallory Comp 9000 distributor
- K&N air cleaner
- Trunk-mounted Optima battery
- Fuel Safe fuel cell
- 600 hp, 650 lb-ft torque
- Engine built by Hewes Performance Machine, Reno, Nevada
Transmission
- C4 three-speed automatic
- Built by Schneider Performance, Grass Valley, California
- 3,500-rpm stall speed 10-inch torque converter by Schneider Performance
- Shift improvement kit by Schneider Performance
- B&M shifter
Rearend
- 9-inch axle narrowed to 44 5/8 inches
- Nodular-iron case
- Strange spool
- Strange 4.86 gears
- 35-spline axles
Exhaust
- Hedman long-tube headers, 1 5/8-inch primaries, 3 1/2-inch collectors
- 3-inch dual exhaust system
- Flowmaster two-chamber mufflers
- Complete system Jet Hot coated
- Side exit in front of rear wheels
Suspension
- Front: Stock Mustang, chrome plated; Competition Engineering shocks
- Rear: Chris Alston 2x3 custom rear framerails, wheeltubs, ladder bars, Koni shocks
Brakes
- Front: 11-inch disc, single-piston caliper
- Rear: 11-inch drum
Wheels
- Front: Centerline Warrior, 15x3.5
- Rear: Centerline Warrior, 15x14
Tires
- Front: Hoosier, 135R15
- Rear: Hoosier Pro Street, 29x18.5x15
Interior
- Chris Alston rollcage, black and purple carpet, black with yellow flame trim, Sube Sport Cobra bucket seats, Grant steering wheel, Auto Meter gauges in stock gauge housing, B&M shifter, RJS five-point seatbelts
Exterior
- House of Color purple polyurethane paint, Unlimited products fiberglass Pro Stock hood, yellow flame graphics
The careful attention to detail...
The careful attention to detail was even carried over into the trunk area, which also sports the yellow flame theme on the carpeted trunk interior. The Optima battery mounted in the rear makes sense from a traction standpoint as well as for cleaning up the underhood area. The stock fuel tank has been replaced with a Fuel Safe racing fuel cell. The cell has an internal bladder as an extra precaution against fuel leakage in the event of a mishap.
The carefully polished intake...
The carefully polished intake manifold, alternator, and water pump look clean enough to eat off of. Chrome abounds for additional shine and even the carburetor, engine block, and plug wires fit into the purple and yellow theme. The yellow flame graphic was even carried over to the underside of the hood, and the reflection of the flame job can be seen in the billet air-cleaner lid.
Bill and Darlene certainly...
Bill and Darlene certainly fulfilled their objective of creating a Mustang different from anybody else's. The Pro Street demeanor and outrageous paint put the show-racer in a special category all its own. Clearly traction issues shouldn't be a problem with the huge Hoosier tires out back.
The interior on this car has...
The interior on this car has all the accoutrements of a full racer, including a rollcage. A huge Auto Meter tach dominates the scene and is complemented by a complete set of Auto Meter gauges monitoring every engine function. A B&M floor shifter completes the business end of the look. For added show, the yellow flame theme is carried over onto the door panels and all exposed metal areas received the prominent purple treatment. Purple and yellow floor mats add to the cohesive show-racer theme. Five-point seatbelts from RJS Racing Equipment complete the racer-themed interior.