Some of us are just fearless when it comes to buying cars. Devoted, daily eBay shoppers always look for that great deal. Some of you are like us: We look, but like Mama always told us, we don't touch. Some of you are like Bob Julian. You find a great deal, fly from Chicago to Dallas, just to buy a car, and drive it all the way back. This fearless tenacity is not only what attracted us to Bob, but also how he has managed to give that feel to his '65 Sapphire Blue Pearl fastback.
Bob made a deal with the previous owner on a car he had just found on the Internet. "He assured me that the car was rust-free. I guess that meant he was not charging me any extra for the rust. The car was in fair condition with some need of TLC."
The engine was not correct, and the paint was wrong. So the two-year project began in the roped-off stall of Bob's manufacturing company. "The car is an 'A' code and it did have a factory air-conditioning unit. It was installed completely wrong; none of the holes were in the right place. There wasn't even a condensation drain hole. It just dripped on the carpet." This problem led him to the floorpans. "They looked and felt solid from underneath, but when I pulled the carpet back, I found fiberglass patches on both floorpans." The fiberglass had created a corrosive environment where rust and water could work at the car. After everything was assessed, Bob replaced the inner fender panel, battery tray, both floorpans, and patched some areas in the trunk. With the rust problem gone and the primer sprayed, the Mustang was ready to be resurrected.
"I have to say that the first comment out of almost everyone's mouth is 'nice color', or 'nice paint'. Actually, my wife ,Teri, picked the color and it has turned out to be one of the best features of the car."
The fastback was treated to a dazzling Sapphire Blue Pearl clearcoat, from a '01 Dodge Dakota. The Mustang looks clean with the exclusion of all the emblems, except for the "F-O-R-D" on the hood. The front grille is set off with the wire chrome grille, and the back window has some help from a Shelby R-style plexi-glass specially tinted window, giving the car an extra touch of individuality. For the interior, Bob kept all the colors flowing with the custom two-tone bucket seats out of a Toyota Celica GT. The spare tire has its place center stage-on the rear-seat-delete deck, which is hiding two PPL amps, two Bazooka bass tubes and a PPL x-over equalizer being fed tunes from an Alpine CD changer slipped away in the trunk.
This daily driver packs a whopping punch with the 340hp 302 under the hood, powered by the standard C4 transmission, a new and improved shift kit feeds power through the 8-inch rear axle to the Torque Thrust "D" wheels wrapped with BFGoodrich rubber. With upgrades always on his mind, Bob will be adding a Holley Power Charger, an AOD transmission, a 9-inch rearend with 3:55 rear gears, disk brakes, and free-flowing mufflers that don't drown out the radio. After that, we figure Bob will bring this car beyond resurrection, right up to perfection.